Sourav Ganguly and Michael Clarke pick their XI for first two weeks of IPL 2017

The IPL 2017 is 19 games old now and we have already witnessed some scintillating performances which have culminated into cliff-hangers. Injuries to some star players, mostly Indians, in the initial phases of the tournament, robbed us of some entertainment.

The comebacks of Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammad Shami have lit up the cash-rich tournament. Kohli and De Villiers made memorable comebacks scoring eye-catching half centuries and promise much more, much to the delight of the fans. Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has turned the clock back with some tight and miserly spells for Mumbai Indians and is largely responsible for his team’s 4 wins in 5 games.

Youngsters have also made their presence felt. Rishabh Pant has been sensational with the bat for Delhi Daredevils. Sanju Samson and Manan Vohra, aged 22 and 23 respectively, have shown why they are widely spoken of with brilliant knocks of 102 and 95 respectively. Samson’s century remains to be the only century in this year’s IPL so far.

The Afghan duo’s debut: Mohammed Nabi and Rashid Khan, has also been a talking point in this IPL. Both enjoyed significant debuts for the same franchise: Sunrisers Hyderabad. Rashid, in particular, has been magnificent and has caused problems for batsmen with his googlies.

KKR top the table with 8 points in 5 games, which is similar to Mumbai Indians but the former has a better Net Run Rate. Defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad is at the third spot with three wins in five games. They have played well again this season, especially at home.

RCB is at the bottom of the table, which has surprised many, with just one win in five games. Last year’s table toppers Gujarat Lions is at the 7th spot with just one win from four games.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly and Australian Michael Clarke picked their best XI’s so far on India Today. The teams also consist of just 4 overseas players which is a norm in the IPL. Here is a look at the two XI’s.

Sourav Ganguly’s XI:

Virat Kohli (RCB), Gautam Gambhir (KKR), Steve Smith (RPS), Ab De Villiers (RCB), Nitish Rana (MI), Manish Pandey (KKR), Rishab Pant (DD) (Wk), Sunil Narine (KKR), Amit Mishra (DD), Chris Morris (DD), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (SRH)

Michael Clarke’s XI:

Virat Kohli (RCB), David Warner (SRH), Steve Smith (RPS), Ab De Villiers (RCB), Krunal Pandya (MI), Hardik Pandya (MI), Rishab Pant, Harbhajan Singh (MI), Zaheer Khan (DD), Jasprit Bumrah (MI), Imran Tahir (RPS)