Smriti Mandhana and Temba Bavuma have been included in TIME magazine’s “The 100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026”, released this week. They are the only cricketers on the list, which also features LeBron James, Mondo Duplantis, Hilary Knight, Lionel Messi and Victor Wembanyama. Both cricketers appear in the magazine’s “Titans” section.
TIME editor-at-large Charlie Campbell explains Mandhana’s selection neatly: “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. She captained the Royal Challengers Bangalore [Bengaluru] 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.”
Mandhana is currently in England for the T20 World Cup and began the tournament with a brisk 68 from 44 balls in India’s win over Pakistan. The left-hander has spoken only briefly about the TIME recognition, saying it is “lovely to see cricket rubbing shoulders with other sports on lists like these”.
Campbell is equally direct about Bavuma’s impact: “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.”
Last year Bavuma led South Africa to the World Test Championship title, defeating a strongly-fancied Australia in the final. Despite a hamstring strain, he made a crucial 66. Speaking afterwards, Bavuma captured the mood: “It was that moment there to be recognized as more than just a Black African cricketer,” he told reporters. “And I hope that it continues to inspire our country.”
South Africa’s long wait for a global trophy had dated back to the 1998 Champions Trophy. Bavuma’s men, unbeaten through the WTC cycle, finally broke that run, prompting quiet optimism about future multi-format success.
While the TIME list is inevitably subjective, inclusion generally signals an athlete is shaping conversations beyond their immediate sport. Mandhana’s push for wider investment in women’s cricket and Bavuma’s role in South Africa’s evolving cricket culture clearly tick that box.
Neither player has lingered on the accolade; schedules are crowded and trophies count more. Even so, a nod from a non-cricket publication underlines the wider resonance of their work, and, in the short term, offers the game two fresh ambassadors at a moment when cricket continues to look for new audiences.
