All-time combined India-Sri Lanka ODI XI

The recently-concluded India-Sri Lanka series may have been a lopsided contest with the Lankan Lions rarely putting in a modicum of fight. But, there was a time when the Sri Lankan side boasted of some of the world's best cricketers and were extremely hard to beat. This tiny island, also called 'a tear drop of the Indian Ocean', produced its fair share of immensely talented players whose names are etched forever in golden letters in the annals of cricket history.

Coming to India, where cricket is a religion, there is no dearth of top-notch players. So, what would a 'combined XI' of these two sub-continental rivals look like? Here is the list of players that make up this dream team. Not surprisingly, this side which comprises world record holders and some of the biggest names in the sport, can strike fear into the hearts of any other team.

#1 Sachin Tendulkar

Widely regarded as the greatest batsman of his generation, there are very few batting peaks that Sachin Tendulkar failed to conquer. Early on in his career, his batting heroics made him a huge star and with record after record succumbing to Tendulkar's magical willow, it did not take too long for him to attain the status of a demigod.

With the hopes of a billion Indians resting on his shoulders, the pressure on him was enormous but there was rarely a year when Tendulkar faltered. Even when subject to the harshest scrutiny, Tendulkar's accomplishments look phenomenal.

He was a complete batsman who mastered every stroke and excelled against all kinds of bowling attacks in all conditions across the globe. The flow of runs never abated throughout his amazingly long career and long before he called it a day, he etched his name as one of the greatest ever batsmen in the history of cricket.

On quite a few occasions, his versatile bowling too swung matches in India's favour. With more than 18,000 runs and 49 centuries under his belt, he strides into our team as Opener No. 1.

#2 Sanath Jayasuriya

Sanath Jayasuriya - the 'marauder from Matara' was highly destructive

Sanath Jayasuriya might not have hogged the limelight for the first seven years of his ODI career but his blitzkrieg in the 1996 World Cup played a massive role in Sri Lanka eventually winning the tournament and thereafter, made him indispensable.

In the tournament, he launched an all-out attack on the bowlers right from the outset, decimating them and crushing the morale of the opposition. Teams boasting of at least one attacking opener may be a common sight in today's cricket but it was Jayasuriya's daredevilry and success that highlighted the need and value of having such a player at the top of the order.

With him at the crease, there was little respite for the bowlers. He smashed the ball in all directions but his lofted shots over deep square leg and cuts over point that sent the ball racing to the boundary like unstoppable missiles were, in particular, a treat to watch. In a career spanning more than two decades, 'the mauler from Matara' scored more than 13,000 runs. And then, there is the small matter of 300 wickets which his valuable left-arm spin helped him bag. Jayasuriya will partner Tendulkar as the opener on our side.

#3 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli - A voracious top order batsman with many splendid knocks in his career

Be it the number of runs or the number of centuries, there was always a chasm between Tendulkar and his nearest rival. It was believed that no other batsman could even come close to Tendulkar and the latter's feats would remain unsurpassable for ages. But, the Master Blaster's records no longer possess the aura of invincibility that they once did, thanks to the unabated flow of runs from Virat Kohli's willow.

Whatever may be the format, Kohli's thirst for runs is unquenchable. Much like Tendulkar, there is rarely a series in which Kohli is woefully out of form. He possesses the ability to rip apart any top-notch bowling attack on any surface and is a player suited for all conditions. Very often, his aggressive knocks made a mockery of mammoth totals in high pressure run chases.

Kohli has already notched up 30 ODI hundreds in less than 200 ODIs, a mind-blowing feat. With plenty of time left in his career and him not showing any signs of slowing down, it can be safely said that many more centuries are on the horizon. It is impossible to leave this run-machine out of the team and hence, the no.3 slot in our batting line-up is reserved for Kohli.

#4 Mahela Jayawardene

Few batsmen played cut shots against spinners better than Mahela

Mahela Jayawardene was a real class act. While many modern batsmen have the tendency to biff the ball with brute force in an effort to score quick runs, Jayawardene could achieve the same result by sticking to proper cricketing shots even in T20 matches. For a batsman of his caliber, an ODI average of 33 seems to be underwhelming but none can deny his place in the pantheon of Sri Lankan all-time greats. He is one of a handful of batsmen who breached the 10,000-run mark in both Tests and ODIs.

Mahela's batting is full of elegance and a delight to the purists. Very few batsmen played the late cut against spinners as beautifully as Mahela did. A vivid demonstration of his elegance came in the final of the 2011 World Cup, where he struck a glorious century (103 off just 88 balls) which was overshadowed by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's match-winning 91*. As a captain too, he did a commendable job. This stylish right-hander from Colombo will be a vital cog in the middle-order of our combined XI.

