The Hundred League just ended on 18th August 2024, in which we saw Oval Invincibles slay it till the end of the tournament and win the title of the tournament. The tournament was a roller coaster ride where we saw so many potentially rich, talented players among all the teams. 

Here in this article, we will disclose our best playing eleven from the tournament that would have made it nearly impossible for any team to win against. Although we all know cricket is a team game, more than just the talent and skill set, you also need to endure that unity in the team by using the strengths of the players to the advantage of the team and seeking victory rather than individual milestones. 

Sam Curran 

The bowling all-rounder who did wonders in the tournament this year broke the record for giving out the best performance in a single game, where he smashed a century and took a five-wicket haul in the same game.

He would provide the team of best 11 with a greater depth in all the departments, as his strength was his versatility to bat and bowl in any situation, not just specific areas of the department, which could be his USP too, further for the auction next year. He was the third-highest wicket-taker of the Hundred League this year, totaling up to 17 wickets, and the 8th-highest run scorer. 

Ben Stokes 

The captain of the England team who led a great series recently against the West Indies and won it with a greater gap. He could lead the team of the best 11 efficiently, as he has the much-needed experience to lead a team. Being an all-format player, he can allocate the roles of the players pretty well.

He himself provides the team with a better balance by being a versatile player who can bat or bowl anywhere and anytime when needed for the team. He played for the Northern Superchargers this season but got an early exit from the Hundred League due to his hamstring injury, which also raised concerns about him being available for the national duties as well.

Nicholas Pooran 

The hard-hitter from the West Indies, Nicholas Pooran, played for the Northern Superchargers this season, in which he ended up being the 4th highest scorer of the tournament. He managed to make a total of 227 runs with an impressive average of 45.40 in the Hundred League. He could be used as an opener for the best 11 to begin destruction from the start. 

Adam Zampa 

The spinning wizard from Australia ended up as the highest wicket-taker of the Hundred League with 19 wickets in his pocket. He was a part of the Oval Invincibles and was one of the crucial reasons for contributing to the victory of the team and taking wickets in such a fast-paced format where bowler’s nightmares are seen often; he performed exceptionally well.  

Tymal Mills 

The England-born left-arm pacer who made the ball swing crazily for the batsman and gave us a taste of test match bowling by showing off his skills in the Hundred League. He took the same amount of wickets as Adam Zampa i.e. 19 but with a slightly higher economy than Zampa of 9.30 whereas Zampa had an economy of 7.33 in the tournament. He could be utilized for bowling from the new ball in the best 11, as his left-arm pacing action can create a problem for the openers of the opposition. 

Chris Jordan 

He played a major part in some of the victories of the Southern Brave in the Hundred League. He recently played for England in the T20 World Cup and has represented England in various international matches. His experience with international players can be useful for the best 11 and choke the opposition from scoring runs. 

Jofra Archer

The right-arm pacer is known for his windmill bowling action, which gives him the strength to get the bowl near to the wickets or batsman sooner than he can predict, and he usually gets a wicket out of his terror of bowling onto the body of the batsman.

Though in this season of the Hundred League, his performance did not really come out well, after he came back from his injury and its recovery, he has been finding his right speed and pitching. 

Akeal Hosein

The slow left-arm magician from the West Indies who played for Souther Brave in the Hundred League. He is known for bowling the first over from white ball cricket, mainly because his variations are extravagant.

He can spin and swing the ball in both directions simultaneously, which makes it harder for the batsman to pick and hit. He could be the great potential spinner for the best 11 to add as a surprise element for the opposition. 

Also Read: 4 Elite overseas players in the Hundred League Women

An experienced county cricket player who led the team of the Southern Brave in the Hundred League. He ended up as the highest scorer of the tournament, totaling up to 424 runs, and even managed to make his team reach the finals, where he made 24 runs but unfortunately could not score more and lost it. His experience in county cricket and playing on those grounds could help the team’s best 11 in planning and execution. 

