Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018: Best XI of the Tournament

The 2018 edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy came to a fitting end with the most consistent side in the tournament lifting the silverware. Team Karnataka beat the spirited Saurashtra side in the finals of the tournament to achieve the ultimate glory. The chief architect of the Karnataka’s win in the match was their star performer of the season – Mayank Agarwal.

Agarwal, who has had a terrific run in the domestic cricket this season, continued his masterclass in the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well. It was his knock of 90 that helped Karnataka post a total of 253 on the board. Saurashtra bundled out for 212 in their response to lose by 41 runs. Well, the win was not only the efforts of one man.

Many players from the Karnataka camp rose to the occasion in the premier domestic one-day competition. In fact, the series proved to give a glimpse of several new emerging stars of the Indian cricket. The 2018 edition of the tournament saw some brilliant individual performances come to the fore in crunch situations.

While many of them could not be highlighted since their team ended on the wrong of the result, the performances certainly do not deserve to go unnoticed. On the other hand, some were so exceptional that they helped their sides cruise to victories. In any case, here is the collection of such top 11 players of the season in Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Here is the Best XI from the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018:

1. Mayank Agarwal (Karnataka)

Karnataka batsman Mayank Agarwal is having the time of his life at the moment. The hard-hitting opener has been in sublime form across the three formats in the ongoing domestic season. After a herculean Ranji Trophy, where he amassed over a 1000 runs, Mayank continued his good form in Vijay Hazare Trophy as well to finish with 723 runs to his name in 8 matches.

He finished the series as the highest run getter and averaged 90.37 in the series. This included 3 centuries and four fifties with a top score of 140. Also, he was the man of the finals with a brilliant knock of 90 to steer Karnataka to a title win.

2. KS Bharat (Andhra)

Team Andhra had a dream run this season. Their success story came to a halt with a defeat against Saurashtra in the semis. One of the top performers for them was their batsman KS Bharat. He smashes two centuries in the tournament with a top score of an unbeaten 106. He aggregated a total of 390 runs at an average close to 56 and is next to only Mayank Agarwal in the list of leading run getters.

3. Cheteshwar Pujara (Saurashtra)

Veteran Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has been tagged as a batsman of the longest format. However, Pujara has been quashing all such claims with splendid outings in the limited overs domestic fixtures.

Pujara amassed 383 runs in the 9 matches that he played in the tournament. The point that separates him from the others in the list is the fact that he does not have a big score to boast about. He made crucial contributions in almost every game with a top score of 94.

4. Dhruv Shorey (Delhi)

Delhi’s Dhruv Shorey has had a good start to the calendar year of 2018. Shorey bagged an IPL deal this year. And he has certainly started off his preparations well enough. He played a couple of match-winning knocks in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018. He scored 252 runs in 6 innings at an average of 50.40. His best came against Maharashtra where he scored an unbeaten 103.

5. Siddhesh Lad (Mumbai)

Mumbai’s Siddhesh Lad has been around in the domestic circuit for quite some time now. He has become an integral part of the setup. In this season of the tournament, he finished as the leading run getter for the star-studded Mumbai lineup. In the 6 matches that he played, he smashed 3 centuries – the joint best with Mayank Agarwal. He aggregated 373 with the bat and averaged 62.16. Batting with Suryakumar Yadav, he forged several match winning partnerships for the Mumbai team.

6. Ishan Kishan (Jharkhand)

Jharkhand had a decent time in the tournament this year, but they would have certainly liked it to be better. On the personal fronts, their skipper Ishan Kishan had a very good season with the bat. Ishan scored 313 runs in the tournament at a very impressive average of 78.25. He hit a century and 2 fifties during the course of the tournament. He fits in the list as the wicket-keeper of the side.

7. K Gowtham (Karnataka)

Karnataka all-rounder K Gowtham has been creating some serious ripples in the Indian domestic circuit. He has a big name in domestic cricket and that is evident from theh fact that he has found big bucks at two successive IPL auctions.

In the Vijay Hazare Trophy this year, Gowtham played a key role in Karnataka’s winning campaign. Albeit he did not get enough chance to show his prowess with the bat, he was good enough with the ball. In the 8 matches that he played, he scalped 12 wickets with a best of 4/42. He picked 3/27 in the all important finals.

8. Mohammad Siraj (Hyderabad)

Young Hyderabad pace bowler Mohammad Siraj has been a perennial performer for his side in the domestic cricket. Siraj continued his good form with the ball this year as well. He finished the tournament as the leading wicket taker with 23 wickets to his name in 7 matches. He bowled with an average of 15.65 – the best among all top bowlers in the tournament. He took as many as 3 five-wicket hauls.

9. M Prasidh Krishna (Karnataka)

While Mayank Agarwal was the star with the bat for Karnataka, it was M Prasidh Krishna who rose to the occasion with the ball. He finished with 17 wickets to his name – the second most by any bowler in the tournament. Also, he had a five wicket haul and a four wicket haul to his name. He bowled with an economy under 5.

10. Umar Nazir (Jammu and Kashmir)

Jammu and Kashmir has been one of the improving sides in the Indian domestic circuit in the recent times. While their collective efforts are yet to yield good fruits, the individual performances are certainly on the rise. Umar Nazir finished the tournament as the fourth leading wicket taker with 15 wickets to his name in just 5 matches. This included his best figures of 5/52 against Hyderabad.

11. D Jadeja (Saurashtra)

Saurashtra’s good fortunes with the ball in the Vijay Hazare Trophy this season were owing to the exploits of Dharmendrasinh Jadeja. Jadeja was their leading wicket taker in the season with 17 wickets in 9 matches. In the match against Services in Secunderabad, he scalped 4/26 – his best effort in the tournament.

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