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Younis Khan's all-time XI

Ellipsism

Ellipsism

First Class Captain
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Younis Khan found room for two Australians in his all-time greatest Test team and the legendary batsman named a Pakistan great as captain of the side. At a tribute night in his honour at Lord's, Younis selected Imran Khan as captain of his best-ever Test XI, which features Adam Gilchrist as wicketkeeper and Glenn McGrath as the leader of a fearsome pace attack. India maestro Sachin Tendulkar and Pakistan batsman Hanif Mohammad open the batting in Younis' dream-team, with modern-day stars Jacques Kallis and Brian Lara slotting in at three and four respectively. West Indians Viv Richards and Garfield Sobers, along with Gilchrist and Imran, complete a devastating middle order. The side has no shortage of batting firepower, with allrounder Richard Hadlee selected at No.9, while Muttiah Muralidaran and McGrath are the two specialist bowlers.


Australia legend Shane Warne's omission at the expense of Muralidaran is sure to fire up fans of the King of Spin, but a look at Younis' record against the pair may provide an insight into his thinking. The Sri Lankan mystery spinner dismissed Younis five times in ten Tests, with only Ranaga Herath (eight times), Stuart Broad (six) and Dale Steyn (six) removing the right-hander on more occasions. McGrath too claimed Younis' scalp five times in the longest format, while Warne dismissed him just twice, at a cost of 83 runs in six matches. Kallis's inclusion comes as no surprise given the former allrounder's record against Pakistan sides featuring Younis. The South African right-hander struck six centuries in 13 Tests the pair played in, while also claiming the Pakistani's wicket on four occasions.

Younis bowed out of international cricket in fairy-tale fashion earlier this month, as Pakistan sealed their first ever Test series victory in the Caribbean with a wicket in the final over of the deciding match in Dominica. Earlier in the series, the 39-year-old became the first Pakistani to pass the 10,000-run mark in Tests and just the 13th player in history to do so.

Younis Khan's all-time Test XI:
1. Hanif Mohammad
2. Sachin Tendulkar
3. Jacques Kallis
4. Brian Lara
5. Viv Richards
6. Garfield Sobers
7. Adam Gilchrist (wk)
8. Imran Khan (c)
9. Richard Hadlee
10. Muttiah Muralidaran
11. Glenn McGrath


http://www.cricket.com.au/news/youn...dulkar-kallis-lara-sobers-richards/2017-05-29
 
Great team. This team boasts of arguably the 4 greatest allrounders of all time in Imran, Sobers, Hadlee, and Kallis. Can't see any other team defeating this team in any conditions. All the bases are covered.
 
However, the line up needs a lot of refinement. Sachin at 2, Viv at 5 makes zero sense. I took the liberty to refine the line up. Here is how it looks -

Hanif
Gilchrist (k)
Viv
Sachin
Lara
Kallis
Sobers
Imran (c)
Hadlee
Murali
McGrath
 
Younis dishing the Phainty on former ATG even after his retirement :yk

What a legend :bow:
 
And yet again, a Pakistani legend puts forward a real ATG team unlike of biased parosis.
 
Maybe a great selection.generally positive.However still I would place Gavaskar,Hobbs or Hutton instead of Hanif.The records speak for itself.For pure bowling skill and variety I would replace Mcgrath with Wasim Akram,Marshall or Lillee.All had greater all-round skill .Wasim's left-arm variety would make him my first choice amongst pace bowlers.Disagree with so many all-rounders in the line up and being such a great match-winner Botham could have been included instead of Kallis.I think it should either have Hadlee,Imran ,Miller or Botham to accompany Sobers in that order of merit,as fast-bowling all-rounders are greater match-winners..I would give Warne the edge by a whisker over Murli.Personally i thought Bradman was an automatic selection,just like Sobers.Chose Hadlee as his phenomenal control would be a perfect acomplice to the seam movement of Wasim and the all-round skill of Marshall.l prefer Hadlee to Mcgrath because he was also a good batsmen,otherwise Mcgrath may make it.
My tentative xi would be

Hobbs
Tendulkar
Bradman
Viv Richards
Lara
Sobers
Gilchrist
Hadlee
Warne
Wasim
Marshall
 
Solid lineup.

Love the idea of four ATG all-rounders. It's the way a lineup such as this should be built.

Hanif Mohammad's selection appears more of a tribute to the legend. You could definitely pick a better opener to further strengthen the XI (i.e. Gavaskar/Hobbs/Hutton).

Plus if you're going old school, you might as well have Don Bradman somewhere in there.
 
Chief Destroyer said:
Lol Teenda opening. Walking wicket.

Also Anwar is a far superior opener to Hanif.
Click to expand...

Sachin was an ATG ODI opener.

I'm sure he'd manage against the new ball.

