Kevin Pietersen Snubs India's 2 World Cup Winners While Naming His Dream IPL Playing XI

Former England captain Kevin Pietersen named his dream Indian Premier League (IPL) playing XI during an interaction with Jos Butter. While naming his team, he left out India's World Cup winners Yuvraj Singh and Rohit Sharma. Pietersen chose Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli as the openers for his side, preferring the pair over David Warner and Rohit. In the middle order, Pietersen named AB de Villiers and Suresh Raina, ignoring KL Rahul, Yuvraj, Glenn Maxwell and Rishabh Pant. When asked to pick the wicketkeeper and captain, Pietersen said, "There is only one, non-negotiable - MS Dhoni."

While India's Ravindra Jadeja made it to the XI picked by Pietersen, the former England captain left out Hardik Pandya.

He also named Yuzvendra Chahal in his team, stating, "The worst decision in IPL history was RCB letting him go."

Kevin Pietersen's dream IPL XI: Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (captain and wicketkeeper), Andre Russell, Ravindra Jadeja, Sunil Narine, Yuzvendra Chahal, Lasith Malinga, and Jasprit Bumrah.

Ahead of IPL 2026, Pietersen stepped down as mentor of the Delhi Capitals franchise, stating that he cannot commit the time the role requires. He, however, will be back in the commentary box during the cash-rich event.

Delhi Capitals had appointed Pietersen to the role in February last year for the 2025 edition of the tournament, as he worked alongside the support staff, which included Director of Cricket Venugopal Rao, Head Coach Hemang Badani, Assistant Coach Matthew Mott and Bowling Coach Munaf Patel.

With experience in 200 T20s and 5,695 runs, Pietersen participated in 36 IPL matches, scoring 1,001 runs for teams like Delhi Daredevils, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rising Pune Supergiants. The South Africa-born cricketer, who captained England from 2008 to 2009, was awarded Player of the Series in the 2010 ICC T20 World Cup, a performance that contributed to England's first ICC trophy.

Throughout his distinguished international career, Pietersen featured in 104 Tests, scoring 8,181 runs, and played 136 ODIs, amassing 4,440 runs. In 37 T20Is, Pietersen scored 1,176 runs.

(With IANS Inputs)

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