What is your ALL TIME WORLD XI TEAM for tests?

[smash84]

Well, it's a close run thing between Dan's and Fred's team as far as pure entertainment is concerned.

I reckon that this team would also come close;

01. Majid Khan
02. Roy Fredericks
03. Neil Harvey
04. Graeme Pollock
05. Frank Woolley
06. Ian Botham
07. Kapil Dev
08. Syed Kirmani
09. Michael Holding
10. Bishan Bedi
11. Bhagwath Chandrasekhar

how can you have an entertaining XI and not put Wasim in it?

 

[G.I.Joe]

Well, it's a close run thing between Dan's and Fred's team as far as pure entertainment is concerned.

I reckon that this team would also come close;

01. Majid Khan
02. Roy Fredericks
03. Neil Harvey
04. Graeme Pollock
05. Frank Woolley
06. Ian Botham
07. Kapil Dev
08. Syed Kirmani
09. Michael Holding
10. Bishan Bedi
11. Bhagwath Chandrasekhar

how can you have an entertaining XI and not put Wasim in it?

Smileyshah implicitly admits that Imran Khan is a rank BORE.

 

[Hurricane]

Not yet!

Who knows what he will turn into in time. Right now I would have David Boon and Geoff Marsh before him.

 

[the big bambino]

Boon yeah, Marsh nup.

 

[Dan]

Can think of at least half a dozen opening bats I'd rather watch than David Warner tbh.

David Warner is a prank selection.

I wouldn't have in the top 20 opening bats of all time.

I agree, but then if he was English, and the sort of bloke you'd like to have a pint with as opposed to being a complete **** (ie his name was Colin Milburn) I'd take a different view

I explicitly say that the team was named to stir ****, and you still all bite? Really?

 

[Dan]

As an aside though, there's a surprising dearth of ATG openers from Australia. Lots of great partnerships (Hayden/Langer, Simpson/Lawry, Taylor/Slater) but nobody on the level of a Hobbs, Hutton or Gavaskar.

Anyone reckon Warner could conceivably challenge the Simpson-Morris-Trumper hegemony that exists at the top of the Australian ATG order by career's end?

 

[OverratedSanity]

I don't understand how Marshall could be rated below Lillee.

Yeah me too

But I generally think Lillee's record is pretty underrated on here. His average is a tad higher than the other great bowlers, but he has a truly ridiculous wpm of 5.07. To put that in perspective, he took that many wickets despite playing with very good bowlers like Thomson, Alderman, etc. and on average took more wickets per match than even Hadlee who bowled alongside Chatfield and co. Wpm can of course be misleading sometimes but in Lillee's case it shows him to be one of the ultimate spearheads. I'd ideally want my spearhead to take 5-100 instead of 3-60, would never trade those extra wickets for a better average.

 

[Red]

As an aside though, there's a surprising dearth of ATG openers from Australia. Lots of great partnerships (Hayden/Langer, Simpson/Lawry, Taylor/Slater) but nobody on the level of a Hobbs, Hutton or Gavaskar.

Anyone reckon Warner could conceivably challenge the Simpson-Morris-Trumper hegemony that exists at the top of the Australian ATG order by career's end?

Yep I do. Warner is a very technically sound opener. Despite his big hitting rep, he's very adaptable and usually plays very sensible test innings. And his average is steadily on the increase because of his ability to make big scores, and make them when it matters. Very very good batsman...

 

[zaremba]

Picking up Fred's theme of players I'd like to see play:

1. Trumper
2. Hobbs
3. Jackson
4. Ranji
5. Woolley
6. Sobers
7. Tate
8. Evans
9. Larwood
10. Tyson
11. Barnes

No apologies for the obvious English bias.

 

[Red]

Picking up Fred's theme of players I'd like to see play:

1. Trumper
2. Hobbs
3. Jackson
4. Ranji
5. Woolley
6. Sobers
7. Tate
8. Evans
9. Larwood
10. Tyson
11. Barnes

No apologies for the obvious English bias.

The only ones I'd really like to see there are Trumper, Jackson and Sobers

 

[watson]

Sydney Barnes gets my curiosity going the most. Then Grace, Trumper, and Hobbs. And for some reason I'd love to see Briggs, Spofforth, Turner, and Blythe bowl.

 

[Adders]

I explicitly say that the team was named to stir ****, and you still all bite? Really?

If you name a team to stir ****....why would you then be surprised when it is **** that you stir?

Anyway, I took your post as being a genuine list of the most entertaining players as opposed to the greatest. I agree with Monk that David Warner is indeed becoming a very very good cricketer, I'm just not sucked in with the Mark Nicholas style creaming my pants over him and his "aggression" Just my opinion of course but to me a Marcus Trescothic hundred would be infinitely more entertaining than a David Warner one.

