Debuted 2000 onwards national XIs

[wpdavid]

Cook
Trescothick
Trott
Root
Pietersen
Stokes
Prior
Woakes
Swann
Broad
Anderson

Pretty straightforward really. Last bowler pick the only tricky one. Woakes would obviously be very much an at home pick.

Strauss vs Trescothick at their relative peaks isn't a straightforward call. Tres was awesome for the last 18 months until his mental illness became unbearable, but there had been a lot of mediocre series amongst the good stuff before then. Strauss, otoh, was really good until he got a bit too old for the job. I couldn't call it tbh.

As others have said, the 3rd specialist seamer is an interesting debate. In England, Woakes would usually have an answerable case unless the conditions really didn't suit him. Elsewhere, Simon Jones would be my choice. I certainly wouldn't pick Sdebottom, Harmison or Hoggard. Maybe Wood given his recent form. But if we're playing in the SC, Panesar plays instead of the 3rd specialist seamer anyway.

 

[Burgey]

His average at 3 was 38. Not amazing but certainly not that bad.

I do bag Bell a lot but the problem with Trott was that he was only really good for about a year and his total Test career was rather short. Honestly I'm not really convinced he actually did have a better peak than Bell did - Bell around 2011 was a seriously good batsman.

He was pretty good out here among the carnage of the 2013/14 series too. Played a couple of very good knocks against an excellent attack iirc

 

[BazBall21]

Think Blundell will finish with a better resume than Watling

 

[BazBall21]

World

Smith
Sehwag
Sangakkara
Smith
Root
De Villiers
Jadeja
Cummins
Steyn
Bumrah
Anderson

 

[Prince EWS]

Everyone so far has picked him, but does Trott get in ahead of Bell? Peaked higher I guess but has ~1/3rd of the Test career Bell did.

Yeah Trott was nowhere near as good as Bell. He's getting picked on a combination of "#3 is a specialist position" (fair) and "it's better to not be good enough to be selected than to make the team and be mediocre" (dumb).

I'd probably pick all three openers before picking Trott. Strauss batted at #3 a bit.

 

[Molehill]

Yeah Trott was nowhere near as good as Bell. He's getting picked on a combination of "#3 is a specialist position" (fair) and "it's better to not be good enough to be selected than to make the team and be mediocre" (dumb).

I'd probably pick all three openers before picking Trott. Strauss batted at #3 a bit.

Number 3 is a specialist position and Trott is really the only guy who has made any kind of success of it this Century for England (which is ridiculous for 23 years of cricket). He should've been nowhere near that last Tour to Australia when his average took a hit.

I'm struggling with the Woakes pick a bit. Feels like a kneejerk following 3 good Tests, but we wouldn't have been considering him before that. Could only play in England.

 

[Coronis]

Yeah Trott was nowhere near as good as Bell. He's getting picked on a combination of "#3 is a specialist position" (fair) and "it's better to not be good enough to be selected than to make the team and be mediocre" (dumb).

I'd probably pick all three openers before picking Trott. Strauss batted at #3 a bit.

Are you saying Ryan Harris isn’t one of Australia’s pace juggernauts?!

 

[Max D]

Azhar Ali
Abdullah Shafique
Younis Khan
Babar Azam
Misbah-ul-Haq
Saud Shakeel
Sarfraz Ahmed+
Yasir Shah
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Danish Kaneria
Mohammad Asif

Pretty meh but depends a lot on how to current lot go.

Two frontline leggies mate? Even though both have mad numbers. I reckon the balance of team could do with a extra seamer imo. I'm struggling to find an atg seamer from 2000 onwards mind.

Razzaq?
M Sami?
U Gul?
M Amir?
H Ali?
N Shah?

Plus no room for Saeed Ajmal? Harsh you like

 

[Fuller Pilch]

SA ODI XI

Smith (c)
De Kock (wk)
Amla
Du Plessis/Van Der Dussen
ABDV
Miller
Kemp
Rabada
Steyn
Morkel
Tahir

Ironically lacking a gun allrounder, while the " pre 99" side would have S Pollock, Klusener, and Kallis.

 

[Molehill]

SA ODI XI

Smith (c)
De Kock (wk)
Amla
Du Plessis/Van Der Dussen
ABDV
Miller
Kemp
Rabada
Steyn
Morkel
Tahir

Ironically lacking a gun allrounder, while the " pre 99" side would have S Pollock, Klusener, and Kallis.

Are we talking Test Teams? Surely Tahir doesn't get into that (worth checking his Cricinfo page, if there's anyone who has played for more teams than him I'd be amazed).

 

[Fuller Pilch]

Are we talking Test Teams? Surely Tahir doesn't get into that (worth checking his Cricinfo page, if there's anyone who has played for more teams than him I'd be amazed).

This is for an ODI team (hence QDK opening, and the selections of Miller (almost picked Duminy instead), Kemp, and Tahir.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

SA

Smith (c)
Elgar
Amla
De Villiers
Du Plessis
Prince
De Kock (wk)
Philander
Maharaj
Rabada
Steyn

Morkel unlucky as would make most other teams

@Molehill - I suggested this as a Saffa test XI

 

[BazBall21]

England

Cook
Trescothick
Root
Pietersen
Bell
Stokes
Bairstow
Swann
Broad
Hoggard
Anderson

 

[Fuller Pilch]

World

Smith
Sehwag
Sangakkara
Smith
Root
De Villiers
Jadeja
Cummins
Steyn
Bumrah
Anderson

Alternatively

Cook
Williamson
Younis Khan
Kohli
Clarke
Shakib
Watling
Ashwin
Philander
Harris
Rabada

Apart from S Smith and Steyn in the 1st side the 2 elevens are very even in strength.

 

[Molehill]

SA

Smith (c)
Elgar
Amla
De Villiers
Du Plessis
Prince
De Kock (wk)
Philander
Maharaj
Rabada
Steyn

Morkel unlucky as would make most other teams

@Molehill - I suggested this as a Saffa test XI

Morkel very unlucky, it's close between him and Big Vern. Is there really no one better than Prince? Or have you applied the quota?

England

Cook
Trescothick
Root
Pietersen
Bell
Stokes
Bairstow
Swann
Broad
Hoggard
Anderson

You could make a case for Prior being in the World XI, how you've not got him here is beyond me. Bairstow doesn't match him with bat or gloves.

 

[BazBall21]

Morkel very unlucky, it's close between him and Big Vern. Is there really no one better than Prince? Or have you applied the quota?



You could make a case for Prior being in the World XI, how you've not got him here is beyond me. Bairstow doesn't match him with bat or gloves.

I think Bairstow is a better bat than Prior, and he was fine with the gloves before breaking his leg.

 

[Prince EWS]

Morkel very unlucky, it's close between him and Big Vern. Is there really no one better than Prince? Or have you applied the quota?

Prince is the best bat available for sure.

I'd be tempted to play Morkel ahead of him and just cop the longer tail though.

 

[Molehill]

I think Bairstow is a better bat than Prior, and he was fine with the gloves before breaking his leg.

Their averages would suggest otherwise and Prior didn't even play half his games as just a batsman. He was a superb gloveman by the end of his career, something Bairstow will never be.

 

[Howe_zat]

Prior was only ever okay with the gloves. He was more consistent than Bairstow though, and played that #7 keepr-bat role a lot longer. I think Bairstow struggling to perform as either a bat or keeper-bat for more than a year or two at most is partially selector's fault but it does mean he hasn't managed what Prior did.

 

[BazBall21]

Their averages would suggest otherwise and Prior didn't even play half his games as just a batsman. He was a superb gloveman by the end of his career, something Bairstow will never be.

That's because Prior played in significantly better batting conditions for a stronger England team. I think if Prior played in the difficult 2017-2021 period he wouldn't have done any better than Bairstow, but on the regular flat tracks that Prior was provided with, Bairstow has him completely outgunned. Bairstow before his leg break was a net positive keeper in test cricket. I will select the better keeper only if the better batter was dire with the gloves over a longer period of time.

And also, the gloves affecting Bairstow's batting is an urban legend. Bairstow averages more with the gloves than without.