IPL 2020: Brad Hogg picks his best XI of league phase; no place for Rahul and Kohli

Former Australian spin bowler Brad Hogg picked his best IPL 2020 XI of the league phase on Wednesday. Interestingly, the 49-year old opted for the current ‘Orange Cap’ holder KL Rahul, RCB skipper Virat Kohli and SRH skipper David Warner.

Starting with the openers, Hogg chose Kings XI Punjab’s Mayank Agarwal and Shikhar Dhawan from Delhi Capitals. Both scored 424 runs at a strike rate of 156.4 and Dhawan 525 runs at a strike rate of 145 respectively. At number three, Suryakumar Yadav made way in Hogg’s XI.

“I just love the way that Agarwal has played for Kings XI Punjab. If it wasn’t for him, they would have not been even close to getting to the playoffs. He was dynamite opening the batting for them,” said the former bowler.

Brad Hogg went for AB de Villiers (RCB), Eoin Morgan (KKR) and Hardik Pandya (MI) for the middle-order.

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“At No. 6, this is a big one. I hope Pandya could bowl, he is a great fielder. He is very athletic. He is an entertainer. It is Hardik Pandya from the Mumbai Indians. The strike rate of over 200 and that is what you want from your No. 6.”

No place for ‘Purple Cap’ holder Kagiso Rabada

In the bowling department, Jofra Archer of the Royals was an easy pick for Hogg. Apart from the Englishman, he picked Jasprit Bumrah (MI), Mohammed Shami (KXIP) as the other two pacers. In the spin unit, Rashid Khan (SRH) and Yuzvendra Chahal (RCB) completed the XI. Surprisingly, DC’s Kagiso Rabada (current highest wicket-taker of IPL 2020) missed out from Brad Hogg’s best XI of the league phase.

“Shami has a great wicket-taking ability, not happy with his economy rate but you can’t have the cake and eat it too. So I am happy with him getting wickets with the new ball. He is sensational with a bit of reverse swing at the end of the innings. He is another reason why KXIP were searching for a place in the playoffs till the very end,” he stated.

Brad Hogg’s best XI from IPL 2020 league phase: Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal, Suryakumar Yadav, AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan, Hardik Pandya, Jofra Archer, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah

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