IPL: Most Formidable XI of all time

Millions of Cricket fans all over the world are holding their breath and ticking the dates off the calendar as the D-Day approaches. April 7, 2018, will mark the kick-off of the eleventh season of the grand cricketing tournament. The Indian Premier League (IPL). A tournament that’s the perfect amalgamation of glitz, glamour, passion, and competition.

A league that hosts the best in the world with the same grace as it harnesses the talented youngsters onto the nation’s shoulders. A series that has mesmerized us time and again with its unending flow of runs, blistering centuries, jaw-dropping dismissals and stunning catches.

The first season of the IPL was played back in 2008 and since then, it has snowballed into one of the most popular sporting tournaments in the world. Over the years, we’ve witnessed great players in action and exciting raw talent develop into future superstars, in this very league.

With two months of exciting Cricket that sports the tagline of ‘Best versus Best’, just a few days away, how about a compilation of the best in the game? An IPL team that it had taken the field, the opposition would have stood no chance and the crowds would have had a gala of a time watching them play. From veterans to current players, this list will feature the Most Formidable XI to have ever played in the IPL.

Chris Gayle

No all-time T20 team is ever complete without the towering presence of this Caribbean batsman opening the innings. Chris Gayle is synonymous with the shortest format of the Cricket in the purest way possible. The 38-year old not only holds the record of the highest individual score (175*) in the history of the IPL but is also the 7th highest run-getter in the tournament in the span of 2009-2017, with 3626 runs to his name, along with 6 centuries and a whopping strike rate of 151.20.

What makes the left-handed opening batsman stand out from the lot is the ability to convert any ball to a boundary, while exercising an unflinching ease that rattles the bowler to the very core. Gayle’s abundant exposure to the format from the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) makes his case even stronger. The mighty Jamaican also boasts of 1589 runs in just 55 T20Is, with a highest score of 117.