All-time Test Captains XI

Having presented our ODI Captains XI last week, we present its logical sequel - the Test Captains XI. If there is any greater honour thanrepresent your country at the highest level, it is to do so as captain.Since the first Test in the 19th century, we have seen captains who have changed the course of the game. However, a few among theseelite players stand out as the best of the lot, not only being tactically astute, but also leading by example with bat and ball. The following criterions were considered whilst making this selection:The player should have captained in at least 20Testmatches.If a player is selected best for, saynumber3, a second best No.3 will not be considered for any other spot. For example,if Sir Donald Bradmanis selected as a one-down batsman, Stephen Flemingmisses out and will not be eligible to be selected at no. 4, unless the player has played at multiple positions for a reasonable amount of time.The performance of the captainas a playeris being gauged, and not as a captain. Only his performanceduring his tenure as a captainis considered. However, the captain of this team is selected on the merit of his captaincy, and is mentioned in the last slide.The home-away record was an important parameter for the selection. A player ideally plays almost 50% of his matches at home and 50% of his matches abroad (7-8 countries).Since the objective of making this team was to make it adaptablein any condition, the away record was given utmostimportance.There might be a school of thought that performances againstminnows should not be considered, but over a span of 150 years, defining the term minnow proved to be impossible. The parameter returned 70 captains. After a lot of deliberation and discussion, we present, in our opinion, the best possible World XI comprising of captains in the following format:Career Record, Record as Captain, Overseas CaptainRecord and Notable Absentees along with our line ofreasoning for their absenteeism. Note: The term span in the statistics are the end points of the player as captain. For example, if X was captain from 1991-1994 and then 1996-1999, the span would read as 1991-1999.

#1 Len Hutton

The opening conundrum was indeed a difficult one to solve. But unlike India’s current woes, we faced the problem of plenty, not that of dearth. Selecting the top four contenders proved to be easy, but the final selection took some thinking, with all four pipping each other in some aspect or another. Eventually, we chose Sir Leonard Hutton to play the first ball. Regarded as the greatest, most technically correct English batsman after Sir Jack Hobbs and Sir WG Grace, Len Hutton broke the then world-record score in his sixth Test, scoring 364. He was also England's first professional captain.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1952-1955	23	1825	205	52.14	5	1	1/2	45.00
As captain away from Home	1954-1955	12	964	205	50.73	2	1	1/2	45.00
Overall	1937-1955	79	6971	364	56.67	19	3	1/2	77.33

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#2 Graeme Smith

With Hutton chosen, the selection procedure proved even more difficult for the other spot. But eventually it was impossible to leave out this burly left-hander. The highest run-getter as captain was one of the grittiest players the world has seen. His exorbitant 4th innings exploits and outstanding away record tipped the scales in his favour, aided by a poor away record by the other two contenders. His penchant for big scores was also evident early in his career with back-to-back double centuries in his 11th and 12th Tests.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	2003-2014	109	8659	277	47.83	25	8	2/145	109.12
As captain away from Home	2003-2013	56	5279	277	54.98	17	6	2/145	87.16
Overall	2002-2014	117	9265	277	48.25	27	8	2/145	110.62

Notable Absentees

Sunil Gavaskar: Almost finalised into the side before his ordinary record overseas turned the tables. An ordinary average of 37.88 away from home as compared to Biff’s 55 was too vast to ignore. One might argue that Gavaskar played better quality of bowling, but the likes of Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Muttiah Muralitharan and Shoaib Akthar were no mucks with the ball either. Add to that the fact that Gavaskar never toured West Indies as captain makes his case even less stronger as the Windies easily possessed the most lethal bowlers of the time.

Graham Gooch: The other legendary opener that failed to make the final cut, on the same grounds - an average record. Though his batting average as captain was higher than the selected openers, his overseas average was bordering on 38.

We do acknowledge that in England and India respectively, Gooch and Gavaskar may score better than Sir Hutton or Smith, but the very objective was to select a team that would be dominant everywhere, and that lead us to this line of reasoning.

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#3 Don Bradman

Unquestionably, the greatest Test batsman of the game, as captain or otherwise. Chased perfection like none other, had the iron will to dominate and destroy opponents, not just win matches. By his own admission, there were many more talented batsmen than him, but lacked the concentration he possessed. He could go on batting for hours and days. Though he missed out on a career average of 100, he did have that as captain.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1936-1948	24	3147	270	101.51	14	-	-	-
As captain away from Home	1938-1948	9	942	173*	85.63	5	-	-	-
Overall	1928-1948	52	6996	334	99.96	29	2	1/8	36.00

Notable Absentees:

Rahul Dravid: Though this list of notable absentees is about how great Bradman was and other greats simply missed out due to his greatness, it might really surprise you that Dravid averaged a meagre 34.07 at no. 3 as captain.

Ricky Ponting: The highest scorer at no. 3 as captain, he had a phenomenal record to say the least. Unfortunately, he came up against the South Australian, and the greatness of the Don is such that it renders all comparisons moot.

