- Ajinkya Rahane & Krunal Pandya emerge as fan favourites
- Ben Stokes & Basil Thampi made their mark as favourites, being elected by fans in the top 3 across 7 franchises in their respective categories
Mumbai: In a first-of-its-kind election, cricket fans have cast their votes in Star Sports’ IPL Election Se Selection campaign, electing their choicest players to play this season. The online voting contest which began on 15th January, 2018 received an impressive response from fans across India. The pool of players, for fan to choose from, included two categories –30 Star Players and 20 Uncapped Players. Voting closed on 25th January, 2018.
Who have the Fans Voted for?
Among the Star Players category, Brendon McCullum was the top choice for Chennai Super Kings (26%)and Rajasthan Royals fans (46%). Ajinkya Rahane, who played for Rising Pune Supergiants team in Season 10, emerged as the top choice for Delhi Daredevils (41%)and Kings XI Punjab fans (22%). Ben Stokes emerged as the most favourite, voted in by fans for 7 out of 8 team. Royal Challenger Bengaluru fans, on the other hand, voted for Chris Gayle to return to the team in this season of the league.
In the Uncapped Players category, Krunal Pandya emerged as the top choice for Mumbai Indians (49%) andRoyal Challengers Bangalore(27%). Basil Thampi emerged as the leading choice of fans from 7 out of 8 teams. Avesh Khan garnered top votes from fans for Delhi Daredevils (38%)and Rajasthan Royals (53%).
With just a day to go for the much-awaited VIVO IPL 2018 Player Auction, the first glimpse of popular players can be seen in the fan selections. It remains to be seen whether these players will make it to the final teams that will be built during the auction.
Star Sports airs the live action of the VIVO IPL 2018 Player Auction on 27th & 28th January, 9 am onwards on the Star Sports network and Hotstar.
