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Selecting any all time cricket XI is a very difficult task.
The way the game has changed and evolved over its time, makes comparing players of different eras a tough but exciting challenge.
Australia is one of the oldest and most successful cricketing nations, and has produced hundreds of Test cricketers dating all the way back to 1877. After a lot of research, statistics and judgement, I’ve come up with the eleven men that I believe make up the greatest ever Australian Test team.
Without further ado, here’s the side:
1. Victor Trumper (1899-1912)
48 matches, 3163 runs at 39.05
There are only two true legends in Australian cricket. There’s Don Bradman; and there’s Victor Trumper. One of the great batsmen before the Second World War, producing many majestic, match winning innings’, Trumper revolutionised the sport of cricket.
The first truly aggressive and elegant batsman capable of playing every shot in the book, Trumper was an easy selection to open the batting.
Australian cricketer Victor Trumper “jumping out for a straight drive” (George Bedlam, National Portrait Gallery)
2. Bob Simpson (1957-1978)
62 matches, 4869 runs at 46.81
Selecting between Simpson and Matthew Hayden to open with Trumper was not an easy task. Bob Simpson started out as a young leg-spinning all rounder, but quickly became a solid opening batsman in the early 1960s with an excellent technique.
As an opener, Simpson averaged over 55 in Test cricket, and over 60 as Australian captain. He was arguably the best opener of his generation, in a struggling Australian team and was successful in every country he played in.
Hayden on the other hand often struggled away in England and South Africa, and always had great players around him.
3. (C) Sir Donald Bradman (1928-1948)
52 matches, 6996 runs at 99.94
Not only the greatest Australian batsman of all time, but the greatest cricketer period. A batting record that is so far ahead of anyone before his time, but also everyone in the 72 years since his retirement, is almost unbelievable.
Possessing excellent footwork and the ability to judge line and length instantly, Bradman made scores with absolute ease, even on pitches where no one else could. He is a certainty for any all time side and it is a privilege for Australia to have had such a player.
(Photo by PA Images via Getty Images)
4. Greg Chappell (1970-1984)
87 matches, 7110 runs at 53.86
One of the most exciting and elegant Australian players in history. Greg Chappell scored a century in both his first and last Test matches and was undoubtedly the most dominant and stylish middle order batsman in world cricket throughout the 70s and early 80s, a golden era of fast bowling.
Chappell played every stroke in the book with class and is arguably the greatest Australian batsman since Bradman.
5. Steve Smith (2010-Present)
73 matches, 7227 runs at 62.84
Steve Smith is a quirky character, who, like Simpson and others, came onto the scene a decade ago as a young leg spinning all rounder, who struggled to make an impact for Australia early on.
However, his mental toughness and determination enabled him to transform himself into a genuine middle order batsman, who’s greatness in the sport has become undeniable.
Smith regained the Ashes in 2017-18 as captain, scoring 687 runs at an average of 137.40, and helped retain them in Paine’s touring side in 2019, scoring 774 runs at an average of 110.57.
While it can be tough selecting a player before the end of his career, Smith’s record and the obstacles he’s overcome as a player and person, warrant him a place in this side.
(Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
6. Keith Miller (1946-1956)
55 matches, 2958 runs at 36.98, 170 wickets at 22.98
An Australian cricketing hero to thousands after the second war, Keith Miller is undoubtedly the greatest all-rounder to play for Australia.
Miller was a world-class bowler in his era, and was said by those who played against him to be extremely unpredictable, and very fast at times. In terms of batting, Miller was exciting, hard hitting and often batted up the order; a man who still would’ve made the team on his batting alone.
A case could be made to select another genuine batsman at 6, but I believe that what Miller adds to the bowling attack would vastly outweigh a slight improvement in the batting order that someone like Allan Border or Steve Waugh would bring.
7. (WK) Adam Gilchrist (1999-2008)
96 matches, 5570 runs at 47.61, 379 catches and 37 stumpings
Australia’s first great wicketkeeper batsman, Adam Gilchrist was a special player and another who revolutionised the game with his incredible athleticism behind the stumps and thrilling strokeplay with the bat.
‘Gilly’ played several match winning innings’ over his career and has the record number of Test dismissals by an Australian keeper. He was a natural entertainer and perhaps the finest keeper batsman to grace the game.
(Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
8. Shane Warne (1992-2007)
145 matches, 708 wickets at 25.42
My favourite ever Australian cricketer, Shane Warne was often a controversial character who had his troubles off the pitch.
On it though, he changed the face of the game by re-igniting the dying art of leg spin. In the words of the great Richie Benaud, Shane Warne was “the greatest leg spinner who’s ever lived”.
He had the ability to spin Australia to victory no matter what the circumstances, and one the undervalued qualities that set him apart from other spin bowlers of his time, was his consistency, he rarely bowled a bad delivery. Few players in history have had the impact on the game, that Shane Warne did.
9. Dennis Lillee (1971-1984)
70 matches, 355 wickets at 23.92
One of the great and most iconic bowlers of the last 50 years, Dennis Lillee turned cricket around in Australia. Came into the setup in a time where Australia were in a slump, and quickly formed one of the all-time bowling partnerships with Jeff Thomson.
Lillee quickly became a pivotal figure in bringing Australia to the top again in the 70s. An role-model for many that came after him, Lillee overcame what should have been a career ending back injury in the mid 70s, and although he lost some of his pace, turned into a bowler of great skill and elevated himself to another level.
There haven’t been many better in Lillee’s trade.
10. Fred Spofforth (1877-1887)
18 matches, 94 wickets at 18.41
The first great modern bowler and certainly the bowler of the 19th century. Nicknamed ‘The Demon’, Spofforth was a bowler with a killer instinct, capable of bowling faster than anyone in his era, but also cutting and turning the ball to a great degree of accuracy.
He was one of the most significant figures in cricket history, famous for taking 14-90 and single-handedly beating a much stronger English team at The Oval in 1882, which created The Ashes.
11. Glenn McGrath (1993-2007)
124 matches, 563 wickets at 21.64
Glenn McGrath is one of the most skilful bowlers of the modern era. Not particularly fast, McGrath was a master of swing and seam movement, with pinpoint accuracy. He relentlessly wore down the best of batsmen, with ultra consistency and on any wicket.
McGrath spear-headed the Australian attack for many years and earns himself a place among his country’s greatest ever.
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