Test cricket is cricket in its most pristine form. Since its inception in 1877, Test cricket delighted the lovers of the game and produced a long list of greats. With the phenomenal success of T20 format, the game’s oldest format took a considerable beating and lost a fair bit of its sheen.
However, it still commands its share of die-hard supporters that follow the format keenly. T20 format or ‘the slam-bang version’ of the game may be immensely popular today, but the joy produced by test cricket is unadulterated and unmatchable.
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The new era from 1990 saw the emergence of all-time greats like Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne and is commonly referred to as the ‘modern era.’ Many records were shattered in this era and Test cricket became more competitive.
In this article, we embark upon the task of choosing the greatest test XI from the modern era.
Unsurprisingly, Australia has the largest number of players in this team as it has been the most dominant side since the 1990s in all formats of the game. Here is the ‘greatest test XI’ of the modern era.
#1 Virender Sehwag
Throughout his glittering career, Virender Sehwag remained one of India’s most impactful batsman in all formats and enlivened test cricket like few others. He was an epitome of fearlessness and pulverised many bowling attacks. He broke the barrier of triple hundreds in tests twice, an astonishing feat that remained elusive even for the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
The way in which he tamed the bowling attack of Pakistan in 2004 in Multan on his way to his first triple hundred remains etched forever in the memories of the Indian fans.
Sehwag’s audacity to go for boundaries while batting on the brink of important milestones fetched him countless admirers. Getting to his 300 with a massive six off the bowling of Saqlain Mushtaq is a case in point.
What set Sehwag apart from the rest of the prolific batsmen was the red-hot pace at which he amassed his runs. Sehwag struck at the rate of 82 runs per hundred balls in test cricket, a rate which is unmatched in tests and which is considered very impressive in ODI cricket too. At a time when test cricket was becoming wearisome, ‘Viru’ injected new life into it with his exhilarating stroke-play.
Sehwag’s conversion rate of fifties into hundreds (23 hundreds out of 55 fifty plus scores) is admirable too. Since Sehwag is the most aggressive opening batsman in the modern era, he is an automatic choice for the first opening slot.
#2 Matthew Hayden
Matthew Hayden was one of the most vital cogs in the Australian batting lineup during its peak. Although Hayden made his debut in test cricket in 1994, he shot into prominence in the memorable Ind-Aus 2001 series in which he top-scored with 549 runs.
Since then, the runs flowed freely from his bat and he remained a certainty at the top of the order for Australia in both formats of the game.
Physically, Hayden looked domineering with his bulky frame and evoked the same sort of fear with his batting as well. His powerful sweep shots made him a tough nut to crack for the spinners and fetched him great success in the subcontinent. Hayden often charged down the track to pace bowlers to upset their rhythm.
Hayden boasts of a fifty plus batting average (50.73), which is considered the benchmark for batting greatness in the modern era.
When Hayden was well-set, it was very difficult to dislodge him and he would often go on to make a hundred, a fact illustrated by an excellent conversion rate of fifties into hundreds. He is one of a handful of batsmen to have scored more hundreds than fifties in test cricket.
With 30 hundreds and 29 fifties, Hayden’s rate of conversion is one of the best in the modern era.
Adept at playing both pace and spin, Hayden was a nemesis of the bowlers and the southpaw would be an ideal partner for the right-handed Sehwag.
#3 Ricky Ponting (c)
Had it not been for the towering presence of Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting could well have been regarded as the greatest modern day batsman. Ponting amassed more than 13000 runs in both tests and ODIs and scored more international hundreds than anyone else except Tendulkar.
The run machine from Tasmania was the lynchpin of the Aussie top order in both formats of the game and contributed to the dominance of the Kangaroos in no small measure.
Ponting’s batting repertoire covered all the shots in the book but it was his pull shot that stood out the most. He pulled ferociously and showed great aggression while dealing with pace. There were a few chinks in Ponting’s batting armor, the most notable one being his vulnerability to quality spin in the subcontinent.
Apart from it, Ponting was a nightmare for bowlers.
Both as a batsman and a captain, Ponting is one of the most successful players in the modern era. During his time, Ponting experienced both extremes of fortune. He is the only player in the history of test cricket to take part in a hundred test victories and holds the best record for a captain with 48 wins in 77 matches. However, he was also the first Australian captain to lose three Ashes series.
Since Ponting is one of the most prolific batsmen at no.3 position, he will occupy the same slot in our ‘greatest test XI of the modern era’ and will assume the mantle of captaincy as well.
#4 Sachin Tendulkar
Since he made his debut in the international cricket in 1989 against Pakistan at Karachi, Tendulkar grew from strength to strength and accomplished many feats that could only be dreamt of till then. Tendulkar mastered every shot in the book, excelled in all playing conditions and piled up mountains of runs against all major test playing nations.
His record-breaking career was constantly followed by fans with great zeal and became the subject of intense scrutiny by statisticians worldwide. He became the benchmark against which modern day batsmen are measured. Tendulkar, by virtue of being the most prolific batsman in both formats of the game, remains atop the list of batting legends. Longevity was another remarkable feature of Tendulkar’s sparkling career.
Whenever he played against Australia – undoubtedly the best team of his era – Tendulkar was at his best and delivered many masterpieces in both formats. Tendulkar holds the record for the highest number of runs, centuries, matches and many more records. By the time he called it a day, he had a lion’s share of the batting records under his name.
Although Brian Lara, ‘the Prince of Trinidad’ is an excellent choice for no.4 slot and a stiff competitor to Tendulkar, it is impossible to leave Tendulkar out as he is the highest scorer in the format.
#5 Jacques Kallis
Jacques Henry Kallis is the modern day equivalent of Sir Gary Sobers. He may not be glorified as heavily as modern day batting maestros like Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara but his feats in test cricket are no less remarkable.
Considering the number of runs and hundreds Kallis scored, it is unfathomable as to why the debate of the ‘greatest modern day test batsman’ rarely features his name and mostly revolves around only Lara and Tendulkar.
Very much in the classical mould, his batting technique was almost flawless and a delight to the game’s traditional lovers. His rock-solid batting often kept the bowlers at bay for a very long time.
While his pristine batsmanship is more than enough to earn him a ticket to greatness, his bowling skills make him a multi-faceted cricketer. South Africa’s most dependable batsman and a key component of the bowling attack, Kallis shouldered the burden of multiple roles in the team.
When statistics alone is taken into consideration, Kallis wins the title of ‘the greatest all-rounder’ hands down.
With a tally of 13289 runs, Kallis is the third highest run getter in test cricket behind Tendulkar and Ponting. And then, there is the small matter of 292 test wickets and 200 catches, which makes him an incredible all-rounder. Kallis is indispensable to this side for his awe-inspiring all-round feats.
#6 Shaun Pollock
Shaun Pollock is one of modern cricket’s best all-rounders in both formats of the game and one of the most underrated cricketers of his time. Pollock never had lightning quick pace to terrify batsmen but tenaciously stuck to an unerring line and length throughout his career.
It was a formula that earned him rich rewards. His economy rate of just 3.67 in the ODIs and 2.39 in tests demonstrate how tough it was to score off the bowling of Pollock. Along with the fearsome Allan Donald, he formed a devastating pace bowling partnership for the Proteas.
With a tally of 421 wickets in 108 test matches, Pollock currently holds the record for the highest number of wickets for South Africa in test cricket, a record which will inevitably be eclipsed by Dale Steyn.
Pollock was a very impactful batsman lower down the order,too. When on song, he cleared the boundaries at will and scored runs at a brisk pace.
He maintained an average of 32 in tests and scored well in excess of 3000 runs. Overall, he was a useful all-rounder and superb bowler.
The presence of a top-notch pace bowling all-rounder like Pollock lends immense balance to the team and creates the room to accommodate a second spinner in the side. Although England’s Andrew Flintoff is a strong contender for the slot of the pace bowling all-rounder, Pollock is chosen as he is a far better bowler.
#7 Adam Gilchrist (wk)
Ever since he took up the mantle of Australia’s wicket-keeper from the great Ian Healy, Adam Gilchrist was a constant in the Australian side and redefined the role of wicket-keepers. In the ODIs, he provided blazing starts as an opener that left the opposition bowlers gasping and, in tests, too, he adopted the same uncompromising style with remarkable success.
In a lineup brimming with many great batsmen like Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden and Steve Waugh, it was Gilchrist’s presence at no.7 that terrified the opposition the most. Gilchrist’s whirlwind knocks often converted good totals into mammoth ones and paltry totals into respectable ones. That he could maintain a test batting average of 47 while scoring runs at a galloping pace of almost 82 runs per hundred balls is awe-inspiring.
Gilly’s acrobatics behind the wicket set a new benchmark for wicket-keeping. When a batsman left the crease, Gilly would dislodge the bails in a jiffy. Many thick edges that seemed to be destined for the boundary would often land in the ultra-safe gloves of Gilchrist, much to the horror of batsmen.
