Paul Sterling, Kevin O'Brien headline unenvious list for most ducks in T20I cricket

The term ‘duck’ in cricket refers to a batter getting dismissed without scoring a single run in their innings. A golden duck, in extension, is when a batter gets dismissed on the first ball of his/her innings without troubling the scorers. 

There are generally eight different types of ducks in cricket. These are golden duck, silver duck, bronze duck, diamond duck, royal duck, laughing duck, pair and king pair. All types of ducks require the batter to get out without disturbing the scorers by scoring even a single run.

T20 cricket is a high-risk game, high-reward batting-friendly format. Batters need to accelerate from the very start. As a result, batters may get out for a duck early on in their innings more frequently in T20s than cricket’s other formats.

Ireland's Paul Sterling has registered the most ducks in T20I cricket. He has recorded 13 ducks in 131 matches.

The likes of Kevin O'Brien, Regis Chakabva, Soumya Sarkar, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Dasun Shanaka also feature on the unwanted list for most ducks in T20I cricket.

Among Indian cricketers, Rohit Sharma has the most ducks in T20I cricket. He has been dismissed 10 times for a duck in 148 T20 internationals so far.

Know the cricketers with most ducks in T20I cricket.

Most ducks in T20I cricket

Paul Sterling | Ireland | 13 ducks

Ireland cricketer Paul Sterling holds the record for the most ducks in T20I cricket. Since making his T20 international debut in the ICC T20 World Cup clash against Pakistan at The Oval in 2009, Paul Sterling has recorded 13 ducks in 131 matches so far. He surpassed his compatriot Kevin O’Brien after he was dismissed for a duck against India in the second T20I of a three-match series in Dublin in 2023.

Kevin O'Brien | Ireland | 12 ducks

Former Ireland cricketer Kevin O'Brien features second on the list for most ducks in T20I cricket. Between 2008 and 2021, Kevin O'Brien succumbed to 12 ducks in 110 matches. The former batting all-rounder finished his T20I career with 1,973 runs in 103 innings at an average of 21.21 and a strike rate of 130.92.

Regis Chakabva | Zimbabwe | 11 ducks

Zimbabwean cricketer Regis Chakabva is third on the unwanted list. The wicketkeeper-batter has often struggled to get going in T20 international cricket and has fallen for 11 ducks in just 49 matches. The right-handed batter has scored 682 runs in 49 innings at a below-par average of 14.51 and a strike rate of 122.44. His frequency of getting dismissed for ducks is worse than any other player on this list. 

Soumya Sarkar | Bangladesh | 11 ducks

Bangladesh’s Soumya Sarkar has the joint third-most ducks in T20I cricket. Just like Regis Chakabva, Soumya Sarkar has recorded 11 ducks but in 72 matches. The flamboyant left-handed batter has amassed 1,212 runs in 72 innings at an average of 17.56 and a strike rate of 122.42.

Tillakaratne Dilshan | Sri Lanka | 10 ducks

Former Sri Lankan cricketer Tillakaratne Dilshan features fifth on the list for most ducks in T20I cricket. The former swashbuckling opening batter was dismissed for a duck on 10 occasions in the T20 international format between 2006 and 2016. Dilshan managed 1,889 runs in 79 innings at an average of 28.19 and a strike rate of 120.54.

Photo credit: Alamy