Dream Team of IPL: Top players analysis in each category

The recently concluded 16th edition of the IPL has come to an end. The Chennai Super Kings emerged victorious, clinching their 5th IPL title after defeating the Gujarat Titans in a nail-biting final. Despite only four teams making it to the playoffs, if we were to create a dream team comprising the best players from all ten teams, even players from teams that were eliminated in the league stage would be considered for selection in this coveted team.

We have meticulously chosen the top-performing players across powerplay, middle overs, and death overs throughout the entire tournament to create a dream playing-11. To ensure maximum impact on the field, we have included impactful players as well. In compliance with IPL's official rules, our team consists of 4 foreign and 8 Indian players. Rest assured that our selection process has been thorough to guarantee the finest team of players possible.

Let's first discuss about the Openers to this dream team
When discussing the top openers in the tournament, one name that immediately comes to mind is none other than Shubman Gill. Widely regarded as the star performer of the season, Shubman Gill has received numerous accolades for his outstanding performances. The other options in the race are Faf du Plessis, Devon Conway, Virat Kohli and Yashasvi Jaiswal are all strong contenders for this title. Their impressive performances while opening have earned them a spot at the top of the list for openers who have scored the most runs in the tournament.

Shubman Gill, with his exceptional batting skills, was able to win the coveted Orange Cap. His ability to score runs during the middle overs and Powerplay along with achieving 3 centuries made him the first opener to achieve this feat. In comparison, Kohli and Conway fell behind in terms of powerplay runs and strike rate. The position of being Gill's partner was contested by Du Plessis and Jaiswal. Though Du Plessis scored 730 while Jaiswal scored 625, Yashasvi Jaiswal's higher strike rate and 12 additional fours enabled him to emerge victorious in their fight. While Du Plessis hit 36 sixes, Yashasvi managed to hit an impressive 26 sixes. To optimize our batting lineup, we decided to have Yashasvi take the opening position while placing Du Plessis at number 3. This decision was based on Du Plessis' impressive track record of scoring runs during both powerplays and middle overs.

Openers
Shubman Gill                                 Batter	Yashasvi Jaiswal                                 Batter

Let's have a look on Middle Order
In the game of T20 cricket, it is crucial to have aggressive batsmen at positions number 3 and 4 who can also exhibit sensible play. These players must be able to take charge of the innings when quick wickets fall and score runs at a fast pace when late wickets fall. We have already designated Faf for the number three spot, leaving Suryakumar Yadav, Cameron Green, Shivam Dubey, Glenn Maxwell, and Marcus Stoinis in contention for the number four position in T20 matches.

When considering the top players for the number-4 position, it's worth noting their individual statistics. Dubey, for example, smashed an impressive 35 sixes during the tournament. Meanwhile, Green managed to score 452 runs at a strike rate of 160.28, and Stoinis contributed 27 sixes and 28 fours towards his total of 408 runs. Not to be outdone, RCB's Glenn Maxwell boasted an incredible strike rate of 183.48 while scoring over 400 runs - making him one of the standout players in this category.

With 605 runs in 16 matches, Suryakumar emerged as the highest run-scorer after the openers. He displayed exceptional talent by scoring a century and 5 fifties, with a remarkable strike rate of 181.13. His innings included an impressive total of 28 sixes and 65 fours. Notably, Suryakumar scored a staggering 483 runs in the middle overs alone, occupying the crucial number-4 position to steer his team to victory.

Middle Order
Faf Du Plessis                    Batter	Suryakumar Yadav                     Batter	Rinku Singh                     Batter

Who can be the best wicketkeeper along with batting skills
The position of specialist wicketkeeper batsman saw tough competition among Ishaan Kishan, Jitesh Sharma, Heinrich Klaasen and Nicholas Pooran. Although Butler was also in the race, he was not involved in the keeping duties. Despite scoring 454 runs with a strike rate of 142.76, Kishan is out of the running due to his inability to play big innings at the opening position. He did manage to make 10 catches and 3 stumpings though. On the other hand, Jitesh Sharma scored over 300 runs with a strike rate of over 150 but didn't take up wicketkeeping duties for most matches.

Pooran played several match-winning innings, hitting 26 fours and as many sixes, scoring a total of 358 runs in 15 matches with a strike rate of 172.95. He also displayed his excellent wicket-keeping skills by taking six catches behind the stumps and making three stumpings. However, in comparison to Pooran's performance, Klaasen managed to score an impressive 448 runs in just 12 matches at a higher strike rate of 177.08.

Klaasen showcased his prowess with the bat by scoring a magnificent century and two fifties, while smashing a total of 25 sixes and 32 fours. During the middle overs, he amassed an impressive 303 runs at an outstanding strike rate of 175.14, which included 18 sixes and 19 fours. His recent spectacular performances have undoubtedly proven him to be the top contender for the wicketkeeping position.

Wicketkeeper - Batter	Allrounder
Heinrich Klaasen                          Keeper-Batter	Ravindra Jadeja                               Allrounder

Game Finishers
In the race for the number-6 finisher's position, CSK's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, along with Tim David, Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran were strong contenders. However, KKR's Rinku Singh emerged victorious in taking up the coveted finisher's position, beating all of them.

