Sandeep Sharma picks All-time IPL XI, leaves out Andre Russell, Suryakumar Yadav [Exclusive]

Published - 03 Sept 2025, 18:26 IST | Updated - 03 Sept 2025, 18:27 IST

It isn't easy to pick an all-time Indian Premier League (IPL) XI as there have been several players who have performed consistently during the 18 seasons that have been played so far.

However, Sandeep Sharma, who represented the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL 2025, took the challenge and named a strong all-time IPL XI, featuring some of the biggest stars to have lit up the cash-rich league over the years.

During an exclusive interview with CricTracker, Sharma said that he would open the batting with Chris Gayle and Rohit Sharma. Both have been destructive openers who have been hard to stop when in the mood. Meanwhile, the leading run-getter in IPL history, Virat Kohli, bagged the No. 3 spot.

Suresh Raina, AB de Villiers, and MS Dhoni formed the middle-order, with the latter taking up the wicketkeeping as well as leadership duties. While getting to his all-rounders, Sharma picked the current Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper, Hardik Pandya, and talismanic Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) cricketer Sunil Narine.

The Chandigarh pacer kept Yuzvendra Chahal as the specialist spinner in his squad. The latter has the most wickets for bowlers in the IPL. In the seam-bowling department, Sharma paired stalwarts Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah together.

Some of the interesting names to miss out from the side were KL Rahul, David Warner, Andre Russell, Suryakumar Yadav, and Rashid Khan. Rahul's strike rate has been a concern for quite some time, but his consistency while scoring runs has been incredible. Meanwhile, David Warner is the only batter in IPL history with three Orange Caps to his name.

Andre Russell can be described as one of the biggest match-winners the league has ever seen. He has won KKR several matches from adverse situations. The same can be said about Suryakumar Yadav, especially after his staggering performances this season. In IPL 2025, he registered 25-plus scores in every match. Lastly, Rashid Khan might not have had a great run in IPL 2025, bagging just nine wickets in 15 matches at an average of 57.11. However, he is still one of the finest spinners to have played the game.

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Sandeep Sharma's All-time IPL XI: Chris Gayle, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni (C & WK), Hardik Pandya, Sunil Narine, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal.