Harsha Bhogle picks his all-time IPL XI; MS Dhoni named captain
Renowned Indian commentator and analyst, Harsha Bhogle, recently picked his all-time Indian Premier League XI.
It was as well-assembled a squad one could imagine, which every department staffed with the most quintessential of individuals possible, truly crafting a lineup which had every single position filled occupied by an IPL luminary.
He opted for two of the pillars of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli, as his side's openers. The duo were a force to reckon with more often than not, and have amassed 1210 runs in 28 innings with them achieving the fifty-run mark a total of four times, which is the same number of times they achieved a century-run stand.
At No. 3, was placed "Mr. IPL", Suresh Raina, the first in the history of the competition to reach the tally of 5000 runs. Apart from being a swashbuckling southpaw, Raina was also a live wire on the field. He has also snaffled a total of 109 catches throughout his IPL career.
Bhogle selected Suryakumar Yadav to follow. Now a sure shot regular in the Indian T20I setup, the dynamic batter has only grown in the IPL after his fifth underwhelming season on the trot. Surya has gone from strength-to-strength since 2017 and his progress has only been upwards and onwards since then with Mumbai Indians.
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MS Dhoni was named as the captain of the team. The world has been witness to the enthralling finishes to innings and matches he has provided with the bat, along with his lightning-fast glovework behind the stumps.
Hardik Pandya was listed as the only genuine all-rounder of the side. He has been instrumental to the Mumbai Indians for quite a few seasons now. Despite not being able to make a mark for MI on his return as a skipper, his impressive stint in 2022 and 2023 with the Gujarat Titans with the captain's armband can't be one bit overlooked.
Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah, MI's past and present, were filled in as the primary death bowlers. There have been countless instances where the Mumbai-based franchise has been rescued by heroics from the aforementioned legends of the marquee tournament.
Coming in at 10 and 11 were the two spinners, Rashid Khan and Sunil Narine. While both of these individuals started off their careers at these positions, they gradually moulded into equally destructive batters. While Rashid has more often than not turned up trumps for the Sunrisers Hyderabad to give their innings the injection in the business end, Narine has provided the Kolkata Knight Riders constantly sweltering starts with the bat.
Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, Suresh Raina, Suryakumar Yadav, MS Dhoni (C & WK), Hardik Pandya, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah, Rashid Khan, Sunil Narine
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