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Self confessed sporting fanatic and long suffering Liverpool and St Kilda fan Dream job is to be the ball-by-ball bloke on Cricinfo: 1.1 - Cummins to Burns. Dot Ball Cummins bowls a length ball outside off stump and Burns leaves.
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Backing up from my previous article is a rest of the world XI to play my greatest Indian Test XI in India. As with…
With India’s recent series victory in Australia, I thought it might be fitting to continue my series of greatest all-time XIs with the nation…
Having picked my all-time England XI, I need a side to play against them. Below is my all-time Rest of the World XI to…
The English famously invented the game of cricket and played in the first ever Test match in 1877 against Australia. Since then, no other…
Who shall our All-time Australian XI play against? How about a Rest of the World XI comprising overseas players from the other cricketing nations?…
Australia is the most successful nation in Test match history with more wins and a higher winning percentage than any other established nation in…
Agree with you actually and what makes things harder with those Pre WW1 guys is to project how they’d go against bowlers of today.
If Grace faced McGrath what would be the outcome? Would it be dependant on the era they face each other in?
Would we project a WG Grace from the 1800s to 2000 and say that sports science, coaching, equipment would mean that he’d average 10-20 more?
Or would we project a version of McGrath back to 1800 bowling in uniform made for a Victorian era amphitheatre?
England's greatest ever Test XI
What’s your opinion on why that is?
Do you think it’s pitches or just the tempo of the game in One Dayers that suits them?
For example Pakistan’s Babar Azam has been phenomenal in ODIs but has only just started to find his straps in Tests.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Micko,
I actually picked this team taking into account all Test performances in all conditions, not just in England.
I think we’re on the same page mostly. I’ve always felt Anderson holistically as a fast bowler when taking into account all conditions has always been overrated. I don’t put him in the top bracket of great bowlers of all time like the Lillee’s, McGraths etc. Very few of the great wicket takers of all time have been as poor in conditions that don’t suit him.
The most underappreciated, overlooked part of Anderson’s game however has been his durability. He’s 20 tests clear of the next fast bowler in terms of tests played. Even if you discount his body of work in England which is phenomenal – 368 wickets, he’s still taken over 200 wickets overseas. I just felt he belonged in an England All Time X1 for that reason.
If it was a country like Australia or the Windies perhaps not but England has never produced that top echelon fast bowler like a McGrath, Lillee or Marshall. I felt like there was nobody squeezing him out who’s best was miles better than his.
My mantra when picking these sides is basically this:
If there isn’t much difference between the peaks of two players – I’ve always sided with the player with the greater / longer body of work. It’s the old adage of how high was your peak vs how long you sustained it etc.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi JGK I did and perhaps if Barnes doesn’t play he’s the obvious choice given he was a mediumish length bowler (by all accounts).
Anderson swing, Trueman pace & swing, Botham doing his thing and Bedser as a corridor bowler sounds good
England's greatest ever Test XI
Valid point mate.
I will say though that I’m not sure any of the batsmen pre WWI get in on merit but the bowling numbers are phenomenal – that seems to be the way the era was.
What would you have called this? I’ve already had one article title edited for brevity reasons I’m assuming.
If I call it England’s Greatest Ever Post War Test X1 it implies WWII doesn’t it?
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Paul,
Saw that. Interesting.
I’ll have to admit for a period there I thought Jonny Bairstow was going to blow this argument out the water in 5-10 years time but his batting in Tests seems to have completely dropped off.
Still struggling to get my head around it – he’s a magnificient one day cricketer.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi All,
I should probably clarify my methodology in going about this assignment.
I originally selected this team as a post WW1 team encompassing the totality of an individual’s England career, overseas as well as home.
I know that I’ve stated that this team will play a match in England but this is only so that we can have a hypothetical game against a ROW team (which I will select in a few days time). I haven’t therefore looked at performances just in England during selection but overall test match performances for England in all conditions.
Hope this clarifies the comments regarding performance in England vs abroad etc.
Re: Sydney Barnes, I really struggled to select the third seamer for this team. Bedser, Larwood, Snow, Stuart Broad etc were all names I considered. Picking Barnes was a self-admitted cop out move on my part, in part because of variety as a medium pacer. He’s rated by a number of experts as amongst the greatest bowlers of all time. Richie Benaud, Geoff Boycott etc all rant and rave about him.
All Day Roseville you make a good point about Lohmann though. I’m shocked that he’s not talked about nearly as much as Barnes is when he has a better average and strike rate. I know he was slightly before Barnes’s time and perhaps this is why.
Hope this provides some clarity for my selections and why I didn’t consider people like WG Grace, Wilfred Rhodes etc.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Paul,
I considered Godfrey Evans but in the end went with Knott. He would’ve been my backup though.
I think even though he didn’t play much for England Bob Taylor was rated as one of England’s greatest pair of hands behind the stumps too!
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Sportstragic,
Thanks for the kind words here!
I actually think all 3 of Hobbs, Hutton and Sutcliffe would make the All Time Australian X1. I think their records stack up well with Hayden, Ponsford, Morris etc.
Also perhaps Botham v Miller is close? I’d still go for Miller though.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi JGK,
I think this is reflective of how far English cricket has fallen since the 1950s and 1960s don’t you?
See my below point re: me selecting the team based on the totality of individual’s England career’s at home and abroad. I have stated this match is to be played in England against the ROW but that is just so we can have a mandate to select a ROW team and talk about a hypothetical match against the two.
If I was picking my All Time Australia X1 in just Australian conditions then David Warner would have had to have been picked as an opener right?
Sorry for the confusion.
Great point re: Verity. I forgot about him truth be told.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Micko,
Laker vs Underwood was tough for me. Swann has had a pretty underrated England career too.
Who did you have in place for Anderson?
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Tock,
Thanks for the kind words.
I’ve never been a Jimmy Anderson fan but I just couldn’t leave him out an All Time England X1 especially in English conditions.
Having said that I’m too young to see Tyson, Snow and Willis play. I know Ian Chappell for one was big on Snow – he put him in the same category as Lillee.
The other one I considered was Larwood.
What’s your thoughts on the batting? Compton vs Pietersen for me was tough.
England's greatest ever Test XI
Hi Sheek,
Thanks for the kind words.
I didn’t consider Barry Richards because he didn’t play Test cricket in Australia but one of my friends corrected me by saying he played for a ROW side here and I’ve taken Sobers’s ROW stats into consideration so I probably should’ve considered him.
Re: Pollock (and also Barry Richards) – I used 1,000 runs as a cutoff in Australia for batsmen. Maybe unfairly but this was an arbitrary decision. Headley only averaged 37.33 in Australia (remember I’m doing this as a team to play Australia in Australia, not a ROW team for all conditions).
Re: Barnes he was a pre WW1 player so I discounted him.
I’m doing an England All Time X1 and ROW team to play England in England next week. Keen to hear your comments on those team selections when they’re up!
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Dave,
That’s a pretty compelling case for Hutton right there!
Sutcliffe faced some great spinners in Grimmett and O’Reilly but I believe the pace bowling lineup the Aussies had at the time wasn’t the strongest.
I perhaps could’ve used you when making this article haha
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Pete,
Not a bad idea mate. I’d finally have an excuse to drop Bradman from my All Time Aussie Team, move Punter to three and play Steve Waugh!
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
VVS was phenomenal against the Aussies in all conditions
His 281 at Eden Gardens is the greatest innings I’ve ever seen played, especially given the match situation when he came in to bat. Makes me wonder if I should do a list of the best innings I’ve ever seen.
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Agree re: Steyn being right up there in the top echelon of fast bowlers.
To me this echelon is:
Lillee, Marshall, Hadlee, McGrath, Steyn, Akram, Ambrose.
Level below:
Waqar Younis, Anderson, Donald, Pollock, Walsh, Holding, Garner, Roberts
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Spruce Moose.
See my comment regarding Nasser Hussain and Rob Key’s exercise for Sky Sports:
Pollock gets more of a mention than Ambrose when selecting the 90s bowlers.
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Spruce.
It certainly was. Triggered by Rudy Koertzen too and robbed of a double hundred if my memory recalls!
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Brendon Julian, Russell Crowe, Brad Thorn….list goes on 😂 😂
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Then your logic is perfectly spot on Paul and we just disagree on our definition of an eligible keeper for this sort of exercise.
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Paul,
Talking strictly Test Matches, Kumar Sangakkara kept in 36% of the tests he played in and had 151 dismissals.
I agree with the fact that he played a lot of One Day cricket as a keeper but the One Day game in terms of balance of sides is different. Rahul Dravid had almost 100 ODI wicket keeping dismissals. Would anyone consider him India’s second greatest wicket keeper in ODIs behind Dhoni?
Put it this way – would you pick Kumar Sangakkara over Gilchrist as the keeper in a World X1 for the past 20 years? If you’re purely going off the premise that he was able to wicket keep and kept a bit then you should considering he offered much more with the bat than Gilly. Gilchrist was hardly a purist as a gloveman in the Darren Berry / Ian Healy mould right?
The only argument in that sense then is the fact Gilchrist scored his runs quicker.
Do you get what I mean?
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Ace,
Great idea actually.
My next two articles were going to be on the All Time England X1 and then a ROW X1 to play England in England but I’ll try to circle back and do a ROW 2nd X1 in Australia.
Regarding Kallis, I’ve always thought that if you play him in a lineup he has to bat at either 3 or 4. I’ve always looked at him as a kind of Rahul Dravid soaking up pressure type batsman.
What’s your thoughts?
The all-time Rest of the World XI to play Australia
Hi Arnab,
I think you’re spot on with the three seamers in the lineup there – Wagner, Bumrah and Rabada.
I would’ve gone with Agarwal to open the batting. I’ve been really disappointed with Ajinyka Rahane since that 2014 tour of Australia (what a hundred at the MCG that was). I think he’s gone backwards since then.
If you ignore stats I’d have Ben Stokes in my side every day of the week to play Australia anywhere. Pure matchwinner.
Also have a no wives policy on tour mate – in case Murali Vijay’s eyes start to wander.
A Rest of the World team to tackle Australia