World Test Team

[Cricketman]

Zaheer Khan does not deserve to be in these world XIs. If you can't keep your fitness up for one of the biggest, most important series in your career, you don't deserve to be considered one of the top players in the world.

 

[sami ullah khan]

^I kind of agree. Fitness is as big a part of the game as is skill.

 

[Fenil]

I agree too but I've picked the team considering their skills only and not the fitness aspect which was my mistake.

 

[steynrulz]

Harbhajan?? care to explain why he is your choice for a spinner.

well i feel back then he was a wicket taking bowler and could bat as well!

 

[War]

Right now i'd say:

Smith
Cook
Amla
Sangakkara
Kallis
Pietersen
Prior
Steyn
M Morkel
Anderson
Ajmal

 

[shravi]

Clarke ahead of Pietersen and Philander ahead of Morkel for me.

 

[VC the slogger]

My best Test XI from the current crop of players :-

1. Graeme Smith
2. Alastair Cook
3. Hashim Amla
4. Jacques Kallis
5. Michael Clarke
6. AB de Villiers
7. Matt Prior
8. Vernon Philander
9. Graeme Swann
10. Dale Steyn
11. Morne Morkel

All time best XI :-

1. Matthew Hayden
2. Jack Hobbs
3. Sir Donald Bradman
4. Sachin Tendulkar
5. Jacques Kallis
6. Sir Garfield Sobers
7. Adam Gilchrist
8. Imran Khan
9. Shane Warne
10. Sydney Barnes
11. Glenn McGrath

 

[Satan666]

My best Test XI from the current crop of players :-

1. Graeme Smith
2. Alastair Cook
3. Hashim Amla
4. Jacques Kallis
5. Michael Clarke
6. AB de Villiers
7. Matt Prior
8. Vernon Philander
9. Graeme Swann
10. Dale Steyn
11. Morne Morkel

Thats my top 11 at present also, interestingly no Indian can make it, not even the phantom Tendulkar, haha.

 

[bigred]

Cook
smith
amla
kallis
sangakkara
pietersen
prior
philander
steyn
ajmal
Anderson

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

no one going for ab as wicketkeeper or is the thought that he's still a temporary solution for SAF?

 

[Gone4aDuck]

My best Test XI from the current crop of players :-

1. Graeme Smith
2. Alastair Cook
3. Hashim Amla
4. Jacques Kallis
5. Michael Clarke
6. AB de Villiers
7. Matt Prior
8. Vernon Philander
9. Graeme Swann
10. Dale Steyn
11. Morne Morkel

Swap Morne morkel for James anderson and that's one hell of a team. For a seamer friendly pitch anyway. If its more spinner friendly then swap philander for Ajmal.

 

[Sami Kumar]

My best Test XI

1. Alastair Cook
2. Hashim Amla
3. Cheteshwar Pujara
4. Jacques Kallis
5. Michael Clarke
6. AB de Villiers (WK)(C)
7. Kevin Pietersen
8. Vernon Philander
9. Saeed Ajmal
10. Dale Steyn
11. Rangana Herath

 

[Sulaiman7]

(1) Alastair Cook
(2) Shane Watson
(3) AB De Villiers
(4) Jacques Kallis
(5) Michael Clarke
(6) Kevin Pietersen
(7) Kumar Sangakkara
(8) Vernon Philander
(9) Dale Steyn
(10) James Anderson
(11) Saeed Ajmal

 

[sifter132]

Clarke ahead of Pietersen and Philander ahead of Morkel for me.

War must be on another planet to miss Clarke...

My XI is a little bit different:
Graeme Smith
Tillakaratne Dilshan
Hashim Amla
Michael Clarke
Shiv Chanderpaul
Kumar Sangakkara/AB de Villiers (wk) - probably ABDV as Kumar hasn't been keeping regularly
Shakib Al Hasan
Vernon Philander
Peter Siddle
Dale Steyn
Rangana Herath

I highlighted the guys who haven't been getting much love thus far. Dilshan arguably doesn't deserve the love, but I just think Cook has really cashed in vs India and SL of late and those 2 attacks are pretty weak. So I went for Dilshan for some random explosiveness, some fielding and some offies. Not many good openers currently actually...hence the much quoted Warner+Cowan= most successful opening pair in last 14 months stat (that gets wheeled out by Watson hating journalists )

Siddle definitely deserves a mention - has really stepped up his quality in the last 2-3 years. In contrast, I feel Anderson and Morkel aren't as effective as they were a couple of years ago.

I went Herath over Ajmal, just because I haven't seen Ajmal enough vs the top guys. I'm sure he would do well - witness last Test vs SA, but Herath has been a wicket machine over the last couple of years basically carrying that SL attack.

Shiv Chanderpaul badly needs some love - such a rock of a batter.

And I went for a batting keeper plus Shakib ahead of the Kallis/Prior combo everyone else likes - just to be different. Shakib did particularly well vs Pakistan a couple of years back with bat and ball and impressed me - I wish we could see more of him vs the good teams.

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

I think that's a very good XI sifter, I probably wouldn't have gone the controversial way and picked herath over ajmal, though on recent performance there is really little in it. fair play dilshan adds a lot to the field too, though even as someone who sort of gets behind sri lanka, 3 players in the best world XI belies the fact they are a bit rubbish these days maybe. Shiv for me is an essential pick though.

for me I'd have hafeez opening, the outstanding all-rounder of recent years, a genuine partnership breaker and has contributed well with his runs.

cook
hafeez
amla
sangakkara
clarke
chanderpaul
de villiers
steyn
anderson
philander
ajmal

would be my team of the moment, if it went on recent performances over the last year or so I might change it a bit but that would be the team I'd pick to play mars, pietersen and herath are close to the team though.