IPL 2018: Best XI of the League stage

The 2018 edition has reached the business end of the tournament. The four teams that have managed to qualify for the playoffs are – Sunrisers Hyderbad, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, and the Rajasthan Royals. One thing is for sure, the IPL will not get to see a new champion this season as all of these four teams have won the tournament on one or more occasions in the history of the league.

Interestingly, this season has proved to be the most entertaining one in the history of the IPL when seen on the parameters of the final finishes. The league stages saw numerous last ball thrillers and a lot of games went down the wire. Also, the entertainment across the 56 league games saw some brilliant catches been taken, some humongous sixes been hit out of the park, and the wood work shatter across after meeting the leather.

Some of the big names of the game like MS Dhoni and Shane Watson proved that age is just a number. At the same time, the youngsters like Prithvi Shaw and Sandeep Lamichhane showed they have the mettle to rub shoulders with the big boys. Certainly, the league stage of IPL 2018 was not short on individual brilliance either. Here we pick such top players who dictated the terms in the league stage of the season and made a serious reputation for themselves.

Here is the Best XI of the IPL 2018 League stage:

KL Rahul – Kings XI Punjab

KL Rahul made a switch to the Kings XI Punjab for this edition of the tournament. The Karnataka lad finished the league stages as the third leading run getter. He was the best batsman from the Kings XI Punjab camp. Time and again, it was Rahul who stood the ground till the very fighting as a lone ranger in the times of crisis for his side. Rahul played in all the 14 matches for his side and aggregated 659 runs at a staggering average of 54.92.

In the very first game for his side, he smashed the fastest fifty in the IPL history – taking just 14 balls to reach the number. In the later stages of the tournament, he scored an unbeaten 95 against the Royals in a losing cause. Another valiant effort of 94 against the Mumbai Indians also went in a losing cause.

Jos Buttler – Rajasthan Royals

Jos Buttler found himself in the Rajasthan Royals camp this season. The English wicketkeeper had a horror run in the first half of the tournament. Not only did he struggle with the bat, his performances with the gloves looked at places as well. However, the big turnaround took place in the late stages of the tournament.

Buttler was promoted to the opening slot and he flourished big time. It will not be wrong to quote that he was the key player that pushed the Royals’ chances in the playoffs. He scored five consecutive fifties in the IPL season – a joint record in itself. In the 13 matches that he played for his team, he amassed 548 runs at an impressive average of 54.80. He will not be a part of the playoffs though.

Ambati Rayudu – Chennai Super Kings

Ambati Rayudu is not a new name for the fans of Indian cricket. The veteran Hyderabad batsman has been around for a very long time now. Rayudu was drafted in to the Chennai Super Kings lineup in the season. He proved to be an absolute teamman and played in a herculean manner irrespective of what position he came in to bat.

Rayudu finished the league stages as the fourth leading run scorer and the leading run scorer for his side. He scored 586 runs in the 14 matches that he played. His best came against the table toppers, the Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he hammered his maiden T20 hundred. His century in the game fetched a lot of praises for him from all corners of the cricket fraternity.

Suryakumar Yadav – Mumbai Indians

The defending champions, the Mumbai Indians, had a very disappointing run in the IPL this season. They had a major heartbreak as they crashed out of the tournament after a defeat in the final league game. While they failed to make the playoffs, they certainly did have a lot of positives to take from the league stages. One of the biggest positives for them in the season was Suryakumar Yadav.

Suryakumar, who had previously played for the Kolkata Knight Riders, was asked to open for his new franchise. The veteran batsman obliged and hit a fifty in the very first game as the opener for his side. He aggregated 512 runs in the 14 matches that he played with a healthy strike rate of almost 135. He became the first uncapped Indian player to score more than 500 runs in an IPL season.

Kane Williamson – Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Sunrisers Hyderabad had a merry run in the league stages of the IPL 2018 as they finished as the table toppers. Throughout the tournament, a lot of talk went about how good they were in the bowling department. On most occasions, their batting efforts went unnoticed. In the season thus far, they have been led from the front by their skipper Kane Williamson in the batting order.

Williamson is second in the list of leading run getters of the season witth 661 runs to his name in just 14 matches. He averages 60.09 and has been striking the ball at the strike rate of 143.07. He is yet to score a century but has managed to get into the 80s on a few occasions, both in winning and losing cause. Also, a special mention goes down to the way he has firmly led his side this season.

Rishabh Pant – Delhi Daredevils

Delhi Daredevils were the first to crash out of the race for the playoffs. While they failed as a team, a youngster in their side emerged as the best player of the league stages. Rishabh Pant ended the IPL 2018 league stages as the proud holder of the Orange Cap.

Pant smashed 684 runs in 14 matches at an average of 52.62 and a strike rate of 173.60. He hit the most number of fours – 68 fours in the season. Also, he hit the most number of sixes in the league stages – 37 sixes. His whirlwind 128 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad was the highlight of the league stages this year. It is very unfortunate that Pant will not be playing in the playoffs.

MS Dhoni – Chennai Super Kings (c)

Veteran Indian cricketer MS Dhoni silenced all his critics with his willow. A lot of cricket pundits were doubting his ability with the bat. In the league stages this season, Dhoni showed them how hard he can hit the ball. He scored a brilliant 79 against the Kings but failed to take his side over the line.

He got another opportunity against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. And this time, an unbeaten 70 took his side over the line. He then hit a 22-ball fifty against the Delhi Daredevils. More recently, he finished things off in style with a six in the final league game of the season. In all, Dhoni has scored 446 runs in 14 matches this season with an average of 89.20 – the best in the competition.

Sunil Narine – Kolkata Knight Riders

Sunil Narine has been a key player of the Kolkata Knight Riders lineup. Narine proved to be very handy for his side yet again. In the 14 matches that he played, he bagged 16 wickets with a best of 3/18 to his name. He bowled with an economy of under 8 this season. Well, that was not all from the mystery spinner.

Narine also played a very big role as the opener of the side. The fact that he scored more runs than the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, and Manish Pandey in the IPL season speaks volumes about his prowess. He hit 327 runs with a strike rate of 189.01. He scored 2 fifties in the season and had a top score of 75.

Andrew Tye – Kings XI Punjab

Andrew Tye was one of the top performers for the Kings XI Punjab in the tournament. Tye finished the league stages as the leading wicket taker and the proud holder of the Purple Cap. He finished with 24 wickets to his name in the 14 matches that he played. He managed to take three four-wicket hauls in the season.

Interestingly, those four-wicket hauls came in the space of four matches. He created a unique IPL record with his performances. Andrew Tye bowled with an average of 18.66, which is very impressive in the shortest format of the game. Also, his strike rate was 14 – the best among all bowlers in the season.

Umesh Yadav – Royal Challengers Bangalore

Umesh Yadav was the most impressive Indian bowler in the league stages of the IPL 2018. Umesh bowled with fire and aggression with the new ball. Considering the impact he had with the new ball, his skipper at the RCB camp, Virat Kohli, did not mind bowling him out early. In the 14 matches that Umesh played, he returned with 20 wickets to his name. He finished the league stages as the second leading wicket taker in the season.

Furthermore, his best came against the Kings XI Punjab in Bengaluru when he struck thrice in the same over to eventually finish with figures of 3/23 to his name. He haunted the same Kings side again in the reverse fixture and bowled a lovely spell in Indore to see Kings bundle out for 88.

Jasprit Bumrah – Mumbai Indians

Jasprit Bumrah has been an integral part of the Mumbai Indians over the years in the IPL history. Bumrah, who was retained by the defending champions this season, did not let his team down one bit. He was a little off color to start off but soon picked up some serious form with the ball.

Bumrah finished the league stages as the fifth leading wicket taker. He scalped 17 wickets in the 14 matches that he played with best of 3/15 in a crucial game against the Kings XI Punjab. Bumrah was highly economical too, and bowled with an economy of 6.88 – the best by any bowler in the league stages.

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