Your Country's Alltime XI

[The Sean]

Steve Waugh averaged 60.5 over a 7 year period against better bowlers. Simply, there have been many great players in Australian cricket and because Ponting has been superb does not mean that he is a walk in into an Australian All time XI like say Bradman is.

Exactly right – no one here is dissing Ponting, and I think it’s pretty well unanimously acknowledged that he’s a great batsman. But given that Bradman is a lock for no.3 in an all time Australian XI, and that most people also pick Miller at no.6, then you’ve got Ponting, Chappell, Border, Waugh, Harvey and arguably even McCabe/Macartney/Hill all fighting it out for the two spots in between. It’s a credit to Punter’s performances over recent years that he’s in very strong contention now for one of those two middle-order positions. The fact is that NONE of the great batsmen in that list are definite starters and it’s not an insult to Ponting to say that he’s not a locked-in pick any more than it’s an insult to Alan Border to say the same thing about him.

 

[pasag]

Exactly right – no one here is dissing Ponting, and I think it’s pretty well unanimously acknowledged that he’s a great batsman. But given that Bradman is a lock for no.3 in an all time Australian XI, and that most people also pick Miller at no.6, then you’ve got Ponting, Chappell, Border, Waugh, Harvey and arguably even McCabe/Macartney/Hill all fighting it out for the two spots in between. It’s a credit to Punter’s performances over recent years that he’s in very strong contention now for one of those two middle-order positions. The fact is that NONE of the great batsmen in that list are definite starters and it’s not an insult to Ponting to say that he’s not a locked-in pick any more than it’s an insult to Alan Border to say the same thing about him.

Indeed, spot on.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

I wouldn't go in without a fifth bowler.

Pakistan team's weak link has always been its batting,so it wouldn't be good idea going with 5 bowlers(making the batting weak).WI,AUS,PAK,Eng all at their peak have achieved results with 4 bowlers,so I don't think there is any harm in going with 4 bowlers for alltime Paksitan XI.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

What about Mushtaq Muhammed? He would strengthen the batting at no.6 and also provide a good second spinning option, leaving a team that looked something like this...

Hanif Mohammad
Saeed Anwar
Zaheer Abbas
Javed Miandad
Inzamam Ul-Haq
Mushtaq Mohammad
Imran Khan
Wasim Akram
Wasim Bari
Waqar Younis
Abdul Qadir

Mushtaq Muhammad was an opening/top order batsman,putting Mohammad Yousuf/Saleem Malik/Shoaib Muhammad at # 6 would be a better choice.

 

[open365]

West Indies

Test:

Gordon Greenidge
Desmond Haynes
Viv Richards
Brian Lara
George Headley
Garfield Sobers
Jeffrey Dujon
Malcolm Marshall
Curtly Ambrose
Joel Garner
Courtney Walsh

Probably gonna get slated for Walsh but he deserves to be there for mine with only Holding and Gibbs in contention for that spot IMO.

No Weekes?

No Walcott?

 

[roseboy64]

The three middle order bast I picked are better and also Dujon is a bteer keeper so Walcott misses out there as well.

 

[The Sean]

Mushtaq Muhammad was an opening/top order batsman,putting Mohammad Yousuf/Saleem Malik/Shoaib Muhammad at # 6 would be a better choice.

No he wasn't. He never opened in Test cricket, and while he did bat more often at 4 or 5, he played throughout the middle order and no.6 for an all time XI isn't out of the question by any means.

The point is also that he gives you a credible fifth bowling option, which none of those others do.

 

[nightprowler10]

No he wasn't. He never opened in Test cricket, and while he did bat more often at 4 or 5, he played throughout the middle order and no.6 for an all time XI isn't out of the question by any means.

The point is also that he gives you a credible fifth bowling option, which none of those others do.

Yeah that's actually a pretty compelling argument for Mushtaq's inclusion. Looked up his bowling average, compared him to Sachin and he's miles ahead. I'd certainly cop for the sixth batsman if Sachin was an option and MM has a decent average of 50 with the bat at that spot, even if he only played 10 Tests there, and a respectable average of under 30 with a not-too-shabby SR.

So how does this look then?

Saeed Anwar
Haneef Muhammad
Zaheer Abbas
Javed Miandad
Inzamam-Ul-Haq
Mushtaq Muhammad
Imran Khan*
Rashid Latif+
Wasim Akram
Waqar Younis
Abdul Qadir/Fazal Mahmood ƒ


ƒ Selection depends on the pitch.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

Yeah that's actually a pretty compelling argument for Mushtaq's inclusion. Looked up his bowling average, compared him to Sachin and he's miles ahead. I'd certainly cop for the sixth batsman if Sachin was an option and MM has a decent average of 50 with the bat at that spot, even if he only played 10 Tests there, and a respectable average of under 30 with a not-too-shabby SR.

