Kohli, Rohit make the cut for World Cup team of tournament while Williamson, Afridi miss out
Nov 20, 2023
New Delhi [India], November 20 : India and Australia players dominated the World Cup team of the tournament as the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the official team on Monday.
The ODI World Cup 2023 saw some of the best individual performances on the cricket field throughout the tournament. Australia emerged victorious by besting the unbeaten Indian team at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
In the tournament team, South Africa's left-handed batter Quinton de Kock (South Africa) and India skipper Rohit Sharma (India) were chosen as the opening pair.
De Kock amassed 594 runs at a strike rate of 107.02 throughout the tournament, only Indian pair Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have scored more than the batter. He was also chosen as the wicketkeeper for the team.
Rohit played some blistering knocks throughout the tournament and ended up with a tally of 597 runs in the campaign. The experienced batter was also chosen as the skipper for the ICC Team of the Tournament. Rohit's aggressive approach was defined by his strike rate of 125.94 which is the highest of any top-four batter in the tournament. Only Glenn Maxwell and Heinrich Klassen scored at a quicker rate among the World Cup batters.
Virat Kohli took the number three spot on the back of his all-time great run of form. With 765 runs to his name, he scored the most runs ever by an individual batter in the history of the tournament.
The number four and fifth spots belonged to New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell and India's KL Rahul respectively. He scored 552 runs in nine innings at a batting average of 69 and a strike rate of 111.06 which showcased his true potential.
On the other hand, Rahul came out as a model of consistency scoring 452 runs in the campaign. He finished the tournament with a stunning average of 75.33, which was the third-best for any batter during World Cup 2023.
The sixth and seventh spots belonged to spin-bowling all-rounders - Glenn Maxwell and Ravindra Jadeja. Maxwell stood up when it mattered the most. He scored a 40-ball ton which is the fastest century in the World Cup and scored an unbeaten 201 against Afghanistan to power the Aussies to the semi-final.
Jadeja proved his worth with the ball by picking up key wickets throughout the middle overs. His economy rate was among the best as he went for 4.25 per over and backed up the new-ball attacking line-up.
Finally, in the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah, Dilshan Madushanka, Adam Zampa and Mohammed Shami sealed their places.
These bowlers were among the leading wicket-takers of the tournament and gave their respective teams a brilliant start in the powerplay as well as in the middle overs.
South Africa all-rounder Gerald Coetzee was chosen as the 12th man for the team. He stood up for the Proteas in the absence of Anrich Nortje.
World Cup Team of the Tournament: Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Daryl Mitchell, KL Rahul, Glenn Maxwell, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Dilshan Madushanka, Adam Zampa and Mohammed Shami.
