Faf du Plessis picks power packed line up for his all time T20 XI

From the back benches of school classrooms to the punditry booths of global broadcasters, every cricket fan has had this debate, and never agreed.

We put the same impossible question to Faf du Plessis, Rotterdam co-owner and captain apart from being one of the most decorated T20 cricketers of his generation.

A man who has shared dressing rooms with MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, who knows better than almost anyone what greatness looks like up close and yet could not fit either of them in. We were not going to make it that easy for him.

Faf was given stipulations to make it far harder for him:

1. Maximum one player from each country
2. One player each from Scotland, Ireland and the Netherlands

Here's what Du Plessis went with:

1. Chris Gayle, West Indies: Widely regarded as the greatest T20 player in history with two ICC T20 World Cup trophies in 2012 and 2016 to go with his 22 hundreds in the format is just one part of his story, the other part is the sheer terror he has inflicted on bowlers across every franchise tournament on earth for two decades.
2. Paul Stirling, Ireland: The most capped player in T20 International history needs no embellishment. With 163 appearances for Ireland, the former T20I captain has built a career that has outlasted trends, formats and generations of opponents. A relentless accumulator who can also detonate, will partner Gayle at the top.
3. Brandon McMullen, Scotland: At 26, he is the youngest name on this list and perhaps its most intriguing. Seven T20I half-centuries in just 29 innings, a strike rate of 143.87, making him one of the most sought after players across the world within and beyond the border of Scotland. His pace bowling skills lends the balance that every side hopes for.
4. Jos Butler, England: The gloves go to a man who has played more than 500 T20 matches and compiled north of 14,000 runs along the way. Few players are as dangerous in the middle overs as Buttler. He is cool under pressure in a chase and his innovative strokeplay ensures he can toy with field in the final overs. Buttler is the kind of keeper-batter who doesn't just fill a position, he defines it.
5. AB De Villiers, South Africa: Mr. 360. A man who, it has long been suggested, could have played professional tennis, rugby or golf but chose cricket, much to the sport's fortune. No angle was impossible, no bowler was safe, no situation too dire. The man who travelled across the globe and captured the hearts of home and opposition fans all the same, ABD will captain Faf's all-time T20 XI.
6. Tim David, Australia: The Australian powerhouse is the designated demolition man of this XI. His ability to clear the boundary from ball one makes him one of the most feared finishers in the global game currently. On his day, David has the ability to reduce any target to rubble in a handful of overs. You will see David in action at the upcoming ETPL, playing for the neighbouring team that Faf owns at Amsterdam Flames.
7. Roelof van der Merwe, Netherlands: At 41, he is the elder statesman of this group yet still one of its most valuable assets. More than 342 wickets and 3,215 runs in T20 cricket represents a career of staggering breadth. The Netherlands representative earns his place through sheer, undeniable craft: a left-arm spin bowler and lower-order batter who has done it all.
8. Rashid Khan, Afghanistan: There is a case and not a weak one, that Rashid Khan is the most impactful cricketer the format has ever produced. With 700+ wickets and counting across more than 525+ T20 matches, he has become synonymous with the format itself. The Afghan finds himself at 8 but if needed to wield his willow, he could well come in eariler.
9. Jasprit Bumrah, India: The Indian spot in this team was, by Faf's own admission, almost impossibly contested. Bumrah won it on merit with the back-to-back T20 World Cup trophies and also Player of the Match in the 2026 final. Arguably the greatest bowler in the history and certainly the greatest ever in the format, Bumrah's selection was a no-brianer.
10. Lasith Malinga, Sri Lanka: With Bumrah opening the bowling, you are building the most fearsome pace attack in T20 history, you can not leave out the man who helped write the rulebook on death bowling. The captain of Sri Lanka's 2014 World Cup winning side, Malinga's slingy, flat trajectory and late movement made him one of the most difficult bowlers to score against in the final overs. His 390 T20 wickets are a monument to consistency at the highest level.
11. Shoaib Akthar, Pakistan: The Rawalpindi Express rounds off the trident. Akhtar did not play a great deal of T20 cricket but raw pace at that level requires no format-specific credentials. The fastest bowler in recorded history, is more than good enough for any all-time XI. A fitting, thrilling full stop to a solid team.

The batting order is loaded at the top with Gayle and Stirling is as destructive an opening pair as you could construct from anywhere in the world, this pair will not be running between the wickets, McMullen at three gives the side a dynamic young blade who can absorb or accelerate depending on what's needed.

Buttler and ABD are two match winners in their own right, both batters have the ability to anchor or go out all guns blazing, the number 4 and 5 of the team make the batting almost invincible, if their batting was not enough, Buttler behind the stumps and ABD in the outfield creates several issues for opposition batters reducing the margin of error with two sets of safe hands.

If by any chance the opposition gets to this point, David at six as a designated finisher is an inspired pick, the big man from down under hits sixes like its the easiest thing in the world, the bowler does not batter, if it connects its gone, and Van der Merwe at seven gives the side genuine all-round depth and a crucial spin option.

The lead spinner of the team is Rashid, with all the experience in the world this man has redefined franchise cricket around the globe.

The pace attack of Bumrah, Malinga and Akhtar is, hypothetically, the most terrifying new-ball and death combination ever assembled. Three different actions, three different threats, zero room to breathe and 12 overs of pain for the batters, mind your foot and stumps with those 145 kmph toe crushers.