IPL 2019: The best XI of released players

15 November 2018 was the last day to release and trade the players ahead of the 12th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Hence, all the eight franchises put out the list of the players they have retained and released. There were quite a few big names on the list of released players. Their failure in IPL 2018 or current form persuaded the franchise owners to part ways with them for the upcoming season. Some of these names include the Australian limited-overs skipper Aaron Finch, Yuvraj Singh, Mustafizur Rahman and others. The franchises who couldn’t acquire these cricketers earlier will be hoping to pick them in the auction which will be held in December this year. However, if a hypothetical situation is taken into consideration, these released players can form a strong XI all by themselves and give some tough competition to some of the best teams. Here is the best XI of the released players 1. Aaron Finch Aaron Finch of KXIP. (Photo Source: Twitter) Aaron Finch is an extremely hard hitter of the cricket ball. He can tear apart the opposition and has the ability to shift gears within no time. He was picked by the Kings XI Punjab for the 2018 season and they had high expectations on him. However, he failed terribly in the subcontinent conditions and only managed to score 134 runs in 10 games at an average of 17. He was tried at various positions in the batting order but left his team deserted. Hence, the 31-year-old was put back into the auction pool. Finch has got the game for T20 cricket and KXIP shouldn’t have experimented much with him in the batting order. Considering his recent form and hitting abilities, Finch will open the innings in the released XI. 2. Gautam Gambhir (C) Gautam Gambhir of Delhi Daredevils. (Photo Source: Twitter) Gautam Gambhir started off IPL 2018 with a clinical half-century but failed to accumulate the runs later on. Before the Delhi Daredevils even realised, their playoff qualification was already in jeopardy and the skipper decided to drop himself from the XI. Although a more classical and textbook kind of batsman, Gambhir is more than capable of playing T20 cricket. In fact, it was under him that the KKR won two titles and he was instrumental in the success. He is one of the leading run-scorers in the all-time list and looked good in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. Gambhir has hit more fours in the IPL than anyone else. He will open the innings along with the aggressive Finch which is much like a Viru-Gauti combination and will also lead this released XI. 3. Yuvraj Singh Kings XI Punjab’s Yuvraj Singh. (Photo: IANS) Another KXIP player who failed to live up to the expectations is Yuvraj Singh. After he scored a hundred in the practice game before the start of the season, the stakes were high. He was back with his home team after a long time and was expected to make a statement with the bat. Though it was well acknowledged that he isn’t the Yuvi of the old but the left-hander only scored 65 runs in 8 games at a strike rate of 90. Thus shattering expectations of the fans as well as the franchise that failed to find able support for KL Rahul all through the tournament. He would be batting at number three in this lineup and will have the licence to go after the bowlers. He can also come in handy with the ball if required. 4. JP Duminy Delhi Daredevils batsman JP Duminy. (Photo Source: IANS) JP Duminy had a forgetful IPL 2018 with the Mumbai Indians and hence was released. He just managed to score 36 runs in 6 games with a high score of 23. Duminy, despite all the experience in his bag, didn’t just fit into his role of being a finisher in the side and was dropped from the XI in the later stages of the tournament. However, JPD can be a very dangerous player if he bats and three or four and gets to spend some time out in the middle. He plucks out the open areas in the field well and can also hit them over the ropes. He bowls in the powerplay and contains the batsmen for runs which is another advantage of having him in the side. 5. Wriddhiman Saha (wk) Wriddhiman Saha of SRH. (Photo Source: Twitter) The Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have faced problems for a very long time to find a good keeper equally capable with the bat, thought Saha could answer all their calls. He was picked in the auction and assigned the role of opening the innings in absence of David Warner. But, the keeper-batsman was never able to convert his starts into big scores despite getting several chances. Further, multiple injuries didn’t help his cause either and Saha had to miss out on a few games. In 11 games, he only scored 122 runs at an average of 15. As the miserable season, he was released and will be donning the gloves in this XI. 6. Gurkeerat Mann Gurkeerat Singh Mann. (Photo Source: Twitter) Gurkeerat Singh Mann is a very talented player to say the least. He can get going right from the first ball and scores at a good pace at the same time be a level-headed player to anchor the innings. However, the last two seasons weren’t as fruitful for him which somewhat hindered his progress after his international debut in 2016. Mann got to play only two games in 2017 but didn’t manage to score any runs. He was picked by the Delhi Daredevils in the 2018 season. However, he didn’t get to feature in a single game for the side even after they gave chances to almost all the players in the squad. Mann will assume the role of a finisher in this XI and can also come in handy with his off-spinners. 7. Chris Woakes Chris Woakes of RCB. (Photo Source: Twitter) The English all-rounder, although not the most fluent of T20 players, adds a great balance to the XI. Predominantly a bowler, Woakes has got many variations up his sleeve and can be used to bowl in the middle overs as well as at the start. He can also tonk the ball hard and has a Test century to his name. Woakes’ role in this XI would be to put breaks on the run flow in the middle overs and get some beneficial runs batting down in the lower order. He should look to play freely at this position and will have to go after the bowlers right from the start. Woakes picked 8 wickets in 5 games in IPL 2018 for RCB and was released which might also have a lot to do with his availability for the next season. 8. Axar Patel Axar Patel. (Photo Source: Twitter) Axar Patel had been one of the core players of the Kings XI Punjab team for quite a while now. He has the ability to bowl anytime during the course of the innings and is also a very useful batsman and can strike a few lusty blows. The Gujarat cricket was an integral part of KXIP for four years. However, a poor outing in 2018 meant that he had to part ways with the franchise. In 9 games last season, he only managed to pick 3 wickets an average of 73 and economy rate above 8. With the willow in hand, he only scored 80 runs and his strike rate also took a dip. Axar will be the other all-rounder in this XI. 9. Jaydev Unadkat Rajasthan Royals’ Jaydev Unadkat. (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/IANS) Following up a dream run in 2017, Unadkat was picked up by RR for a huge amount of INR 11.50 crores, the highest among Indians. That of course had a lot to do with the fact that the left-arm pacer picked 24 wickets in 12 games for the Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017. However, it wasn’t his year in 2018 and failed terribly. Unadkat only managed to pick 11 wickets in 15 games and went about 10 runs per over. Hence, it didn’t make much of sense to have him continuing in the team with such a high price tag. The left-arm pacer, however, has shown signs of good form with a 7-wicket haul recently in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season. 10. Mitchell Starc Mitchell Starc. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images) It was quite a bold move from KKR to release the Australian speedster Mitchell Starc. He is one of the most lethal bowlers around and troubles even the best in the business. However, the franchises have kept faith in him a tad too much as he hasn’t played IPL after the 2015 season. He often pulls out of the league at the last moment completely upsets the balance of the team. Starc played 27 IPL matches till date and has accounted for 34 wickets. He will be leading the pace attack in this released XI. 11. Mohammed Shami Mohammed Shami of Delhi Daredevils. (Photo by: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS) Mohammed Shami had the worst of seasons in IPL 11. He was with the Delhi Daredevils since 2014 and they also used their RTM card to buy him back in the auction last season. But, that wasn’t worth it as the pacer returned with a horrific show. He was in the middle of a lot of personal issues and it did reflect while he was on the field. Shami only featured in four games for the franchise in IPL 2018. He managed to get three scalps to his name but that wasn’t impressive even one bit. Looking at his performances in T20 cricket, there is also a chance that he might go unsold for the upcoming season. Get the latest Cricket News and updates from the Indian Premier League, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com

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IPL 2019: The best XI of released players

These released players can form a strong XI all by themselves and give some tough competition to some of the best teams.

7. Chris Woakes

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