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Rankings & Lists

Greatest Asian Sports Stars of All Time

The greatest Asian athletes of all time — featuring legends from cricket, badminton, table tennis, football and the Olympics.

50Athletes Ranked

The greatest Asian athletes of all time — featuring legends from cricket, badminton, table tennis, football and the Olympics.

1
ST

Indian·Cricket

Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar is an Indian batting legend who holds the record for most runs and centuries in both Test and international cricket combine

15921 Test runs · 53.78 Test avg

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2
VK

Indian·Cricket

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is an Indian batsman and former all-format captain regarded as one of the greatest modern batters, holding the record for most c

9230 Test runs · 46.85 Test avg

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3
MD

Indian·Cricket

MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni is an Indian wicketkeeper-batter and one of the most successful captains in cricket history, leading India to the 2007 T20 World Cu

4876 Test runs · 38.09 Test avg

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4
SH

South Korean·Football

Son Heung-min

South Korean footballer and Tottenham Hotspur forward, first Asian player to win Premier League Golden Boot and reach Champions League final

181 career goals · 48 international goals

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5
KD

Indian·Cricket

Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev was an Indian all-rounder and captain whose leadership of the 1983 World Cup-winning side made him a national icon.

5248 Test runs · 31.05 Test avg

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6
SG

Indian·Cricket

Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar was an Indian opening batsman who became the first player in Test history to reach 10,000 runs, redefining opening batsmanshi

10122 Test runs · 51.12 Test avg

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7
RD

Indian·Cricket

Rahul Dravid

Rahul Dravid is an Indian batter renowned for his solid technique and temperament, who scored over 13,000 Test runs and later coached the In

13288 Test runs · 52.31 Test avg

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8
SO

Japanese·Baseball

Shohei Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani is a generational two-way player who both pitches and hits at an elite level, unprecedented in modern baseball.

302 home runs · .0282 avg

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9
LD

Chinese·Badminton

Lin Dan

Chinese badminton legend, two-time Olympic champion and five-time World Champion, the only player to complete the 'Super Grand Slam' of all

2 Olympic golds · 5 world titles

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10
TH

Indonesian·Badminton

Taufik Hidayat

Indonesian badminton player who won Olympic gold in 2004 and became world number 1, known for his aggressive attacking style and powerful sm

1 Olympic golds · 1 world titles

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11
YM

Chinese·Basketball

Yao Ming

The global ambassador — the most impactful international player in NBA history who transformed basketball's reach in China.

19 ppg career · 11059 career points

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12
PJ

South Korean·Football

Park Ji-sung

South Korean footballer who became the first Asian player to win the Champions League and made over 100 appearances for Manchester United be

40 career goals · 13 international goals

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13
LN

Chinese·Tennis

Li Na

Chinese trailblazer who became the first Asian player to win a Grand Slam singles title, triumphing at the 2011 French Open and 2014 Austral

2 Grand Slams · 9 titles

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14
NO

Japanese/American·Tennis

Naomi Osaka

Japanese-American player who won 4 Grand Slam singles titles and became the first Asian player, male or female, to hold the world No. 1 rank

4 Grand Slams · 25 weeks at No.1

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15
IS

Japanese·Baseball

Ichiro Suzuki

Ichiro Suzuki was a Japanese-born outfielder whose MLB career combined elite contact hitting, speed, and defense, following a legendary NPB

117 home runs · .0311 avg

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16
WA

Pakistani·Cricket

Wasim Akram

Wasim Akram was a Pakistani left-arm fast bowler renowned as the greatest exponent of swing bowling, and led Pakistan to the 1992 Cricket Wo

2898 Test runs · 22.64 Test avg

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17
IK

Pakistani·Cricket

Imran Khan

Pakistani all-rounder and captain who led the country to its first World Cup title before entering politics.

3807 Test runs · 37.69 Test avg

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18
MM

Sri Lankan·Cricket

Muttiah Muralitharan

Muttiah Muralitharan is a Sri Lankan off-spin bowler who took a record 800 Test wickets and 534 ODI wickets, making him the most prolific bo

1261 Test runs · 22.72 Test avg

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19
KS

Sri Lankan·Cricket

Kumar Sangakkara

Kumar Sangakkara is a Sri Lankan batter and former wicketkeeper who scored over 12,000 Test runs at an average above 57, among the highest e

12400 Test runs · 57.4 Test avg

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20
ML

Chinese·Table Tennis

Ma Long

The Dragon — the consensus pick as the greatest table tennis player in history, with three Olympic gold medals and five World Championship t

6 Olympic golds · 14 world titles

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21
DY

Chinese·Table Tennis

Deng Yaping

Chinese table tennis legend who dominated the sport in the 1990s, winning 4 Olympic golds and 18 World Championship titles during her career

4 Olympic golds · 18 world titles

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22
WN

Chinese·Table Tennis

Wang Nan

Chinese table tennis legend who dominated women's singles in late 1990s and 2000s, winning multiple Olympic golds and World Championship tit

4 Olympic golds · 15 world titles

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23
ZY

Chinese·Table Tennis

Zhang Yining

Chinese table tennis player widely regarded as one of the greatest female players of all time, dominating the sport in the 2000s with multip

4 Olympic golds · 10 world titles

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24
VA

South Korean / Russian·Speed Skating

Viktor Ahn

Short track speed skater born Ahn Hyun-soo in South Korea, who became the most decorated Olympic short track skater in history by winning go

6 Olympic golds · 6 world titles

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25
SY

Chinese·Table Tennis

Sun Yingsha

Chinese table tennis player, youngest ever ITTF World No.1, double Olympic singles champion and dominant force in women's table tennis since

