The IPL 2021 was suspended midway due to COVID-19 cases in franchises.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra picked his best XI of the IPL 2021 which saw the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jaspirt Bumrah missing from his team.
The 14th edition of IPL was indefinitely postponed with 29 of the 60 scheduled games played out. The COVID-19 cases among players and support staff inside the bio-bubble in as many as four teams led to the BCCI being forced to stop the tournament with immediate effect.
Despite only 29 games happening, there still were many memorable performances in the first half of the tournament. Based on those performances, former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra picked his IPL 14 XI.
Although both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma played some decent knocks in the tournament but the duo failed to make it into Aakash Chopra’s IPL 2021 XI.
COC Best XI from the first half of the IPL 2021
In a video posted on his YouTube channel, Chopra chose KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan as the two openers.
"I have kept KL Rahul first. He played three big knocks, which includes two nineties and a 60-odd. All three of them came in a winning cause, so whenever he scored runs his team won. He played at a good strike rate as well.
“Along with him is Shikhar Dhawan and he has the Orange Cap on his head. The maturity with which he has started playing, this is the upgraded version of Shikhar Dhawan which we have seen from the last IPL,” Aakash Chopra said.
The former Indian cricketer picked CSK’s Faf du Plessis as his No.3, while RCB’s duo of Glenn Maxwell and AB de Villiers found a place at No.4 and No.5 respectively.
"I have kept Faf at No.3. He opened for his team but I have kept him at No.3. He has been consistent and played in a destructive fashion. CSK's revival wouldn't have happened without him.
“At No.4, I have kept Glenn Maxwell. He scored the difficult runs. His performance in the first five matches was outstanding. I have kept AB de Villiers at No.5. His innings in Ahmedabad was fantastic and the knock against KKR in Chennai was one of the finest you would see in the IPL," he added.
The wicket-keeper’s spot in Chopra’s XI was acquired by Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Rishabh Pant.
"At No.6, I have kept Pant. I know it is too low down the order but you can promote him if a left-hander is required to be sent. I will get him to keep and not AB," Chopra went on.
IPL 2021: WATCH- Aakash Chopra names his overseas XI for IPL 14 thus far
Ravindra Jadeja got a place as the spin-bowling all-rounder in Aakash Chopra's IPL 2021 XI.
“At No.7, you can keep Jaddu. His bowling was very good and he batted amazingly well. He played in a bold fashion and run-outs while fielding, four catches in an innings. He knows everything, he has been brilliant,” he said.
The 43-year-old picked Chris Morris as the seam-bowling all-rounder. While Rahul Chahar, Avesh Khan and Harshal Patel are the three frontline bowlers in his XI.
"At No.8, I have got Chris Morris. He continuously did something or the other, either in batting or bowling. On the whole, he kept paying the EMIs of the 16.25 crores for which he was bought,” said Aakash Chopra.
"At No.9, 10, and 11, I have got all three Indians. One is Rahul Chahar, then Avesh Khan, and finally Harshal Patel," he concluded.
Here’s Aakash Chopra’s IPL 2021 XI:
KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Rishabh pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Chris Morris, Rahul Chahar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel.