IPL: RCB's greatest overseas XI of all time
Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have always been a side that have prided themselves on their world-class foreign players. RCB's strong core consisting of Indian stars like Virat Kohli, Anil Kumble and Yuzvendra Chahal has been ably complemented by some of the best T20 players from other countries.
In the current RCB squad as well, quality overseas players like Aaron Finch, Chris Morris and Moeen Ali are expected to play big roles.
RCB's greatest overseas XI of all time in the IPL
Ignoring the IPL rule that states that only four overseas players can be part of the XI, we attempt to assemble a team consisting of RCB's best-ever non-Indian players.
Here is RCB's greatest overseas XI of all time in the IPL.
Openers: Chris Gayle, Tillakaratne Dilshan
One of the greatest T20 players of all time, Chris Gayle is a shoo-in at one of the opening slots of this IPL XI. The West Indian played 85 games for RCB in the IPL, and scored 3,163 runs at an average of 43.33 and a strike rate of 152.73. Gayle also notched up 19 fifties and 5 hundreds for the side, including a world-record 175* against the Pune Warriors India in 2013.
Gayle's partner during his onslaught against PWI, Dilshan was a solid, if underrated, presence at the top of the order. The Sri Lankan scored 587 runs in 25 games for RCB at a decent average of 27.95, and forms a productive right-left opening combination in this all-time IPL XI.
While Dilshan has retired from the sport, Gayle will play for former RCB teammate KL Rahul's Kings XI Punjab in the 2020 edition of the IPL.