Prabhsimran Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Rinku Singh are all included in the seventh team of the week for IPL 2023. Every XI can contain a maximum of four overseas players besides having no more than three players from a single franchise. For this year, there is also an impact player to be chosen every week in addition to the starting XI
Photos: TT archives
Shubman Gill (GT): After succumbing early during a massive chase against MI, Gill was back to his scintillating best against SRH, scoring his maiden IPL century as GT won comfortably in Ahmedabad. Elegance, poise and class personified, this is definitely the best Gill has ever looked in the shortest format of the game
Prabhsimran Singh (PBKS): Another week, another uncapped centurion owning the centrestage. After glimpses of his prowess so far this season, the PBKS opener seized the day against DC to maximum effect. His 103 off 65 balls accounted for 62 per cent of Punjab’s runs in the match, making this one of the most dominant individual displays of IPL 2023
Glenn Maxwell (RCB): There is no way RCB would have won against RR by 112 runs had Maxwell not ignited the Bangalore innings with a smash-and-grab knock of 54 off just 33 balls. With skipper Faf du Plessis playing accumulator at the other end, the Big Show unleashed his versatile hitting on a pitch that behaved worse than it looked
Suryakumar Yadav (MI): As the IPL rolls on, SKY is proving once more that he has no limits when it comes to producing one jaw-dropping performance after another. His latest was a breathtaking century against GT at the Wankhede Stadium, which helped MI put 218 runs on the board and featured no less than 17 boundaries all across the wicket
Heinrich Klaasen (SRH): Mostly deployed as a finisher by SRH, Klaasen came into bat during the powerplay against RCB after the loss of two early wickets. Taking little time to find his range, he was remorseless in dispatching RCB bowlers to all corners of Hyderabad, even as his teammates struggled to find the fence at the other end. Batting all the way till the 19th over, Klassen finished with a staggering 104 off 51 balls, featuring eight fours and six sixes
Rinku Singh (KKR): He may not have been tonking sixes with ease against Chennai, but Rinku, in tandem with Nitish Rana, played the situation as much as the opposition on Sunday night to see KKR over the line against CSK. Rinku’s 43-ball 54 will not be serenaded for years to come, but it was no less convincing in enhancing his finisher’s reputation as some of his more belligerent efforts this season
Marcus Stoinis (LSG): Coming in at 35 for three on a dicey wicket in a must-win game for LSG, Stoinis stepped up to the plate with a fiery 89 not out off just 47 balls. This involved him clearing the fence eight times against an MI attack that had no answer for him on the day. Should LSG make it to the playoffs, or go even farther this season, Stoinis’s supershow may well end up being the turning point
Ravi Bishnoi (LSG): One of the most underrated spinners in the competition, Bishnoi was worth his weight in gold for Lucknow against Mumbai on Tuesday. Conceding just 26 runs in four overs, he removed both MI openers after they had raced to 90 for no loss before the halfway point of the innings
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (SRH): He may not be as reliable as he used to be, but Bhuvi still has what it takes to rattle the opposition on his day. His beautiful outswinger to send Wriddhiman Saha packing set the tone against GT, before he went on to get Gill, Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan and Mohammed Shami to wrap up a valiant spell of five for 30
Mohammed Shami (GT): There are few sights in the tournament as compelling as Shami going through the gears and steamrolling batters with consummate ease. This is exactly what happened against SRH, when Shami dismissed four of the top five to put the game beyond the Orange Army. His electrifying display also saw Shami draw level with teammate Rashid Khan for the Purple Cap with 23 wickets
Mohit Sharma (GT): The IPL keeps getting better and better for Mohit, who was in the thick of the action once again, this time against SRH. After Shami had made light work of Hyderabad’s top order, it was the former CSK man who cleaned up the middle and lower order of the opposition en route to spectacular figures of four for 28
Impact Player: Harpreet Brar (PBKS): He may have been nullified against DC in Dharamshala, but Brar made a decisive contribution in the reverse fixture just days earlier in Delhi. His spell of four for 30 brought crucial breakthroughs, including those of both DC openers, with the left-arm spinner showing ample control as well as the knack to produce something special once in a while
