Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis and Muthiah Muralidaran have been recognised as the greatest men's international cricketers of the 21st century by an all-star panel of current and former players for the Cricinfo Honours, a press release from ESPN Cricinfo confirmed.
Tendulkar was selected as the greatest batter, Muralidaran as the greatest bowler, and Kallis as the greatest all-round cricketer for their performances in international formats from 2000 to 2025. Australia’s Ellyse Perry received the award as the greatest women’s international cricketer of the century.
The awards concluded the release of the top 25 greatest men’s internationals on Cricinfo, determined by votes from a 25-member jury featuring Wasim Akram, Greg Chappell, Faf du Plessis, Matthew Hayden, Angelo Mathews, Tom Moody, Eoin Morgan, Ravi Shastri, Daniel Vettori and Shane Watson.
The top five men's internationals included Virat Kohli at number three and Ricky Ponting at number five alongside Kallis, Tendulkar and Muralidaran. Active players Joe Root (No. 9), Jasprit Bumrah (No. 15), Kane Williamson (No. 16) and Mitchell Starc (No. 17) also featured in the top 25.
Tendulkar is the most prolific scorer across formats in cricket history and tops the list of run-scorers in both Tests and One Day Internationals (ODIs). He holds records for the most hundreds and fifties in Tests, the most fifties in ODIs, and until recently had the highest number of hundreds in ODIs.
Kallis is ranked alongside Garry Sobers as one of the greatest all-rounders ever. He scored 13,289 runs and took 292 wickets in Tests, ranking fourth among all-time Test run-scorers. Kallis recalled South Africa's consecutive Test series victories in Australia (2008-09 and 2012-13) and England (2008 and 2012) as personal highlights. He singled out his unbeaten 201 against India in Centurion in 2010 and his match-saving 101 against Australia in Melbourne in 1997 as standout innings.
Muralidaran concluded his career in 2010 with exactly 800 Test wickets at an average of under 23 and was a key figure in Sri Lanka's dominance during the 2000s.
Reflecting on receiving the Cricinfo Honours award, Tendulkar said: “I started playing cricket as a three-year-old and, like any other kid, enjoyed the game. What makes it even more special is that the players I’ve played with and against are part of the jury and they thought I was the appropriate name to receive this, and I’m very, very humbled by that. I really appreciate it. It’s even more special because there were a number of doubters who challenged me, but at the same time there were a number of backers who, in their own way, challenged me too and that pushed me harder than ever to keep up to the level I aspired to. I accept this with humility and gratitude. Thank you so very much to Cricinfo jury and all fans.”
In the T20 category, AB de Villiers was named best batter and Jasprit Bumrah best bowler. De Villiers ended his T20 career with just under 9,500 runs at a strike rate of 150, playing a crucial role for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Bumrah, a two-time T20 World Cup winner with India and five-time IPL champion with Mumbai Indians, has taken 349 wickets in 283 matches at an economy rate of under seven runs per over.
De Villiers stated: “I would like to thank the Cricinfo jury and the fans for this award. There are quite a few players who are equally capable of winning this, so I am incredibly grateful to the jury for selecting me this time and making this award truly special. It has been a long time since I last caught up with the fellow cricketers present here, and I’m glad such events allow us all to reconnect.”
Bumrah remarked: “This one means a lot. 25 years, a jury of legends and to be named among the 25 greatest men cricketers of the era is really great. I want to thank the Cricinfo jury and everyone who followed this game so closely. Cricket has given me everything and it has taught me my valuable life lessons. Thank you Cricinfo. This is truly special.”
Muralidaran added: “I am truly humbled to receive this prestigious award from Cricinfo. I’d like to extend my heartiest congratulations to all the other worthy recipients celebrating their incredible success. Thank you so much to Cricinfo for this honour.”
In women’s cricket, Perry highlighted the 2020 T20 World Cup final in Melbourne, which Australia won their fifth title, as a career highlight despite not playing in the match herself. She said: “It was a real moment and also a nod to the foundations that had been laid for women’s cricket and every person that had worked hard for women’s cricket and fought for its development that day.”
Perry's Test statistics include a batting average over 60 and a bowling average under 20. She described her Ashes performances against England as particularly memorable, including taking six wickets for 39 runs in the fourth innings at Canterbury in 2015 and a remarkable all-round display in Perth in 2014, where she scored 71 and 31 and took eight wickets for 79 runs.