Virat Kohli only Indian in Shahid Afridi’s all-time World Cup XI; Sachin Tendulkar omitted

Shahid Afridi, during his playing days, was quite the controversial figure for his spats with fellow cricketers on the field and for his off-field remarks and post international retirement, the former all-rounder has continued to hog the limelight with his words. Often in the headlines for his war of words with Gautam Gambhir on Twitter, Afridi, for a change, on Thursday, decided to go on a trip down the memory lane and pick an ‘all-time World Cup XI’, but the 40-year-old’s choice of players has now sparked visible controversy. 

Picking his ‘all-time World Cup XI’ in an Instagram live session, the all-rounder controversially decided to leave out Sachin Tendulkar from his XI, picking incumbent Indian skipper Virat Kohli as the only Indian in the side. Kohli finds a place in Afridi’s XI as the No.4 four batsmen, with Adam Gilchrist, Saeed Anwar and Ricky Ponting serving as the batsmen ahead of him.

The Indian skipper is followed by former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq at No.5, with Jacques Kallis occupying the all-rounder’s spot at No.6. Unsurprisingly, Afridi’s bowling line-up is an attack dominated by Australia and Pakistan, with Wasim Akram, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Shoaib Akhtar and Saqlain Mushtaq serving as the bowlers of a strong side. 

Sachin Tendulkar aside, another notable absentee from Afridi’s side is former Pakistan skipper Imran Khan, who famously led the country to its first - and only - World Cup triumph back in 1992. 

Shahid Afridi's all-time World Cup XI: Saeed Anwar, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Virat Kohli, Inzamam ul-Haq, Jacques Kallis, Wasim Akram, Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq