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The 12th edition of the Indian Premier League has come to a conclusion with the Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians claiming their 4th IPL title by prevailing over the experienced Chennai Super Kings by a meagre run. Mumbai’s victory also marks the fifth defeat in IPL finals for the MS Dhoni led side.
This edition of the tournament quite arguably was one of the most exciting ones among all 12 editions so far. There were many nail-biting matches and a plethora of endowed cricketing superstars were seen unleashing their prowess on the field.
With the level of financial investment & fan following, IPL is undeniably the biggest franchise cricket league in the world with fair margin. Despite being named the Indian Premier League, the tournament owes a lot to its foreign superstars who multiply the level of excitement in the tournament. Moreover, even the Most Valuable Player of this season was also an overseas player. So, it goes without saying that foreign players are a huge part of the success of the IPL.
Hence, in this article we will try to form a dream team of IPL 2019 that consists of overseas players only.
#1 David Warner (C) (Matches - 12, Runs - 692, Average - 79.20)
David Warner didn’t play all the matches for his side but still finished as the leading run scorer in the tournament with 692 runs while maintaining a fair distance from the second-placed KL Rahul who scored 593 runs. This is the third occasion that he has won the Orange Cap which is also a record he can be extremely proud of.
The southpaw, batted with an average of 69.2 and a strike-rate of 143 while scoring 8 fifties and a hundred in 12 matches. He was undoubtedly the main player in the SRH line-up and the team really struggled to cope up with his absence when he left. Although he was not captain this season, he has captained SRH to a title in 2016 so thats why he is the captain of this Foreigners XI team.
#2 Chris Gayle (Matches - 13, Runs - 490, Average - 40.83)
The Universe Boss just walks into any fantasy playing XI such is his aura. One of the greatest entertainers of the sport, Chris Gayle had an immensely fruitful season this year. He amassed 490 runs at an average of 40.83. He had a strike rate in excess of 150 and was KXIP’s second highest run-scorer after his opening partner KL Rahul.
#3 Jonny Bairastow (Matches - 10, Runs - 445, Average - 55)
Despite playing only 10 matches, Jonny Bairstow was the second highest run-scorer for SRH only behind David Warner. The wicketkeeper batsman scored 445 runs at the top of the order for his side at an average of 55 and a strike rate of 157.
Playing his first IPL season, the Englishman looked extremely comfortable and went on to score 2 fifties and a hundred in the tournament.
He opened in all matches he played for SRH but is slotted at NO.3 in this team to enhance the composition of the XI.
#4 AB De Villiers (Matches - 13, Runs - 442, Average - 55)
With 5 fifties in the 13 matches he played, AB De Villiers was the mainstay in the RCB batting line-up along with skipper Kohli. AB hit 27 sixes in this edition of the IPL which was the most by an RCB player this season.
The retired South African batted with a strike rate of 154 and was the Man of the Match in two matches out of the 5 that RCB won.
#5 Andre Russell (Matches - 14, Runs - 510, SR - 204, Wickets - 11)
The MVP of the tournament, Andre Russell, absolutely lit up the cricketing world with his brutal power-hitting. He carried the whole KKR team on his own, literally. He was their highest run scorer as well as their highest wicket taker.
He finished with a strike rate of 204 which is the highest by anyone this season. He was also the most prolific six-hitter of the tournament with 52 against his name; a stat that doesn’t surprise a single soul in the universe.
#6 Moeen Ali (Matches - 11, Runs - 220, Average - 27, Wickets - 6)
Moeen Ali, after AB, was quite convincingly the most dependable foreign recruit for RCB this season. Ali scored 220 runs at an immensely impressive strike rate of 165.
Moreover, he bowled with an equally impressive economy of 6.7 to go along with 6 wickets in the tournament.
#7 Sam Curran (Matches - 9, Wickets - 10, Runs - 95, SR - 172)
KXIP’s ace all-rounder, Curran, had a memorable first IPL. He took a hat-trick, scored a 24 ball 55* and won a match for his side when the odds were stacked against them.
The 20-year old took 10 wickets in 9 matches at a bowling strike rate of 19 and scored 95 runs at a batting strike rate of 172.
KXIP should have given him a go in all 14 matches which could have strengthened their position at the end of the season.
#8 Jofra Archer(Matches - 11, Wickets - 11, Average - 26.45, Economy - 6.76)
Rajasthan Royals’ mainstay with the cherry in hand, Archer, was quite impressive this season. He scaled 11 wickets from as many games with the best performance of 3/15 against KXIP.
He also won a match for RR with the bat when he scored an unbeaten 27 off just 12 balls to snatch a victory against the Knight Riders from the jaws of defeat.
#9 Rashid Khan(Matches - 15, Wickets - 17, Average - 22.17, Economy - 6.28)
The Afghan spin-maestro was one of the most looked after player's heading into the season and he didn’t disappoint anyone with his performances. He created such an aura for himself that teams were just looking to see his overs off without playing any aggressive strokes.
With a meagre economy of 6.28, Rashid picked up 17 wickets from 15 matches in this edition of the tournament and was the best foreign spinner in the tournament after Imran Tahir.
#10 Kagiso Rabada(Matches - 12, Wickets - 25, Average - 14.72, Economy - 7.82)
Quite literally, Rabada was the best fast bowler of the tournament. He completely gave his heart out on the field and picked up 25 wickets from just 12 matches for the Delhi Capitals. KG, as he is mostly called by his colleagues, also bowled the fastest delivery of the tournament crossing 151 km/h.
He was instrumental in DC’s success this season and his absence also hurt the team a lot in the playoffs.
#11 Imran Tahir(Matches - 17, Wickets - 26, Average - 16.57, Economy - 6.69)
The winner of the Purple Cap, Imran Tahir, enjoyed a great stint under MS Dhoni this season. While the pitches in Chennai were highly favourable to the spinners, that shouldn’t discount how good Tahir has been with the ball in hand.
He picked up 26 wickets from 17 matches with an economy of 6.7 and was influential in CSK reaching their 8th IPL final.
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