Best IPL XI of current players who took part in IPL 2008 and will feature in IPL 2022
IPL 2022 is all set to commence from March 26 onwards with the opener between the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). When the first IPL season began in 2008, KKR battled the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the curtain raiser.
Seven of the eight IPL teams that participated in IPL 2008 will play in IPL 2022 as well. The Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans are the new entrants this year, while Sunrisers Hyderabad replaced the Deccan Chargers a few years ago.
Speaking of other things that are common between IPL 2008 and 2022, here's a playing XI comprising the players who featured in the inaugural season and are part of IPL squads this year as well.
Openers - Shikhar Dhawan and Robin Uthappa
Shikhar Dhawan represented the Delhi Daredevils in the first IPL season. He played alongside the likes of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, AB de Villiers, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Asif, Glenn McGrath and other star players. This year, the opener will don the Punjab Kings jersey for the first time in his career.
Former IPL Orange Cap winner Robin Uthappa will open the innings with Dhawan. Uthappa started his career with the Mumbai Indians in 2008 and will play for the Chennai Super Kings this year.
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Middle Order: Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik
Virat Kohli is the only player present in this XI who has played for the same franchise in all 15 seasons. He was picked by the Royal Challengers Bangalore during the U-19 draft of 2008 and has been retained ahead of every season.
Rohit Sharma was with the Deccan Chargers in 2008, but switched to Mumbai Indians in 2011 and has been a part of MI since then. MS Dhoni led the Chennai Super Kings in the inaugural season and will do the same in IPL 2022. He played a couple of seasons for the Rising Pune Supergiant when CSK were hit with a suspension.
Dinesh Karthik donned the Delhi Daredevils jersey in 2008. He has played for multiple franchises in his career and was signed by RCB earlier this year.
All Rounders - Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo
Dwayne Bravo said, "I'm coming back to home, CSK forever".
Ravindra Jadeja is the only player on this list to have won the inaugural IPL season. He played under Shane Warne's captaincy for the Rajasthan Royals and performed decently for the team, while Dwayne Bravo played under Sachin Tendulkar for the Mumbai Indians.
Both Jadeja and Bravo have been teammates since 2012. They have played together for CSK and Gujarat Lions during the last 10 years. This year, they will don the CSK jersey again.
Bowlers - Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishi Dhawan and Siddarth Kaul
Ravichandran Ashwin will partner with Ravindra Jadeja in the spin attack. While Jadeja played for RR in 2008 and will play for CSK in 2022, Ashwin turned up for CSK in 2008 and will represent RR this year.
Not many fast bowlers from IPL 2008 are playing in IPL 2022. Siddarth Kaul and Rishi Dhawan will lead the pace attack. Kaul was a member of the KKR team in 2008 and will represent RCB this year, whereas Dhawan started with the Punjab Kings and will play for the same franchise in IPL 2022.