Melbourne: Charismatic India cricketers Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav have made it to the ICC’s ‘Most Valuable Team of the Tournament’, which has been announced after England’s victory over Pakistan in the T20 World Cup final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday. Allrounder Hardik Pandya has been included as the 12th man.
Four England players — Alex Hales, skipper Jos Buttler, Sam Curran and Mark Wood — have also made it to the side, though all-rounder and Test skipper Ben Stokes, who played a pivotal role in England’s win on Sunday hasn’t found a place in the select XI.
Kohli had turned on the heat in the showpiece tournament, finishing as the highest run-scorer with 296 runs to his name at a sensational average of 98.66. He smashed four fifties, including a superb unbeaten 82 against Pakistan in the Super 12.
Middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav had an equally incredible outing as Kohli. Suryakumar entertained everyone with his aggressive batting style throughout the course of the tournament, amassing 239 runs at an incredible strike rate of 189.68.
Pandya had a superb tournament, taking eight wickets in six matches and finished as his team’s third-highest scorer despite coming in down the order. Were it not for his 33-ball 63, India would have never even threatened to reach a competitive total in the semi-final against England.
England’s returning opener Alex Hales played two magnificent knocks in the tournament, including an unbeaten 86 from 47 deliveries in the semifinal against India, and also finished as England’s second-highest run-scorer in this T20 World Cup. The top-order batter amassed 212 runs during the course of the event, at an outstanding average and strike rate of 42.40 and 147.22 respectively.
England skipper Buttler took some time to get going but he played a big part in his team’s winning campaign in the end, producing two match-winning knocks, first against New Zealand in the Super 12 and then against India in the semifinal. Buttler played a 47-ball 73 against the Kiwis and followed it up with an unbeaten 80 from 49 deliveries against India. He also finished as England’s highest run-scorer in the tournament, with 225 runs at an average of 45 and strike-rate of 144.23.
Zimbabwe’s veteran allrounder Sikandar Raza also found a place in the XI following his brilliant show with both bat and ball. Raza finished as Zimbabwe’s highest run-scorer in the tournament, with 219 runs to his name at a strike rate of 147.97. He also picked up 10 wickets while operating at a miserly economy rate of 6.50. He was outstanding with the bat to get Zimbabwe into the Super 12 stage, and his three wickets helped set up the shock win over Pakistan.
Most Valuable XI: Glenn Phillips (New Zealand), Shadab Khan (Pakistan), Sam Curran (England), Anrich Nortje (South Africa), Mark Wood (England), Alex Hales (England), Jos Buttler (England), Virat Kohli (India), Suryakumar Yadav (India), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan), Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe), Hardik Pandya 12th man (India).
–IANS
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