Ben Duckett 

The top-order batsman from England played for Birmingham Phoenix in the tournament and made the 2nd most runs out of all the teams. His total runs were 269 with a huge average of 67.25 and a staggering strike rate of 171.33, which is ideal for this format. His striking ability to hit from the power play makes him an ideal pick for the best 11. 

Rashid Khan 

The face of Afghanistan Cricket, a leg spinner whose records are unmatchable at such an early age. He played for the Trent Rockets in this season of the Hundred League and managed to pick up nine wickets only.

Although his form was not great in the tournament and he also got back injury issues chasing him for a year, he is the best choice for providing the team with the support of stopping the flow of runs as he is among the top-rated players around the globe in T20 cricket. His whiteball performance is extraordinarily good for the best 11 to win and nail it. 

The Hundred League commenced in the last week of July and has reached near the quarterfinals stage now. Consisting of a total of 100 balls in each inning, this shorter format opened a new way of playing fast-paced cricket with a different strategy needed to be accustomed to other than all the other formats.

Many players got humbled in all the departments as per the demand of this format; for instance, Rashid Khan got hit for 5 consecutive by Kieron Pollard, who retired from IPL 2 years ago and still managed to hit these maximums against one of the greatest spin bowlers of the world.

Nicholas Pooran

Nicholas is a part of the Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League. He used to bat at number 5 during the middle overs and was given the role of a finisher for the team. Pooran scored a total of 499 runs in 14 matches, just a couple of runs behind the captain KL Rahul in the IPL, with a destructive strike rate of 178.21 and an impressive average of 62.37. He was the 8th highest scorer in the IPL season 2024 and the only batsman to enter the top ten after batting at number 5.

In the Hundred League, Nicholas Pooran sits in the 3rd position for the highest runs in this league. He plays for the Northern Superchargers and recently came into the limelight for his blistering innings of 66* off 33 balls against the Manchester Originals. In that gigantic innings, he also hit a six of 113 meters on the 74th ball of the innings, and Scott Burrie bowled the ball on the leg, which was clobbered on the mid wicket region by Nicholas Pooran.

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Phil Salt

Salt played as a top-order batsman from the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024. Phil made 435 runs in 12 matches with an average of over 40 and a lethal strike rate of 182. He opened with Sunil Narine, and both the batsmen combined gave a swashbuckling start for KKR. Salt and Narine combined made 559 runs in 12 innings, which was the third-best this season. The pair had six fifty-plus partnerships this season, the most by any pair.

In the Hundred League, he sits in the 4th position for the most runs scored list for the Manchester Originals. In 7 matches, he made 261 runs and averaged up to 30.85 with a satisfactory strike rate of 148.96.

Sam Curran

Sam played for Kings X1 Punjab in 2024; he is a bowling all-rounder who even opened for the team this season and played some clinical innings, which contributed to some victories for the team. This season for the Punjab Kings was not really good for the team, and a basic performance was given by Sam Curran. He made 246 runs this year with a satisfactory average of 26. Along with that, he took 16 wickets in the IPL 2024 season for the Punjab Kings in 13 matches, but had an expensive economy of around 10.15.

He plays for Oval Invincibles in the Hundred League and made 176 runs in 7 matches, which averages up around 26 and took 16 wickets, which is an impeccable record to sustain. He is the second highest wicket taker this year in the Hundred League. He became the first batsman to score a half-century and take five wickets in the same match in the Hundred.

Rashid Khan

He is considered one of the best bowlers of the T20 format around the world with astounding stats. He played for the Gujarat Titans this season (2024) and played 12 matches. Unfortunately, this season he was in his recovery phase after his back injury, due to which he bowled fewer overs and comparatively had a normal stat this season, taking only 10 wickets in 12 matches with an economy of 8.40. Along with that, he made 110 runs with the bat averaging up to 20.40.

