India skipper Virat Kohli, opener Shikhar Dhawan and pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar were the only Indians to find place in the Team of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, led by Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed
Virat Kohli. Pics/AFP
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India skipper Virat Kohli, opener Shikhar Dhawan and pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar were the only Indians to find place in the Team of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, led by Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed.
Besides the Indian trio, the jury comprising the likes of former English captain Michael Atherton, India's Sourav Ganguly and Ramiz Raja of Pakistan, among others, selected four Pakistanis, three Englishmen and one from Bangladesh with New Zealand's Kane Williamson as the 12th man.
Shikhar Dhawan
The four Pakistanis included left-handed opening batsman Fakhar Zaman, pace duo of Junaid Khan and Hasan Ali besides Sarfraz, who also doubles up as the wicketkeeper.
Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid were the three Englishmen while Tamim Iqbal was the lone Bangladeshi in the team.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Dhawan and Hasan had won the Golden Bat and Golden Ball trophies for finishing as the most successful batsman and bowler, respectively, while Tamim was selected after driving Bangladesh to their maiden semi-finals in a major International Cricket Council (ICC) event.
Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman was picked as Dhawan's opening partner after the youngster aggregated 252 runs in four matches at an impressive strike-rate of 113.
"To be appointed as captain of the Team of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, which includes some of the finest and most attractive cricketers of this generation, is the perfect icing on the cake," Sarfraz told the ICC website.
"But I am more happy and delighted for players like Fakhar Zaman and Hasan Ali, who impressed their peers through their talent and performances, and found their way in the side. These two lads, plus Shadab Khan, are the future of Pakistan cricket and I sincerely hope they will only go in the upward direction from here.
"The ICC Champions Trophy 2017 has been a fairy tale journey for the Pakistan cricket team. The event showed the team's grit and ability to bounce back solidly when the chips are down.
"I am confident that the faith and trust of the Pakistan cricket team will be strengthened with this performance of the side," he added.
Team: Shikhar Dhawan, Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal, Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Sarfraz Ahmed (Captain & WK), Adil Rashid, Junaid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hasan Ali, Kane Williamson (12th man).
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