Rinku is a remarkable player who has scored an impressive 239 runs in the death overs with a strike rate of 194.30. He has also smashed 20 sixes and 15 fours during his outstanding performance. His exceptional innings against Lucknow and his incredible feat of hitting 5 sixes against Gujarat are considered as some of the all-time best moments in IPL history.

Let's have a clinch at Allrounder
Axar Patel, Cameron Green, Hardik Pandya, Abhishek Sharma, and Ravindra Jadeja were all competing for the highly coveted number-7 position as an all-rounder. Unfortunately, Green's performance in the lower order left much to be desired while Abhishek found himself batting in the top order. On the other hand, Hardik emerged as a strong contender with 346 runs and an impressive strike rate of 136.76. Despite bowling a total of 25 overs throughout the tournament, he only managed to take three wickets as an all-rounder.

At the number-7 position, only Axar and Jadeja were left to hold their own. Axar proved his mettle with 283 runs this season at an impressive strike rate of 139.41, while also managing to take 11 wickets with his bowling prowess. On the other hand, Jadeja showcased his skills with a tally of 190 runs across 16 matches at a strike rate of 142.86. Although he couldn't make it to the top three run-scorers in death overs, he held his ground at number four.

Jadeja had an outstanding season, showcasing his left-arm spin abilities and taking an impressive 20 wickets between 7 and 15 overs - the highest by any bowler. Along with his bowling, Jadeja's exceptional fielding skills were evident as he caught nine catches throughout the season. It's no wonder that he is considered the best choice for number-7. And in the finals, everyone witnessed Jadeja's exceptional finishing skills firsthand.

Who will be best suited to do spin magic
The battle for the spinners' slot was fiercely fought between Rashid Khan, Piyush Chawla, Yuzvendra Chahal, Varun Chakraborty and Noor Ahmed. Among them, Rashid stood out with his outstanding performance of taking 27 wickets in 17 matches while maintaining an impressive economy rate of just 8.23. He proved to be a reliable asset for his team by taking wickets in almost every situation. In addition to his exceptional bowling skills, Rashid's batting prowess sets him apart from others. Despite this, he can only make it into a team on the basis of his spin bowling abilities.

Spinners
Rashid Khan                                Bowler	Yuzvendra Chahal                                  Bowler

The spin department of the team saw some impressive performances with Chawla taking 22 wickets, followed closely by Chahal with 21 and Chakravarty giving a tough competition with 20 wickets to his name. Noor Ahmed, too, showcased his skills by picking up 16 wickets in just 13 matches. However, given the presence of experienced left-arm spinners like Jadeja, there was no room for any more left-armers or off-spinners in the team as they already had two. In this scenario, Yuzvendra Chahal's excellent performance of taking 20 wickets made him the clear choice for the second spinner's position.

For the quick dismissals, a fast bowler is needed
The hunt for the fast bowlers saw Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Tushar Deshpande, Trent Boult and Arshdeep Singh vying for the spot. Despite Deshpande's impressive tally of 21 wickets in 16 matches, his economy rate of 9.92 proved to be a weak link and took him out of the running. Boult's limited playtime didn't help his case either, while Arshdeep managed to secure only 17 wickets in 14 matches as a bowler.

Mohammed Shami emerged as the winner of the coveted Purple Cap by taking 28 wickets in 17 matches. Notably, the maximum of 17 wickets were credited to him during the powerplay, and he also managed to clinch 8 wickets in the last over. Such impressive performance secured his position for the Purple Cap.

RCB's Mohammed Siraj proved his mettle by taking the maximum 10 wickets after Shami during the powerplay. He continued his impressive form in the death overs as well and ended up with 8 wickets, on par with Shami. Despite playing only 14 matches, he managed to take an impressive tally of 19 wickets at an economy rate of just 7.52. This performance establishes him as a perfect partner for Shami in RCB's team.
                                      

Fast Bowlers
Mohammed Shami                   Bolwer	Mohammed Siraj                      Bolwer	Matheesha Pathirana           Death Over Bolwer

Death Over Specialist
In the intense competition for the Death Over Specialist title, only two bowlers stand out - Mohit Sharma and Matheesha Pathirana. While Pathirana showcased his skills in 12 matches for CSK, taking a total of 19 wickets, Mohit proved his mettle in 14 matches for GT by grabbing an impressive total of 27 wickets. Notably, he was just one wicket short of earning the coveted purple cap.

Pathirana has proven to be a specialist in the death overs with an impressive tally of 18 wickets in the tournament. Following closely behind him is Mohit Sharma with 13 wickets to his name. To leverage Pathirana's expertise, we appointed him as our team's go-to death over specialist, while Mohit was recognized as one of our impact players.

Impact Players
We have successfully transformed Mohit Sharma into an impactful player who makes a significant difference on the team. Even though there are several batting options available until Rashid Khan, there are still four more Impact players that teams can choose from. This means that both Tilak Verma from Mumbai and Sai Sudarshan from Gujarat will have the opportunity to showcase their impressive batting skills as Impact players. Glenn Maxwell has been kept as the 13th man, who won the striker of the year award with a strike rate of over 183.

Impact Players
Sai Sudharsan             Allrounder	Mohit Sharma     Death Over Bowler	Tilak Varma              Batter	Glenn Maxwell            Allrounder