Best Breakaway Cricket Stars of 2015

There are just two months left to go for 2015 to come to an end, and this is the time when everyone looks back to think about all that has transpired in the year. It has been quite an eventful year for cricket too, be it Australia’s 5th World Cup win or Bangladesh’s emergence as a cricketing force to reckon with.This year has also seen the advent of several young cricketers who have shown a lot of promise in terms of becoming superstars of the future in world cricket. Here is a list of some of the best breakaway young cricketers of 2015:

#5 Soumya Sarkar (Bangladesh)

The young Bangladeshi batsman averages above 50 in ODIs this year

Young Soumya Sarkar has been one of the driving forces behind Bangladesh’s super successful run in One Day Internationals in the recent past. This is why he makes it to our list of best breakaway stars of 2015. His elegance with the bat in hand reminds one of a young Sourav Ganguly, particularly the way in which he threads the ball through the offside. He has also developed his own aggresive tactics against the short delivery and does not miss out on employing them whenever the opportunity is provided by the bowlers.

Very few Bangladeshi batsmen have made such an impact on world cricket, especially so early on in their careers. It will be interesting to see if he can continue in the same vein and become the flag bearer of the Bangladesh team in the years to come.

#4 Ben Stokes (England)

Ben Stokes has been among the best allrounders of 2015

There has always been a buzz around the English cricket scene about Ben Stokes being the next Andrew Flintoff. And the way things have transpired so far for him this year, particularly during the Ashes, there is ample proof that it may just turn out to be true. With 681 runs and 23 wickets in the 12 Tests he has played in 2015, he has easily been one of the top allrounders in world cricket.

The best bit for Stokes has been the fact that he has delivered the goods just at the right time with both bat and ball, pulling his team out of many a tricky situation. However, how he performs outside his home conditions will be a deciding factor in determining whether he will become a great servant for English cricket or not.

#3 Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh)

The young Bangladesh medium pacer made a mockery out of the famed Indian batting line-up

We have all heard a lot about mystery spinners in the past, but what if there was a mystery seamer? Well, the year 2015 saw the emergence of one from a resurgent Bangladesh side and his name is Mustafizur Rahman. It was not about the fact that he took heaps of wickets, 13 to be precise, in a 3-match ODI series against a strong Indian contingent; what mattered was the manner in which he bamboozled the Indian batsmen and coerced them into getting out.

After just 6 ODIs and 2 Tests, it may be a little too early to predict how the rest of Rahman’s career will pan out. But if he continues to fox the batters in the way that he has done so far, he is surely on course to become the best Bangaldesh has ever had.

#2 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa)

Rabada celebrates the wicket of MS Dhoni in the 1st ODI of the India-SA series

There has got yo be something special about a bowler who can stop one of the best finishers the game has seen, MS Dhoni, from doing what he does best. Getting 6 wickets, including a hat-trick on debut, is a record that even the legends would envy and South African bowling sensation Kagiso Rabada is a proud owner of it. His figures of 6 for 16 against Bangladesh this year are the best by any bowler on ODI debut, and he is also only the second bowler after Bangladesh spinner Taijul Islam to claim a hat-trick on debut.

His lively pace and great control make him an ideal foil to the likes of Steyn and Morkel in the 50-over format and it looks likely that he will soon be in contention for a spot in the Proteas Test side as well. Only time will tell how Rabada’s career pans out in the future, but by what we have seen so far, he looks to be going a long way.

#1 Yasir Shah (Pakistan)

The Pakistani leg spinner has been the second highest wicket taker in Tests this year

The man who will be heading many a list by the end of this year makes it to the top of our list of the best breakaway stars of 2015. The stats say it all for the young Pakistani leg-spinner as he looks to put an end to his team’s spin woes in the longer format of the game. His performance has been nothing short of incredible this year as he has claimed 42 wickets in just 6 Tests at an average of 23.42, and this includes 3 five-wicket hauls.

He has been one of the major reasons behind Pakistan’s highly successful run in Test matches thus far in 2015. If he can replicate his current form in the years to come, Pakistan may have found a worthy successor for the Saqlain Mushtaq and the Mushtaq Ahmed who were so integral to their scheme of things not so long ago.