Former Sri Lanka captain and current Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardena revealed his first five picks for a dream T20 XI if he were given the task of assembling one. Jayawardena’s first five picks included two Pakistani cricketers, one each from India, England, and Afghanistan. The only Indian in Jayawardene’s top five picks for a dream T20 side was Jasprit Bumrah. Jayawardena chose the Indian pacer as his third option.

“I’ve always admired Jasprit Bumrah because he can bowl in different phases of an innings,” Jayawardena told the ICC. “He’s another wicket-taker option, and there’s no one better than Jasprit Bumrah when it comes to closing an innings,” he added.

Rashid Khan, an Afghanistan leg-spinner who currently plays for the Gujarat Titans in the IPL, was the MI head coach’s first choice. Rashid, according to the Sri Lankan legend, can pick wickets in a variety of situations while also scoring crucial runs with the bat.

“The bowlers, in my opinion, are the most important aspect of T20 cricket, and Rashid Khan is an excellent spinner who can also bat. He’s an excellent number seven or eight batter who can be used in a variety of situations depending on your lineup. Rashid would be my first choice because he can bowl in different phases of an innings, such as the Powerplay, the middle overs, and the death overs, depending on the conditions “Jayawardena continued.

Pakistan left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who has emerged as one of the best bowlers in white-ball cricket in the last year or so, was Jayawardena’s third choice.

“I’m going to go with two more bowlers,” Jayawardena said, “and the first one is going to be a left-armer in Shaheen Afridi.” “He had a great World Cup last year, bowls very well with the new ball and is more than capable of getting some swing early too. He is a wicket taking option too that bowls very well at the death as well, so can be considered a good attacking option.”

Jayawardena chose the current IPL 2022 Orange Cap holder. Jos Buttler has made his debut.

“I’d probably start Jos with the bat,” Jayawardena said. “He is a very aggressive player who excels at both pace and spin. He’s been in great form recently in the IPL, and he also did well in the recent T20 World Cup in the UAE, where he played well in difficult conditions “Added he.

Mohammad Rizwan of Pakistan has been named as Jaywardena’s wicketkeeper.

“The wicketkeeper-batter is the next option, and I’m going with Mohammad Rizwan,” Jayawardena said. I understand he frequently opens the batting for Pakistan, but I believe he can bat in the middle order as well. He’s an excellent spinner and a very busy player.”

When Jayawardena was given the option to include one player from the past, he chose Chris Gayle as Buttler’s opening partner.