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#4 Sachin Tendulkar

Here it is, then. This debate went on for hours and hours, arguments and counter arguments, but eventually it had to be the Master Blaster. Think Tendulkar was not a good Test player as captain? After we provided some stats about Tendulkar the Big Match player, we might surprise you again as Tendulkar has the highest batting average by an Indian captain, and went merely 4 overseas tests out of 13 without scoring in excess of 50!

That including the fact that Tendulkar did not play a single Test in Zimbabwe and Bangladesh as captain, and only two in Sri Lanka, meaning his runs came in the most taxing of conditions. But Lara was no short of a legend in his own right. Lara had a better batting average as captain overall, but Tendulkar pipped him in the overseas record, by almost the same difference. Eventually, Tendulkar was chosen ahead of Lara by the slightest of margins, keeping in mind our penchant for overseas records. The record of both players is provided for better understanding.

Brian Lara

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1997-2006	57	4685	400*	57.83	14	-	-	-
As captain away from Home	1998-2006	20	1942	216	49.79	5	-	-	-
Overall	1990-2006	131	11953	400*	52.88	34	0	-	-

Sachin Tendulkar

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1996-2000	25	2054	217	51.35	7	4	3/10	38.00
As captain away from Home	1996-2000	13	1098	169	54.90	4	1	1/34	75.00
Overall	1989-2013	200	15921	248*	53.78	51	46	3/10	54.17

Notable Absentees

Mahela Jayawardene: Another prolific run scorer and captain. He has a higher average as captain than both Lara and Tendulkar, but as known by everyone, has a very dismal overseas record.

Javed Miandad: One of Pakistan’s greats. Could not make the cut above the two.

Wally Hammond: One of the greatest batsmen to play for England is better than both statistically, but the fact that Lara and Tendulkar played in teams that hardly gave them support (during their tenures as captain) was a major reason they were chosen as better players.

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#5 Allan Border

What started as a three-way Australian tussle between Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Micheal Clarke saw Clarke first out as his decent away record was not going to stand against phenomenal ones, though he does have the 3rd highest average as a captain.

Steve Waugh was captain of one of the most dominating team in the history of the game, whereas Border took over the Australian team when they were at their lowest point. Though both of them had similar overseas and overall records, AB played the like of Holding, Garner, Croft, Marshall, Kapil Dev, Imran Khan and came up with those numbers.

Waugh, on the other hand, did not play some of the greatest bowlers of his generation, as they were in his own team. And as Border won only 20% Tests he scored a century in shows he was a lone warrior and scored his runs when others couldn’t. Find this logic absurd? Know more about it click on the link highlighted in the previous slide.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1984-1994	93	6623	205	50.94	15	24	7/46	40.04
As captain away from Home	1985-1994	42	3175	200*	55.70	8	10	5/68	52.70
Overall	1979-1994	156	11174	205	50.56	27	39	7/46	39.10

Notable Absentees

Mohammed Azharuddin: The stylish Indian captain was good in his own right, a phenomenal player for India, but could not come against the two great Aussies.

Rahul Dravid: Played only 2 matches at this position as captain, though he did so as a player, and hence could not be considered for selection.

Clive Lloyd: The captain of our ODI XI fails to break into the Test XI, stopped by the same players he beat in the ODI setup. Apart from the fact that he did not play his fiery fast bowlers, his career average of 51.30 is comparable to the two Aussies, but his away record falls way behind, averaging 49.7 abroad as opposed to the above 55 Border had.

Sir Vivian Richards: Sir Richards was one of the most brutal of all players to ever play the game. The person to give ‘Swagger’ a whole new meaning, his record as captain was not too extraordinary in either formats. His average of around 45 overall as well as away was lesser than that of Border, and Border had to face the onerous task to face the ‘Fires of Babylon’.

Brian Lara: Since missing the number 4 spot, he was in contention for the 5th, but then again AB overpowered this contention with his rock solid credentials.

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#6 Garry Sobers

Undisputedly the best all rounder to grace the game, as captain or otherwise. He could break into the team on the basis of his batting or bowling record alone. An ll-rounder in every sense of the word, he could bat, bowl left-arm seamers, slow left-arm and left-arm chinaman and was also the best fielder of his time. He also has the best away average after Sir Don Bradman. Nothing much to prove, really.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1965-1972	39	3128	178*	58.80	11	117	6/73	34.00
As captain away from Home	1966-1969	19	1781	174	59.36	5	70	6/79	32.10
Overall	1954-1974	93	8032	365*	57.78	26	235	6/73	34.03

Notable Absentees:

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi: The Nawab of Pataudi was a legend in his own right, but no-where close to Sir Garry Sobers

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#7 Andy Flower (wk)

Surprised? We had to do some changes in the criterion here. MS Dhoni is the only wicket keeper in the history of Test matches to keep and captain for more than 20 Test matches, and our panel of experts decide that it’d be unfair for a player to be selected solely on the basis of being the only player to fulfil the selection criterion. Hence, we decided to reduce the number of matches as captain and compared the result. We found that under these circumstances, Andy Flower beats Dhoni hands down, by virtue of having a way better average and even better away batting average. Dhoni does not even have a century as captain away from home. The records of both keepers are mentioned below:

