IPL 2017 | Michael Clarke names his fantasy team

Clarke opted to start with four batsmen that would put the fear of god into any team in the history of the sport. For his openers, Clarke picked the Indo-Aussie duo of Virat Kohli and David Warner following it up with Steve Smith and AB de Villiers as his number 3 and 4 respectively. But that is about it as far as the specialized batsmen are concerned.

With Mumbai Indians showing the kind of form Championship-winning teams usually display, Clarke opted to have both his all-rounders from the two-time Champions and both players come from the same family as well - the Pandyas. Both Hardik and Krunal have shown off their skills with the bat and as well as the ball.

As far as the specialized bowlers are concerned, Clarke has surprisingly left out Bhuvneshwar Kumar in place of Zaheer Khan. To complement the Delhi pacer, the Aussie picked yet another Mumbai player - Jasprit Bumrah. But there was space for one more Mumbai player in the team as Harbhajan Singh booked his place alongside the fourth overseas player Imran Tahir. For the wicket-keeper's spot, like Ganguly, the Aussie decided to opt for young Rishabh Pant instead of MS Dhoni or Robin Uthappa.

Clarke's XI : Virat Kohli (RCB), David Warner (SRH), Steve Smith (RPS), AB de Villiers (RCB), Rishabh Pant (DD), Harbhajan Singh (MI), Hardik Pandya (MI), Krunal Pandya (MI), Jasprit Bumrah (MI), Zaheer Khan (DD), and Imran Tahir (RPS).