The group stage matches of the ICC Champions Trophy are completed. 13 matches have been played, and the semifinalists have been confirmed. As expected, the best performers are from India, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. But there are two other teams who perhaps had the best players but couldn’t make the final four.
Group Stage XI of ICC Champions Trophy
| Player | Team | Role/Type | Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ibrahim Zadran | Afghanistan | Top-order Batter | 216 runs (AVG – 72 & SR – 106.40) |
| Ben Duckett | England | Top-order Batter | 227 runs (AVG – 75.66 & SR – 108.61) |
| Joe Root | England | Top-order Batter | 225 runs (AVG – 75 & SR – 96.56) |
| Shreyas Iyer | India | Middle-order Batter | 150 runs (AVG – 50 & SR – 82.41) |
| Tom Latham (wk) | New Zealand | Wicketkeeper Batter | 187 runs (AVG – 93.50 & SR – 93.50) |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | Afghanistan | All-rounder (right-arm pacer) | 126 runs (AVG – 42 & SR – 104.13) 7 wickets (AVG – 20, ECON – 6.72, SR – 17.85) |
| Michael Bracewell | New Zealand | All-rounder (off-spinner) | 13 runs (AVG – 13 & SR – 76.47) 5 wickets (AVG – 24, ECON – 4.13, SR – 34.80) |
| Marco Jansen | South Africa | All-rounder (left-arm pacer) | 4 wickets (AVG – 17.75, ECON – 4.73, SR – 22.50) |
| Varun Chakaravarthy | India | Mystery Spinner | 5 wickets (AVG – 8.40, ECON – 4.20, SR – 12) |
| Kuldeep Yadav | India | Left-arm Wrist Spinner | 4 wickets (AVG – 27.80, ECON – 4.87, SR – 34.20) |
| Matt Henry | New Zealand | Right-arm Pacer | 8 wickets (AVG – 15.50, ECON – 5.09, SR – 18.25) |
Top-order: Knocked-out teams
The highest run-scorers of the ICC Champions Trophy have been knocked out. Ibrahim Zadran, Ben Duckett, and Joe Root all made over 200 runs but can’t add to their tally now. Duckett and Ibrahim broke the record for the highest individual score in tournament history. Meanwhile, Root batted at four instead of three, but here he comes back to his old spot. Root was England’s top scorer in two of the three matches.
Middle-order: Shreyas Iyer & Tom Latham
The batters who played spin the best in the middle overs make it here. Shreyas Iyer played on tough Dubai pitches, controlled his aggression, and hit 2 fifties. That too, against Pakistan and New Zealand. Tom Latham will be the wicketkeeper. He was out of form but showed his class with an unbeaten century in the ICC Champions Trophy opener and followed that with a half-century.
Lower middle-order/all-rounders: 2 pacers & 1 spinner
Azmatullah Omarzai, Michael Bracewell, and Marco Jansen will do the trick in both departments. Omarzai has clearly been the best player in the ICC Champions Trophy. He’s got the same number of runs as Virat Kohli but has 7 wickets as well. This included a match-winning 5-wicket haul against England. Bracewell got five wickets in the two matches against New Zealand, and when he didn’t (against India), the BlackCaps lost. As for Jansen, South Africa hasn’t needed his services with the bat. But in the 2 matches he bowled, the lanky pacer was tough to handle.
Bowlers: Wrist/mystery spin & powerplay/death specialist pacer
Matt Henry is the best bowler of the tournament. He’s got 8 wickets, two of which have come in the powerplay and the remaining in the death overs. But don’t let the stats fool us. He’s much tougher to face with the new ball. Unshockingly, the spinners come from India. Kuldeep Yadav hasn’t been at his best but still has been a handful. He makes it ahead of Adam Zampa and Adil Rashid. Varun Chakaravarthy has played just one match, but he’s got a 5-wicket haul. No spinner has more wickets than him in the ICC Champions Trophy.
The post Group Stage XI of ICC Champions Trophy: No Gill or Kohli, Henry & Latham picked over Shami & Klaasen appeared first on Inside Sport India.