Combined Ashes XI for the 21st century

[barah_admi]

I saw an ad recently to enter a ballot for next years Ashes...if they're starting early, we might as well too.

What would your starting XI be for a combined, 21st century XI? Look at performances in ashes series only, so someone like Simon Jones who may not have played much cricket elsewhere, may have a shout in an Ashes eleven for this century.

My XI is -

1. Justin Langer
2. David Warner
3. Ricky Ponting c
4. Kevin Pietersen
5. Mike Hussey
6. Adam Gilchrist wk
7. Andrew Flintoff
8. Shane Warne
9. Stuart Broad
10. Jason Gillespie
11. Glenn McGrath

A team, maybe quite obviously, dominated by the Australians.

 

[Last Monetarist]

1. Hayden
2. Vaughan (c)
3. Ponting
4. Pietersen
5. Hussey
6. Flintoff
7. Gilchrist
8. Warne
9. Johnson
10. Harris
11. McGrath

 

[Ab Fan]

Hayden
Cook
Ponting(c)
Pietersen
Smith
Flintoff
Gilchrist
Warne
Johnson
Broad(or Anderson with duke ball)
McGrath

 

[j_kazmi]

These are basically Australian XIs with one or two English cricketers added in.

 

[Robert]

I saw an ad recently to enter a ballot for next years Ashes...if they're starting early, we might as well too.

What would your starting XI be for a combined, 21st century XI? Look at performances in ashes series only, so someone like Simon Jones who may not have played much cricket elsewhere, may have a shout in an Ashes eleven for this century.

My XI is -

1. Justin Langer
2. David Warner
3. Ricky Ponting c
4. Kevin Pietersen
5. Mike Hussey
6. Adam Gilchrist wk
7. Andrew Flintoff
8. Shane Warne
9. Stuart Broad
10. Jason Gillespie
11. Glenn McGrath

A team, maybe quite obviously, dominated by the Australians.

Haven’t England won the series more times?

Warne and McGrath only lasted for 6 years out of 18 though. Maybe a Noughties side and a Teens side instead.

Teens XI
————-

Cook
Warner
Smith
Rooooooooot
Clarke (c)
Stokes
Bairstow (w)
Johnson
Broad
Lyon
Anderson

 

[Last Monetarist]

Haven’t England won the series more times?

Warne and McGrath only lasted for 6 years out of 18 though. Maybe a Noughties side and a Teens side instead.

Teens XI
————-

Cook
Warner
Smith
Rooooooooot
Clarke (c)
Stokes
Bairstow (w)
Johnson
Broad
Lyon
Anderson

For a teens XI, I'd have Bell (his performance during the home leg of the 2013 series is criminally underrated) instead of Clarke (surprised to learn that he averaged a measly 31 in Ashes contests this decade), Haddin in as keeper, and most definitely Ryan Harris (Johnson won't have been able to demolish England without Harris bowling at the other end, statistically he's the best bowler this decade as well) instead of Broad. Much as I don't like the idea, that leaves Cook as captain.

 

[the_outsider]

1. A Cook
2. J Langer
3. R Ponting (c)
4. K Pietersen
5. S Smith
6. A Gilchrist (wk)
7. A Flintoff
8. S Warne
9. M Johnson
10. S Broad
11. G McGrath

7 Australians and 4 Englishmen.

 

[Robert]

For a teens XI, I'd have Bell (his performance during the home leg of the 2013 series is criminally underrated) instead of Clarke (surprised to learn that he averaged a measly 31 in Ashes contests this decade), Haddin in as keeper, and most definitely Ryan Harris (Johnson won't have been able to demolish England without Harris bowling at the other end, statistically he's the best bowler this decade as well) instead of Broad. Much as I don't like the idea, that leaves Cook as captain.

Harris only had one good series, I thought?

Come to think of it so did Johnson - he was a scattergun otherwise. Cook hit him all over Australia in 2010/11.

Haddin just had the one good series too, in 2013/14 where he got Australia out of trouble five times out of five in the first innings.

Broad was consistently good at home and had one good series away too.

Fair call on Bell for Clarke.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Harris only had one good series, I thought?

Come to think of it so did Johnson - he was a scattergun otherwise. Cook hit him all over Australia in 2010/11.

Haddin just had the one good series too, in 2013/14 where he got Australia out of trouble five times out of five in the first innings.

Broad was consistently good at home and had one good series away too.

Fair call on Bell for Clarke.

Harris took 57 wickets at 20 across 3 series. He averages less than 20 with the ball in England, so it wasn't just one series. If fitness hadn't curtailed his career, he could have been one of the all-time greats.

Bairstow hasn't even performed well in one series against Australia, he averages less than 30 in Ashes contests. Haddin was instrumental in that series in Australia, so that puts him comfortably ahead of Jonny.

 

[barah_admi]

Haven’t England won the series more times?

Warne and McGrath only lasted for 6 years out of 18 though. Maybe a Noughties side and a Teens side instead.

Teens XI
————-

Cook
Warner
Smith
Rooooooooot
Clarke (c)
Stokes
Bairstow (w)
Johnson
Broad
Lyon
Anderson

I think that dilutes the quality far too much.

Harris took 57 wickets at 20 across 3 series. He averages less than 20 with the ball in England, so it wasn't just one series. If fitness hadn't curtailed his career, he could have been one of the all-time greats.

Bairstow hasn't even performed well in one series against Australia, he averages less than 30 in Ashes contests. Haddin was instrumental in that series in Australia, so that puts him comfortably ahead of Jonny.

Agreed, Haddin over Johnny any day and Harris would definitely get a shout.