All-Time Test Cricket Draft

My second-last pick is the person Bradman called the greatest bowler he ever faced or watched - and I'm not one to argue with the Don! Sadly, much of his Test career coincided with the Second World War, but he still managed to play 27 Tests and took 144 wickets at an average of just 22.59. Bill O'Reilly will be my spinner.

1. Sir Len Hutton
2. Sunil Gavaskar
3. Sir Vivian Richards
4. Rahul Dravid
5. Allan Border
6. Sir Garry Sobers
7.
8. Shaun Pollock
9. Wasim Akram
10. Malcolm Marshall
11. Bill O'Reilly

@Keatoboy - time to pick your final two players!
Ahhhhh you grabbed my spinner
 
Wowee, really hard to decide on my final 2 players here.

Closing out my bowling line up, will be Allan Donald. White lightning!

4 bowlers plus 2 all rounders who can roll the arm over alright, my final pick needs to be a batsman. Welcome, Virat Kohli! As much as I dislike the bloke, he’s got talent.

1. Brian Lara
2. AB de Villiers (wk)
3. Sir Donald Bradman (C)
4. Virat Kohli
5. Sir Ian Botham
6. Adam Voges
7. Tony Greig
8. Allan Donald
9. Dale Steyn
10. Sydney Barnes
11. Muttiah Muralitharan

That’s my final line up! Back to you for your final pick @Scotty_WCE
 
All good mate was just having a laugh.
I know mate :lol:

Thanks @Keatoboy - nice team! (And thanks also for not picking who I'm going to take with my final pick ;))

My final pick has to be a keeper, and it's someone who was more renowned for his efforts with the bat, but he was also a more than competent keeper. In fact, he played 55 of his 63 Tests with the gloves, and still managed to average over 51 with the bat. In games where he was keeper, his batting average rose to almost 54. Add to this the fact he played in a fairly weak team - he won only one-ninth of his Tests - and was also captain for 20 games and you can see he was a brilliant player with many strings to his bow. The first (and I dare say only) Zimbabwean taken in this draft, Andy Flower is my final pick and rounds out my team.

1. Sir Len Hutton
2. Sunil Gavaskar
3. Sir Vivian Richards
4. Rahul Dravid
5. Allan Border (c)
6. Sir Garry Sobers
7. Andy Flower (wk)
8. Shaun Pollock
9. Wasim Akram
10. Malcolm Marshall
11. Bill O'Reilly

@Wookiedragon, who's your last choice?
 
Nice touch naming yourself Twelfthie :)

My final pick (literally!) is "Deadly" Derek Underwood. 297 Test wickets @ 25.83, with an economy rate of 2.10 per over. If it's a sticky dog we play on, my boy will have a field day! I have also nominated Neil Harvey - a man unlucky not to have led his country permanently - as my captain.

Post #13 updated. Over to you @BLOWN8
 
My last pick was probably my hardest. I was tossing up between a few but narrowed it down to two fast bowlers, sorry Brett Lee but Jimmy Anderson got the nod. So that’s my team done. Last pick for you @mounteverest

1. Matthew Hayden
2. Graeme Smith
3. Sachin Tendulkar
4. Steve Waugh (C)
5. Mike Hussey
6. Kapil Dev
7. Mark Boucher WK
8. Shane Warne
9. Jimmy Anderson
10. Dennis Lillee
11. Waqar Younis
 
Last edited:
Who i
Wowee, really hard to decide on my final 2 players here.

Closing out my bowling line up, will be Allan Donald. White lightning!

4 bowlers plus 2 all rounders who can roll the arm over alright, my final pick needs to be a batsman. Welcome, Virat Kohli! As much as I dislike the bloke, he’s got talent.

1. Brian Lara
2. AB de Villiers (wk)
3. Sir Donald Bradman (C)
4. Virat Kohli
5. Sir Ian Botham
6. Adam Voges
7. Tony Greig
8. Allan Donald
9. Dale Steyn
10. Sydney Barnes
11. Muttiah Muralitharan

That’s my final line up! Back to you for your final pick @Scotty_WCE
You is your keeper in there?
 
Ok my final pick at #5 is Barry Richards who along with a few other S.A we never got to see a lot of them in test cricket due to apartheid but from what I have read and seen we missed out on a great player along with a few teammates of his
Ponting is my captain and this has been great fun
Post 93 has been updated with whole team
 
I’ve also been following this thread closely and had thought of doing a leftover team too

I had already made my first XI - I should see who has picked the most of my team
Go for it! I think @Eels Guru has got a team of leftovers lined up but you're more than welcome to join in with a team after he's picked his :)

And I'd be interested to know who was in your first XI too!
 
So while @Eels Guru makes his final tweaks and @May-Z picks a team as well (if he's keen) let's work out the next step.

I can see three options to compare our teams:

1. @BLOWN8's idea where everyone involved ranks the teams from strongest to least strong (not weakest because none of these teams are weak!). Everyone's rankings combined to get overall rankings.

2. Similar system but outsourced to other people (e.g. a cricket forum). We could still put our own votes in in this system as well.

3. A computer simulation based on the players' career stats. Teams "play" against each other in virtual matches and we have a mini tournament.

Thoughts/any other ideas? Personally, I reckon why not do all three? Doesn't have to be a single winner, the computer simulation would be a bit of fun and would be a good exercise for us all to sit down and rank each other's teams as well.
 
First two selections in the leftovers XI
The fastest bowler in history Jeff Thomson and one of Bradman’s Invincibles plus one of our greatest allrounders Keith Miller
 
So while @Eels Guru makes his final tweaks and @May-Z picks a team as well (if he's keen) let's work out the next step.

I can see three options to compare our teams:

1. @BLOWN8's idea where everyone involved ranks the teams from strongest to least strong (not weakest because none of these teams are weak!). Everyone's rankings combined to get overall rankings.

2. Similar system but outsourced to other people (e.g. a cricket forum). We could still put our own votes in in this system as well.

3. A computer simulation based on the players' career stats. Teams "play" against each other in virtual matches and we have a mini tournament.

Thoughts/any other ideas? Personally, I reckon why not do all three? Doesn't have to be a single winner, the computer simulation would be a bit of fun and would be a good exercise for us all to sit down and rank each other's teams as well.
Computer simulation would be fun
 
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