IPL 2021: Best XI that never won the title

The Indian Premier League is one of the toughest leagues in the world. With so many players fighting out to win the lucrative trophy, it is difficult for the players to shine on the IPL stage. Currently, the Mumbai Indians have won the trophy five times and, they have been invincible. Apart from MI, another team that has won multiple trophies is CSK. Under Dhoni’s leadership, CSK has won three trophies so far. But, last year, the competition was so tough that they failed to reach the playoffs. This time, the fans will be hoping for CSK to turn things around. Teams like DC, PBKS, and RCB have been unable to win a trophy. Even though they have managed to reach the finals in 2020 and 2014 respectively, they still remain to lift the trophy. KKR has managed to lift the trophy twice in 2012 and 2014, but they have been unable to make a mark after their two title wins. SRH has been a consistent squad but it has won only once in 2016. Talking about RR, they have never won a trophy after their incredible triumph in 2008. Hence, many big names have not got their hands on trophy and let’s take a look at- Best XI that has never won the IPL trophy 1. Chris Gayle Chris Gayle of PBKS (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) The most astonishing fact in the cricketing world is that the brand ambassador of T20 cricket has never won the IPL trophy. Arguably the greatest T20 batsman, Gayle has won two ICC T20 World Cup. But, till now, he has never won an IPL trophy even after playing some memorable innings. The only reason he has not won the IPL is because of his franchise. Gayle was a part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore for most of his career. And they were heavily dependent on him to deliver the goods for them. But, it was too much on the plate even for Chris Gayle, and hence, he never won a trophy with them. Now, he is a part of the Punjab Kings. In 137 IPL matches, Gayle has scored 4848 runs. With a highly impressive average of 40.40, he has been a legend in the tournament. Adding on, Gayle has a strike rate of 149.49, which makes him one of the best in the business. Gayle deserves to lift the trophy at least once in his final years as a cricketer. 2. Virat Kohli( Captain) Virat Kohli (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of the greats in the modern game is yet to lift the IPL trophy. Virat Kohli is undoubtedly the best player for India in this generation and his 6021 IPL runs, prove the fact that he is the greatest all-round batsman ever. Kohli has been with RCB since his debut in 2008. And he single-handedly dragged RCB into the finals of the IPL in 2016. Kohli has played 196 T20Is so far and with a healthy average of 38.35, he has scored against every opposition. Kohli has been a decent captain as well. But, his squad had let him down when it came to holding the nerves during crucial moments. With five IPL centuries, he has been a legend of this league. He was in such fine form in 2016 that he scored a blistering century against Kings XI Punjab with an injury. His passion and determination are what one looks like in a captain. Hence, he is the skipper of this squad. 3. Jonny Bairstow Jonny Bairstow. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Jonny Bairstow is one of the cleanest strikers of the ball in the game right now. He can score a plethora of runs while playing risk-free shots. He was bought for INR 1.5 crore by the SRH management for the 2019 season and has been a valuable asset for them. Currently, he is a match-winner for the Hyderabad-based franchise. Talking about his IPL career, Jonny has scored 963 runs in three seasons. He has a solid average of 43.77. Adding on, a healthy strike rate of 140.37 makes him one of the favorites for the number three position. Without any doubt, the Englishman is a valuable asset for any team he plays. With Chris Gayle and Mayank Agarwal opening the batting, the team needs someone who can bat sensibly. He should accelerate when required and play the role of the anchor when his team needs someone to occupy the crease. Last year, Bairstow had scored 345 runs with an average of 31.36. And this year too, he continues to perform consistently. 4. AB de Villiers AB de Villiers of RCB (Photo SOurce: IPL/BCCI) Apart from Virat Kohli, the other batsman who has been unable to win the IPL trophy even after so many inspirational contributions is AB de Villiers. The South African legend is widely known as the most complete batsman in the modern era. He can play any shot in the book. Adding on, he can score at a brisk pace when required. ABD has scored 4974 runs with a healthy average of 40.77. An impressive strike rate of 152.67 makes his run tally even more impressive. Adding on, he is an outstanding fielder and has taken some memorable catches in his IPL career. Without any doubt, he is a complete player. Since 2018, his average in the league has never dropped below 44. Last year, it was 45.40 and in 2019, it was 44.20. In 2018, it looked like ABD was in a different world, as he averaged 53.33 in 12 matches. Given the fact that he can keep the wickets too, ABD makes it to the squad as the most valuable player. 5. Rishabh Pant( wicket-keeper) Rishabh Pant. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Rishabh Pant has seen everything a cricketer does over his career. He was dropped, he made a comeback and he is now the captain of the Delhi Capitals. Pant, as a player, has matured since the Australian tour. And now, he has improved his wicket-keeping skills too. Pant has been a great performer in the IPL. Over his career, he has scored 2167 runs with an impressive strike rate of 150.90. He has the highest score of 128* against the Sunrisers. And with thirteen half-centuries so far, he is the best wicketkeeper-batsman option available in the tournament. Last year, he scored 343 runs from 301 balls and it was a poor performance as per his standards. A mediocre strike rate of 113.95 never helped him to retain his place in the squad. But, multiple match-winning innings have enabled him to become the premier wicketkeeper-batsman. 6. Chris Morris Chris Morris. