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The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2022) is set to be held from March 26 to May 29. The season will get underway with a rematch of last year’s final as the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will lock horns with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 26.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently released the IPL 2022 schedule. According to the same, 70 league matches will be held in Maharashtra at four IPL venues: Wankhede Stadium, Brabourne Stadium, Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy, and Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
With two new IPL teams joining the IPL this year, the format for the league stage has been tweaked a bit. The 10 franchises have been divided into two virtual groups of five each. The schedule for the four IPL playoff matches will be released later.
Is this the best IPL XI of retired players?
In the build-up to the IPL 2022 edition, we put together a best XI of retired cricketers who have made a big impact in the T20 league.
#1 Gautam Gambhir (captain)
Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Gautam Gambhir will lead the retired IPL XI. He had a stellar career as a player and leader for the franchise. In fact, it was under Gambhir that KKR won both their IPL titles in 2012 and 2014.
In 2012, the left-hander led from the front, smashing 590 runs in 17 matches at a strike rate of 143.55. He also crossed the half-century mark six times.
#2 Shane Watson
Shane Watson was a key figure in Rajasthan Royals’ success in the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008. He hammered 472 runs at a strike rate of 151.76 in 15 matches. He also claimed 17 scalps with his medium pace.
Towards the end of his career, he was brilliant as an opener for CSK. He bludgeoned an unbeaten 117 off 57 in the 2018 final against SRH. The Aussie scored 80 off 59 with a bruised knee even as Chennai went down to Mumbai Indians (MI) by just one run in the IPL 2019 final.
#3 Virender Sehwag
The T20 format is tailor-made for swashbucklers like Virender Sehwag and he enjoyed himself to the hilt in the IPL. In 104 matches, he hammered 2728 runs, including two hundreds and 16 fifties, at a strike rate of 155.44.
Representing Delhi during the IPL 2012 edition, he became the first player to hit five consecutive fifties, a record equaled by Jos Buttler in 2018. Sehwag whacked 119 off 56 for Delhi against Deccan Chargers in 2011 and 122 off 58 for Punjab against Chennai in 2014.
#4 AB de Villiers (wk)
South African legend AB de Villiers was part of the IPL until the 2021 edition and only announced his retirement towards the end of last year. After beginning his career with Delhi, ABD went on to become an integral part of the RCB franchise.
He played some stunning knocks for Bangalore and turned around matches when all seemed lost. De Villiers finished his IPL career with incredible numbers - 5162 runs in 184 matches at a strike rate of 151.68. The 38-year-old has three hundreds and 40 half-centuries to his name in the IPL.
#5 Yuvraj Singh
Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh had an impressive record in the T20 league. In 132 matches, he notched up 2750 runs at a strike rate of nearly 130. Yuvraj also claimed 36 wickets with his left-arm spin.
He captained Punjab during the initial seasons. Apart from playing some blazing knocks, Yuvraj also holds the record of having taken two hat-tricks in the same IPL season. He achieved the feat in 2009, claiming hat-tricks against RCB and Deccan Chargers.
Check out the IPL 2022 News here.
#6 Yusuf Pathan
Former India all-rounder Yusuf Pathan played a key role in RR’s victory in the inaugural edition of the IPL. Subsequently, he tasted success while turning out for KKR as well. Pathan had the ability to hit the ball a long way and played some brutal knocks. He was also a handy off-spinner.
Pathan ended his IPL career with 3204 runs in 174 matches at a strike rate of 142.97. He holds the record for the second-fastest fifty as well as the second-fastest hundred in the IPL.
#7 Albie Morkel
Former South African all-rounder Albie Morkel was smartly utilized by MS Dhoni during his CSK days. Morkel opened the bowling and was used as a pinch hitter as well, considering his amazing boundary-clearing skills.
He subsequently represented RCB and Delhi but could not replicate his success at Chennai. He still ended his IPL career with 85 wickets in 91 matches and 974 runs at a strike rate of 141.98.
#8 Harbhajan Singh
Similar to his international journey, Harbhajan Singh had a stellar IPL career as well. He claimed 150 wickets in 163 matches at an average of 26.86 and an economy rate of 7.07.
Harbhajan tasted most of his success with MI. When Mumbai lifted the crown for the first time in 2013, he claimed 24 wickets in 19 games. In 2015, the former off-spinner again starred with 18 scalps from 15 matches. Apart from his bowling, Harbhajan played some handy cameos with the bat as well.
#9 Zaheer Khan
Former India left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan represented RCB, MI as well as Delhi in the IPL. He finished his career with exactly 100 matches, picking up 102 wickets at a strike rate of 21.57 and an average of 27.27. He is at No.16 on the list of all-time leading wicket-takers in the tournament.
A smart operator, Zaheer was able to use his skills to great effect in the T20 format as well. His best of 4/17 came in only two overs for RCB against CSK in a shortened eight-overs per side match.
#10 Ashish Nehra
Another former Indian left-arm pacer, Ashish Nehra, also had an impressive IPL record. He picked up 106 wickets in 88 matches at an average of 23.54. Nehra represented Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad in the IPL.
He did well for CSK under Dhoni in the 2014 and 2015 seasons. Nehra came up with a superb bowling effort of 4 for 10 against RCB in 2015, with Virat Kohli being one of his victims.
#11 Lasith Malinga
The easiest pick of the lot! With his toe-crushing yorkers and brilliantly disguised slower balls, Sri Lanka’s fast bowling legend Lasith Malinga won numerous matches for MI. Even post-retirement, he remains the leading wicket-taker in the T20 league.
The Lankan great ended his career with 170 wickets in 122 matches at a strike rate of 16.62 and an economy rate of 7.14. In the second half of this career, he formed an incredible pair with Jasprit Bumrah. MI owe a lot to Malinga for their unprecedented success in the IPL.
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