A cricketer legacy is defined by the number of games he has played for his country as much as the wickets or runs he has scored.
It’s because longevity matters in this sport and a player attains greatness when he/she plays for a long time. It signifies their importance to the side.
While this for the longer run, the proportion of matches they play for a team in any given year defines their importance, irrespective of the format. Hence the important metric to see is the number of games a player represented the national team across formats in a calendar year.
Most Matches Played in a Calendar Year (All Formats)
| Player | Total Matches | Tests | ODIs | T20Is | YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rahul Dravid (IND) | 53 | 10 | 43 | – | 1999 |
| Mohammad Yousuf (PAK) | 53 | 12 | 41 | – | 2000 |
| MS Dhoni (IND) | 53 | 8 | 37 | 8 | 2007 |
| Lance Klusener (SA) | 52 | 11 | 41 | – | 2000 |
| Paul Collingwood (ENG) | 52 | 11 | 33 | 8 | 2007 |
| Angelo Mathews (SL) | 52 | 11 | 32 | 9 | 2014 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 51 | 12 | 39 | – | 1997 |
| Sourav Ganguly (IND) | 51 | 10 | 41 | – | 1999 |
| Michael Hussey (AUS) | 51 | 13 | 33 | 5 | 2009 |
| Kumar Sangakkara (SL) | 51 | 10 | 31 | 10 | 2012 |
Key Takeaways:
21 times, a player has featured in 50 or more international games across formats in a calendar year. Kumar Sangakkara (3) is the only player in history who has played 50-plus international games in a calendar year more than once.
8 other times a player played 49 matches in a calendar year. Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka has finished in 49 games in a year twice.
Rahul Dravid in 1999, Mohammad Yousuf in 2000, and MS Dhoni in 2007 lead the pack with the most international games in a calendar year. Each of them had represented 53 times for their respective teams in that year. It is to be noted that Dhoni played a few ODI games for the Asian XI in the year 2007.
Read: When Mohammad Yousuf made 2006 his own!
In recent times, Daryll Mitchell of New Zealand has played 51 games in 2023. This is the most in the current decade followed by 48 international outings by Shubman Gill, V Aravind of UAE in the same year and Kusal Mendis in 2024. Shubman Gill top-scored that year!
Sangakkara has scored the most number of runs in a calendar year. He made a whopping 2868 runs in 57 innings in the year 2013. Find who came close to beat this feat.
Similarly Muthiah Muralitharan has taken the most wickets in a calendar across formats. The ace spinner snapped a shattering 136 wickets in 45 games in the year 2001.
Read: India’s Records in ICC Tournament Knockout Round Matches
