Best Asian ODI XI

With Asia Cup just around the corner, Asian teams will be having eyes on the trophy. As India will be looking to defend it, Pakistan will be looking to defeat India again like they did in the Champions Trophy last year in England. Sri Lanka will be trying for an improved performance and Bangladesh will be looking to go the extra mile already having made it to the finals twice in last three years. Last but not the least, Afghanistan will be looking to give some tough fight to the others.

Cricket originated in England, but is not a sport in Asia, it is an emotion. Asian countries have the most die-hard fans of this game. The game which was earlier dominated by England, Australia and West Indies is now being given tough competitions from the Asian teams. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have all won the World Cup at least once. With even newer teams emerging like Nepal and Afghanistan, the game is bound to only grow from here.

With this backdrop in mind let's look at the best current Asian XI possible.

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Openers

Openers are the most important members of the squad. They provide the start and anchor the innings. For the opening slots, let us see what are the options available.

1) Rohit Sharma: Ever since he started opening for India in 2013, he has become an altogether a different player. As an opener, he has 4781 runs at an average of 54.32. He has scored 16 hundreds as an opener out of which 3 are double hundreds with 264 being the highest score by any player in ODIs. He is currently on number 4 in the batsman rankings in ODIs.

2) Shikhar Dhawan: The other Indian opener has scored 4481 runs at an average of 45.72 and has scored 3 centuries. He is an attacking opener and has a strike rate of close to 94.

3) Fakhar Zaman: The new batting sensation of Pakistan who has finally provided all the answers to the opening slot of the team and resolved all woes. In the last series against Zimbabwe, he scored a double century. He became the fastest player to score 1000 runs in ODIs. He is currently averaging over 76 in ODIs.

4) Tamim Iqbal: Mr. Dependable, he is one of the best batsmen Bangladesh has ever produced. He has scored over 6000 runs at an average of around 36. But in the past few years, he has become more consistent and has scored at an average of over 50. The only drawback is his strike rate that is less than 80 in an attacking world of T20.

Considering these stats I will keep Rohit Sharma and Fakhar Zaman as my openers.

Middle Order

The middle order is important in case openers are not able to provide a stable start. They tie the innings together. Let us look at viable options for the middle order.

1) Virat Kohli: Currently the best batsman in ODIs, the obvious name that comes to mind is the Indian Captain Virat Kohli, the run machine, the chasing master and what not. He has taken batting standards to another level. With an average of over 58, he has already scored close to 10000 runs in ODIs which includes 35 Centuries and is preceded by the great Sachin in this feat. He will bat at his original position of number 3 in this team.

2) Babar Azam: An upcoming great batsman from Pakistan, Babar Azam has already made a name for himself in a short span of time. He has scored close to 2000 runs at an average close to 55, with 8 centuries. He will bat at number 4 in this team. He is currently on number 2 in the best batsman list of ODIs after Virat Kohli.

Wicket Keeper

Let's first take a look at the options we have for this position.

1) MS Dhoni: The first name that immediately pops up when talking about wicketkeepers is that of the Indian wicketkeeper MS Dhoni. He has scored more than 10000 runs at an average of more than 51. He has taken 300 catches and recorded 107 stumpings to his name which is also currently the world record.

2) Sarfraz Ahmed: The Pakistani captain Sarfraz doesn't have stats which can match MS Dhoni, but he is a great leader and his leadership took Pakistan to the Champions Trophy in 2017.

3) Mushfiqur Rahim: The Bangladeshi wicket-keeper batsman has scored close to 5000 runs at an average of around 33. He has been a consistent player for the Bangladeshi team for over a decade now.

By looking at these stats, there is no match to the Indian wicketkeeper MS Dhoni and he will be the Wicket Keeper of this team.

All Rounders

All-rounders are effectively counted as 2 players if they are genuine all-rounders. Let us look at our options in this position.

1) Hardik Pandya

The Indian all-rounder Hardik has the ability to clear the ground at will. He has a strike rate close to 115 which can be handy while chasing a stiff target and posting big totals. He has just played 41 games for India in which he has taken 40 wickets and scored 670 runs. He is an excellent fielder which is an added bonus.

2) Shakib Al Hasan

The Bangladeshi all-rounder who has scored 5433 runs in ODIs at an average of 35.50 and has taken 237 wickets at an average of less than 30. He will also play the role of a left arm off spinner in this team. He is currently ranked number 1 in the best all-rounder in ODIs list.

