Sri Lankan player Dasun Shanaka has the most ducks in T20I cricket. He has gotten out 14 times for zero runs.
Ducks in T20 cricket matter because teams only get 20 overs to score runs. But they also make the game exciting, as cricket fans like watching how players come back from these bad moments.
In this article, I’ll show you which players have the most ducks in T20I cricket, tell you why this happens, and share the new records from 2025.
What is a Duck in Cricket?
A duck happens when a batsman gets out without scoring any runs. The word comes from the number zero, looking like a duck’s egg.
When you walk back to the pavilion with zero next to your name, it hurts your feelings and your team’s chances.
In T20I cricket, getting out for a duck feels bad because you have few overs to score runs.
Types of Ducks
These are the four types of ducks players face while playing cricket:
| Type of Duck | What It Means | Example Player/When It Happens |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Duck | Out on the first ball you face | Happens to players who try to hit big shots right away |
| Diamond Duck | Out without facing a ball (run out, etc.) | Rare – happens during quick runs or mix-ups |
| Platinum Duck | Out on the second/third ball, you face | Happens to opening batsmen when they feel nervous |
| Silver/Bronze | Out on the first ball you face | Used to show how quickly someone got out |
These duck types help cricket fans understand exactly how fast a batsman loses their wicket. It gives more details about how they failed at batting.
Top Players with Most Ducks in T20I
The players with the most ducks often tell stories of hitting hard, feeling pressure, and cricket numbers.
| Rank | Player | Country | Span | Innings | Runs | Ducks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dasun Shanaka | Sri Lanka | 2015-2025 | 102 | 1601 | 14 |
| 2 | Kevin Irakoze | Rwanda | 2021-2024 | 56 | 478 | 13 |
| 3 | Zappy Bimenyimana | Rwanda | 2021-2025 | 58 | 327 | 13 |
| 4 | Martin Akayezu | Rwanda | 2021-2025 | 79 | 590 | 13 |
| 5 | Soumya Sarkar | Bangladesh | 2015-2024 | 86 | 1462 | 13 |
| 6 | Paul Stirling | Ireland | 2009-2025 | 150 | 3710 | 13 |
| 7 | Chaloemwong Chatphaisan | Thailand | 2022-2025 | 45 | 601 | 12 |
| 8 | Kevin O’Brien | Ireland | 2008-2021 | 103 | 1973 | 12 |
| 9 | Rohit Sharma | India | 2007-2024 | 151 | 4231 | 12 |
| 10 | Daniel Anefie | Ghana | 2019-2023 | 28 | 246 | 11 |
| 11 | Mahmudullah | Bangladesh | 2008-2022 | 49 | 682 | 11 |
| 12 | Vikramjit Singh | Netherlands | 2019-2025 | 63 | 1191 | 11 |
| 13 | Pushpakumara | Sri Lanka | 2021-2025 | 71 | 788 | 11 |
| 14 | Ernest Kemigisha | Uganda | 2021-2024 | 81 | 1323 | 11 |
| 15 | Khadka Paras | Nepal | 2010-2025 | 65 | 566 | 10 |
| 16 | Kushal Bhurtel | Nepal | 2022-2025 | 74 | 1167 | 10 |
| 17 | Ian Bell | England | 2006-2016 | 79 | 1889 | 10 |
| 18 | Shane Watson | Australia | 2009-2019 | 79 | 1690 | 10 |
| 19 | Eoin Morgan | England | 2008-2025 | 93 | 2335 | 10 |
| 20 | Jonathan Campbell | Jersey | 2019-2025 | 31 | 83 | 9 |
Dasun Shanaka from Sri Lanka is first with 14 ducks. He has been a good all-rounder for Sri Lanka, helping with both batting and bowling over his career, even with his duck record.
Kevin Irakoze, Zappy Bimenyimana, and Martin Akayezu all have 13 ducks each. These players show Rwanda’s new start in world cricket since 2021. Their high duck numbers show how hard it is for new cricket countries to play against stronger teams.
Rohit Sharma is ninth with 12 ducks. This might surprise many fans, but Rohit has played 159 T20I matches, more than most players. His 12 ducks across these many games show he’s been steady for such a long career.
Playing Styles and Duck Patterns
Most players with many duck numbers fall into these groups:
- Hard-hitting Openers: Players like Paul Stirling and Rohit Sharma get ducks because they try to hit big shots from the first ball
- New Cricket Countries: Teams like Rwanda and Ghana face better bowlers, which leads to more getting out for zero
- All-rounders: Players like Dasun Shanaka often bat when the team needs quick runs, which is hard
- Players with Long Careers: Players get more ducks by playing more matches over many years
Top 5 Teams with Most Ducks in An Innings
Looking at team games, some innings have seen many players get out for ducks:
- Turkey vs the Czech Republic (2019) – 8 ducks in two innings
- Kenya vs New Zealand (2007) – 6 ducks in one innings
- Zimbabwe vs West Indies (2010) – 6 ducks in one innings
- Turkey vs Austria (2019) – 6 ducks in one innings
- Swaziland vs Uganda (2021) – 6 ducks in one innings
These things happen when teams face really good bowling or play in hard conditions.
New 2025 Records
Dasun Shanaka recently made the record of most ducks in T20I history during the Asia Cup 2025. This shows that duck records keep changing as players keep playing world cricket.
The 2025 season has also seen new cricket countries like Rwanda, Ghana, and Thailand adding to duck numbers as they get to play more world cricket.
A new record was set in the 2025 Asia Cup by Pakistani batsman Saim Ayub. In just six matches of the tournament, he was dismissed for a duck four times, a rare and unwanted record for any batsman at this level.
Despite his struggles with the bat during the tournament, Ayub remains a promising talent in Pakistan’s cricket setup.
His experience in the Asia Cup is a reminder that even skilled players can face challenging patches in high-pressure international events.
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Conclusion: Dasun Shanaka Has The Most Ducks In T20I Cricket
Ducks in T20I cricket show the hard side of batting and how unpredictable the sport is. While players like Dasun Shanaka and Kevin Irakoze have these records, they still keep playing world cricket, which shows they are strong.
Remember that even great players get ducks. What matters is how fast they come back.
These numbers remind us that cricket is a game where bad and good things happen together. Every duck makes the next time batting more critical.
FAQs
We don’t track this number as much, but fast bowlers and good new-ball bowlers usually get more duck dismissals because they can strike early when batsmen start batting.
About 8-12% of all T20I innings end in ducks, making it happen quite often compared to longer cricket games, where batsmen can take time to settle.
Wicket-keepers often bat later in the team and face fewer balls, which can mean fewer total ducks. But their duck rate per innings might be the same as other middle-order batsmen.
Yes, cricket history shows many examples of players coming back strongly. Being mentally strong is key – some players have scored match-winning fifties or centuries just days after being dismissed for ducks in earlier matches.
While we don’t widely publish exact consecutive duck records, some players have had 3-4 ducks in a row before breaking the streak with a good score.
