Harbhajan Singh Named 3 Pakistan And 2 Indian Cricketers In His T20I World Cup XI

Harbhajan Singh has named three Pakistan players in his T20 World Cup team of the tournament. Harbhajan Singh picked three players from Pakistan, two each from India and New Zealand, and one each from Australia, England, South Africa, and Sri Lanka.

Harbhajan Singh, who played 103 Tests, 236 One-Day Internationals, and a further 28 T20 Internationals for India, opted to pick two members of the Indian side, who disappointingly failed to make it out of the Super 12 stages of the tournament held in the UAE.

Harbhajan Singh Chose David Warner And Mohammad Rizwan As Openers

The 41-year-old spinner chose Australian batsman and the ICC player of the tournament David Warner to open the batting after the charismatic New South Welshman amassed an impressive 289 runs, including a blistering 53 off 38 balls in the final to help the Aussies successfully chase down 172 against New Zealand. David Warner finished the tournament as the second-leading run-scorer behind Babar Azam, who failed to find a place in Harbhajan Singh’s XI.

Opening the batting alongside David Warner is Pakistan wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan, who scored 281 runs at the top of the order while also playing a key role for his side behind the stumps. Mohammad Rizwan’s tournament may be best remembered for his fantastic 67 runs against Australia in the semi-final, despite being in hospital with a chest infection just hours before the match was due to begin.

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson made it into Harbhajan Singh’s team of the tournament after he lead the Black Caps to another ICC final, where he hit 85 off 48 balls, only to be beaten yet again. England superstar Jos Buttler, who scored the only hundred of the tournament against Sri Lanka in Sharjah, is picked at four following his fine campaign with both bat and gloves.

While Babar Azam scored 303 runs in 6 innings, David Warner managed 289 runs in 7 innings, followed by Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan (281 runs) and Jos Buttler (269 runs).

Harbhajan Singh Picks Ravindra Jadeja And Jasprit Bumrah

The middle-order comprised of South Africa batsman and part-time off-spinner Aiden Makram, Sri Lanka’s leg-spinning all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga and Pakistan’s hard-hitting finisher Asif Ali, while India slow-left arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja also made the team, surprisingly.

Young Pakistan seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who wowed everyone with his pace and new-ball swing, was slotted in at nine, with fellow left-arm pacer Trent Boult, who is dangerous both at the start of the innings and at the death, being picked at 10.

India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah sneaked into the team at 11, despite having an uncharacteristically poor tournament, and Afghanistan mystery spinner Rashid Khan was selected as Harbhajan Singh’s 12th man. However, there was surprisingly no place in the team for the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Babar Azam, nor was there a spot for the Super 12’s leading wicket-taker, Adam Zampa.

Aiden Markram managed 162 runs in 5 innings while Wanindu Hasaranga managed 119 runs, besides picking the most 16 scalps. Both Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja picked 7 wickets each. Shaheen Shah Afridi also picked 7 scalps while Rashid Khan picked 8 scalps. Trent Boult was the joint 2nd highest wicket-taker with 13 scalps besides his name.