IPL 2021: Best overseas XI of the tournament so far

The 14th edition of the IPL was going smoothly without any hiccups and we were halfway through the tournament till the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic had other plans. Due to a rise in COVID-19 cases in the teams’ bio-bubbles, the current campaign has been temporarily suspended. In the 29 games that were played, there was no shortage of quality as usual and we witnessed some special performances. As many as three batsmen scored centuries and there were also a couple of 5-wicket hauls. The match between Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad also witnessed a super over and there was plenty of drama in pretty much every game. Overseas players like Chris Gayle, David Warner and Lasith Malinga are amongst the biggest legends in IPL history and they have entertained fans with their performances on the field. It was no different this season and we saw some high-quality showings from the overseas professionals. Here’s a look at the best Overseas XI of the season in IPL 2021 1. Faf du Plessis (C) Faf du Plessis. ( Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Faf du Plessis was in brilliant form for the Chennai Super Kings this season and was arguably the best batsman in the league. No one expected his team to be anywhere near the top, but his tremendous form propelled them into 2nd place. After starting the tournament rather poorly with a duck against the Delhi Capitals, he came back strongly with six consecutive scores in excess of 30. Each of his last four innings resulted in half-centuries as well. In seven games, he scored 320 runs at an average of 64 while striking at over 145. His 95* against KKR was his best innings by far as he pretty much toyed with the bowling attack. With such incredible consistency, while also maintaining a very healthy strike rate, his inclusion in this XI is a no-brainer. 2. Jonny Bairstow (WK) Jonny Bairstow. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) The Englishman didn’t even have a guaranteed place in the playing XI ahead of the season given the combination they used during the backend of last season. However, Kane Williamson’s injury meant that he got the nod for the first game. He made the most of it as he scored a fifty and made himself undroppable for at least the next couple of games. He scored two half-centuries and a further three 30+ scores in seven games and was their best batsman. He scored 248 runs in 7 games at an average of 41.33 while having a strike rate of 141.71. The wicket-keeper was their only batsman with more than 200 runs and was also the only one with a strike rate of more than 130 (minimum 40 runs). Although his fellow Englishman, Jos Buttler scored more runs than him, Bairstow edged him by virtue of greater consistency as Buttler scored nearly half of his runs in just one game. 3. Moeen Ali Moeen Ali. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Moeen Ali was one of the biggest purchases during the auction for this season of IPL and quite naturally, big things were expected from him as CSK looked to come back from a dismal campaign in 2020. And, he certainly lived up to the expectations and transformed their team. CSK was criticized for their lack of intent last season and they often scored at a rather poor run rate. They needed someone who showed intent and scored runs at a quick rate and this is where Moeen has been a massive asset for MS Dhoni’s franchise. He scored 206 runs in six games at an average of 34.33 while scoring at 157.25. He had just one game where he scored less than 25. The Englishman was handy with the ball as well and picked up 6 wickets at a strike rate of 14.4 while conceding at just 6.16. He was among the frontrunners in the race to become the Most Valuable Player and thus, walks into this team. 4. Glenn Maxwell Glenn Maxwell. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Glenn Maxwell has been one of the biggest underperformers in the history of the league and apart from his terrific season in 2014, he hasn’t done much. He has averaged less than 20 in four of his last five seasons and thus, it was a surprise when he again went for huge money. This time it was RCB who took the risk and with batsmen like Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers around him, he was going to have lesser expectations on his shoulders. The move to buy him paid off as he looked in prime form and he had only one innings where he scored less than 22. In seven games, he scored 223 runs at a strike rate of 144.8 while averaging 37.16. The Australian scored two half-centuries and was their highest run-scorer, showing significant improvement from his previous campaigns. 5. AB de Villiers AB de Villiers. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of the greatest overseas players in the history of IPL, AB de Villiers has been a consistent performer and it is no surprise that he is in this XI as well. Playing after a gap of five months is a massive challenge for any cricketer, but it didn’t prove so for ABD as he continued toying with the bowlers in a similar fashion. He batted on six occasions and three of them turned out to be matchwinning knocks while in the other three he was dismissed for single-digit scores. RCB lost in two of those games where could only manage single-digit scores, showing how much of an impact he has on their fortunes. In seven games, he scored 207 runs at an average of 51.75 while striking at a stunning 164.28. The South African had two half-centuries to his name and was also a key figure behind the stumps as he was involved in 8 dismissals. 6. Shimron Hetmyer Shimron Hetmyer. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Shimron Hetmyer hasn’t done a whole lot this season, but the lack of overseas batsmen for this position means that he sneaks in. With his mediocre performances, last season and the arrival of Steve Smith and Sam Billings, his place in the playing XI was a major doubt, but he has managed to start in most of the games. He hasn’t got many opportunities to bat and has only faced 41 deliveries this season across six games. The West Indian has been dismissed just once in those six innings and remained unbeaten in the remaining ones. He scored 84 runs at an average of 84 while striking at over 200, showing that he didn’t fail in leaving an impact when he got to face a few deliveries. Most of his runs came against RCB when he scored a 53* from 25 balls and nearly took his team home from a very difficult position. 7. Andre Russell Andre Russell. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Andre Russell had a rather underwhelming campaign last year and given the high standards he has set for himself, even he would have been disappointed, to say the least. He has managed to make a pretty good comeback from that and showed glimpses of himself that made him the most feared batsman in T20 cricket. He managed three scores in excess of 30 including a 22 ball 54 against CSK which gave them a glimmer of hope from an absolutely hopeless position while chasing a mammoth 221. The all-rounder even picked up 5/15 against defending champions, Mumbai Indians. He scored 163 in seven games at an average of about 27 and was striking at 155.23. With the ball in hand, the 33-year-old picked up 7 wickets at a strike rate of just 8.57 although his economy rate of 11.4 was a bit too expensive. 8. Chris Morris Chris Morris. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Chris Morris became the most expensive signing in the history of IPL when he was bought by the Rajasthan Royals for Rs.16.25 crore. Given the price and his performance last season, expectations were sky high and it wouldn’t be wrong to say that he has been able to meet them to a certain extent. In the absence of Jofra Archer, he has had to lead the bowling attack and he has certainly done his bit having picked up a staggering 38% of RR’s wickets. He’s also chipped in with the bat and won 2 points for his team against the Delhi Capitals with an excellent 36* from 18 deliveries under pressure. In 7 games, he has picked up 14 wickets at a strike rate of 11.14 while maintaining an economy rate of 8.61. The South African also scored 48 runs at a strike rate of over 150 and he was one of the best performers in the league. 9. Pat Cummins Pat Cummins. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Pat Cummins was bought for a hefty price in the 2020 auction by the Kolkata Knight Riders, but he failed to do justice to the price tag as he couldn’t even pick up a wicket every game on average. However, they kept faith in him and retained him for the next edition. The Australian has been much better compared to last season and was on course to comfortably overtake his tally from the previous year before the ongoing campaign was temporarily suspended. He has picked up 9 wickets in 7 games at a strike rate of 17.88 while conceding at 8.83. He is the 6th highest wicket-taker in the competition with his best performance being 3/24 against DC. He’s also scored 93 runs at an average of 31 while striking 166.07 and his stunning 66* nearly won them the game from an impossible situation against CSK. 10. Kyle Jamieson Kyle Jamieson. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of the biggest buys during the auction, Kyle Jamieson came with massive hype given his impressive performances for New Zealand although most of them came in the longest format of the game. Compared to some of the other big buys in the auction, it would be fair to say that he has been a decent pick for RCB. He has been quite good with the ball and chipped in with crucial wickets while also scoring some vital runs during the backend of the innings. The New Zealander has picked up 9 wickets in 7 games at a strike rate of 16, but he has been a bit expensive considering his economy rate of 9.2. 7 of his nine wickets were batsmen who bat in the top 4 and even the other two were of Shakib Al Hasan and Pat Cummins, showing that the wickets he’s gotten are quite important in the context of the game. Jamieson has also scored 59 runs at an average of nearly 20 while striking at 143.9. 11. Rashid Khan Rashid Khan. (Photo Source: Twitter) Rashid Khan is probably the world’s best bowler in the shortest format of the game and this season of the Indian Premier League has done no harm to his massive reputation. Similar to his previous campaigns, he has been SRH’s main man with the ball and the captain has often turned to him when in need of a breakthrough. He has been their only consistent source of wickets throughout the season and even if the wickets of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th highest wicket-takers from their team are combined, it wouldn’t cross Rashid’s tally. The Afghan sensation has picked up 28% of their wickets. The 22-year-old picked up 10 wickets in seven games at a strike rate of 16.80 and was potentially on his way to his best-ever campaign in terms of wickets. He has never conceded at more than 7 in a season and he continued that pattern this time as well because his economy rate was just 6.14.

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IPL 2021: Best overseas XI of the tournament so far

The tournament was a witness to some high-quality showings from the overseas professionals.

5. AB de Villiers

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