So how does this look then?

Saeed Anwar
Haneef Muhammad
Zaheer Abbas
Javed Miandad
Inzamam-Ul-Haq
Mushtaq Muhammad
Imran Khan*
Rashid Latif+
Wasim Akram
Waqar Younis
Abdul Qadir/Fazal Mahmood ƒ


ƒ Selection depends on the pitch.

Don't u think that Saqlain Mushtaq was a better bowler than Abdul Qadir?Abdul Qadir was good at home but has a very poor record outside Pakistan.Other than that,the team is good enough to challenge any other team's alltime XI

 

[The Sean]

Don't u think that Saqlain Mushtaq was a better bowler than Abdul Qadir?Abdul Qadir was good at home but has a very poor record outside Pakistan.Other than that,the team is good enough to challenge any other team's alltime XI

Disagree. That pace attack is up there with the very best. But IMO the rest of that team doesn't compare with the big 3.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

Disagree. That pace attack is up there with the very best. But IMO the rest of that team doesn't compare with the big 3.

I'll put Mohammad Yousuf at 6,this would make batting a lot better IMO.

 

[Fusion]

So how does this look then?

Saeed Anwar
Haneef Muhammad
Zaheer Abbas
Javed Miandad
Inzamam-Ul-Haq
Mushtaq Muhammad
Imran Khan*
Rashid Latif+
Wasim Akram
Waqar Younis
Abdul Qadir/Fazal Mahmood ƒ


ƒ Selection depends on the pitch.

Good team. I tried to think of what I would have different, but I think this is the best combination IMO.

Edit: Yeah Bhupinder has a point. Yousaf could be subbed in for Mushtaq Muhammad. I guess it depends on whether you think you need the extra bowling help. With Imran/Wasim/Waqar and one of Qadir/Fazal, I think we're covered in the bowling department. So Yousaf may be the better option at 6.

 

[The Sean]

Good team. I tried to think of what I would have different, but I think this is the best combination IMO.

Edit: Yeah Bhupinder has a point. Yousaf could be subbed in for Mushtaq Muhammad. I guess it depends on whether you think you need the extra bowling help. With Imran/Wasim/Waqar and one of Qadir/Fazal, I think we're covered in the bowling department. So Yousaf may be the better option at 6.

You've got to remember you're putting this team up against other all time XIs - I'd be wary of going in with only four bowlers against some of those batting line ups, as good as those four bowlers might be. Then again, if you think that the extra runs made by Yousuf at no.6 would make up for it, then I guess that's the call you make.

 

[Fusion]

You've got to remember you're putting this team up against other all time XIs - I'd be wary of going in with only four bowlers against some of those batting line ups, as good as those four bowlers might be. Then again, if you think that the extra runs made by Yousuf at no.6 would make up for it, then I guess that's the call you make.

I'm just a little concerned about the batting, tbh. The top 4 bowlers of Pakistan would compare with anyone's top 4 favorably. The batting does not, hence my overcompensation there.

 

[The Sean]

I'm just a little concerned about the batting, tbh. The top 4 bowlers of Pakistan would compare with anyone's top 4 favorably. The batting does not, hence my overcompensation there.

Agree with that - that pace attack is a match for just about anyone (though I don't think Qadir is a match for the spinners of other countries), but I think the batting line up is considerably weaker than the big 3, as well as India and probably South Africa.

 

[Shaggy Alfresco]

Hobbs
Sutcliffe
Hutton (c)
Hammond
Barrington
Botham
Knott (wk)
Laker
Trueman
Tyson
Barnes

My revised England XI. I think it's a match for even the West Indies and Australian sides.

 

[pasag]

Would have Larwood without a seconds doubt in an England XI, personally.

 

[Beleg]

Hmm. Sean raises a good point.

Hanif
Saeed
Zaheer
Inzy
Miandad
Intikhab
Imran
Khan, M
Wasim
Waqar
Shoaib

12th man: fazal

is balanced.

 

[adharcric]

Hobbs
Sutcliffe
Hutton (c)
Hammond
Barrington
Botham
Knott (wk)
Laker
Trueman
Tyson
Barnes

My revised England XI. I think it's a match for even the West Indies and Australian sides.

Barrington and Tyson are the weak links IMO.

 

[Shaggy Alfresco]

Barrington and Tyson are the weak links IMO.

The man who averaged 58 in test cricket?