T20 World Cup 2021: Best XI of omitted players

An ICC tournament is considered the most important tournament. Winning an ICC trophy is a dream for every budding cricketer. Thus, this is probably why the upcoming 2021 T20 World Cup (WC) is getting all the limelight. Over the years, only the best of the best players have been able to excel in a T20 WC. Hence, their names go on to be written in the history books and are cherished forever. However, there are a lot of unlucky players who miss out on playing a particular edition. Despite being skilled enough to win matches on their own, some players are unfortunate enough to not even feature in the squad. There are several players like these who due to various reasons, won’t be featuring in the upcoming T20 WC as well. So if one were to make a playing XI of such kind of players, which of them would feature in it? Here’s a look at the best XI of players who are not playing T20 World Cup 2021: 1) Shikhar Dhawan Shikhar Dhawan. (Photo Source: Twitter/Sri Lanka Cricket) Shikhar Dhawan is arguably one of the best openers of this era. You wouldn’t find too many batters as impactful as well. The fact that the veteran was omitted from the Indian squad took everyone by surprise. The Delhi opener has scored 1759 runs in 67 T20I games so far. His batting average and strike rate in this format are 27.92 and 126.36 respectively. This includes 11 fifties as well. His experience would have been really handy in a marquee event like the T20 WC. Besides, he was superb in the recently concluded IPL 2021. Moreover, the opener was India’s captain in their last T20I series where he also scored the most number of runs in the series. 2) Faf Du Plessis (C) Faf du Plessis of South Africa. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images) This has to be one of the most shocking omissions of all time. How does a world-class batsman like Faf du Plessis not find a place in the Proteas squad? A player with the caliber of the former SA skipper would walk into any T20 side in the world. The top-order batsman has scored 1528 runs in 50 T20I games. His batting average and strike rate in this format are 35.53 and 134.39 respectively. This includes 10 fifties and a hundred. To make matters more confusing, he was one of the best performers in the decent concluded CPL 2021 and IPL 2021. He had even scored an amazing 86 in the IPL 2021 Final which ensured that the Chennai Super Kings won their 4th title. It is baffling that one of the current best batters from SA isn’t even in the T20I side. 3) Shai Hope (WK) Shai Hope. (Photo Source: Twitter) One shouldn’t be surprised by looking at Shai Hope‘s name in this XI. Despite not being tailor-made for the shortest format of the game, his batting approach provides a lot of stability. Besides, his T20I numbers are more than decent. The keeper-batsman has scored 238 runs in 11 T20I innings. His batting average and strike rate are 21.64 and 136.0. His T20I strike rate in particular is superb. He has also scored 2 fifties out of which, one of them happens to be the fastest fifty by a Windies batter. His keeping skills are the icing over the cake. Thus, he could have proved to be a smart pick for the West Indies. 4) Shreyas Iyer Shreyas Iyer. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Shreyas Iyer has been one of the most underappreciated cricketers going around right now. Irrespective of what the critics say, he has done well more often than not. The middle-order batsman has scored 550 runs in 26 T20I innings so far. His batting average and strike rate in this format are 28.95 and 133.82 respectively. This includes 3 fifties as well. He was superb in his last T20I series against England too. The Mumbai batsman played the role of an anchor as well as a finisher in the same series. It was an absolute tragedy that he got injured during the ODI series after that which ruled him out for a few months. One of the main reasons why he wasn’t selected in the Indians squad was because of his lack of match practice. 5) Ben Stokes Ben Stokes. (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/Getty Images) Ben Stokes is currently one of the biggest names in world cricket. It is safe to say that he is one of the biggest match-winners of this era. He was the player of the match in the last final of an ICC trophy. Not watching him play in the upcoming T20 WC isn’t just a loss to the English fans but is also a loss to cricket fans across the globe. The entertainment he would have provided with his game would have been one to remember. However, he won’t be featuring in this T20 WC because he had decided to take an indefinite break from cricket to focus on his mental health. The star all-rounder has scored 442 runs in 34 T20I games. His batting average and strike rate in this format are 20.09 and 136.84 respectively. He has also picked 19 T20I wickets. 