The most ideal playing XI for a Test tour to India

[Ab Fan]

What will be your most ideal playing XI to have for a tour to India? Its a tough one picking XI names across eras for an India tour but then India have always been a difficult country to tour for oppositions and to come up with a victory.

Below is my XI:-

Hayden
Cook
Kallis
Younis
Lloyd(c)
Flower(wkt)
Botham
Hadlee
Swann
Steyn
Saqlain

Openers- Cook and Hayden were obvious picks for me. Cook because of the way he dominated the India series in 2012 and Hayden because of his performance in 2001 where he was their best bat. Both average over 50 in India in test cricket.

Middle Order- Jacques Kallis and Younis Khan are easily the two of the finest bats to have toured India. While Lara and Ponting failed in India, Kallis was always a rock for SA when they travelled India. Younis was phenomenal player of spin and his performances in India speaks for itself. Clive Lloyd has an outrageous record in India, pivotal with bat and captaincy in Windies series win in India and he will be the captain of my team as well. So was Andy Flower who gave us sleepless nights during our childhood.

Botham will be my genuine all-rounder for the tour to India, Kallis can bowl but will focus more on his batting.

Fast bowlers- Steyn and Hadlee were the two best bowlers to have travelled well in India alongside Botham.

Spinners- Saqlain and Swann were the two best spinners by quite a bit IMO and were significant in their roles to series wins for their country in India.

So, that will be my test XI for a test tour to India.

Discuss!

 

[MenInG]

Depends on who they will be facing in India!

 

[Last Monetarist]

What will be your most ideal playing XI to have for a tour to India? Its a tough one picking XI names across eras for an India tour but then India have always been a difficult country to tour for oppositions and to come up with a victory.

Below is my XI:-

Hayden
Cook
Kallis
Younis
Lloyd(c)
Flower(wkt)
Botham
Hadlee
Swann
Steyn
Saqlain

Openers- Cook and Hayden were obvious picks for me. Cook because of the way he dominated the India series in 2012 and Hayden because of his performance in 2001 where he was their best bat. Both average over 50 in India in test cricket.

Middle Order- Jacques Kallis and Younis Khan are easily the two of the finest bats to have toured India. While Lara and Ponting failed in India, Kallis was always a rock for SA when they travelled India. Younis was phenomenal player of spin and his performances in India speaks for itself. Clive Lloyd has an outrageous record in India, pivotal with bat and captaincy in Windies series win in India and he will be the captain of my team as well. So was Andy Flower who gave us sleepless nights during our childhood.

Botham will be my genuine all-rounder for the tour to India, Kallis can bowl but will focus more on his batting.

Fast bowlers- Steyn and Hadlee were the two best bowlers to have travelled well in India alongside Botham.

Spinners- Saqlain and Swann were the two best spinners by quite a bit IMO and were significant in their roles to series wins for their country in India.

So, that will be my test XI for a test tour to India.

Discuss!

I'd have Sobers, Benaud, and Walsh instead of Kallis, Swann, and Hadlee. Sobers is self-explanatory, whereas I don't want two off-spinners in my team. Moreover, I can afford to drop an all-rounder and bring in Walsh who has the best record for a fast bowler to ever have toured India.

 

[big_gamer007]

You want best players of spin in your team or players with best records in india?

Interesting thread I am waiting for comments from others. Flower, Haydos, and Steve Smith are certainties for me, rest can be debated.

 

[big_gamer007]

[MENTION=139595]Ab Fan[/MENTION] why no Steve Smith?

 

[andy0204]

What will be your most ideal playing XI to have for a tour to India? Its a tough one picking XI names across eras for an India tour but then India have always been a difficult country to tour for oppositions and to come up with a victory.

Below is my XI:-

Hayden
Cook
Kallis
Younis
Lloyd(c)
Flower(wkt)
Botham
Hadlee
Swann
Steyn
Saqlain

Openers- Cook and Hayden were obvious picks for me. Cook because of the way he dominated the India series in 2012 and Hayden because of his performance in 2001 where he was their best bat. Both average over 50 in India in test cricket.

Middle Order- Jacques Kallis and Younis Khan are easily the two of the finest bats to have toured India. While Lara and Ponting failed in India, Kallis was always a rock for SA when they travelled India. Younis was phenomenal player of spin and his performances in India speaks for itself. Clive Lloyd has an outrageous record in India, pivotal with bat and captaincy in Windies series win in India and he will be the captain of my team as well. So was Andy Flower who gave us sleepless nights during our childhood.

Botham will be my genuine all-rounder for the tour to India, Kallis can bowl but will focus more on his batting.

Fast bowlers- Steyn and Hadlee were the two best bowlers to have travelled well in India alongside Botham.

Spinners- Saqlain and Swann were the two best spinners by quite a bit IMO and were significant in their roles to series wins for their country in India.