3 Olympic golds · 10 world titles

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26
KU

Japanese·Gymnastics

Kohei Uchimura

Japanese artistic gymnast widely considered the greatest male gymnast of all time, winning consecutive Olympic all-around titles in 2012 and

3 Olympic golds · 10 world titles

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27
WL

Chinese·Table Tennis

Wang Liqin

Chinese table tennis legend who dominated the sport in the 2000s, winning three World Championships singles titles and multiple World Cup vi

2 Olympic golds · 11 world titles

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28
ML

Chinese·Table Tennis

Ma Lin

Olympic champion and World Champion — Ma Lin's deceptive serving and extraordinary touch made him one of the most technically gifted players

3 Olympic golds · 9 world titles

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29
XX

Chinese·Table Tennis

Xu Xin

Chinese table tennis player widely regarded as one of the greatest left-handed players in history, known for his distinctive penhold grip an

2 Olympic golds · 10 world titles

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30
KL

Chinese·Table Tennis

Kong Linghui

Chinese table tennis player nicknamed the 'Prince of Table Tennis,' who became the third player in history to complete a career Grand Slam b

2 Olympic golds · 8 world titles

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31
ZJ

Chinese·Table Tennis

Zhang Jike

Chinese table tennis player who achieved the sport's Grand Slam in record time, winning Olympic gold, World Championship, and World Cup titl

3 Olympic golds · 7 world titles

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32
CB

South Korean·Football

Cha Bum-kun

South Korea's first football superstar, a fearless and prolific goal-poacher who took Europe by storm during a dazzling career in the Bundes

230 career goals · 58 international goals

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33
WC

Chinese·Table Tennis

Wang Chuqin

Chinese table tennis player who became Olympic champion and world number one, known for his aggressive attacking style and dominant performa

2 Olympic golds · 9 world titles

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34
MJ

Sri Lankan·Cricket

Mahela Jayawardene

Mahela Jayawardene is a Sri Lankan batter and former captain, one of the sport's most elegant players, who scored a national-record 374 agai

11814 Test runs · 49.84 Test avg

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35
IP

South Korean·Golf

Inbee Park

South Korean golfer who completed the career Grand Slam and won Olympic gold in women's golf at Rio 2016.

7 majors · 21 tour wins

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36
ST

Japanese·Winter Sports

Sara Takanashi

Japanese ski jumper who holds the record for most World Cup victories by any jumper, male or female, and became the youngest overall World C

1 world titles · 63 World Cup wins

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37
AD

Iranian·Football

Ali Daei

Iranian footballer who became the first player to score 100+ international goals, netting 109 times for Iran and playing for Bayern Munich i

109 career goals · 109 international goals

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38
YW

Chinese·Gymnastics

Yang Wei

Chinese artistic gymnast who became Olympic all-around champion at Beijing 2008 and won multiple World Championship titles in team and indiv

3 Olympic golds · 6 world titles

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39
DJ

Chinese·Snooker

Ding Junhui

Chinese professional snooker player who became the first Asian to win a ranking event and reached world number 1, winning multiple major tit

15 ranking titles · 7 maximums

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40
DH

Japanese·Gymnastics

Daiki Hashimoto

Japanese artistic gymnast who won Olympic all-around gold at Tokyo 2020, becoming one of the youngest Olympic champions in men's gymnastics

3 Olympic golds · 5 world titles

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41
CM

South Korean·Speed Skating

Choi Min-jeong

South Korean short track speed skater nicknamed the 'Queen of Korean Short Track,' who became her nation's most decorated Olympian of all ti

4 Olympic golds · 4 world titles

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42
DN

Chinese·Table Tennis

Ding Ning

Chinese table tennis player who dominated women's singles, winning Olympic gold in 2016 and five World Championship singles titles between 2

3 Olympic golds · 4 world titles

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43
FZ

Chinese·Table Tennis

Fan Zhendong

Olympic champion at Paris 2024 and already the youngest world number one in modern table tennis history — Fan Zhendong is the heir apparent

3 Olympic golds · 4 world titles

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44
EG

Chinese/American·Winter Sports

Eileen Gu

Chinese-American freestyle skier who won Olympic gold in halfpipe and became the youngest Olympic freestyle skiing champion at Beijing 2022.

3 Olympic golds · 2 world titles

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45
KK

Japanese·Swimming

Kosuke Kitajima

Dominated men's breaststroke through the 2000s, sweeping both breaststroke events at both Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.

4 Olympic golds · 7 Olympic medals

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46
CL

West Indian·Cricket

Clive Lloyd

West Indian batter and captain who built and led the great West Indies teams of the 1970s and 1980s.

7515 Test runs · 46.67 Test avg

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47
YK

Pakistani·Cricket

Younis Khan

Younis Khan was a Pakistani batsman who became the country's highest Test run-scorer and led Pakistan to victory in the 2009 ICC World Twent

10099 Test runs · 52.05 Test avg

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48
ZJ

Chinese·Gymnastics

Zou Jingyuan

Chinese gymnast specializing in parallel bars and horizontal bar, Olympic champion and multiple World Championship gold medalist in men's ar

2 Olympic golds · 6 world titles

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49
AD

Sri Lankan·Cricket

Aravinda de Silva

Sri Lankan batter whose stroke-filled century powered Sri Lanka to their 1996 World Cup triumph.

6361 Test runs · 42.97 Test avg

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50
GG

Kazakh·Boxing

Gennady Golovkin

Gennady Golovkin is a Kazakhstani boxer and former unified WBA/WBC/IBF/IBO middleweight champion.

42-2-1 · 1 world titles

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