3) Shoaib Malik

Although he is not a proper all-rounder, I have considered him in this group for he is a handy off-spinner and has scored more than 7000 runs in ODIs at an average of over 35. He has also taken 156 wickets. He is apt to play both the role of an anchor and a finisher.

4) Mohammad Nabi

The Afghanistani all-rounder is a hard-hitting batsman and has a strike rate of 87. He has scored close to 3000 runs at an average of around 30. Additionally, he has taken 109 wickets at an average of 31. He is currently ranked number 2 in the best all-rounder in ODIs list after Shakib Al Hasan.

5) Imad Wasim

Like others on the list, he is a clean striker of the ball. He averages over 35 with the bat and has a strike rate of close to 100. His left arm spin has fetched him 28 wickets in 30 matches.

I would definitely keep Shakib Al Hasan in the team for obvious reasons. For the other spot, I have an option of either playing Hardik or Shoaib Malik. So depending on the conditions, I will keep Shoaib if the conditions are spin friendly and Hardik if seam friendly.

Spinners

Spinners are always necessary to pick wickets in the middle overs and keep the run flow down. Leg spinners are more in demand because of their wicket taking ability. Let us now take a look at the options for spinners

1)Rashid Khan

Currently ranked 2 in the ICC ODI bowlers list, in 45 matches he has already taken 108 wickets at an average of 14.22 and strike rate of 21.7, which is astonishing. He is not just a great leg-spinner but a handy lower order batsman as well. He averages over 20 with a strike rate of over 97 and has 2 fifties to his name. If this is not reason enough for his inclusion, he is currently at number 7 in the best all-rounders list in ODIs.

2) Kuldeep Yadav

The left arm chinaman from India is at number 6 in the best bowlers list of ODIs. He has taken 48 wickets at an average of 19.35 and an impressive strike rate of 24.0. Many great batsmen are not able to pick his wrong ones and he has taken a five-wicket haul too.

3) Yuzvendra Chahal

The Indian leggie is at number 9 on the ODI bowlers list. He has taken 45 wickets at an average of less than 24 and also taken a five-wicket haul.

4) Shadab Khan

He is an excellent leg-spinner and has taken 33 scalps in 22 matches at an average of 25.6. He has also scored 208 runs at an average of 52.

With already a left-arm spinner in the squad in form of Shakib, I will keep only one more spinner and that spot belongs to Rashid Khan for his best average amongst the above players

Seamers

1) Jasprit Bumrah

Currently ranked 1 in the ODI bowlers list, the Indian pacer is known for his yorkers. He is an excellent upfront bowler and a death over specialist. He poses a lot of variations in his armory. He has 62 wickets to his name at an average of 22.50.

2) Bhuvneshwar Kumar

The Indian seamer is a swing bowler with the ability to swing the ball both ways. Earlier he used to ball only upfront but with time he has developed his death bowling skills and now is an excellent death over bowler too. He has an economy of 5 which is impressive for a bowler who bowls in the power-play and death.

3) Mohammad Amir

The Pakistani left-arm seamer, who consistently bowls around 150kmph. He is an excellent swing bowler and creates trouble for the hind handers with his incoming in-swingers. He got Kohli out twice in 2 successive deliveries in the champions trophy final, the first delivery being a dropped catch. He has taken 58 wickets from 46 matches at an average of less than 30.

4) Hasan Ali

The Pakistani seamer is currently ranked 3 in the ODI bowlers list. He was the highest wicket-taker in the champions trophy last year. He has 68 wickets in just 33 matches at an average of less than 21 and a strike rate of 24.0. In a small career, he already has taken 3 five-wicket hauls.

4) Mustafizur Rahman

The new Bangladeshi sensation Mustafizur made his name in the first match itself when he took a five-wicket haul against India. His off cutters are his wicket-taking deliveries. He has taken 56 wickets at an average of just over 20 and a strike rate of 25.4. He also has 3 five-wicket hauls to his name, two of which came against India in the first series itself.

The three seamers which will make it to this side are Jasprit Bumrah, Hasan Ali and Mohammad Amir. Although Mustafizur has better stats than Amir, off late he has not been as effective as he was in his early days.

So my final current Asian XI is Rohit Sharma, Fakhar Zaman, Virat Kohli (C), Babar Azam, MS Dhoni, Shakib Al Hasan, Hardik Pandya/Shoaib Malik, Rashid Khan, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir and Jasprit Bumrah.