Agree with Anwar but to be fair there are many names who can go ahead of Hanif. I'm sure YK knows that too.
 
Like all players'/pundits' XIs, this one is a subjective XI.

YK has selected the players he admired and the best he played against.



1. Hanif Mohammad
2. Sachin Tendulkar
3. Jacques Kallis
4. Brian Lara
5. Viv Richards
6. Garfield Sobers
7. Adam Gilchrist (wk)
8. Imran Khan (c)
9. Richard Hadlee
10. Muttiah Muralidaran
11. Glenn McGrath

No Wasim Akram, no Warne, No Gavaskar, No Inzi etc etc. It's his opinion and that's what XIs are all about, IMHO.

Also, I'd switch #3 and #5's batting positions :D
 
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WhenSultansBowled said:
Like all players'/pundits' XIs, this one is a subjective XI.

YK has selected the players he admired and the best he played against.



1. Hanif Mohammad
2. Sachin Tendulkar
3. Jacques Kallis
4. Brian Lara
5. Viv Richards
6. Garfield Sobers
7. Adam Gilchrist (wk)
8. Imran Khan (c)
9. Richard Hadlee
10. Muttiah Muralidaran
11. Glenn McGrath

No Wasim Akram, no Warne, No Gavaskar, No Inzi etc etc. It's his opinion and that's what XIs are all about, IMHO.

Also, I'd switch #3 and #5's batting positions :D
Click to expand...

Good Lord :)) :))
 
[MENTION=132062]Harsh Thakor[/MENTION] [MENTION=8597]kingusama92[/MENTION] You guys may have your own opinion however I don't think Hanif's selection is a tribute. Hanif is severely underrated and was a brilliant batsman.
 
Hitman said:
Good Lord :)) :))
Click to expand...

Better match winner than a certain player in YK's XI (for starters)
giphy.gif
 
Harsh Thakor said:
Maybe a great selection.generally positive.However still I would place Gavaskar,Hobbs or Hutton instead of Hanif.The records speak for itself.For pure bowling skill and variety I would replace Mcgrath with Wasim Akram,Marshall or Lillee.All had greater all-round skill .Wasim's left-arm variety would make him my first choice amongst pace bowlers.Disagree with so many all-rounders in the line up and being such a great match-winner Botham could have been included instead of Kallis.I think it should either have Hadlee,Imran ,Miller or Botham to accompany Sobers in that order of merit,as fast-bowling all-rounders are greater match-winners..I would give Warne the edge by a whisker over Murli.Personally i thought Bradman was an automatic selection,just like Sobers.Chose Hadlee as his phenomenal control would be a perfect acomplice to the seam movement of Wasim and the all-round skill of Marshall.l prefer Hadlee to Mcgrath because he was also a good batsmen,otherwise Mcgrath may make it.
My tentative xi would be

Hobbs
Tendulkar
Bradman
Viv Richards
Lara
Sobers
Gilchrist
Hadlee
Warne
Wasim
Marshall
Click to expand...

No disrespect to your opinion as i am a huge fan of your threads here.You are one of the most knowledgeable commentators on pakpassion. But why do you support hobbs or hutton when you haven't even seen them?

It baffles me that how some seriously good commentators on this site will talk with full confidence about a player they haven't even seen. Most of the time they will talk about county legends like hobbs/hutton. I admire both
and they have a special place in classical batsmanship. But to downplay a person that has faced more diversity than them and achieved much than them doesn't seem right

Just think about how many time did hobbs or hutton bat outside english/australian conditions. Just because some body is good against swinging ball doesnt mean he is gonna decimate slower balling or bat good on bouncy surfaces.

If that were the case, All the english opening batsmen would be future ATG's. But it is not

Facing new ball is different in every condition. That is why i rate gavaskar highly even if i haven't seen him. He scored in every condition and no one can argue with that. Same goes for desomnd haynes, greenidge and graeme smith.
 
WhenSultansBowled said:
Better match winner than a certain player in YK's XI (for starters)
giphy.gif
Click to expand...

That's what most Pak fans try to take comfort by believing in since they have no other option, ain't it? Never heard anyone outside Pakistan name Inzamam as a contender in even the 10th list of anyone's 'World XI' :))
 
Hitman said:
That's what most Pak fans try to take comfort by believing in since they have no other option, ain't it? Never heard anyone outside Pakistan name Inzamam as a contender in even the 10th list of anyone's 'World XI' :))
Click to expand...

That's the main difference between Pak fans and the Indians. We don't need / crave validation.
 
WhenSultansBowled said:
That's the main difference between Pak fans and the Indians. We don't need / crave validation.
Click to expand...

Exactly. Indian fans aren't foolish enough like their neighbors to believe their players to be some type of legends unless he earns accolades from his peers and the rest of the world.

