T20 World Cup 2021: Flop XI of the tournament

Australia turned out to be a brute force in the final of the T20 World Cup 2021. On Sunday, Aaron Finch and Co. defeated New Zealand by eight wickets with seven balls left in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The Kiwis put in spirited performances and won five games in a row. However, they stumbled at the final hurdle. This World Cup will be remembered as intriguing because all of the pre-tournament and mid-tournament favourites were eliminated. While many players performed well as expected, there were some star players who did not perform as expected, resulting in the decline of their respective teams. Here is a look at the playing XI of the players who did not make an impression in this World Cup 1. Chris Gayle Chris Gayle of West Indies hits 6. (Photo by RANDY BROOKS/AFP via Getty Images) The West Indies legend and swashbuckling opener in T20 format, Chris Gayle, formally bid farewell to World Cups after a poor performance that resulted in his team failing to qualify for the semi-final. He only scored 45 runs in six matches and hit three sixes throughout the tournament. The Universe Boss never regained his mojo because he was assigned to different positions and roles by the West Indian management. Once he opened the innings, once he was played at no.3 as an anchor and another time he came to finish the innings. These were bizarre kinds of roles considering he has always opened throughout his career. This was a sad end to his otherwise illustrious T20 career. Though he hasn’t officially retired, he made it clear that this would be his final World Cup outing. 2. Quinton De Kock (wk) Quinton de Kock. (Photo By Seb Daly/Sportsfile via Getty Images) Quinton De Kock was one of South Africa’s most experienced players, so there was a lot riding on him in this World Cup. Despite the fact that South Africa won four of five games, de Kock disappointed everyone. Apart from controversies outside the game, he only scored 69 runs in four games, averaging 17.25, which is abysmal for a player of his stature. Except for the game against England, he was unable to provide decent starts and was vulnerable against off-spinners. Because De Kock doesn’t move his feet at all, many teams used a strategy of employing spin from both ends to trap him. His wicket-keeping was unconvincing, and it appeared that his batting was affecting his wicket-keeping. 3. Avishka Fernando Sri Lankan cricketer Avishka Fernando. (Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA / AFP) (Photo credit should read ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images) Sri Lanka’s ploy of inserting Avishka Fernando in the middle order failed miserably. He is regarded as one of Sri Lanka’s brightest talents. He showed glimpses of his talent in World Cup 2019, but this T20 World Cup was a disaster for him. Overall, in four innings, he scored 4, 13, 3, and 0 runs for a total of 20 runs. He only reached double digits once, averaging only 5. Despite Mahela Jayawardene’s support, he did not clearly stand up to the role. Perhaps his role was not clearly stated by the team management. While batting in the middle order, the right-hander appeared completely clueless. Spin was used by teams to tackle him, and he eventually fell into their trap. 4. Jonny Bairstow Jonny Bairstow. (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/Getty Images) This T20 World Cup was a colossal failure for Jonny Bairstow. Normally an opener, he was moved to the middle order by England and he couldn’t perform. Batting at number four in this World Cup exposed his technical shortcomings. He scored 38 runs in the limited opportunities he had, with his highest score being 16*. In Sharjah, Wanindu Hasaranga and Tabraiz Shamsi outfoxed him with googlies, exposing his batting. When he was promoted to open against New Zealand in the semi-finals, he only scored 13 runs off 17 balls and looked befuddled against the swinging ball. Tim Southee, in particular, caused him problems with his outswing, and he was beaten several times by his out-swinger. 5. Mushfiqur Rahim Mushfiqur Rahim. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Mushfiqur Rahim, Bangladesh’s most experienced cricketer, was held in high regards. Unfortunately, he did not live up to the expectations placed on him and had a miserable World Cup campaign. He scored 50 plus in only one game against Sri Lanka and didn’t contribute much after that. He also failed to score in the Group stage games against the Associate nations, and the team ultimately failed to finish first in Group B. He struggled on the field in the Super 12s. In the eight games he played in the World Cup, he had five single-digit scores. Bangladesh relied heavily on him, owing to a lack of solid matchwinners, and he failed to repay the faith. 6. Hardik Pandya Hardik Pandya. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Hardik Pandya was once deemed as ‘India’s Jacques Kallis‘. He had a good year in 2020, but his career has taken a turn for the worse in 2021. After battling a number of injuries over the past year, he was unable to bowl in the World Cup, which severely hampered India’s bowling attack. Despite the fact that he did not bowl, India persisted with him because of his batting abilities. Even after a poor IPL season, India stuck with him. However, he failed to finish the innings against Pakistan and had a miserable outing against New Zealand in which he failed to deliver. Following those games, his finishing abilities were heavily questioned. Opponents discovered his vulnerability against cutters and bouncers. When a slower bouncer away from the body was bowled, he clearly struggled to put bat on ball. Despite bowling some overs at the end, his pace slowed down and his line length wasn’t tight. Injuries have cost him a lot, and he needs to overcome them if he wants to be a part of the team in the future. 7. Andre Russell Andre Russell. (Photo Source: Twitter) Andre Russell was a pillar for the West Indies during their successful T20 World Cup campaign in 2016. In this version, however, he failed miserably. After being sidelined due to injury during his stint with the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, he entered the World Cup to bolster the two-time champions’ campaign. West Indies produced an embarrassing performance in the first game, getting all out on 55 against England. Andre Russell scored 23 runs in 5 innings with 2 ducks. He failed to provide the much-needed impetus to the West Indies’ otherwise failing batting lineup, averaging just over four. He was also not very accurate when it came to bowling. In the entire competition, he only took three wickets. With the exception of the last over against Bangladesh, which led to West Indies’ lone World Cup victory, Andre appeared jaded and tired. Hopefully, he will be able to overcome his injuries and perform well the next time. 8. Dwayne Bravo Dwayne Bravo. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Dwayne Bravo made his final appearance in West Indian colours against Australia. The West Indian legend did not fare well in this World Cup. After a successful stint with CSK and winning the title, he was unable to replicate that form in the World Cup for the West Indies. He only scored 26 runs in the World Cup, with four single-digit scores. He batted at number 8 for his team, way down the order. In fact, he was promoted for the game against England, but he failed to justify his promotion, scoring only 5 runs. On the bowling front, he only took two wickets and was very expensive with an economy rate of 8.56, which is a far cry from the Bravo we saw in IPL 2021. Now, he has retired from internationals, but he would have been very disappointed with the way his team performed in the World Cup. 9. Varun Chakravarthy Varun Chakravarthy. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Varun Chakravarthy, an Indian mystery spinner, has been the best spinner in the last two seasons of the IPL. He performed so well in the previous season that the Indian selectors chose him for the World Cup due to his mystery. Unfortunately, his mystery was exposed when he bowled in the World Cup. Teams were quick to see him off and content to nudge around singles. Despite being very economical, he did not pick up a single wicket in the World Cup. In the game against Pakistan, Rizwan and Babar continued to milk him for singles, and his mystery was cracked. He is also prone to injuries. The inability to take wickets in the middle overs cost India heavy defeats against Pakistan and New Zealand, ultimately leading to their eventual downfall and ouster from the tournament. 10. Lahiru Kumara Lahiru Kumara. (Photo by Gareth Copley-ICC/ICC via Getty Images) During the group stages of the World Cup, the Sri Lankan speedster performed admirably. Kumara proved to be a reliable asset for the Sri Lankans, rattling the associate nations with his raw pace. When the team advanced to the Super 12s, however, every opponent played him fairly well. Against good teams, his one-dimensional bowling was exposed. Despite the fact that Sri Lanka had a promising World Cup, he was one of the players who simply withered away with his poor performance. He was very expensive and was unable to defend 15 off the last over against South Africa on a difficult track to bat on at Sharjah. In the Super 12, he only took one wicket at an economy rate of 10.84. 11. Mustafizur Rahman Mustafizur Rahman. (Photo by Andy Kearns/Getty Images) The Bangladeshi left-arm fast bowler, Mustafizur Rahman, struggled during the T20 World Cup. He was better than his teammates, but he failed at the most important aspect of bowling – picking wickets. Despite a decent IPL 2021 performance, he was unable to stop the run flow and break partnerships. As his record suggests, he picked just 2 wickets during the Super 12 from five games. His economy rate was 10.43, indicating that he was very costly. Bangladesh team does not have many superstars and they rely on 2-3 players to carry them through. Mustafizur was undoubtedly one of them, but he failed to deliver, resulting in Bangladesh’s worst World Cup performance to date. Written by Satyam

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T20 World Cup 2021: Flop XI of the tournament

Some players couldn't step up and deliver despite being renowned names in the cricket world.

10. Lahiru Kumara

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