SA Footy

Cricinfo.comare undertaking the process of maning an all-time best XI for each nation, and have started with Australia. The judges included Peter Roebuck, Gideon Haigh, David Frith, Warwick Franks and Jim Maxwell.

The nominees

Openers: Arthur Morris, Mark Taylor, Bill Woodfull, Bill Ponsford, Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden, Bill Lawry, Bob Simpson, Victor Trumper.

Middle order: David Boon, Allan Border, Donald Bradman, Greg Chappell, Neil Harvey, Charles Macartney, Stan McCabe, Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh and Steve Waugh.

Allrounders: Warwick Armstrong, Richie Benaud, Jack Gregory, Keith Miller and Monty Noble.

Wicketkeepers: Jack Blackham, Adam Gilchrist, Ian Healy, Rod Marsh, Bert Oldfield and Don Tallon.

Spinners: Clarrie Grimmett, Bert Ironmonger, Bill O'Reilly, Hugh Trumble and Shane Warne.

Fast bowlers: Ray Lindwall, Charlie Turner, Fred Spofforth, Dennis Lillee, Garth McKenzie, Alan Davidson, Brett Lee, Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Ted McDonald, Craig McDermott

The Australia XI
Victor Trumper
Arthur Morris
Don Bradman
Greg Chappell
Allan Border
Keith Miller
Adam Gilchrist
Shane Warne
Bill O'Reilly
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath

The England XI

Jack Hobbs
Len Hutton
Wally Hammond
Ken Barrington
Kevin Pietersen
Ian Botham
Alan Knott
Derek Underwood
Harold Larwood
Fred Trueman
Sydney Barnes

12th Man - Denis Compton

The obvious controversial selection is that of KP. The nominees for middle order were as follows
Wally Hammond, Ken Barrington, Kevin Pietersen, Colin Cowdrey, Peter May, David Gower, Stanley Jackson, Frank Woolley, Ted Dexter, Denis Compton

Hammond - 7249 runs @ 58.45 (22 hundreds, 24 fiftes)
Barrington - 6806 runs @ 58.67 (20 hundreds, 35 fifties)
Pietersen - 4647 runs @ 49.96 (16 hundreds, 15 fifties)
Cowdrey - 7624 runs @ 44.06 (22 hundreds, 38 fifties)
May - 4537 runs @ 46.77 (13 hundreds, 22 fifties)
Gower - 8231 runs @ 44.25 (18 hundreds, 39 fifties)
Jackson - 1415 runs @ 48.79 (5 hundreds, 6 fifties)
Woolley - 3283 runs @ 36.07 (5 hundreds, 23 fifties)
Dexter - 4502 runs @ 47.89 (9 hundreds, 27 fifties)
Compton - 5807 runs @ 50.06 (17 hundreds, 28 fifties)


Compton may be a bit unlucky to miss out, but if you look at KPs stats he has scored at least 2 hundreds against every side he has played against, and has an average of worst 42 vs Pakistan and hasnt padded his average against any minnows, Murali style. If you look at his stats against the higer ranked nations - Aus (50.72) SA (60.14)

For mine Ponting has to be in there.

CoverKing wrote:For mine Ponting has to be in there.

Yeah, probably at the expense of AB.

regards,

REB

Ponting should be captain REB

In four or five years, KP has 16 tons???

Justified.

Hayden
Ponsford
Bradman
Ponting
S.Waugh
Miller
Gilchrist
Warne
Davidson
Lillee
Mcgrath

They should have an all time XI for South Africans who played for England...

Dogwatcher wrote:They should have an all time XI for South Africans who played for England...

How would you narrow it down to a field of 20 odd?

ha ha!

I might work on it

You could do an Indian one too - starting with the great Duleepsinji and Ranjitsinghi, the Nawab of Pataudi...

No Thomo in that list?
I'd have him before Brett Lee.

Stumps wrote:Ponting should be captain REB

Especially if there is an Ashes series to be lost on English soil. He's just the ticket for that.

regards,

REB

Chuck Norris wrote:No Thomo in that list?
I'd have him before Brett Lee.

Maybe. Thommo at his peak definately but Thommo was never the same after stuffing up his shoulder crashing into Alan Turner in Adelaide in 1976. I say what about Alan Davidson? Davo carried our attack for many years when we had bugger all strike bowlers and he could bat as well.

regards,

REB

I reckon I'd have Lindwall ahead of Davo or Lee.

Dogwatcher wrote:I reckon I'd have Lindwall ahead of Davo or Lee.

Agreed, otherwise spot on I reckon.

Possibly could've squeezed Hodge in though.

IMHO it would be (regardless of whether I've satisfied the different categories) -


Matthew Hayden
Bill Ponsford
Donald Bradman
Ricky Ponting
Allan Border
Greg Chappell
Adam Gilchrist
Keith Miller
Shane Warne
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath

"If you picked an England side on a similar basis, i would think the majority would come from before and just after the war, so Australian players should also be judged on the opposition they played against."

I posted that on the other thread about Australia's best ever team and Cricinfo's England (and Australian) side backs it up.

There's only one current England player in their best side and only Botham from the recent past.

I'm not knocking the recent Australian players, but their performances have to be partly judged on the opposition they played against. The older Australian players selected in Cricinfo's side were often playing against many of the 'best-ever' England players.

South Africa

The nominees

Openers: Barry Richards, Bruce Mitchell, Graeme Smith, Eddie Barlow, Herschelle Gibbs, Gary Kirsten, Jackie McGlew.

Middle order: Jacques Kallis, Daryll Cullinan, Dudley Nourse, Graeme Pollock, Herbie Taylor, AB de Villiers.

Allrounders: Aubrey Faulkner, Mike Procter, Brian MacMillan, Trevor Goddard, Jimmy Sinclair, Shaun Pollock.

Wicketkeepers: Mark Boucher, Johnny Waite, Jock Cameron, Denis Lindsay, Dave Richardson.

Spinners: Hugh Tayfield, Paul Adams, Cyril Vincent.

Fast bowlers: Shaun Pollock, Allan Donald, Neil Adcock, Makhaya Ntini, Dale Steyn, Peter Pollock, Fanie de Villiers.