In today’s weekend blog, I am back on Cricket.
Friends, there have been numerous Test-XI chosen by cricket players, journalists, and cricket pundits in recent times. All of them had the traditional method of choosing five batsmen, one all rounder, one wicket-keeper, and four bowlers. There were few variations to this combination, but the essence of team selection remained the same. Now suppose there is a Team which consists of all players who are all-rounders. The following team consists of 11 all-rounders who were dominant force in their side when they played. Such a team would be a dream-team for any side for the sheer skill they would bring to the table in terms of bowling, batting, and wicket-keeping.
Let us look at team composition:
Openers
#1 Tilakaratne Dilshan (Wicket Keeper)-Sri Lanka
He was a decent all-rounder who could also do wicket-keeping when required. He opened the innings for Sri Lanka and excelled with bat. He played 87 Test matches and scored 5492 runs at an average of40.98. He also took 39 wickets as an off-spinner. He was known for his timing and wristy strokeplay.
and
#2 Vinoo Mankad –India
He was the first all-rounder produced by India. He was known for his immense concentration and impeccable defense. He was a natural batsman who did not believe mush in technical aspects of batting. Mankad was slow left-arm orthodox bowler with ample variations. He played 44 Test matches scored2019 runs at an average of 31.47. He also took 162 wickets. The term ‘Mankaded’ in cricket comes from his name.
#3 Jacques Kallis-South Africa
He is one of the modern day greats and had excellent batting and bowling record. He played 166 Test matches and scored 13,289 runs at an average of 55.37. He also took 292 wickets at an average of 32.65. Besides being a genuine all-rounder, he was a great slip catcher who made a difficult catch look like a regulation one.
#4 Gary Sobers- West Indies
He was a genius who excelled at all aspects of game. He was afantastic batsman who could plunder any bowling attack. As a bowler, he bowled fast, and at times as a spinner. He was an exceptional close-in fielder and an enterprising captain. He played 93 Test matches, scored 8032 runs at an average of 57.78, took 235 wickets, and held 109 catches at various fielding positions.
#5 Ian Botham- England
He started out as a fast and swing bowler, and later developed into explosive batsman. He played 102 Test matches and scored 5200 runs at an average of 33.54. With the ball, he took 383 wickets at an average of 28.4. He was leading sports personality of England.
#6 Imran Khan-Pakistan
He was an English bred Pakistani cricketer with the heart of a lion. He started as a fast bowler, and later emerged as magnificent right-hand batsman. He played 88 Test matches and scored 3807 runs at an average of 37.69, he also took 362 wickets at an average of 22.81.
# 7 Kapil Dev-India
He was true match winner for India in the era of late 70s and 80s. He was an out-swing bowler with the ability to bowl 20-25 overs at stretch. He was gifted stroke player while batting. He played 131 Test matches, and took 434 wickets at an average of 29.64. As a batsman, he scored 5348 runs at an average of 31.05. He was also an exceptionally good fielder too.
#8 Richard Hadlee- New Zealand
He lifted New Zealand to unparalleled heights in the Test matches due to his superlative performances with batting and bowling. He was the first bowler to reach 400 Test wickets. He played 86 Test matches, took 431 wickets at an average of 22.29 and also scored 3124 runs at an average of 27.16.
#9 Shaun Pollock- South Africa
He was a lethal seam bowler, who later graduated into a decent batsman. He played 108 Test matches, took 421 wickets at an average of 23.11. With the bat, he scored 3781 runs at an average of 32.31.
# 10 Ravichandran Ashwin-India
He has been a phenomenal off-break bowler in recent times. He also added various flavors like doosara, floater and carom ball into his arsenal which makes him a serious threat to opposition batsmen. He played 106 Test matches, scored 3503 runs at an average of 25.8, and while bowling he took 537 wickets at an average of 24.
#11 Daniel Vettori- New Zealand
He was a left-arm orthodox spin bowler, who was known for his accuracy, flight control, and pace variation. He played 113 Test matches and took 362 wickets at an average of 34.36, and as a batsman he scored 4531 runs at an average of 30.
What an unbeatable team this would be. Who so ever becomes captain of this team is going to have the problem giving ball to which player to bowl. You have four genuine pace bowlers in Kapil Dev, Imran Khan, Ian Botham and Richard Hadlee who can open the attack. From the eleven players, there are 7 or 8 players who have lead their country, so it is going to be tough choice for selecting captain of this team. In my opinion either Gary Sobers or Imran Khan should become captain of this team.
Waiting for your views on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
7th February 2025