DP World ILT20 Season 5 — 2026

ILT20 2026 Best Playing XI

Combined team selections, strongest picks and balanced franchise combinations across all six ILT20 Season 5 franchises.

ILT20 2026 Best Playing XI: Combined Team and Strongest Picks

The ILT20 2026 best playing XI selects the strongest possible combined lineup from players across all six franchises. Season 5 runs from 22 November to 20 December 2026 and features players like Fazalhaq Farooqi, the all time leading wicket taker with 50 plus wickets, Nicholas Pooran, who holds the sixes record with 71 maximums, and Wanindu Hasaranga, who sits second on the all time wicket takers list with 39 wickets at an economy of 6.38.

Building a genuine combined XI from ILT20 is harder than it looks because the best players are spread across competing franchises and the three UAE venues reward different skills. A combined XI that dominates at Sharjah may struggle at Abu Dhabi and vice versa. Four things make ILT20 combined XI selection genuinely difficult:

Overseas player limits in each playing11 mean the combined XI cannot simply pick the six best international performers. The final eleven must reflect a realistic balance that any franchise could actually field under tournament rules
Sharjah’s short boundaries reward aggressive cross-bat hitters while Abu Dhabi’s slower surface rewards technically correct batters who work the ball into gaps. No single batting combination dominates across both venues equally
The best all rounders in ILT20 history are the most debated selections because their dual contributions make them harder to compare against specialist batters or bowlers on pure statistical output alone
Death over bowling selections split opinion more than any other position because the best ILT20 death bowler, Fazalhaq Farooqi, has played for MI Emirates across multiple seasons while other effective death specialists are spread across four other franchises

ILT20 Combined XI: Building the Strongest Batting Order

Based on confirmed all time ILT20 records, the strongest batting combination from Seasons 1 to 4 would start with these performers. Season 5 selections will update here as the tournament progresses from 22 November 2026:

Opening position: Alex Hales holds the all time ILT20 run scoring record with 1,156 runs including one century and nine fifties. His aggressive opening approach against the new ball in the powerplay has produced the most sustained opening batting output in tournament history
Opening position: Nicholas Pooran or Muhammad Waseem as the second opener. Pooran’s 1,010 runs at 45.90 average alongside 71 sixes makes him the most destructive batting option. Waseem’s 871 runs at a 140.48 strike rate as a UAE player makes him the most valuable local opener the tournament has seen
Middle order: James Vince holds the record for most fifties in ILT20 with 10 half centuries across 1,055 total runs. His ability to anchor innings and build partnerships in the middle overs makes him the most consistent middle order option in tournament history
Finisher: Sam Curran demonstrated in the Season 4 final exactly what an elite finishing all rounder provides. His 74 not out in the title match against MI Emirates showed composure under maximum pressure when the team needed 57 runs in 33 balls with four wickets in hand

ILT20 Combined XI: Strongest Bowling Attack

The bowling selections for any ILT20 combined XI start with Fazalhaq Farooqi and build outward. His 50 plus wickets, best figures of 5 for 16 against Dubai Capitals in Season 3, and consistent death over execution across all three UAE venues make him the automatic first name on the combined XI bowling sheet:

Fazalhaq Farooqi (MI Emirates): Automatic selection as the all time leading wicket taker in ILT20 history. The only bowler to reach 50 wickets in the tournament. His 5 for 16 against Dubai Capitals in Season 3 is the best bowling performance in ILT20 history and his death over execution at all three venues is unmatched
Wanindu Hasaranga: Second on the all time wicket takers list with 39 wickets at an economy rate of 6.38. His leg spin provides the spin bowling depth that any combined XI needs for Abu Dhabi fixtures where the slower surface gives spinners a genuine advantage over pace attacks
Naseem Shah: His 3 for 18 in the Season 4 final against MI Emirates showed what genuine pace bowling under knockout pressure looks like. Naseem’s ability to swing the ball early and execute yorkers in the death overs provides a different dimension from Farooqi’s left arm seam
Sam Curran as the fourth bowling option: His all round contributions allow the combined XI to carry an extra batting option without weakening the bowling attack. Curran’s ability to bowl tight overs in the death while batting at five or six provides the flexibility that separates good T20 teams from great ones

Why ILT20 Combined XI Selections Generate the Most Debate

No two ILT20 fans agree on the best combined XI and the disagreement is legitimate rather than just opinion-based. The genuine selection dilemmas come from players who are excellent but serve similar roles, forcing choices between comparable performers:

Hales vs Pooran as opener is the biggest debate. Hales has more runs. Pooran has a higher average and more sixes. Hales opens at the top of the order. Pooran has sometimes batted at three or four. Both have claims to the opener position
Spinner selection beyond Hasaranga creates debate. Waqar Salamkheil led the Season 4 bowling charts with 18 wickets as a left arm spinner. Including two spinners strengthens the Abu Dhabi matchup but weakens the Sharjah bowling options where pace is more effective
Wicketkeeper slot depends on who the team selects in the combined XI batting order. Pooran keeps wicket for MI Emirates which adds a keeping option without using an extra selection. If he bats at three, a specialist keeper from another franchise must fill the slot
Captain selection between Curran and Pooran is genuinely close. Curran won the Season 4 title as captain and Player of the Tournament. Pooran’s experience leading MI Emirates across multiple seasons and his batting record give him an equally strong claim to the captaincy

FAQs

Who would be the automatic selections in an ILT20 all time combined XI?

Based on confirmed tournament records, the automatic selections would be Fazalhaq Farooqi as the all time leading wicket taker with 50 plus wickets and best figures of 5 for 16, Alex Hales as the all time leading run scorer with 1,156 runs, James Vince with the record 10 fifties across 1,055 runs, and Nicholas Pooran with the record 71 sixes and a 45.90 average. Sam Curran’s match-winning 74 not out in the Season 4 final and 7 wickets across the tournament makes him a strong all round selection.

Who is the best bowler to include in an ILT20 combined XI?

Fazalhaq Farooqi is the automatic first bowling selection in any ILT20 combined XI. He is the only bowler to take 50 plus wickets in tournament history and his 5 for 16 against Dubai Capitals in Season 3 is the best bowling performance in ILT20 history. Wanindu Hasaranga is the second bowling selection with 39 wickets at an economy of 6.38, providing the spin option that complements Farooqi’s left arm seam.

Why is Nicholas Pooran such a strong combined XI pick?

Nicholas Pooran holds the all time ILT20 sixes record with 71 maximums and averages 45.90 across 1,010 total runs for MI Emirates. He also keeps wicket, which gives the combined XI an additional skill set without using an extra selection. His ability to bat at any position from opener to finisher and his death over hitting at Sharjah specifically make him the most versatile batting selection in ILT20 history.

Why do UAE conditions make combined XI selection harder?

The three ILT20 venues reward fundamentally different skills. Sharjah’s short boundaries suit aggressive power hitters and pace bowlers who attack the stumps. Abu Dhabi’s slower surface rewards technically correct batters and spinners with good variations. Dubai sits between the two but dew in December night matches creates a clear advantage for death over bowlers in the first innings. No single combined XI dominates across all three venues equally, which is why selection debates are genuinely difficult rather than just opinion-based.

Will the ILT20 2026 combined XI update during Season 5?

Yes. Combined XI selections will update throughout Season 5 as players produce performances that strengthen or weaken their claims. The standings shift significantly across a 34 match tournament and a player who dominates in the first two weeks may be displaced by someone who builds form across the full league stage and playoffs. Season 5 starts on 22 November 2026 and updates continue through to the final on 20 December 2026.