The Australian edges out his closest rivals Kumar Sangakkara and Mark Boucher for the role of wicket-keeper because of his extraordinarily aggressive batting style. Gilly’s selection is the easiest of all, easier than that of even the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
#8 Wasim Akram
Without a shred of doubt, Wasim Akram is the greatest left-arm pacer in the entire history of cricket. Nicknamed ‘the Sultan of the Swing’ for his extraordinary ability to swing the ball prodigiously both ways, Akram posed a constant and a formidable threat to the batsmen.
With his large arsenal of tricks, Akram struck fear in the hearts of batsmen and delivered many magical performances.
Akram brought even the best of the batsmen to their knees with his unplayable swinging yorkers that travelled at a great pace. His bouncers often caught the batsmen unawares sending them to their doom.
His record of 414 wickets in 104 matches is breathtaking. In a nutshell, Akram was a complete fast bowler.
In the lower order, he was a useful batsman with an average of 22 and scored three hundreds, including a mammoth knock of 257 not out against Zimbabwe. Considering his caliber with the willow, one would probably be left wondering as to why Akram did not average higher with the bat.
With the ball, Akram’s sorcery was legendary. With the willow, he could be devastating. The presence of a left arm bowler also lends variety to the lineup and it is impossible to keep a bowler of Akram’s stature out of the team.
#9 Shane Warne
Shane Warne, the leg spin maestro from Australia is one of modern cricket’s most enthralling players. At a time when the difficult art of leg spin was in the doldrums, Warne revived it with his beautiful bowling. Warne was a prodigious turner of the ball and spun a web of trickery around the minds of the batsmen.
He possessed wonderful flight, which teased the batsmen and lured them out of the safety of their crease only to be bowled or stumped. In a nutshell, Warne mastered every aspect of leg spin.
Warne began his test career in 1992 against India in horrendous fashion with figures of 1/150, but it did not take too long to showcase his wizardry. His ball to Mike Gatting in the 1993 Ashes series which pitched outside the leg stump but spun remarkably to hit Gatting’s off stump remains immortal in the history of cricket.
Since that ball, aptly called the ‘ball of the century’, Warne captured the imagination of cricket lovers all over the world and scaled many peaks. On the field or off it, Warne always hogged the limelight.
With a haul of 708 wickets in 145 matches, Warne is next only to Muttiah Muralitharan in the list of the highest wicket takers in tests and his leg spin is too magical to keep him out of our ‘greatest eleven of the modern era.’
#10 Glenn McGrath
If one fast bowler could be considered as the epitome of accuracy and discipline in the modern era, that title would undoubtedly be conferred on Glenn McGrath. McGrath’s modus operandi was the simplest of all but was mighty effective.
He bowled an impeccable line and length around the off stump and rarely deviated from it. It is often said that McGrath had the ability to bowl all six deliveries in an over at the same spot.
His great height naturally fetched him great bounce that made him a difficult proposition for the batsmen. McGrath suffocated the batsmen with his extremely disciplined bowling and induced false shots from them that led them to their doom. In his duels with great batsmen of his time like Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, McGrath often emerged as the winner.
McGrath is the only pacer to breach the barrier of 500 test wickets apart from Courtney Walsh, and his tally of 563 wickets in 124 matches is the highest for any fast bowler in test cricket. His average of 21.64 is marvelous.
The Australian team of the modern era was blessed with many first-rate bowlers like Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie but McGrath’s position as the best pacer in the team remained unrivalled. As he is the most prolific fast bowler in the history, Glenn McGrath walks into the team as the leader of the pace attack.
#11 Muttiah Muralitharan
Muttiah Muralitharan is one of the greatest bowlers in the history of test cricket, if not the greatest ever. In a remarkable career spanning almost two decades, Muralitharan took exactly 800 wickets in 133 tests and 534 wickets in ODIs. In terms of the no. of international wickets, Murali stands head and shoulders above everybody else in the history.
Murali was an indefatigable warrior in the Sri Lankan bowling line-up who churned out many marathon spells in test cricket. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Lankan bowling line-up was a one-man army for a good part of his career.
Murali was so difficult to hit that he bowled regularly in the death overs for Sri Lanka despite being a spinner.
Whether wickets were needed or the flow of runs had to be stemmed immediately, Sri Lankan captains invariably turned to Murali and he almost always answered their prayers. His bowling action put him at the center of controversies but Murali came out unscathed.
Regardless of the pitch, Murali extracted massive turn and flummoxed the batsmen. He was probably the only spinner in history that could generate a tremendous amount of spin both ways, a factor which contributed to his success immensely.
It was Murali who popularised Doosra, the most potent weapon in an off-spinner’s arsenal.
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