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Week 3 of IPL 2023 picked up from where it left off the week prior, with many more thrills and spills headlining the action. The points table continues to remain logjammed with three teams locked at eight points, four teams at six points each, and two others at four points apiece.
Delhi Capitals (DC) finally got off the mark in IPL 2023 with a win over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) but remain languished at the bottom of the table. It was also a week where the visiting teams had the wood over the home side for large swathes.
As always, there were some players who stood out from the pack with scintillating batting displays and stellar bowling spells. Here's our compilation of the best playing XI from Week 3 of IPL 2023:
Openers - Faf du Plessis and Devon Conway
A former CSK opener and his replacement headline the opening combination of this playing XI. RCB skipper Faf du Plessis gave his former team a real scare in a chase of 227 with a destructive 62-run knock, before backing it up with a solid 84 against the Punjab Kings (PBKS). That he battled an injury while doing so only increases the magnitude of those performances.
Opening the batting alongside him is Devon Conway, who has now struck three consecutive half-centuries in IPL 2023. His 45-ball 83 against RCB laid the foundation for a massive total, before backing it up with an unbeaten 77 that steered CSK home against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).
Middle order - Venkatesh Iyer, Sanju Samson (c&wk), Shivam Dube, and Shimron Hetmyer
Ending a 15-year drought for KKR, Venkatesh Iyer became just the second player from the franchise to score a century as he tore into the Mumbai Indians (MI) attack in Mumbai. He might have backed it up with a duck against DC but his hundred remains one of the best knocks of IPL 2023.
Sanju Samson put scores of two consecutive ducks behind him with a pristine 32-ball 60 that vaulted the Rajasthan Royals (RR) out of the abyss against Gujarat Titans (GT). Joining him in this playing XI is teammate Shimron Hetmyer, who turned in a finishing masterclass in the same match as he struck an unbeaten 26-ball 56 to lead his side to victory.
While both batters didn't score much against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), their knocks against GT were highly impactful to earn them a berth in this playing XI. Samson has looked at ease as captain throughout IPL 2023 and will skipper this side, apart from donning the wicketkeeper's gloves.
Shivam Dube slots in between Samson and Hetmyer on the back of a destructive 27-ball 52 against RCB. His innings was studded with five towering maximums, with one of them traveling as far as 111 meters as he catapulted the Super Kings towards a massive total.
Bowlers - Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj
While they make it on the back of their bowling, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, and Ravichandran Ashwin ensure that this playing XI has enough depth in batting. Jadeja's Player of the Match-winning performance against SRH aside, he turned in a crucial spell of 0/37 amidst the carnage in the game against RCB.
Curran captained PBKS in Shikhar Dhawan's absence and turned in a death-bowling masterclass against LSG, snaring three wickets along the way. He was also extremely nagging in the contest against RCB, ensuring that they never ran away with the contest and were restricted to a score that could have been chased, even if it eventually wasn't.
Ashwin might have gone wicketless against GT, but his invaluable 10-run cameo eased the load on Hetmyer to get the job done. He then backed it up with a masterful spell of 2/23 against the Super Giants that saw him hit a relentless length throughout the course of it.
Kuldeep Yadav flipped a disappointing start to his IPL 2023 campaign around with two wickets apiece against RCB and KKR. He used his googly to great effect against the latter in particular and has shown signs of his best form over the last week.
Mohammed Siraj waltzes into this playing XI as the lead fast bowler. The owner of the Purple Cap with 12 wickets, he was RCB's standout bowler in an otherwise listless bowling display against CSK, before his four-wicket haul dismantled the PBKS batting lineup to lead his side to victory.
There were multiple performers who were close to making the cut to this playing XI on the back of a fine showing in Week 3 of IPL 2023. Ishan Kishan got into the runs for MI with a blistering half-century against KKR and a solid 38 against SRH. RCB's Glenn Maxwell was a very unfortunate miss on the back of his stunning 76-run onslaught against CSK, purely on the basis of the overseas player limit.
Axar Patel bagged four wickets across two matches while also making his presence felt with useful batting contributions. Tilak Varma's stellar season continued with useful cameos of 30 and 37 for MI while Varun Chakravarthy sent down a superlative spell of 2/16 against the Capitals. They all make it as potential impact substitute options.
Best playing XI from Week 3 of IPL 2023: Faf du Plessis, Devon Conway, Venkatesh Iyer, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Shivam Dube, Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj.
Impact player substitutes: Ishan Kishan, Glenn Maxwell, Axar Patel, Tilak Varma, Varun Chakravarthy
What changes would you make to this playing XI from Week 3 of IPL 2023? Have your say in the comments section below!
