In batsman-dominated India, bowlers often find it difficult to hit the headlines, but Ravichandran Ashwin achieved just that rare feat in 2015, putting in one superlative performance after another to finish the year on an incredible high.

He started off with a decent (by his standards) World Cup where he picked up only 13 wickets, but roared back in the Test matches against Sri Lanka away and at South Africa at home, picking up bagfuls of wickets every match and finishing the year as the second-best bowler in Test cricket (and best all-rounder to boot!).

The World Cup also saw a couple of great Indian innings, but Shikhar Dhawan’s 137 against South Africa in India’s second group game was undoubtedly the highlight. Against a difficult attack, Dhawan played one of his best knocks to push India towards a very formidable 307 which they ultimately defended with ease.

In terms of Test knocks, KL Rahul started off the year with a century in only his second Test against Australia at Sydney, demonstrating that he belonged on the big stage. However, there were two other great knocks which should not be forgotten – Cheteshwar Pujara’s magnificent effort of 145 in the last and deciding Test against Sri Lanka to dig India out of a hole and Ajinkya Rahane’s fantastic twin centuries against South Africa at Delhi.

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And finally in a year where he faced much criticism, Dhoni’s 92 against South Africa in the second One Day International at Indore was a joy to watch. The captain had come in for much ridicule after not being able to win the first ODI for India, getting out in the last over with seven to get. In the second game, India were in dire straits, at one stage struggling at 124/6, before Dhoni played the sort of innings he is famous for, combining with the tail-enders and unleashing a death-overs assault to have India at 237. He answered his critics in style as India went on to win the game.