Chris Gayle

A thrusting Jamaican left-hander, Gayle earned himself a black mark on his first senior tour - to England in 2000 - where the new boys were felt to be insufficiently respectful of their elders. But a lack of respect, for opposition bowlers at least, has served Gayle well since then. Tall and imposing at the crease, he loves to carve through the covers off either foot, and has the ability to decimate the figures of even the thriftiest of opening bowlers. And in this era of Twenty20 cricket, Gayle is the batsman who has thrived like no other.

Playing role: Allrounder
Batting style: Left-hand bat
Bowling style: Right-arm offbreak

Current ODI Ranking: 57
Highest Ranking:  1 - ( 25/02/2004 )
Highest score: 333 (Tests) 215 (ODIs) 117 (T20Is)
Best bowling: 6/81 (Tests) 5/46 (ODIs) 2/15 (T20Is)
Last three performances: 3 runs – 2/21, 215 runs – 2/35, 4 runs

Virat Kohli

A typical modern-day cricketer, Virat Kohli plays his game aggressively, bares his emotions loudly in public, yet retains the element of maturity that forms an integral part of every good and great player. Anil Kumble said he had thought hard before calling Kohli the best under-22 player in international cricket - that would rate as perhaps the best compliments he has received. It is also proof of Kohli's transformation as a player.

Playing role: Middle-order batsman
Batting style: Right-hand bat
Bowling style: Right-arm medium

Current ODI Ranking: 3
Highest Ranking: 1 - (30/10/2013)
Highest score: 169 (Tests) 183 (ODIs) 78* (T20Is)
Best bowling:  1/15 (ODIs) 1/13(T20Is)
Last three performances: 33* runs, 46 runs, 107 runs