Smriti Mandhana, Temba Bavuma only cricketers in TIME’s 2026 Most Influential People in Sports list

NEW DELHI: India’s women’s cricket team player Smriti Mandhana and South Africa’s Test team captain, Temba Bavuma, became the only cricketers to feature in TIME magazine’s ‘The 100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026′ list published earlier this month. The inclusion in the prestigious list highlights both cricketers’ impact on the global cricketing arena.

Charlie Campbell, editor-at-large at TIME, highlighted Smriti Mandhana’s record-breaking career, noting that she became the first Indian woman to score a domestic ODI double century and the first woman to register international centuries in all three formats. He also pointed to her tally of 17 international centuries, which is the most in women’s cricket.

Campbell further underlined her leadership achievements, including captaining Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to Women’s Premier League (WPL) titles in 2024 and 2026 and playing a key role as vice-captain in India’s ICC Women’s World Cup triumph in 2025.

ICYMI

Relive some glorious shots from Captain @ImHarmanpreet and Vice-Captain @mandhana_smriti

Scorecard https://t.co/B6n070iLqu#TeamIndia | #INDvNZ | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/XGCKmfesyk

— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) October 29, 2024

“The records keep tumbling in for Smriti Mandhana. The Mumbai-born left-handed opening batter was the first Indian woman to score a double century in a domestic one-day game, the first to score a century in all three international formats, and is a joint holder of the most international women’s cricket centuries with 17. Mandhana is also the first woman to score more than 1,000 one-day international runs in a calendar year. But Mandhana is proudest of the team honors she is also accumulating,” Campbell wrote as per the TIME’s website.

“She captained the Royal Challengers Bangalore to the 2024 and 2026 Women’s Premier League titles and was vice captain for India’s triumph at last year’s ICC Women’s World Cup, scoring the second-most runs in the tournament. In 2024, Mandhana set the record for most international runs across formats by a woman and then beat her own record last year–a feat that contributed to her being crowned BBC Indian Sportswoman of 2025,” Campbell wrote further.

Temba Bavuma, on the other hand, has been highlighted by Campbell for carrying significant historical and social expectations as one of the few black South African cricketers. Campbell highlighted Bavuma’s major milestones, including becoming the first Black South African to score a Test century in 2016 and the first Black captain of the national team in 2021.

Campbell also noted his leadership success in 2025, when Bavuma guided South Africa to a historic Test series win in India and an unbeaten World Test Championship triumph over Australia.

“Temba Bavuma has always carried more than the weight of his shirt. As one of just a handful of Black South African cricketers, his successes were lauded as a turning point for the sport. But any setbacks were never merely his own. Fortunately, Bavuma has enjoyed many more successes than setbacks. In 2016, he became the first Black South African to hit a century (scoring 100 or more runs in an inning), and five years later he was his nation’s first Black captain,” Campbell wrote.

“Last year, Bavuma led South Africa to a historic Test series win in India as well as victory in the World Test Championship (WTC), besting a heavily favored Australia in the final and emerging from the tournament undefeated. It was South Africa’s first international title since 1998 and owed much to Bavuma’s heroic 66 runs in the final despite his being hobbled by a hamstring strain. “It was that moment there to be recognized as more than just a Black African cricketer,” Bavuma told journalists following the WTC. “And I hope that it continues to inspire our country,” Campbell wrote further.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) congratulated Bavuma on being named in TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in Sports list, calling it a prestigious honour. They highlighted his inspirational leadership and his role in guiding South Africa to the ICC World Test Championship title in 2025, praising him as a leader who continues to inspire the nation.

“A Prestigious Honour. #TheProteas captain, Temba Bavuma, has been named in TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in Sports. Recognised for his inspirational leadership and for guiding South Africa to the ICC World Test Championship title in June 2025. A fitting tribute to a leader who continues to inspire a nation,” CSA said in an X post. (ANI)