IPL 2022: Team of the Tournament

The 2022 season of the IPL ended on Sunday as it got the finale it deserved in front of a packed Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The two best teams in the tournament, Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals, battled it out for glory with the Titans winning the final by seven wickets thanks to a man of the match performance from Hardik Pandya.

Picking this XI was not simple with so many players doing well for their teams this season. We have picked our IPL 2022 Team of the Season.

Jos Buttler (Rajasthan Royals)

863 Runs Ave 57.53 SR 149.05

The Englishman had a fantastic IPL campaign and was probably the easiest selection of the lot. Buttler produced the second-highest run-tally in a single season (863) in the IPL and scored as many centuries as Virat Kohli did in 2016. He led his team to the final and was unfortunate to end up on the losing side.

Shubman Gill (Gujarat Titans)

483 Runs Ave 34.5 SR 132.32

Shubman Gill, who only has a strike rate of 132.32 finds himself at the top of the order while KL Rahul, who scored at a strike rate of 135.38 and also scored more than 600 runs, does not find a place in the side. The simple explanation is that Gill’s knocks usually led to GT victories, whereas the same can’t be said for KL Rahul.

Rahul Tripathi (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

413 Runs Ave 37.55 SR 158.23

Tripathi might not have been selected for the India team to face South Africa but he makes this side with ease. Not many of the number 3s batted as aggressively against spin or pace as he did, and he was always on hand to fight fire with fire. His average might not be the highest (37.55). His run-tally was not even SRH’s highest in IPL 2022. But each of his 413 runs were impactful and came at times when SRH needed something positive.

Hardik Pandya (C) (Gujarat Titans)

487 Runs Ave 44.27 SR 131.27

8 Wickets Ave 27.75 ER 7.28

Before the season started, not many would’ve thought Pandya would lead the Titans to IPL glory. He silenced plenty of critics along the way, illustrating that he can still be a genuine match-winner on the biggest stage. His leadership was also superb, the all-rounder chopped and changed his bowlers at the right moments and seemed a step ahead of the opposition on most occasions.

Liam Livingstone (Punjab Kings)

437 Runs Ave 36.42 SR 182.08

6 Wickets Ave 33.67 ER 8.78

He is the overseas breakout star of IPL 2022. Prior to the campaign, there were question marks around Livingstone’s ability to dominate on Indian pitches. He took the attack to every bowling attack he faced and hit a few huge sixes out of the ground. Livingstone also chipped in with the ball and took crucial wickets for the Punjab Kings. He ended the tournament with the second-highest strike rate (minimum 100 balls faced).

David Miller (Gujarat Titans)

481 Runs Ave 68.71 SR 142.72

It’s only natural for the champions to have the most number of players in this team. Like his captain, David Miller had to prove a lot of doubters wrong and that he did. The South African had a fantastic campaign and looked like the Miller of old with a number of match-winning performances. The one that stands out is his 94* in the Qualifier against RR where he hit three consecutive sixes in the last over to take his side to the final.

Dinesh Karthik (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

330 Runs Ave 55 SR 183.33

The veteran enjoyed a season of redemption and put in numerous match-winning performances for RCB. In a campaign where Kohli and Glenn Maxwell failed more often than not, he held things together and scored at a fantastic rate.

Rashid Khan (Gujarat Titans)

19 Wickets Ave 22.15, ER 6.59

91 Runs Ave 22.75 SR 206.82

The leggie dominates almost every competition he plays in and while he hasn’t taken as many wickets as he usually does, he was one of the most economical bowlers in IPL 2022. His economy rate was the fifth-best and he finished as the eighth-highest wicket-taker. No bowler in the top 20 wicket-takers had a better economy rate than Rashid, highlighting how valuable he was for GT. He has also improved his batting, winning the Titan’s close matches against the CSK and SRH.

Mohammad Shami (Gujarat Titans)

20 Wickets Ave 24.4 ER 8

Gujarat’s highest wicket-taker in IPL 2022, Shami’s selection wasn’t as straightforward as his teammates. Kagiso Rabada took more wickets than him and Josh Hazlewood had as many scalps as the Indian. But Shami was picking up crucial wickets in the powerplay, ending up as the leading wicket-taker during that phase alongside Mukesh Choudhary.

Yuzvendra Chahal (Rajasthan Royals)

27 Wickets Ave 19.51 ER 7.75

It would be difficult to leave out the Purple Cap winner, Yuzvendra Chahal (leading wicket-taker). He’s been consistent for RR including taking a five-for earlier in the tournament.

Umran Malik (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

22 Wickets Ave 20.18 ER 9.03

Umran bowled with lightning-fast speed throughout the tournament and took 22 wickets along the way. On most occasions, though, his pace forced batters into mistakes and doing things that they might not have ordinarily done. He was one of the key reasons why SRH won five matches on the trot earlier in the season.

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