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#7 South Africa: AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers is probably one of the most loved foreign cricketers in India and that could be validated by the chants of 'AB AB' that is heard in different stadiums of India when the South African bats. He's also, undoubtedly, the best South African player in the IPL.
AB began his IPL career at Delhi Daredevils, for whom he played from 2008 to 2010. One of the many blunders committed by DD over the years was not retaining this man and their loss was RCB's gain.
After moving to RCB, he formed a part of a formidable batting line-up with Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli, and put on many memorable partnerships with the latter.
Mr. 360 has also won numerous matches on his own when the game seemed almost dead and his battles with his countryman Dale Steyn will live long in the memory.
De Villliers has scored 4395 runs in 154 matches at an average of almost 40 and a destructive strike rate of 151.23. He has also scored 3 hundreds and 33 fifties. The only thing that has gone against him is that he hasn't won an IPL trophy yet despite making it to the final twice.
He'll bat at number 4 in this team.
#8 England: Jos Buttler (wk)
England players' involvement in the initial editions of the IPL was restricted until things changed in 2015 post-England's early exit from the World Cup which prompted a change in mindset.
Two of England's best limited-overs players post the World Cup debacle are Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler and those are the two players who are under consideration for this team. Jos Buttler just edges Stokes due to his impressive contributions for Rajasthan Royals, while Ben Stokes has failed to live up to the hype for the same team.
Jos Buttler is England's most destructive batsman and also one of the game's most considering his extraordinary strike rate of almost 120 despite having scored almost 4000 ODI runs. The Englishman was first picked by Mumbai Indians in 2016 and after two average seasons, he switched to Rajasthan Royals in 2018, where he was one of the key players in their surprise entry into the playoffs. He scored 548 runs in just 13 games at a strike rate of over 150 and he replicated that in the next season with almost 350 runs at a similar strike rate.
In 45 matches, Buttler has scored 1386 runs at an average of 35.53 and a strike rate of 150.81. He is expected to dominate the IPL over the next 5 years plus.
He'll slot in as the wicketkeeper-batsman at number 5 in this team.
#9 Australia: Shane Watson
Australia has a history of producing remarkable cricketers and many of those have appeared in the IPL. However, the two players that stand out the most are David Warner and Shane Watson and choosing between the two is extremely difficult.
David Warner is the third-highest run-scorer in IPL history despite not playing 2 IPLs. He has scored 500+ runs in the last 5 editions he has played in and even has three Orange Caps to his name. The season he didn't win the Orange Cap he finished second behind Kohli despite scoring 848 runs, but he led his side to the IPL trophy. He has 4706 runs in just 126 games at an astonishing average of 43.17 and a strike rate of 142.39.
Shane Watson has been one of the best all-rounders to have played the IPL. He's one player who almost always steps up on the big occasion.
He began his IPL sojourn at Rajasthan Royals in 2008 and was named the Player of the Tournament for his tally of 472 runs and 17 wickets in 15 games during their victorious journey. He was once again named Player of the Tournament in 2013 for his tally of 543 runs and 13 wickets.
He moved to Chennai Super Kings in 2018 after a failed stint at Royal Challengers Bangalore and he scored two centuries during CSK's triumphant return back to the IPL. The Queenslander was named the Player of the Final for his brutal century in a tense run chase against Sunrisers Hyderabad. He almost pulled off a repeat of his heroics the next season in 2019 when he almost helped CSK over the line in the final against Mumbai Indians. A big match player if there ever was one.
Watto has scored 3575 runs in 134 matches with 4 100s at an average of 31.08 and a strike rate of almost 140. With the ball, he has 92 wickets to his name at an economy less than 8. When he was fully fit, he definitely was a highly valued player.
He'll open the batting in this team.
#10 India: Rohit Sharma (C)
With this being an Indian Premier League, the biggest decision would have been with respect to choosing the best Indian player for this team. It was a toss-up between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma along with Suresh Raina and the simple fact that Kohli hasn't won the IPL yet whereas Rohit Sharma leads the tally with 5 to his name, along with a remarkable 4 as captain, ensures that India's vice-captain gets the nod ahead of his captain in this team.
Sharma began his IPL journey with Deccan Chargers and was the only bright spot in a terrible campaign for the Hyderabadi side. He continued his good form during DC's triumphant 2009 with over 350 runs to his name and also earned the Emerging Player of the Year award. After 3 years at DC, Sharma moved to his hometown team Mumbai Indians, where he has established himself as one of the most decorated players in the tournament's history.
Sharma was named as the captain post-Sachin's retirement and the captain stepped up by leading his side to 4 IPL titles in 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019. He was the Player of the Final in 2015 when he scored a quickfire 50 that clinched them the victory over rivals Chennai Super Kings. He has remained a big run-getter for his team and has batted in numerous positions according to his team's needs. He is currently the second-highest run- scorer in IPL history, behind none other than Kohli.
The Mumbaikar has 4898 runs in 188 games at an average of 31.60 and a strike rate of 130.82.
He will bat at number three as well as lead the team.
#11 West Indies: Andre Russell
One of the most difficult tasks of selecting the best player from a country was for West Indies due to the top-notch performances of some of their star players over the years. Chris Gayle, Sunil Narine, Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, and Andre Russell have all been one of the most valuable players for their respective teams over the years.
Each of them makes a strong case to be in this side and hence naming the best player from this lot is extremely difficult. With two spinners and two openers already in this team, Gayle and Narine were left out of consideration. With the team needing a finisher, the toss up was between Pollard and Russell and the choice ended up being Russell.
The all-rounder from West Indies was first signed by Delhi Daredevils in 2012 but he had two poor campaigns that ensured that he wasn't retained. He was signed by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 and they've gone on to reap the best of the West Indian. In 5 years at the franchise, Russell has twice been named as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament in 2015 and 2019. He scored 510 runs at a strike rate of over 200 and also picked up 11 wickets last year to land the MVP award.
He has scored 1400 runs in 64 matches at an impressive average of 33.33 and a mind-boggling strike rate of 186.41. He's also a very useful bowler who can bowl the important overs of the innings for his side and has also picked up 55 wickets. The biggest factor going in his favour is he absolutely decimates bowling attacks when he comes into the crease with his ridiculous power. He has single-handedly won numerous games for KKR when the game appeared dead. He's definitely one of the most valuable players in this format of the game.
He will bat at No.7 and will chip in with a few overs.
Final XI
- Brendon McCullum (New Zealand)
- Shane Watson (Australia)
- Rohit Sharma (India)
- AB de Villiers (South Africa)
- Jos Buttler (England)
- Shakib al Hasan (Bangladesh)
- Andre Russell (West Indies)
- Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
- Sohail Tanvir (Pakistan)
- Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka)
- Dirk Nannes (Netherlands)
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