Ricky Ponting selects his all-time IPL XI, leaves out Bumrah and de Villiers

Former Australian cricket team captain Ricky Ponting picked his all-time XI, where he named MS Dhoni as the team’s captain. Ponting, who has captained Mumbai Indians in the past, did not include the team’s star fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah in his XI. 

After retiring from international cricket, Ponting has tried his hand in the world of coaching. He is a member of the Delhi Capitals backroom staff at the moment. Ponting was one of the reasons behind Delhi’s miraculous turnaround in IPL 2019. The Delhi-based franchise had not made it to the playoffs for the last few seasons, but last year, the Capitals attained the third position in the league. 

In an interview with cricket.com.au, Ponting selected his all-time IPL XI. 

"It was a very tough team to pick because I could only get the four overseas guys in there. So there were a few notable names that have missed out on selection,” Ponting said. 

He selected two left-handed openers for his team, namely Chris Gayle and David Warner. Both batsmen are former Orange Cap winners in the IPL. Virat Kohli, the all-time highest run-scorer in IPL, is at number 3, while Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma is at number 4. 

Chennai Super Kings’ stalwarts Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni hold the number five and number six positions, respectively. Ponting named Dhoni as the captain and wicket-keeper of his team. 

Former IPL Purple Cap winner DJ Bravo is the team’s primary all-rounder, while CSK’s off-spinner Harbhajan Singh is at number eight. The pace bowling attack of the team consists of Lasith Malinga and Ashish Nehra, while Amit Mishra is the leading leg-spinner of the team. He picked Nehra because of his left-arm pace 'X-factor.'

Ricky Ponting’s all-time IPL XI: 

Chris Gayle, David Warner, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (c and wk), DJ Bravo, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Lasith Malinga, and Ashish Nehra.