So, that will be my test XI for a test tour to India.

Discuss!

You can't judge Lara by only playing 3 test matches in india,he was about to score a century but he walked off just like Adam Gilchrist in 2003 World cup semifinal.

You can watch at 9:01

 

[Ab Fan]

You want best players of spin in your team or players with best records in india?

Interesting thread I am waiting for comments from others. Flower, Haydos, and Steve Smith are certainties for me, rest can be debated.

It is for a test tour to India. So, performances in India is a major benchmark to make it to XI. Of course, if you want to do well in India, you have to be brilliant Vs spin as well.

Steve Smith definitely has a strong case but others, mentioned in my playing XI, have done well over a longer period and for more than a series. I would had him but reckon Younis and Kallis deserve it ahead of him at least till now. It may change later.

 

[Ab Fan]

I'd have Sobers, Benaud, and Walsh instead of Kallis, Swann, and Hadlee. Sobers is self-explanatory, whereas I don't want two off-spinners in my team. Moreover, I can afford to drop an all-rounder and bring in Walsh who has the best record for a fast bowler to ever have toured India.

Yeah, those are strong replacements as well. Eventually, it's about who you go with. I was a bit uncertain with having both Saqlain and Swann as well, but couldn't find enough options, at least in the past 25-30 years.

 

[Ab Fan]

You can't judge Lara by only playing 3 test matches in india,he was about to score a century but he walked off just like Adam Gilchrist in 2003 World cup semifinal.

You can watch at 9:01

It will be wrong to term Lara a failure in India as he didn't exactly failed. He just didn't played much there. But among Lara, Ponting, Kallis and Sangakkara, if anyone has been a proven performer for a tour to India, it's Jacques Kallis.

 

[Ab Fan]

Depends on who they will be facing in India!

Let's assume this team:-

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Tendulkar
Kohli
MS Dhoni(wkt)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble
Zaheer
Bumrah

 

[andy0204]

Let's assume this team:-

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Tendulkar
Kohli
MS Dhoni(wkt)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble
Zaheer
Bumrah

Bumrah didn't play a single test in india, instead of bumrah I will pick Shami who averages 22 in India.

 

[Ab Fan]

Bumrah didn't play a single test in india, instead of bumrah I will pick Shami who averages 22 in India.

Okay.

 

[Shoaib88]

Let's assume this team:-

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Tendulkar
Kohli
MS Dhoni(wkt)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble
Zaheer
Bumrah

Shami instead of zaheer

 

[Srtfan]

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Sachin
Kohli (c)
Pujara
Dhoni (wk)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble/ Jadeja
Shami

 

[andy0204]

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Sachin
Kohli (c)
Pujara
Dhoni (wk)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble/ Jadeja
Shami

Instead of Pujara I will pick Azhar or laxman.

 

[TNAmarkFromIndia]

I'd love to see a ICC XI vs India Test in India.

 

[Ab Fan]

Sehwag
Gavaskar
Dravid
Sachin
Kohli (c)
Pujara
Dhoni (wk)
Kapil
Ashwin
Kumble/ Jadeja
Shami

This will be the opposition. I meant the best playing XI that will be touring India.

 

[gazza619]

What will be your most ideal playing XI to have for a tour to India? Its a tough one picking XI names across eras for an India tour but then India have always been a difficult country to tour for oppositions and to come up with a victory.

Below is my XI:-

Hayden
Cook
Kallis
Younis
Lloyd(c)
Flower(wkt)
Botham
Hadlee
Swann
Steyn
Saqlain

Openers- Cook and Hayden were obvious picks for me. Cook because of the way he dominated the India series in 2012 and Hayden because of his performance in 2001 where he was their best bat. Both average over 50 in India in test cricket.

Middle Order- Jacques Kallis and Younis Khan are easily the two of the finest bats to have toured India. While Lara and Ponting failed in India, Kallis was always a rock for SA when they travelled India. Younis was phenomenal player of spin and his performances in India speaks for itself. Clive Lloyd has an outrageous record in India, pivotal with bat and captaincy in Windies series win in India and he will be the captain of my team as well. So was Andy Flower who gave us sleepless nights during our childhood.

Botham will be my genuine all-rounder for the tour to India, Kallis can bowl but will focus more on his batting.

Fast bowlers- Steyn and Hadlee were the two best bowlers to have travelled well in India alongside Botham.

Spinners- Saqlain and Swann were the two best spinners by quite a bit IMO and were significant in their roles to series wins for their country in India.

So, that will be my test XI for a test tour to India.

Discuss!

You got to have Akhtar in there to complete the pace attack. Not sure about Botham, he is kind of wasting a batsman spot. We already have Kallis as the extra seamer option.

I would drop Hadlee and bring in Akhtar and drop Botham to bring in Steven Smith.