Bangladesh’s star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who is currently serving a two-year ban from all formats of the game, has selected his IPL XI comprising of players he has played with.
Shakib, in his eight-year IPL stint, has represented only two teams, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), and in 63 matches has scored 746 runs with the bat at an average of 21.31. With the ball, the left-arm spinner has taken 59 wickets at an average of 28.0.
He is a two-time IPL champion with the KKR and has played the final in the 2018 edition with SRH.
During the chat for Cricbuzz, when Harsha Bhogle asked Shakib to pick his favourite IPL XI, the latter admitted to having a great difficulty which saw him missing out on a few great players too. Yet, he managed to formulate his XI featuring teammates from KKR and SRH.
In the opening department, Shakib went with the pair of David Warner and Robin Uthappa while Gautam Gambhir – named the captain of the side – came in at No. 3.
SRH’s Manish Pandey was picked for No. 4 spot while Shakib gave himself a chance at No. 5. Hard-hitter Yusuf Pathan – who has played for both KKR and SRH – was the sixth player on the teamsheet.
Shakib then picked Windies swashbuckling all-rounder Andre Russell and Sunil Narine while the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Laxmipathy Balaji and Umesh Yadav completed the fast-bowling unit.
Shakib Al Hasan’s IPL XI:
David Warner, Robin Uthappa, Gautam Gambhir (c), Manish Pandey, Shakib Al Hasan, Yusuf Pathan, Andre Rusell, Sunil Narine, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Laxmipathy Balaji, Umesh Yadav.
Shakib’s ban will end midway through this year’s T20 World Cup. The tournament in Australia begins on October 18, with Shakib set to miss the first-round matches as well as the opening games of the Super 12 round – if Bangladesh qualifies from their group.
However, Cricket Australia has made it clear that staging the T20 World Cup this year is ‘unrealistic’ due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but despite their reluctance, the ICC has not been able to take a final call.