6) Sam Curran Sam Curran. (Photo Source: BCCI) Sam Curran is one of the most improved cricketers. It wouldn’t be an overstatement to call him a complete package. He is one of those cricketers who can just make things happen. Such cricketers are often preferred in the shortest format of the game. The all-rounder has picked 16 wickets in 16 T20I games. His bowling average and strike rate are 22.81 and 17.25, respectively. He has a superb economy rate of 7.93 as well. The youngster has also scored 91 T20I runs. His T20I batting average and strike rate are 18.2 and 159.65 respectively. He was initially in England’s squad for the T20 WC but was ultimately ruled out due to an injury. 7) Chris Morris Chris Morris. (Photo by Andy Kearns/Getty Images) Chris Morris is one of the most dynamic all-rounders. His skills are tailor-made for the shortest format of the game. Not only can he bowl at the death but can also hit some lusty blows with the bat. Add to that his super fielding skills. The all-rounder is one of the most valuable T20 players as well. He has been in huge demand across several T20 leagues. However, despite all of this he isn’t in the Proteas squad. Even though SA needs an explosive all-rounder like him, he doesn’t find a place. He has picked 34 T20I wickets and has scored 133 runs in 23 T20Is. 8) Sunil Narine Sunil Narine. (Photo Source: JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images) Sunil Narine is an MVP when it comes to the shortest format of the game. His impact is what every captain dreams to possess in their side. Besides, even the best of the best batters fails to pick him. The mystery spinner has picked 51 wickets in 49 T20I innings. His bowling average and strike rate are 21.25 and 21.19 respectively. Add to that his unreal economical rate which is 6.02. Another important point to be noted is the fact that his current form has been commendable. He was an absolute match-winner for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2021. Not only was he superb with the ball but was also impactful with the bat. 9) Jofra Archer Jofra Archer. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images for ECB) Jofra Archer is one of the fastest bowlers in the world right now. Not many bowlers can achieve what he has achieved in such a short period in international cricket. He has now become an integral member of the English side across all formats of the game. However, T20Is always bring the best out of him. The pacer has picked 14 wickets in 12 T20Is so far. His bowling average and strike rate in this format are 26.5 and 20.14 respectively. His economy rate is 7.89, which is very good in this format. He has a T20I strike rate of 190, thus proving his abilities with the bat as well. It is rather unfortunate that he has to miss out on the upcoming T20 WC due to an injury. 10) Imran Tahir Imran Tahir of South Africa. (Photo by Andy Kearns/Getty Images) Imran Tahir is unarguably one of the greatest T20I bowlers of all time. You wouldn’t find too many match winners as good as him. The leggie has a knack of winning matches all by himself. Every skipper dreams of having a spinner like him in their side. Tahir has time and again proved that age is just a number. The veteran has picked 63 wickets in just the 38 T20I games. His bowling average and strike rate are 15.05 and 13.41 respectively. However, his USP is his economy. He has a miserly economy rate of just 6.73. 11) Yuzvendra Chahal Yuzvendra Chahal. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images) Yuzvendra Chahal has been a revolution. His googlies are hard to pick. Over the last few years, he has been India’s go-to man in the shortest format of the game. Statistically speaking, he is one of the best T20I bowlers to have ever played for India. The leggie has picked 63 wickets in 49 T20Is so far. His bowling average and strike rate are 25.3 and 18.24 respectively. This includes 2 four-fers and a five-fer as well. He also has the best bowling figures by an Indian spinner in T20Is (6/25). Thus, his omission came as a shock to one and all.

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T20 World Cup 2021: Best XI of omitted players

Here is the best XI of players who are not a part of the T20 World Cup 2021.

6) Sam Curran

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