Andy Flower

Particulars	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1993-2000	16	1232	156	49.28	3	-	-	-
As captain away from Home	1993-2000	8	502	113*	41.83	1	-	-	-
Overall	1992-2002	63	4794	232*	51.54	12	-	-	-

MS Dhoni

Particulars	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	2008- Present	58	3386	224	41.29	5	-	-	-
As captain away from Home	2009-Present	28	1523	90	33.10	0	-	-	-
Overall	2005-Present	88	4808	224	38.46	6	-	-	-

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#8 Imran Khan (c)

Imran Khan, who barely missed out in the ODI setup, is the undisputed choice in the Test format. With a batting average of over 50 as captain, Imran, primarily a bowler would have made it into the team based on his batting alone. Add to that, you have a fantastic bowler means you are playing with 12 men instead of 11. His bowling average is the best by any captain having taken more than a solitary wicket.

There are some captains like Mike Brearly and Graeme Smith who are tactically geniuses. There are some who lead by example like Sir Don Bradman and Sir Garry Sobers. And then there some who are great motivators like Allan Border. But to have all three qualities is rare, and one man to possess them is none other than the legendary Imran Khan. Not only does he have the best CV for the team, he also is the most certain choice to lead the team.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Batting Average	100’s	Wickets	BBI	Bowling Average
As Captain	1982-1992	48	2408	136	54.34	5	187	8/60	20.26
As captain away from Home	1982-1992	26	1454	136	50.13	3	99	7/40	23.11
Overall	1971-1992	88	3807	136	37.69	6	362	8/58	22.81

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#9 Wasim Akram

Pakistan take the bragging rights in the seaming department with the entry of the only player to make it to both lists. The King of Swing was as phenomenal a bowler as they come, swinging it both ways at will, then coming back later to reverse it. He has the 3rd best bowling average among bowlers with multiple wickets, and though his away bowling record is not that impressive, he still does enough to make it to the list.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Wickets	BBI	BBM	Bowling Average	Strike Rate
As Captain	1993-1999	25	894	257*	107	6/48	10/106	23.35	50.8
As captain away from Home	1993-1999	17	523	52	63	5/53	6/75	27.82	59.9
Overall	1985-2002	104	2898	257*	414	7/119	11/110	23.62	54.6

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#10 Richie Benaud/Courtney Walsh

Again, keeping in mind the conditions of the match, we decided to go in with the strategy of playing either a leg spinner or a hit-the-deck fast bowler, as the situation demanded. The two players identified for this role are Richie Benaud and Courtney Walsh. The leg spinning Richie Benaud, now a television commentator was one of Australia’s finest till Shane Warne happened. Nonetheless, still a wonderful leggie with a whole bag of tricks. Courtney, again, an automatic choice by virtue of having the best bowling average overseas coupled with a mind-boggling strike rate. His unbelievable overseas record as captain overshadows his decent show in West Indies.

Richie Benaud

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Wickets	BBI	BBM	Bowling Average	Strike Rate
As Captain	1958-1963	28	816	77	138	6/70	9/173	25.78	77.6
As captain away from Home	1959-1961	12	220	36*	62	6/70	8/76	23.16	73.6
Overall	1952-1964	63	2201	122	248	7/72	11/105	27.03	77.0

Courtney Walsh

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Wickets	BBI	BBM	Bowling Average	Strike Rate
As Captain	1994-1997	24	122	21	85	7/37	13/55	25.71	57.3
As captain away from Home	1994-1997	13	65	18	66	7//37	13/55	21.07	45.8
Overall	1984-2001	132	936	30*	519	7/37	13/55	24.44	57.8

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#11 Bishen Singh Bedi

How can the list possibly be complete without a top class sub continent spinner? Bishen Singh Bedi was easily the best choice available. The Surd could turn his slow left armers on glass if he liked, along with possessing a menacing arm ball. He also has the highest first class wickets by an Indian bowler.

	Span	Matches	Runs	Highest Score	Wickets	BBI	BBM	Bowling Average	Strike Rate
As Captain	1976-1978	22	294	50*	106	6/71	10/194	24.82	68.6
As captain away from Home	1976-1978	14	122	30	59	5/55	10/194	29.94	72.4
Overall	1966-1979	67	656	50*	266	7/98	10/194	28.71	80.3

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#12 Notable Bowling Absentees

Kapil Dev: With Imran and Wasim the undisputed choices, Walsh was chosen over Kapil Dev on account of better average and strike rate, both overseas and overall. Due to having a batsman with 50+ average at no. 8, batting was given almost zero importance.

Shaun Pollock: Like his team mate in the ODI XI, Shaun Pollock misses out on account of a poor overseas record as compared to Walsh, as they have almost similar overall records.

Daniel Vettori: The left-arm spinner was never in contention against the great Bishen Singh Bedi. A superb modern day bowler, though.

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