Former India captain Sourav Ganguly picks his IPL Fantasy dream team

Amidst the ongoing 10th edition of the Indian Premier League, former India captain Sourav Ganguly shared his IPL Fantasy dream team via Twitter.

Sourav Ganguly’s team spreads across six sides from this season of the IPL. His team includes players from Royal Challengers Bangalore, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Mumbai Indians, Rising Pune Supergiant, Delhi Daredevils, and lastly Kolkata Knight Riders, the side which he captained in the inaugural season of the IPL.

Ganguly’s XI would see two in-form skippers open the batting. RCB captain Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir who leads the Kolkata Knight Riders would start proceedings at the crease for Ganguly. Both Kohli and Gambhir have been amongst the runs across seasons in the IPL. While Gambhir finished second in the list of highest run-getters in two IPL seasons,  Virat Kohli convincingly won the Orange Cap in 2016.

At No.3 would be RPS skipper and also the captain of the Australian cricket team Steven Smith. The batsman is currently in stellar form following his successful tour of India with the bat. At 4 Ganguly would have Mr. 360, the one and only AB de Villiers. The South African legend is arguably the most destructive batsmen in world cricket, and his inclusion in Ganguly’s XI is only reasonable.

What comes as a surprise is Sourav’s middle order, which includes 3 up and coming youngsters. Nitish Rana at No.5 has been in spectacular form for the Mumbai Indians. His regular 50s in winning causes have proved his consistency and his maturity at the IPL platform.

Rana is followed by KKR’s Manish Pandey, who has been dependable for the Knight Riders over several seasons now. Manish Pandey’s regular contributions have cemented his spot in KKR’s middle-order, and has also allowed him to sport the national jersey.

At No.6, comes 19-year-old Rishabh Pant, who has shown great character while playing for the Delhi Daredevils. His aggressive batting has stood out in DD’s batting line-up. Pant could also offer his services as a keeper in Ganguly’s XI.

Sourav Ganguly’s bowling attack in his dream team includes two brilliant spinners in Sunil Narine and Amit Mishra. Narine’s hallmark has obviously been his economy. The mystery element he brings into his bowling still keeps him in the hunt for wickets. Mishra, on the other hand, has consistently featured amongst the wickets for the Daredevils. The leggie cleverly mixes his googlies and the wrong ones during his spells.

In the pace department, Ganguly picks Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Chris Morris. Bhuvi has been the sensation of the ongoing IPL so far, as he stands well ahead of the pack of bowlers with the Purple Cap on his head. Bhuvi’s economical spells and his fantastic bowling at the death have made him one of the most successful bowlers in recent IPL history.

On the other hand, Ganguly has Chris Morris. The tall South African all-rounder brings about some pace and bounce into his bowling. Moreover, his tight spells give pretty much nothing away. With the bat, Morris is extremely handy lower down the order as he can strike the ball a fair distance.

Here is Sourav Ganguly’s IPL Fantasy dream team:

Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, Steven Smith, AB de Villiers, Nitish Rana, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Sunil Narine, Amit Mishra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Chris Morris