The Rival XI - A team which can beat the Wisden XI

Jacques Kallis

Tests – 163

Runs -13,133

Average – 55.64

Wickets – 288

100s – 44

If Lara and Ponting were the answers to Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar, the only man who can stand up to Sir Garry Sobers is Jacques Kallis. Undoubtedly one of the best all-rounders of all time, this big South African is a perfect example of consistency and solidity.

Although there have been more flamboyant all-rounders in the past such as Imran Khan and Ian Botham, Kallis’s solidity puts him into a different bracket altogether.

Batting at number three for South Africa for well over a decade, Kallis is a legend in his own right and is perhaps the only man who has a realistic chance of breaking Tendulkar’s monumental feat of 51 Test hundreds.

However, what makes Kallis special is his ability to turn a match with the ball as well. A feisty medium pacer, Kallis has often broken through with his team in need and can be a handful for any batting line up.