CWC 2023: Rest of World’s Superstars vs Team India Strongest 11
Rohit Sharma and Aiden Markram in focus as we look at the strongest Team India vs the Rest of the World superstars playing 11 for the World Cup (CWC) 2023.
7 wins in 7 games, and Team India are through to the Semi-finals of the ICC World Cup 2023. It has been some extraordinary performance by Team India having won all the matches so far. The Indian team has played like champions so far, dominating in all three departments – batting, bowling, and fielding.
Each and every player has contributed to the wins so far for Team India. Be it Rohit, Gill, and Kohli at the top, Iyer and KL Rahul in the Middle-order, Hardik and Jadeja as finishers, or the bowling quartet of Kuldeep, Shami, Siraj, and Bumrah. So much so that we have quality players warming the bench in the form of SKY, Kishan, Ashwin, and Shardul.
With such a strong playing 11 in place, it makes us wonder how they would they fare if they played against the best 11 players from the other 9 teams. Well, this is exactly what we shall analyze in this article as we look at the Strongest Team India vs the Rest of the World Superstars 11 for the ODI World Cup 2023.
For the simplicity of our analysis, we shall look at the best 11 players from 9 teams combined across different categories, viz., Openers, Middle-order, All-rounders, Spinner, and Pacers. With each team having played around 7 matches, we shall only look at the stats of this World Cup, thus giving us a fair outlook.
CWC 2023 – Strongest India vs Rest of the World Superstars Playing 11
Openers: Rohit Sharma & Shubman Gill vs David Warner & Quinton de Kock
If we talk about the best two openers to compete against India’s openers, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, we have two left-handed batters, David Warner and Quinton de Kock. Both Warner and De Kock have had a fantastic so far scoring 413 and 545 runs respectively. It’s a great opening combo to compare with India having Right-handed batters and RoW having LH batters.
Middle-order: V. Kohli, S. Iyer & KL Rahul vs R. Ravindra, A. Markram & M. Rizwan
Coming to the Middle-order, we have Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul up against Rachin Ravindra, Aiden Markram, and Mohammad RIzwan. Again this will be such a good match-up. While India have three superb and in-form batters, Kohli, Iyer, and Rahul, the form of RoW batters can’t be undermined either.
Based on the current form, Rachin Ravindra is the best number 3 with 415 runs to his name. Similarly for the middle-order, Markram and Rizwan have been in superb form scoring 362 and 359 runs respectively. The only other batter who could compete with these guys is Daryl Mitchell, who too has been in superb form.
Finishers: Hardik Pandya & Ravindra Jadeja vs Heinrich Klaasen & Mitchell Santner
Coming to the finishers, we have Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja for India up against Heinrich Klaasen and Mitchell Santner. What a fabulous match-up this is with both teams having the much-needed firepower to accelerate when needed. India may be without Hardik for now, but we are hoping he is back before the Knockouts.
For the Rest of the World, Klaasen has undoubtedly been the best finisher so far scoring over 300 runs at a strike rate of 150+. This is quite extraordinary when he is playing ODIs, and not T20s. Meanwhile, Santner has been quite impressive as an all-rounder, just like Jadeja. While Jadeja has taken 8 wickets at an economy rate of 3,75, Santner has taken more wickets, 14.
Spinner: Kuldeep Yadav vs Adam Zampa
Coming to the spin comparison, things are once again interesting. While India have the wrist spin of Kuldeep, the Rest of the World has the wrist spin of Zampa. Both have been among the wickets while controlling the middle overs. While Kuldeep has taken 10 wickets so far, Zampa has taken 16 wickets.
Pacers: J. Bumrah. M. Shami & M. Siraj vs S. Afridi, M. Jansen & D. Madhushanka
Finally, comparing the pace trio, it is the battle of the three best right-handed pacers that India have vs the 3 best left-handed pacers that the Rest of the World has. While India have the firepower of Bumrah, Siraj, and Shami, the Rest of the World has the firepower of Jansen, Shaheen, and Madhushanka.
All six pacers have been among the wickets this World Cup. While the Indian pace trio has taken a combined 37 wickets from 17 innings with Bumrah leading with 15 wickets. Whereas the Rest of the World pace trio has taken 50 wickets from 21 innings with Madhushanka leading with 18 wickets.
CWC 2023 – Team India’s Strongest Playing 11 of the Tournament:
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav & Mohammed Siraj.
CWC 2023 – Rest of the World’s Strongest Playing 11 of the Tournament:
David Warner, Quinton de Kock, Rachin Ravindra, Aiden Markram (c), Mohammed Rizwan, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Mitchell Santner, Marco Jansen, Shaheen Afridi, Adam Zampa & Dilshan Madhushanka.
So, that’s about the lethal comparison of the Strongest Team India vs Rest of the World Superstars 11. It would be an epic match if we were to see these 11 players play together. In the meantime, we hope Team India continues the momentum, and we are able to cope with the Knockout pressure.
Thank you so much for reading! What’s your take on the Strongest Team India vs Rest of the World Superstars playing 11 for the ICC Cricket World Cup (CWC) 2023? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com.
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Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics with over 20 years of experience following Cricket.
Cricket to him is like what Football is to Lionel Messi, Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar, Dancing is to Michael Jackson, and Acting is to Clint Eastwood.
Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.
