Kevin Pietersen, the former England superstar, has also picked his Best XI on the completion of the T20I World Cup in a blog after Australia won their maiden title. Interestingly, Kevin Pietersen has picked a spinner (Wanindu Hasaranga) and a batsman (Charith Asalanka) from Sri Lanka. Both have shown enormous promise.
Pietermaritzburg (Natal)-born Kevin Pietersen has chosen South Africans batsman Aiden Markram and pacer Anrich Nortje in his XI. Anrich Nortje has emerged as a top T20I bowler and should be a hot property in the big IPL 2022 auctions early next year.
Kevin Pietersen Picked 2021 T20I World Cup Top Scorer Babar Azam In His XI
Another ICC event has ended, and every cricket lover is busy picking his best XI of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. In a format where the margin of error is virtually negligible, it is extremely difficult to shortlist the best 11 players. The T20I World Cup 2021 in UAE has been a tournament of comebacks.
If Player of the Tournament opener David Warner and Mitchell Marsh turned up for Australia at a time when critics had written them off after defeats against West Indies and even Bangladesh prior to WC, debutants Namibia caught the eye with some spirited performances.
At the same time, Pakistan rose from the ashes, and India’s pride as a T20I monster was buried. A World Cup tests the skills, temperament, and application of every cricketer. India was a classic example of how reputation can go for a toss if a team has two bad days in office.
After losing for the first time in a World Cup against arch-rivals Pakistan and then being humbled by New Zealand, India was always playing catch-up in their group and eventually did not qualify for the knockouts. As a result, Virat Kohli, who was captaining India for the last time in T20Is, had to leave UAE a disappointed man.
Pakistan and Australia were never the bookmaker’s favourites. Australia had never won the T20 World Cup, and Aaron Finch’s team arrived in the Emirates, sans the aura of formidability usually associated with an Australian cricket team. A defeat against India in a warm-up match did no good to their morale.
A loss against England in a group match further exposed their vulnerability. But then the Aussies made a stunning turnaround, improved every match largely due to their top-order batting where David Warner and Mitchell Marsh were simply outstanding.
Even when the ICC named their dream 11 at the end of the T20 World Cup, there was not a single Indian player. There were no Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah – the world’s leading players in the game’s shortest format. And even more surprising, there was no Mitchell Marsh, who anchored Australia to their maiden T20 World Cup title.
Invariably, the ICC had a jury comprising former cricketers, journalists, and even match officials who racked their brains to arrive at a list agreeable to all. ICC produced a team with Pakistan’s Babar Azam as captain. No one questioned Babar Azam’s selection. He led Pakistan from the front in every game till Mathew Wade played an unbelievable inning to end the fairy-tale run by the Green Shirts.
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).
Kevin Pietersen Didn’t Pick Player Of The Tournament David Warner In His XI.
Interestingly, there is no David Warner, no Mitchell Marsh, Kane Williamson, or Daryl Mitchell in Kevin Pietersen’s Best XI. Kevin Pietersen has gone with four specialist batsmen, three all-rounders, and four specialist bowlers, two of whom are leg-spinners.
Kevin Pietersen’s Best XI
Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan, 281 runs): Consistent run-scorer at the top of Pakistan’s line-up, who did brilliantly to battle back from illness and scored 67 against Australia in the semi-final.
Jos Buttler (England, 269 runs): Magnificent century against Sri Lanka was the highlight of a superb tournament for England’s opener.
Babar Azam (Pakistan, 303 runs): Proved once more that he is among the most consistent and best T20 batters in the world.
Charith Asalanka (Sri Lanka, 231 runs): One of several exciting young Sri Lankan players who we can look forward to watching again at next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
Aiden Markram (South Africa, 162 runs): A solid presence in South Africa’s middle-order and bowled some useful overs with the new ball.
Moeen Ali (England, 92 runs): A very versatile and important member of England’s side, who impressed with bat and ball.
Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka, 119 runs, 16 wickets): The tournament’s leading wicket-taker with his devilish leg-spin, and showed his potential with the bat, too.
Adam Zampa (Australia, 13 wickets): Wicket-taking ability in the middle overs was one of the key reasons why Australia won the tournament.
Trent Boult (New Zealand, 13 wickets): Once again proved his worth to New Zealand with a string of timely and important wickets.
Anrich Nortje (South Africa, 9 wickets): Becoming a leader in South Africa’s attack after taking more wickets in the tournament than all but five bowlers.
Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan, 7 wickets): A sensational new-ball spell against India set Pakistan’s tournament tone.