{"id":659741,"date":"2025-12-28T12:51:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T12:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/659741\/"},"modified":"2025-12-28T12:51:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T12:51:10","slug":"odi-team-of-the-year-2025-best-playing-xi-of-2025-in-mens-odi-cricket","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/659741\/","title":{"rendered":"ODI team of the year 2025: Best playing XI of 2025 in men&#8217;s ODI cricket"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The 2025 calendar year in men\u2019s ODI cricket closed with a clear sense of direction. Major tournaments shaped narratives, individual comebacks stole headlines, and consistency across conditions separated the good from the elite.<\/p>\n<p>India\u2019s nine-wicket win over South Africa in Visakhapatnam on December 6 not only sealed a 2\u20131 series victory, but also marked the final men\u2019s ODI of the year.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.sportingnews.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Add The Sporting News as a preferred news source<\/a><\/p>\n<p>That result summed up 2025 neatly, a year where adaptability, big-match impact, and sustained performance mattered as much as raw numbers.<\/p>\n<p>With the Champions Trophy completed, bilateral series wrapped up, and the final stats locked in, here\u2019s a data-driven look at the best men\u2019s ODI XI of 2025, selected on form, influence, and balance.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cricketnews.com\/en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Visit Cricket News for all the latest cricket coverage and opinion<\/a><\/p>\n<p>ODI team of the year 2025<\/p>\n<p><strong>Best playing XI of 2025 in men&#8217;s ODI cricket:<\/strong> Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Daryl Mitchell, Matthew Breetzke, Axar Patel, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Jayden Seales, Jofra Archer.<\/p>\n<p>Rohit Sharma (Captain, Opener)<\/p>\n<p>Rohit\u2019s year blended leadership with big-match runs. He led India to Champions Trophy glory and consistently set the tone at the top, producing defining innings against top sides under pressure.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 14 matches | 14 inns | 650 runs | Avg 50.00 | HS 121*<\/p>\n<p>Quinton de Kock (Wicketkeeper, Opener)<\/p>\n<p>De Kock\u2019s return from retirement proved decisive for South Africa. He combined clean striking with composure, delivering match-winning hundreds and re-establishing himself among the world\u2019s best ODI openers.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 6 matches | 6 inns | 353 runs | Avg 70.60 | HS 123*<\/p>\n<p>Virat Kohli (No. 3)<\/p>\n<p>Kohli rebounded from early setbacks to dominate the middle of the year. His ability to absorb pressure and convert starts into hundreds once again defined India\u2019s ODI batting backbone.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 13 matches | 13 inns | 651 runs | Avg 65.10 | HS 135<\/p>\n<p>Joe Root (No. 4)<\/p>\n<p>Root was the most prolific run-scorer in ODIs in 2025. Batting at No.4, he anchored England\u2019s innings across conditions, combining stability with timely acceleration.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 15 matches | 15 inns | 808 runs | Avg 57.71 | HS 166*<\/p>\n<p>Daryl Mitchell (No. 5)<\/p>\n<p>Mitchell\u2019s consistency stood out in a crowded middle-order field. He delivered runs across continents, often rescuing New Zealand from difficult situations.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 17 matches | 16 inns | 761 runs | Avg 54.35 | HS 119<\/p>\n<p>Matthew Breetzke (No. 6)<\/p>\n<p>Breetzke announced himself on the global stage with a remarkable debut year. His fearless approach and ability to play long innings made him one of 2025\u2019s breakout ODI batters.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 12 matches | 12 inns | 706 runs | Avg 64.18 | HS 150<\/p>\n<p>Axar Patel (All-rounder)<\/p>\n<p>Axar provided balance through reliable lower-order runs and disciplined left-arm spin. His contributions often came in high-pressure moments, especially during India\u2019s title run.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 11 matches | 10 inns | 290 runs | Avg 36.25 | HS 52<\/p>\n<p>Mitchell Santner (Spin-bowling all-rounder)<\/p>\n<p>Santner offered control in the middle overs while chipping in with the bat. His wicket-taking ability without leaking runs made him invaluable in modern ODI conditions.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 17 matches | 17 inns | 25 wkts | Avg 26.84 | BBI 3\/41<\/p>\n<p>Matt Henry (Fast bowler)<\/p>\n<p>Henry was the standout ODI bowler of the year. Leading the pace attack, he consistently struck early and finished strong, ending 2025 as the format\u2019s top wicket-taker.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 13 matches | 13 inns | 31 wkts | Avg 18.58 | BBI 5\/42<\/p>\n<p>Jayden Seales (Fast bowler)<\/p>\n<p>Seales combined pace with control, producing several game-defining spells. His six-wicket haul against Pakistan underlined his ability to dominate ODI batting line-ups.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 12 matches | 11 inns | 27 wkts | Avg 18.14 | BBI 6\/18<\/p>\n<p>Jofra Archer (Fast bowler)<\/p>\n<p>Despite limited appearances, Archer\u2019s impact was unmistakable. His pace, bounce, and accuracy made him a constant threat whenever he took the field.<\/p>\n<p>Stats: 9 matches | 9 inns | 18 wkts | Avg 22.44 | BBI 4\/18<\/p>\n<p>Related links:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2025 calendar year in men\u2019s ODI cricket closed with a clear sense of direction. Major tournaments shaped&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":659742,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4101],"tags":[1406,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-659741","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cricket","8":"tag-cricket","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115797287807330701","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=659741"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/659741\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/659742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=659741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=659741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=659741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}