Retired IPL XI of the decade

Gautam Gambhir(c)

The Delhi batsman was one of the crucial members of the Indian team that lifted the T20 World Cup in 2007 and the 50-over World Cup in 2011. The southpaw had found reasonable success with the bat in his first three seasons of the IPL with Delhi Daredevils. It wasn’t before he started playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in 2011 that Gautam Gambhir was beginning to cement his legacy as one of the successful captains in the IPL.

From the fourth season, Gambhir took control of Kolkata Knight Riders, who were languishing at the lower half of the table since the start. In the 2011 season, the Kolkata-based franchise made it to the top four for the first time under Gambhir’s captaincy. In the subsequent season, the left-handed batsman catapulted the Knight Riders to their first title.

Not only as a captain, but also Gambhir spearheaded the way with the bat, scoring 590 runs in that season. The 38-year old lead the franchise to another resounding championship victory two years later in 2014. He stayed with the team till 2017 before he was released and picked up by Delhi Daredevils in 2018. In that same season, Gambhir dropped himself from the playing eleven midway, owing to poor form and hasn’t played since.

A veteran of over 150 IPL games, having scored 4000 runs, Gambhir will bat at number three in the eleven. The former Indian opening batsman can score runs quickly as well as can become the glue to keep the line-up from subsiding. Gambhir boasts of 70 wins from the 128 matches he captained in and will thus lead the side.