I am so glad you asked. This has been an enduring fantasy of mine (along with certain others we don't want to get into).
As an Indian test cricketer I would:
Play England, Australia and South Africa once each at home and away, that is, in 2(4+4+3) = 22 tests
Will tour West Indies, Sri Lanka and New Zealand once = (4+3+3) = 10 tests
Would play a test series in Dubai vs Pak = 3 tests
Will not bother to turn up against Zim and Bang.
That will give me a total of 35 tests (11 at home and 24 overseas/neutral) over a period of four years.
Considering I am already 41, this is the most practical goal I can have (It was 52 tests - for obvious reasons - until two years ago)
Since I bowl off spin and bat in the lower order (in reality I never get to bowl or bat in any team any more; last time I was given the ball two years ago, I bowled three full tosses to the keeper and sprained my shoulder) I will usually bat at no.6 or no.7 - except in my last match, which I will come to later - and bowl at no. 3 or 4
my stats are very likely to be
- 35 tests. 62 innings. 7 not outs.
- 2872 runs. 52.21 batting average. 235* highest score. 11 hundreds. 14 fifties. 3 ducks.
- 164 wickets. 23.72 bowling average. 11 five-wicket hauls. 3 ten wicket match hauls.
- 51 catches. mostly snapped at second slip while the ball is new and, usually later in the innings, at forward short leg.
My last test, at the Oval, in which India are following on in a series that is still 0-0 (primarily because of my match saving 412 ball 101* at Lords in the first test) I bat at 7 in the first innings and score 42 and remain unbeaten. But I am in good nick. So I am asked to open the second innings. The 235* I score here (my only double making critics wonder how many more I would've scored if I had batted up the order) gives India a 171 run lead and I get England out with a 7 for 32 haul. The 277 runs I score in this match push my average from under 50 to 52+. And I finish on a real high note.