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Chris Morris is the costliest player in the history of the tournament and with his all-round talent, he is one of the most sought-after cricketers in every tournament he plays. Morris is now a part of the Rajasthan Royals franchise. They depend heavily on him as Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes are unavailable. Morris has been an effective campaigner in the IPL. With 599 runs in the IPL at a humongous strike rate of 157.63, he has been a clean hitter of the white ball. Adding on, he has a healthy average of 23.96 in the IPL. Therefore, with the bat, he is an asset. Talking about his bowling, he has picked 85 wickets so far. A decent economy rate of 7.92 makes him a frontline pacer for his franchise. He can bat during a batting collapse and bowl at the death. Well, Morris is a complete limited-overs cricketer. And, as he has not won the IPL trophy, he makes it to this playing XI. 7. Rahul Tewatia Rahul Tewatia of RR. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Rahul Tewatia became a household name after he smashed Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over. Just before that eventful over, he was unable to time the ball. And everyone was criticizing him as he was eating up the deliveries. What happened after that made him a superstar. He has been so impressive ever since, that he was selected for the home series against England. In his IPL career, Rahul has scored 447 runs with a decent strike rate of 135.04. With a healthy average of 27.93, he can bat with the tail-enders. He is now the X-factor player for the Royals. Talking about his bowling, he has picked up 25 wickets in his IPL career so far. With the best bowling figure of 3/18, he can pick crucial wickets during the middle overs. Adding on, he has an economy rate of 7.36, which is a decent record in a tournament like the IPL. But, the star all-rounder has never won an IPL trophy. Therefore, he makes it to this playing XI. 8. Amit Mishra Amit Mishra. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Amit Mishra is one of the all-time IPL greats. Being a leg spinner, he has picked up wickets every time his team needed him to provide a breakthrough. As he is in the last phase of his career, he is a veteran now and Pant can use him as a match-winner for the Delhi Capitals. Mishra has been a part of the IPL circuit since 2008. And with 164 wickets to his name, he stands second on the list of highest wicket-takers in the history of the tournament. Adding on, he has bowled with a decent economy rate of 7.34. This makes him a difficult bowler to put away for the batsman. Last year, he was unable to play for Delhi after getting injured. However, over the years, he has been a decent performer for every franchise he has played for. A team needs players like Amit Mishra who could win them matches with ease. And this team needs a veteran like him. 9. Arshdeep Singh Arshdeep Singh of PBKS (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS) Arshdeep Singh was a part of the U-19 squad that won the ICC U-19 World Cup in 2018. Unlike most of the newbies, Singh can bowl with pace and control. Later on, he was picked in the Punjab U-23 team and he had made an impact with the ball. He also has a hat-trick to his name in the CK Nayudu Trophy. Punjab’s inconsistency paved the way for Singh to make his IPL debut in 2019. Although he was expensive during his first year with the Kings, he now holds the bowling unit together. Apart from Shami, Singh is the one who bowls at the depth for Punjab Kings. In 2020, he picked up 9 wickets. During that year, he bowled at a decent economy rate of 8.77. This year too, he has been covering for Riley Meredith and Jhye Richardson, the two players who were brought for a whopping INR 22 crores but failed to make a mark. Singh has been the star performer for Punjab so far. Well, it is no doubt that if he continues to perform like he has been doing, the way to the national side looks clear for him. Adding on, his presence adds a variety to the bowling attack. 10. Mohammed Shami Mohammed Shami of PBKS. (Photo Source: Twitter) Mohammed Shami was in stellar form in the 2020 season of the IPL. He was KL Rahul’s go-to man for every occasion. Be it bowling at the death or opening the bowling, Shami was there to save his team. And, this makes him an important bowler in a tournament like the IPL. In his IPL career, Shami has picked 66 wickets so far. With the best bowling figures of 3/15, he is a perfect wicket-taker for any team he plays. In 2020, he picked 20 wickets with a decent economy of 8.57. Although his team failed to reach the playoffs, Shami was one of the star performers. Any T20 playing XI needs someone who can bowl yorkers consistently. And in this team, Shami is the man to bowl those toe-crushing yorkers. He is a vital member of Punjab Kings as they look forward to making impressive outings in IPL 2021. Well, the only issue with them is that they have to use Shami effectively. 11. Kagiso Rabada Kagiso Rabada of DC (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) The pace is the word that first comes into mind when one hears the name Kagiso Rabada. The South African speedster has been Delhi Capitals’ asset since his debut. He can bowl those quick swinging deliveries to unsettle the batsmen. Adding on, he can bowl those nasty bouncers from his arsenal. Last year, he picked 30 wickets to earn the Purple Cap and was in the best shape of his career. And because of his efforts, DC managed to reach the finals of the tournament for the first time. In 2020, he had an impressive economy rate of 8.34. Apart from his bowling, Rabada can smash some balls out of the park too. And given the fact that Rabada is our fourth overseas player, this team looks strong. He could bowl during the death overs along with Shami. As the Capitals had failed to win the final of the thirteenth edition of the IPL, Rabada made it to this squad.

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IPL 2021: Best XI that never won the title

Players who are yet to get their hands on the IPL trophy.

8. Amit Mishra

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