 

[harsh.ag]

Please, nobody's got anything on a Shahid Afridi hundred. Includes instances like four dropped chances, one lbw off a no-ball, one apoplectic commentator, 4 singles, and you swearing in front of your boss/parent-in-law/child.

 

[Singh Is King]

Hobbs
Gavaskar
Bradman
Sobers
Tendulkar
Viv Richards or Lara
Gilly
Warne
Akram
Marshall
Mcgrath

Hadlee 12th Man

 

[Gowza]

1 Jack Hobbs - Sticky wickets expert, regarded one of the greatest by all, part of the greatest opening partnership of all time.
2 Barry Richards - Scored quickly, correctly, consistently, leaving a big impression.
3 Don Bradman - Greatest batsman of them all.
4 Graeme Pollock - The 2nd best left hander after Sobers.
5 Viv Richards - Incredibly destructive and dominating.
6 Garry Sobers - The greatest overall cricketer, best left hander, aggressive, attacking, very good left arm swing bowler, effective chinaman and SLA bowler to. Terrific fielder.
7 Adam Gilchrist - Underrated with the gloves, consistent with the bat and capable of taking the game away in a matter of minutes.
8 Keith Miller - Described as devastating and lethal when he wanted to be, he seamed the ball sharply and could get alarming lift, could bowl some offies to. A terrific batsman.
9 Mike Procter - One of the best all rounders of all time, the best bowling all rounder, a genuine match winner with the bat as well. bowled off spin effectively.
10 Malcolm Marshall - The best fast bowler, had every trick in the book including extreme pace, consistent around the world, reasonable batsman as well.
11 Shane Warne - The best leg spinner, mastered the art considered the toughest to master, terrific array of variations, smart, thinking, cunning cricketer and could hold a bat.

12 Richard Hadlee - One of the best bowling all rounders, incredible numbers, great channel and seam bowler and an effective hard hitter with the bat.

 

[Coronis]

1 Jack Hobbs - Sticky wickets expert, regarded one of the greatest by all, part of the greatest opening partnership of all time.
2 Barry Richards - Scored quickly, correctly, consistently, leaving a big impression.
3 Don Bradman - Greatest batsman of them all.
4 Graeme Pollock - The 2nd best left hander after Sobers.
5 Viv Richards - Incredibly destructive and dominating.
6 Garry Sobers - The greatest overall cricketer, best left hander, aggressive, attacking, very good left arm swing bowler, effective chinaman and SLA bowler to. Terrific fielder.
7 Adam Gilchrist - Underrated with the gloves, consistent with the bat and capable of taking the game away in a matter of minutes.
8 Keith Miller - Described as devastating and lethal when he wanted to be, he seamed the ball sharply and could get alarming lift, could bowl some offies to. A terrific batsman.
9 Mike Procter - One of the best all rounders of all time, the best bowling all rounder, a genuine match winner with the bat as well. bowled off spin effectively.
10 Malcolm Marshall - The best fast bowler, had every trick in the book including extreme pace, consistent around the world, reasonable batsman as well.
11 Shane Warne - The best leg spinner, mastered the art considered the toughest to master, terrific array of variations, smart, thinking, cunning cricketer and could hold a bat.

12 Richard Hadlee - One of the best bowling all rounders, incredible numbers, great channel and seam bowler and an effective hard hitter with the bat.

Love it.

 

[watson]

Yeah nice team. Not sure how Miller would feel batting at 8 though, but Interesting idea none-the-less.

9 Mike Procter - One of the best all rounders of all time, the best bowling all rounder, a genuine match winner with the bat as well. bowled off spin effectively.

I've heard of Procter bowling off-spin, but someone correct if I'm wrong, didn't Procter only start to bowl off-spin because he is knees started to cave in?

 

[fredfertang]

I've heard of Procter bowling off-spin, but someone correct if I'm wrong, didn't Procter only start to bowl off-spin because he is knees started to cave in?

That's right - he wasn't bad at it actually, but rather more Jack Simmons than Erapelli Prasanna. He brought the same aggression to it as he did for his pace bowling - always disappointed me that Sir Beefy didn't do the same, rather than keep bowling those stupid little dobbers after his back went

 

[flibbertyjibber]

11 retired/dead blokes.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Jack Hobbs
Ray Clemence
Don Bradman
Viv Richards
Sachin Tendulkar
Garry Sobers
Alan Knott
Shane Warne
Malcolm Marshall
Dennis Lillee
Mucker the chucker