IPL: Greatest all-time XI consisting of one-club men
In the high-stakes T20 franchise tournament that is the Indian Premier League (IPL), we see players switching teams with increasing frequency every year.
Parthiv Patel, Aaron Finch, Thisara Perera, Ishant Sharma and Dinesh Karthik hold the dubious distinction of having represented 6 or more franchises in the IPL. In a competition where the concept of loyalty is overshadowed by money and the teams' needs, very few IPL players have managed to stay at one team over the course of their careers.
However, it must be said that players from the Chennai Super Kings and the Rajasthan Royals are slightly unfortunate to have not made this list owing to the ban that the two teams incurred.
Greatest all-time IPL XI consisting of one-club men
Here is the greatest all-time IPL XI consisting of players who have worn only one colour on their jersey.
Note: The rule that says only four overseas players are allowed per team has been followed. The minimum number of years at the team for a player to be considered is four.
Openers: Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli (c)
Arguably the two greatest players India have ever produced - Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli - make up what can only be described as a dream opening combination.
Sachin Tendulkar played for the Mumbai Indians (MI) for 6 years after signing for the team as an icon player in the inaugural IPL draft. In 78 games for the 4-time IPL champions, the Master Blaster scored 2,334 runs at an average of 34.83, along with winning the coveted trophy in his final year at the team (2013).
Virat Kohli has been with the Royal Challengers Bangalore since the inaugural season, and is the leading run-getter in the IPL with 5,412 runs in 177 games. The current Indian captain has notched up 36 fifties and 5 hundreds, and will look to end his wait for an IPL trophy this year in the UAE. Despite the fact that the trophy has eluded him so far, he is the captain of this XI.