Test XI
T. Latham
D. Warner
S. Smith
V. Kohli
AB De Villiers
M. Rahim
R. Jadeja
R. Ashwin
K. Rabada
D. Steyn
J. Anderson
Quite a bit of interesting decisions in here. Considering that it encompasses a decade and that tests are played on a variety of pitches and conditions, here is what I would swap around should the need arise.
Would probably prefer
Watling on more pace friendly pitches as the keeper.
Stokes as the all-rounder in pace friendly conditions is another obvious choice. If there is no need for the all-rounder and the extra batsman helps,
Williamson would be my choice in SENA (with him moving to three and everyone else dropping down) and
Younis Khan in Asia (at five). Alternatively, if AbD is willing to keep (he was a very fine keeper and also batted well with the gloves), either one of those batsmen get in easily. Cook is unlucky to miss out but his very steep decline towards the end made me look beyond him and choose Latham who has quietly been very impressive over the last few years.
Herath is one who could get in if there is the need for a third spinner. As for pacers, the cupboard is a bit barren. The likes of Bumrah and Abbas haven’t played enough games while someone like Cummins has incredibly played just 25 tests despite debuting way back in 2011.
Hazlewood would be my first choice for a four man pace attack, given that he bowl mostly on Aussie roads and still manages to have a very respectable economy rate.
Philander is another very impressive bowler but he doesn’t tend to bowl a lot in unhelpful conditions and has a very questionable fitness history.
Boult is the obvious choice if there is plenty of swing on offer (in the absence of Philander that is) while
Morkel and
Wagner offer the awkward short length that batsmen struggle to often play.
The captain choice will be pretty controversial, but by the numbers Kohli has done a very good job and in my opinion, has galvanised his team into an outfit that doesn’t tend to give up or settle for draws, preferring to fight in every session instead. Counter-intuitive at times, but it is a very welcome change in a side that has very often in the past relied on draws frequently.