In the Hundred League, he played for the Trent Rockets and took 9 wickets out of 5 matches. This season he became famous for getting hit for 5 sixes by Kieron Pollard from the Southern Braves; unfortunately, just after that match, Rashid Khan was unavailable to play the remainder matches and replaced by Chris Green. Due to injuries occurring this year, Rashid Khan suffered from not being able to give the best out of his performance.

Hopefully soon after the recovery he will make a comeback, as this year he made history by becoming one of the youngest captains of Afghanistan to lead in the T20 World Cup, and for the first time Afghanistan qualified for the semi finals, which were played against England.

ALSO READ: Batsman With Most Consecutive Sixes Against Rashid Khan

Rashid Khan, the 24-year-old leg spinner from Afghanistan, has impeccable bowling figures in his career around the world. He has taken 369 international wickets till now in a total of 200 innings he played with an average of 18.04 and a stingy economy of 4.46, including all formats.

Recently, he led Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup and made history by taking them to the semi-finals for the first time. Rashid also plays cricket leagues of different countries, such as IPL, SAL, MLC, The Hundred, ILT20, and so on.

Here, we will have a look at the moments when the dominator Rashid Khan got his economies crushed by the maximums of the batsman consecutively in his over.

AB de Villiers in the T20 World Cup (2016)

Rashid Khan was bowling the 17th over in the T20 World Cup match no. 10 against South Africa, 29 runs an over.

Ball-by-ball summary of the infamous over by Rashid Khan against AB de Villers

16.1 Rashid bowled a short ball, and AB de Villiers pulled it on from the back foot towards the mid-wicket area.

16.2 Rashid to de Villiers. Short pitched ball on the outside off hit by de Villiers in the air towards mid-wicket, fielder tried to dive in but the ball bounced in front of him and went to four

16.3 Rashid bowled a full ball to de Villiers, and he galloped forward to hit it down the ground for maximum.

16.4 Rashid to de Villiers. Again, half-pitched the ball towards the line of the stumps and hammered on the mid-wicket for a six.

16.5 Rashid Khan bowls a long ball outside off to DeVilliers; he slugs the ball for a long shot as it comes in his hitting arc and smashed into the fence.

16.6 Rashid to de Villiers. Ab slides it on the off for a single and keeps the strike.

Chris Gayle in IPL (2018)

Chris is one of the most explosive opener batsmen in the world with a destructive six-hit ability; due to his height and strong physique, he can stand and deliver sixes as if it’s a cakewalk for him.

In the IPL 2018 KXIP vs. SRH match, Rashid was bowling in the 14th over, and Chris was in his hitting zone at that time, 27 runs from the over.

Ball-by-ball summary of Rashid Khan’s over vs Chris Gayle

13.1 Rashid to Nair. He pushes the length ball on the deep mid-wicket area for a single

13.2 Rashid bowls Chris Gayle a fuller ball, and Chris gets the ball in his hitting arc and sends it for a six.

13.3 Chris gets a short-pitched delivery by Rashid and clobbers the ball over his head towards the sight screen straight.

13.4 Rashid to Chris Gayle. It goes fuller this time, and Chris strikes a clean hit even bigger than the last one above the sight screen with the use of his strong bottom hand, lofted straight toward the audience.

13.5 Rashid to Chris Gayle. Gayle made a sweet connection with the fuller delivery bowled from wide of the crease and muscles it towards the cow corner.

13.6 Chris pushes the delivery on the leg and takes two by running, which is a rare sight to see.

Marco Jansen in SA20 (2023)

In the 2023 SA20 League, the SEC needed 67 runs in 30 balls from MICT to win. Rashid came to bowl in the 16th over and was humbled by Marco Jansen, who’s a bowler all-rounder, with 28 runs in total scored in this over.

Ball-by-ball summary of Rashid Khan’s over vs Marco Jansen

15.1 Rashid bowls a googly with a speed of 87 kmph, and Jansen waits for it to spin then delivers it above the square leg for a six.

15.2 Rashid bowls a drifter to invite Jansen for a drive and edges it towards the slip, going to four as the third man was under the 30-yard circle.