With regards to your case of not requiring validation, it's almost like every mother believes her child to be the best looking in the world :))
 
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Very good, unbiased and sensible selection. Sachin as test opener seems mouth watering. I would be very interested in seeing how one of the greatest batsmen against pace would fare as a test opener, given the license to go for it freely.
 
Except Hanif Mohammad cannot fault him with anything else.Even that is not too bad a selection as Hanif was a very good opener. But would have preferred Gavaskar.
 
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Hitman said:
That's what most Pak fans try to take comfort by believing in since they have no other option, ain't it? Never heard anyone outside Pakistan name Inzamam as a contender in even the 10th list of anyone's 'World XI' :))
Click to expand...

Similar to how Indians take comfort by citing only the World Cup wins against Pakistan as opposed to the head to head record right ??
 
ahmedwaqas92 said:
Similar to how Indians take comfort by citing only the World Cup wins against Pakistan as opposed to the head to head record right ??
Click to expand...

Pretty much true in the past, particularly in the 90's. But the tides have drastically changed and we don't need to be bitter or insecure anymore considering the strength of our side and how well we have been doing the last number of years compared to Pakistan. In other words, we need not be insecure anymore considering the current scenario.
 
Only change I would make is Akram for Hadlee. Also possibly Dravid or Miandad for Kallis.
 
PakLFC said:
Only change I would make is Akram for Hadlee. Also possibly Dravid or Miandad for Kallis.
Click to expand...

Hadlee is a much better match winner than Akram in test. Hadlee was the best bowler of the top 4 allrounders, Akram isn't even as good as Imran
 
Joseph Gomes said:
Hadlee is a much better match winner than Akram in test. Hadlee was the best bowler of the top 4 allrounders, Akram isn't even as good as Imran
Click to expand...

I want a left handed pacer to give the team more diversity. As good as Hadlee was I am sticking to Waz. Being not as good as Imran Khan does not make Akram bad.
 
Bowling is a bit questionable if I'm being hypercritical...not enough variety but Hadlee is a good selection. I would have him over McGrath.

Would rather have something like a combination of Marshall, Wasim, Holding and Hadlee...Sheer Pace, good line and length, swing/seam and etc. All the boxes ticked.
 
Hadlee is severely underrated on this forum. He was better or at least as good as 90% of the ATG fast bowlers.
 
ExpressPacer said:
[MENTION=132062]Harsh Thakor[/MENTION] [MENTION=8597]kingusama92[/MENTION] You guys may have your own opinion however I don't think Hanif's selection is a tribute. Hanif is severely underrated and was a brilliant batsman.
Click to expand...

Oh absolutely. Hanif Mohammad was a legend and there's no doubt about it.

But on merit Gavaskar (Hobbs and Hutton too) has him beat in almost every category based on how he played in his era.
 
Hitman said:
Pretty much true in the past, particularly in the 90's. But the tides have drastically changed and we don't need to be bitter or insecure anymore considering the strength of our side and how well we have been doing the last number of years compared to Pakistan. In other words, we need not be insecure anymore considering the current scenario.
Click to expand...

But we are talking about fans, and the way most indian fans react to head to head record its clear that they are still very insecure.It will take india years to catch Pakistan, and it doesn't matter how good or bad indian team is as they don't play Pakistan in bilateral series, as such Pakistan will maintain a better record.
 
That's a solid line-up there. Not sure about Sachin opening tho has a fairly poor record against the new cherry. Maybe Lara is a better bet out of those selected.
 
Hanif is a bit of a charity pick.

Also, you can't have Tendy opening in tests; this is not like ODIs, where conditions favor the opener. A better option is Lara, as he basically opened for the West Indies. And Viv was better at 3 than Kallis, so you might as well put him up there.

You thus have Tendy, Kallis and Sobers fighting for 4, 5 and 6. In my mind, Sobers is the more adaptable of the three, so I'd play him at six.
 
Hitman said:
Exactly. Indian fans aren't foolish enough like their neighbors to believe their players to be some type of legends unless he earns accolades from his peers and the rest of the world.

With regards to your case of not requiring validation, it's almost like every mother believes her child to be the best looking in the world :))
Click to expand...



I am sure if there was an exception, you must be it!
 
What is the logical and factual argument for Tendulkar not opening in test XI?
 
Buffet said:
Lack of proven performance in the test format as an opener.
Click to expand...

That line of argument is fine.. My question however is what is the actual sample size to establish his so called "poor" record against the new ball?
 
SL_Fan said:
Based on seeing how he fared against the newish ball and his point-of-entry averages.


Screen%20Shot%202015-09-22%20at%207.45.59%20pm_zps4u36jh05.png



From sometime back.
Click to expand...

It's not a poor average by any means. I don't believe in switching around the spots of players in my xi,but if you really want SRT, Viv, Lara and Kallis in the same team then that's the only way it can be done.
 
