Discarded Indian bowler picks his all-time IPL XI ahead of 2026 auction; leaves out Sunil Narine

Discarded Team India spinner Rahul Chahar picked his all-time IPL XI in a recent interview ahead of the 2026 auction (via Crictracker's Instagram handle). He picked Rohit Sharma and the retired Brendon McCullum as his two openers.

The former is the IPL's second all-time leading run-scorer with 7,046 runs in 272 games. Rohit also led the Mumbai Indians (MI) to all five IPL titles during his captaincy tenure from 2013 to 2023.

Meanwhile, McCullum finished his IPL career with 2,880 runs at a strike rate of 131.74 in 109 outings. Chris Gayle came in at No. 3 in Chahar's lineup, having amassed almost 5,000 runs, including six centuries, in his stellar IPL career.

IPL's all-time leading run-scorer, Virat Kohli, slotted in at No. 4, with 8,661 runs and eight centuries in 267 matches. Chahar's former MI teammates, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik, came in at No. 5 and 6 in his all-time XI.

Surya is in the top 20 for run-scoring in the IPL with 4,311 runs at an average of over 35 and a strike rate of 148.65 in 166 games. On the other hand, Hardik is among the most accomplished all-rounders in IPL history, with over 2,700 runs and 78 wickets.

Chahar rounded off his top seven with MS Dhoni as his captain and wicketkeeper. Dhoni captained the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to five IPL titles and is also the league's sixth leading run-scorer with 5,439 runs.

Rahul Chahar includes three Indians in his bowling lineup

Rahul Chahar picked three Indians and only a lone overseas player in the final four of his all-time IPL XI. Afghanistan's Rashid Khan came in at No. 8, having picked up 158 wickets in the IPL at an excellent average of 23.83 and an economy of 7.08.

Chahar had fellow leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal as the second specialist spinner in his lineup. Chahal is the IPL's all-time leading wicket-taker with 221 scalps in 174 outings.

Ace pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar rounded off Chahar's all-time side. The former is sixth all-time in IPL wickets with 183 in 145 matches, while the latter is second all-time with 198 wickets in 190 games.

Rahul Chahar's all-time IPL XI

Rohit Sharma, Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, MS Dhoni, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah