I know your reasons but I still find it amusing you put Hobbs ahead of Hutton and Gavaskar as a batsman but don’t put him in your XI. Especially since Gavaskar and Hutton were both more defensive, you’d think you’d want someone like Hobbs who can attack more.
Also amusing to me that you have a top slip list but not a top keepers list.
Good stuff tho
I've said that I don't find the openers ideal a d in the subsequent post listed the openers I would ideally prefer.
I would also love Hobbs, but I find it hard to include players we haven't seen in any capacity to gauge how I would believe they would perform against "modern" bowlers. I know though that he was the best if his era and among the best if all time.
For keepers? Multiple reasons.
1. Not knowledgeable enough
2. The best ones were often not selected based on that skill alone so already skewed
3. Tallon, Gout, Taylor, Knott, Russell, Blackham, Cameron, Dujon, Evans, the differences / nuances are difficult to separate. Dujon was by far the best keeper I've ever seen to pace, but less so vs spin. Pace is more important now, but spin moreso in the past, how to balance.
4. To add to no. 2, even further back batting was prioritized over pure keeping, so the sample sizes of the very best keepers are somewhat reduced at best. The keeper selected for ATG teams wasn't a to 15 keeper, so that alone speaks volumes. Even Ames and Knott(?) was selected also because they could hold a bat.