15.3 Jansen whacks the overpitched delivery by Rashid towards mid-wicket and adds up six runs to the scoreboard.

15.4 Rashid delivers another delivery near the slot, and Jansen slogs it in the mid-wicket area, a little bit directed towards Squarer.

15.5 Jansen blocks the ball directed towards the stumps by Rashid and gives no runs.

15.6 Jansen slogs it again with a sweep for a 75-meter six as Rashid gambles on the length outside off but does not work out in their favor.

Kieron Pollard in The Hundred (2024)

Kieron Pollard was struggling with scoring just 6 runs off 14 balls and completely changed the wind after 5 balls bowled by Rashid Khan. Southern Brave needed 49 of 20 balls to win from Trent Rockets, and Rashid came to bowl 5 balls.

Pollard makes room for the ball and clobbers it towards the wide, long-on region on a googly delivery by Rashid Khan.

Rashid bowls on the off stump with a length ball; Pollard waits and hits it with the sheer power of his biceps towards the long off. Pollard hits it bigger and longer again on the long off for a six on Rashid’s overpitched delivery.

Rashid bowls a short-pitched delivery and gets no turn, which Pollard sort pulls and sends it out of the ground, proper power hitting showcased by the Pollard.

Rashid bowls a fuller on the outside off, and Pollard manages to get it for a six for 5th consecutively, completely changing the scenario of the match and scoring 30 runs off 5 balls, which are the maximum runs possible to score out of legal deliveries.

Now Southern Brave needed just 19 off 15 balls and won the match from a dead end against the Trent Rockets.

Kieron Pollard !! ❤️‍🔥 absolute crazy stuff man ; smashed 5 sixes off 5 balls off Rashid Khan & won the game! He's a part time cricketer now but has still got it 🔥🔥 legend of the game,one of the best ever all rounders ❤️‍🔥🤝🏻#TheHundred • #KieronPollard pic.twitter.com/bXr3TvKLOE

— Ishaan 🔴 (@Ishaan_04) August 10, 2024

In this article, we mention that in the T20 World Cup 2024, Pat Cummins created history by taking two Consecutive Hatricks 

The T20 World Cup in 2024 has seen some fantastic moments, and one that truly stands out is Pat Cummins’ amazing performance. The Australian bowler made history by achieving two consecutive hat-tricks, a feat never seen before in this. Fans and experts worldwide are still in awe of his incredible bowling skills.

Also Read: T20 World Cup 2024: Suryakumar Yadav Equals Virat Kohli’s World Record In Half The Time

Back-to-Back Magic: A First in T20 World Cup History

In a thrilling match against Bangladesh, Cummins took his first hat-trick by dismissing Mahmudullah and Mahedi Hasan on the last two balls of the 18th over. He then sent Towhid Hridoy packing on the first ball of the final over, leaving Bangladesh struggling at 144/7. Even though Australia comfortably chased down the target, Cummins’ exceptional bowling stole the show. 

But wait, there’s more! Just two days later, in another crucial match against Afghanistan, Cummins did it again. He took out Rashid Khan on the last ball of the 18th over and followed it up by dismissing Karim Janat and Gulbadin Naib with the first two balls of the 20th over, completing his second consecutive hat-trick. This achievement has left everyone amazed!

Pat Cummins Joins an Elite Club: A Look at the History of T20 Hat-Tricks

Despite Cummins heroics, Australia lost to Afghanistan as their batting lineup crumbled under pressure. Afghanistan’s opening pair put up a strong fight with Rahmanullah Gurbaz scoring 60 runs and Ibrahim Zadran adding 51 runs. In the end Australia fell short by 21 runs in what turned out to be an eventful match.

Cummins now joins an elite group of bowlers who have achieved back-to-back hat-tricks in T20 cricket history. His remarkable performance not only showcases his skills but also highlights his versatility as a cricketer across all formats of the game. As fans eagerly anticipate his next game-changing display, one thing is for sure – Pat Cummins is a force to be reckoned with in international cricket!