Well fair to say it is quite poor when you compare with other top order bats on there. As I said Lara is definitely a better bet at the top up against the new cherry.
 
Not necessarily.. things like home vs away record for example has to be considered. All stats are multidimensional.
 
For comparison purposes here's Kallis' point of entry numbers at no 4. He would be a better bet as well at the top.

Screen%20Shot%202015-09-22%20at%207.54.18%20pm_zpsjaeuoa29.png
 
SRT's average is 40 when coming at less than 20, then it jumps all way to 51 when coming at 21-49 then it drops all the way down to 40 again between 50-75!

What would be the possible explanation? Shouldn't the numbers look better as the point of entry goes up? I find it difficult to establish the correlation here.
 
Monsee said:
I am sure if there was an exception, you must be it!
Click to expand...

But won't you give me the stiffest competition winning the honor in the end like you have always done so in this department against most people in the past?
 
Sachin as opener is interesting.
6 Bowlers are bit too much for an AT XI.
He could have pick a proper operner instead of Kallis and pushed Sachin at 4. Viv Richards has great record at no.3 (3500 runs at 60+ avg).
 
Why pick players like Sobers and Hanif that you have never seen play. Stick to players that you have played with, against or seen.
 
I would make the following changes:

1. Gavaskar instead of Hanif
2. Ricky Ponting instead of Kallis
3. Marshall instead of Hadlee
4. Wasim Akram instead of McGrath
 
And oh yeah that bloke Don whatever his name is or contemporary batting maestro M Hafeez as 12th man.
 
Its good line up but could have been made better.

If you want to make all time XI , you need to mention the surface on which game is to be played. Then according to that you can play the right players. Random XI is not possible to make. For example on turning pitches you need batsmen who play spin better.
 
Majid Khan said:
I would make the following changes:

1. Gavaskar instead of Hanif
2. Ricky Ponting instead of Kallis
3. Marshall instead of Hadlee
4. Wasim Akram instead of McGrath
Click to expand...

Good suggestions, the only change for me would be 4. Warne for Murali
 
Gavaskar, in place of Hanif
Bradman for Tendulkar, of course.
Rest is fine.
 
Ruthless XI, Khan saab would be decent cover for the 3/4 slots too :)

Good to see variation in the XI too, all the players selected are pretty much top class, and some great contrasts in the pairings with bat and ball.

You could probably make 3/4 world all time XIs - the 4th XI would still be deadly and give the 1st's a game.
 
In an ODI lineup Wasim will be the first name from Pak but in Tests he wasn't as good as Imran be it the Bowler Imran or the Allrounder. The only edge Wasim have over Imran is that he was left arm and there are not many great left arm bowlers so he adds the variety in a line up. Imran have to compete with the likes of Marshall, McGrath and Hadlee as a bowler but he is far superior bat that gives him the edge.
 
4 all rounders in Kallis, Sobers, Hadlee, and Imran. YK seems to have a soft corner for all rounders.

Very surprised that Wasim Akram did not make the list. Does YK have some grouse with Akram?
 
Hanif mohammad doesn't deserve to open ahead of Gavaskar, but it's a personal XI, so can't really fault him for that.
 
Harsh Thakor said:
Maybe a great selection.generally positive.However still I would place Gavaskar,Hobbs or Hutton instead of Hanif.The records speak for itself.For pure bowling skill and variety I would replace Mcgrath with Wasim Akram,Marshall or Lillee.All had greater all-round skill .Wasim's left-arm variety would make him my first choice amongst pace bowlers.Disagree with so many all-rounders in the line up and being such a great match-winner Botham could have been included instead of Kallis.I think it should either have Hadlee,Imran ,Miller or Botham to accompany Sobers in that order of merit,as fast-bowling all-rounders are greater match-winners..I would give Warne the edge by a whisker over Murli.Personally i thought Bradman was an automatic selection,just like Sobers.Chose Hadlee as his phenomenal control would be a perfect acomplice to the seam movement of Wasim and the all-round skill of Marshall.l prefer Hadlee to Mcgrath because he was also a good batsmen,otherwise Mcgrath may make it.
My tentative xi would be

Hobbs
Tendulkar
Bradman
Viv Richards
Lara
Sobers
Gilchrist
Hadlee
Warne
Wasim
Marshall
Click to expand...

When you are a successful international cricketer, then you will be afforded space to name your x1. Until then stop acting like a 'know it all' and stop acting like you are an authority on cricket.
 
Hanif was obviously a personal preference as he probably had a great influence on him as he was growing up, so I don't have any issues with that at all given that he was a legend of the game with one of the best knocks in the history of test cricket.

The batting order looks wrong but again that is his preference. Only thing I would say that is controversial is Murali over Warne.
 
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