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Former Pakistan cricketer turner commentator, Rameez Raja, has picked his combined lineup of India and Pakistan in ODI format.
The two arch-rivals have locked horns against each other since time immemorial to produce some of the finest cricketing action.
Raja’s combined XI consisted of six Indian and five Pakistani players. As expected, the batting lineup is dominated by the Indian greats whereas the bowling lineup is dominated by the Pakistan masters.
At the opening slot, the popular broadcaster went ahead with ‘Sultan of Multan’ Virender Sehwag and ‘Little Master’ Sunil Gavaskar.
Then, Raja included the masters of the game Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar at the top-order, followed by ‘The Wall’ of Indian cricket, Rahul Dravid.
MS Dhoni dons the gloves as well as the finishing role to complete the formidable batting order. All-rounder Imran Khan comes in at No. 7.
Interestingly, there was no place for modern Indian ODI great Rohit Sharma in the lineup. Rohit has many records to his name barring the three double centuries in ODI cricket. Also, there was no place for Pakistan’s superstar Shahid Afridi in the lineup.
Further, Raja went ahead with the feared duo of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, who have troubled many top-class batsmen with their swing and pace.
Highest wicket-taker for India, Anil Kumble is the lone bowler from the ‘Men in Blue’ in the combined Indo-Pak XI. Raja paired Kumble up with the pioneer of ‘Doosra’ – spin wizard Saqlain Mushtaq.
“I briefly discussed this with my son. It’s a massive situation to be in, how to assemble a star cast of some giants of the game. But he said no it’s very simple, you have Pakistan bowlers and Indian batsmen in the lineup, and you get a fantastic India-Pakistan XI,” Raja told Gavaskar during a recent chat.
Ramiz Raja’s combined India-Pakistan ODI XI:
Virender Sehwag, Sunil Gavaskar, Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, MS Dhoni, Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Anil Kumble, Saqlain Mushtaq.
