IPL 2021 was no short of entertainment despite coming to a premature end due to a couple of potential bio-bubble breaches due to the COVID-19 crisis. In the wake of it, former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has picked his team of the tournament and left out a couple of big names including the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Meanwhile, during the course of the 29 games, there was plenty to cheer for as a lot of close encounters were held, with uncapped players starring for their respective sides whereas some big names continued to impress. However, the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and MS Dhoni failed to impress on the ground.
Aakash Chopra names his team of IPL 2021
The former Indian opener-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra named his IPL 2021 XI, based on the games completed before IPL 2021 came to a standstill. Chopra went with KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan at the top followed by Faf du Plessis at No.3.
“I have kept KL Rahul first. He played three big knocks, which includes two nineties and a 60-odd. All three of them came in a winning cause, so whenever he scored runs his team won. He played at a good strike rate as well. Along with him is Shikhar Dhawan and he has the Orange Cap on his head. The maturity with which he has started playing, this is the upgraded version of Shikhar Dhawan which we have seen from the last IPL,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Going ahead, Aakash Chopra kept Royal Challengers Bangalore duo of Glenn Maxwell and AB de Villiers at No.4 and 5. Both of them were largely responsible for Kohli & Co’s brilliant run in IPL 2021. The former Delhi opener went Rishabh Pant as the wicket-keeper batter and will bat at No.6.
Moving down the order, Chopra had the likes of Ravindra Jadeja, who was one of the most impactful players in IPL 14, along with Chris Morris — 14 wickets and a match-winning 36* versus Delhi Capitals (DC) — along with uncapped bowlers in Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan and Mumbai Indians’ (MI) spinner Rahul Chahar.
Aakash Chopra’s IPL 2021 XI: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Chris Morris, Rahul Chahar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel
