MI All Time Best Playing 11:
Sachin Tendulkar, Quinton de Kock (wicket keeper), Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma (captain), Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell McClenaghan, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga.
SACHIN TENDULKAR is an obvious choice for the opening slot. He is the Master of Batting. What a Player he had been for India. He is an inspiration and idol to millions across the world. He was the icon player in the inaugural season of IPL. He played for the first six seasons of IPL and scored more than 2300 runs at an average of 34 and a strike rate of around 120. The master was at his best in the year 2010 when he ended up as the leading run-scorer in the tournament with 618 runs to his name at an impressive average of 47. He is too good to be missed out from this list. He has more runs than any other player in the world across all formats, the first batsman to score a double century in ODIs, 100 international centuries are some of the records of Sachin. I mean, he is just fabulous, a TRUE LEGEND indeed.
QUINTON de KOCK makes the cut for the All time IPL 11 of MI. He scored more than 500 runs (most runs by a player of MI) in the previous edition of IPL and helped his team in winning the 4th IPL Title. He had an impressive 2019 with the bat and with the gloves as well. Lendl Simmons was another strong contender for this spot whose batting prowess helped MI to win the IPL in 2015. But, since Qdk plays the dual role of batting and as well as wicket keeping, he edges over Lendl and sealed his spot in the 11.
AMBATI RAYUDU is at No.3 on the list. He scored more than 2400 runs( third highest run-scorer for MI) batting at different positions. He had a long association with MI before joining the MI franchise. He has a healthy strike rate of 126 in the blue jersey. He played for MI for 8 seasons (2010-2017). He is a calm player who has the ability to anchor the innings and play the big shots too if the situation demands. He has played some crucial knocks for MI over the years and has been a vital player in their squad.
ROHIT SHARMA belongs to MI or I’d rather say MI belongs to him. What a turnaround it had been for the team since he stepped up as the Captain. He was given the leadership midway during the 2013 season and the rest is history. He won the first title for MI while captaining the team for the first time and 3 more titles followed in 6 years. Hitman is the highest run-scorer in the team with more than 4800 runs and the third-highest run-scorer in the history of the IPL (only behind Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli). No doubt, he is a MUST addition in the All time XI of MI.
KIERON POLLARD association with MI goes beyond a decade. He is a match-winner on his day. He played 148 matches for MI and scored more than 2700 runs at a brilliant strike rate of 146 and took 56 wickets. He is an outstanding fielder and a hard hitter of the Cricket Ball. He is a guy who doesn’t deliver all the time but when he does, he makes people remember it for a long time.
KRUNAL PANDYA is the No. 6 on the list. He has the knack of picking wickets at crucial times. He took 40 wickets for MI in the 55 matches he played. He has an impressive strike rate of 146 batting down the order which is quite brilliant. He can adapt to the different conditions and plays according to the situation of the match. His crucial 47 in the final of 2017 helped MI to win the game by just 1 run. He is a good left-arm spin option and also gives 100% on the field.
HARDIK PANDYA is one of the easiest choices to get featured in this 11. He had been the best all-rounder for MI along with Pollard. He has more than 250 runs to his name in the year 2017, 2018, and 2019. He is also amongst the wickets with 14+ wickets in the last two seasons for MI. He was brilliant last year in all the three departments. He scored more than 400 runs batting lower down the order, got more than 14 wickets, and also took some breathtaking catches which changed the game in MI’s favour. He is surely the best all-rounder of India as of now.
HARBHAJAN SINGH is one of the legends of MI. Having played for MI for more than 10 years, he joined the elite club of MI in the year 2018. He has taken 127 wickets playing for MI out of 150 wickets in his IPL career (third-highest wicket-taker in the history of IPL). He was the leading spinner of the team and helped the team to win 3 IPL trophies in the years 2013, 2015, and 2017. He has bowled 1249 dot balls which is the most by any player in the history of the IPL. His inputs to MI is invaluable.
Mitchell McClenaghan makes the cut in the All time Best XI of MI. Mitchell Johnson was another contender for this spot. However, McClenaghan has been the wicket-taker for MI since he joined the squad in the year 2015 and hence, made the All time 11 list. He took 18, 17, 19 and 14 wickets in the year 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 respectively. He was a lethal weapon in Rohit’s armory and was called on every time when the team needs a breakthrough. He delivered more often than not.
LASITH MALINGA is the leading wicket-taker in the history of the IPL. He is a part of this franchise since the very beginning. He took more than 15 wickets in the 9 seasons for MI. His consistency is just on another level. He was at his peak in the year 2011 where he took 28 wickets with an economy rate of 5.95. Economy below 6 in a T20 is just remarkable. He is one of the greats in the world and would even make the All time IPL 11 without any debates. If Raina is the Batsman of IPL, Lasith is surely the Bowler.
JASPRIT BUMRAH is currently the best bowler in the world. He is surely the definition of a complete bowler. He has got 82 wickets for MI since he joined the squad in 2013. His unorthodox action makes him even more special. He has all the varieties as a bowler. He is the best skillful death bowler in the world and he is just 26 years of age. You can imagine how deadly and dangerous he will become with more experience. His economy rates in the last 4 seasons of IPL is just unreal considering the fact that he bowls the most crucial overs of the innings with assured 2 overs at the death. He is Truly Special and we have quite a lot to see from him in the years to come.
Some Notable players who missed out in the All time 11 of MI:
- Lendl Simmons
- Mitchell Johnson
- Surya Kumar Yadav
- Corey Anderson