Presenting an all-time IPL XI with a different flavour: it features those Indian players who have starred in the IPL over the years but haven’t played at the international level. While many of these players are already done with their cricketing careers, a couple of names here might star for India soon.
Swapnil Asnodkar
IPL record: 423 runs @ 21.15, HS 60, S/R 124.77
The Goan player was a little-known entity when he first burst onto the scene in the inaugural season of IPL. He formed a formidable opening alliance along with South Africa skipper Graeme Smith, scoring 311 runs at an average of 34.55 and a strike-rate of 133.47. The pocket-sized dynamo helped provide many electric starts for Rajasthan Royals in 2008. He never lived up to the reputation after the first season, but his run was nevertheless a memorable one.
Manan Vohra
IPL record: 1054 runs @ 22.42, HS 95, S/R 130.6
In his younger days, Manan Vohra was seen as a talent with a lot to offer. His promise saw IPL teams taking interest in him, such as Kings XI Punjab (as Punjab Kings were then known) who retained him before the 2014 auction. Amongst his memorable knocks have been a 52-ball 67 in the 2014 IPL final, and a 50-ball 95 which was a one-man effort versus Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Tirumalasetti Suman
IPL record: 676 runs @ 21.12, HS 78*, S/R 117.56
Our number three is a player from the early days of the league. He made his IPL debut in 2009, serving Deccan Chargers well in the middle-order. He scored 237 runs at a strike-rate of 124.73, while also picking five wickets in a successful season for his side. He improved his returns with 307 runs in 2010 at an average of 34.11, but faded after that.
Rahul Tripathi
IPL record: 1385 runs @ 26.13, HS 93, S/R 136.31
Rahul Tripathi is one of the most successful uncapped players in the league. His journey started out with Rising Pune Super Giants, and he represented Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders on the way. Recently, he was purchased for INR 8.5 crore, by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2022 mega-auction. The aggressive batter has all the attributes of a perfect T20 opener and can bat down the order as well.
Manvinder Bisla
IPL record: 798 runs @ 21, HS 92, S/R 113.67
Manvinder Bisla’s 48-all 89 almost singlehandedly stopped Chennai Super Kings’ splendid run in the league, preventing a hat-trick of IPL successes for MS Dhoni. The wicketkeeper came through the junior India setup but never made it to the India side due to the presence of Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik, and Dhoni.
Rajat Bhatia
IPL record: 342 runs @ 11.4, S/R 120.42, 71 wickets @ 28.45, Econ 7.4
The nearly-man of Indian cricket, Rajat Bhatia did not come under the selector’s radar during his playing days. A good batter (first-class average of 49.1), and a decent military-medium seamer, Bhatia nevertheless became the star of many IPL matches in the latter half of his career. Amongst his fine performances was his 4-15 against Deccan Chargers, where he got rid of T20 bigwigs Dwayne Smith and Andrew Symonds.
Rahul Tewatia
IPL record: 521 runs @ 23.68, S/R 124.34, 32 wickets @ 31.87, Econ 7.7
Rahul Tewatia’s heist for the ages against Punjab Kings shot him to T20 stardom in India. The Haryana all-rounder hasn’t made his India debut yet but is certainly one of the most sought-after T20 players in the country.
Shreyas Gopal
IPL record: 48 wickets @ 26, BBI 4-16, Econ 8.04, S/R 19.3
The impressive Karnataka all-rounder has featured in the league for several seasons now. He is an impressive leg-spinner whose variations have outfoxed top batters more than once. His best figures of 4-16 came against Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2018, which helped Rajasthan Royals win the game by 30 runs.
Shadab Jakati
IPL record: 47 wickets @ 30.87, BBI 4-22, Econ 8.02, S/R 23
Another player from Goa makes it to this XI. Shadab Jakati became Dhoni’s go-to man in the initial years of IPL and performed appreciably for CSK. He took 2-26 in the 2010 final (getting a certain Sachin Tendulkar along the way) and 2-21 in the 2011 final. Both these games were won by CSK.
Siddharth Trivedi
IPL record: 65 wickets @ 29.29, BBI 4-25, Econ 7.58, S/R 23.1
Siddharth Trivedi was a vital member of the Shane Warne side that won the inaugural season of the IPL. His numbers might not have been the best, but he won high praise from his skipper: Warne even included Trivedi in his all-time IPL XI in 2020 alongside his Rajasthan Royals teammate Munaf Patel.
Arshdeep Singh
IPL record: 30 wickets @ 22.3, BBI 5-32, Econ 8.78, S/R 15.2
The youngest in this group, Arshdeep Singh is a rising star in Indian cricket. He is a prized commodity in Indian cricket: a left-arm pacer who is useful at the death. It was for this reason that he was retained by Punjab Kings before the 2022 IPL mega-auction.