#5 Kumar Sangakkara

Kumar Sangakkara was Sri Lanka's 'Mr. Dependable' till he called it a day

Both as a gloveman and as a batsman, Kumar Sangakkara was worth his weight in gold. His far superior batting prowess ended the career of Romesh Kaluwitharana, who was one of the heroes of Sri Lanka's historic 1996 World Cup triumph and their no.1 wicket-keeper in the late 1990s. Such was the impact of Sangakkara that the Sri Lankan think-tank never had to look for another wicket-keeper.

Sangakkara is a highly elegant left-hander with an insatiable hunger for runs. Along with Mahela Jayawardene, Sanga formed the backbone of the Sri Lankan batting line-up for more than a decade. With more than 14,000 ODI runs and more than 12,000 runs in Tests, he leads the list of the highest run-getters for Sri Lanka.

While he is brilliant with the gloves too, Sanga will be spared the burden of keeping wickets for our team and will play only as a batsman.

#6 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (c) (wk)

MS Dhoni is a man of multiple responsibilities and he excelled in all of them

If there is one cricketer who could give Sachin Tendulkar a run for his money in terms of popularity, it is undoubtedly Mahendra Singh Dhoni. He is Indian cricket's biggest superstar today and one of the greatest ever wicket-keeper batsmen in the entire history of ODI cricket.

The dynamite from Jharkhand started as a merciless destroyer of bowling attacks and after he took over as the captain, tempered the aggression in his game and added more caution. It might have made him relatively less dangerous but he still remains one of the most feared batsmen in the ODI format.

He can rend any bowling attack asunder when quick runs are needed or play the role of a consolidator if the team is in dire straits. His batting average of 52 is astounding. In a nutshell, he is an all-weather player and a great match-winner.

His uber-cool attitude helped India clinch many nail-biting run chases and made him a legend. He has the ability to complete stumpings in a split second and is undoubtedly a very fine gloveman. While a few atrocious defeats overseas might have marred his captaincy record in Tests, he remains a magnificent leader in limited overs cricket. On more than a few occasions, his captaincy decisions turned out to be masterstrokes. He will be the captain and the wicket-keeper of our combined XI.

#7 Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev - a legendary all-rounder and by far the greatest India ever produced

India may have unearthed another Tendulkar or a 'player comparable with Tendulkar' in the form of Virat Kohli but the search for the next Kapil Dev seems to be futile and never-ending. Without an iota of doubt, Kapil is the greatest Indian all-rounder and formed the golden quartet of all-rounders in the 1980s along with Ian Botham, Imran Khan and Richard Hadlee. Even as a pace bowler, Kapil is easily the greatest ever to emerge from the Indian soil.

With the bat, Kapil could be devastating. At a time when a Strike Rate of 70 was the norm, Kapil amassed his runs at a blistering rate of 95 runs per 100 balls. His 175 not out scored in a World Cup encounter against Zimbabwe when India were in deep trouble is one of the most memorable rescue acts in ODI cricket.

Any all-time great team is incomplete without the presence of an all-time great all-rounder and who better than Kapil Dev? If we sift through the list of all-rounders India and Sri Lanka produced, the 'Haryana Hurricane' is light years ahead of any other rival and hence, he wins the all-rounder slot hands down. At no.7, Kapil can provide the quick runs needed in the death overs.

#8 Lasith Malinga

Lasith Malinga's slinging action and tremendous variety make life difficult for the batsmen

The name Lasith Malinga brings to our mind his peculiar and attractive hair style, one of the reasons that make him a crowd favourite. On a more serious note, it evokes countless images of searing toe-crushers that were mercilessly and relentlessly hurled at the batsmen leading to their downfall.

Those missile-like yorkers, delivered with a slinging action, are very hard to pick even for well-set batsmen. As if that is not enough, he also possesses a slower yorker, which is equally deceptive and mightily effective. His judicious use of yorkers keeps the batsmen guessing.

His well-directed slow bouncers can spring a surprise and torment the batsmen. Then, there is the swing too which makes him a deadly proposition. In modern cricket, it is hard to find a pace bowler with greater variety than Malinga or who unleashed yorkers better than the Lankan. His record of 301 wickets in just 204 ODIs at the rate of 1.5 wickets per match demonstrates his extraordinary wicket-taking skills.

#9 Chaminda Vaas

Chaminda Vaas was an extremely capable new ball bowler for Lanka

In both ODIs and Tests, the status of Chaminda Vaas as Sri Lanka's greatest pace bowler remains unquestionable. He did not boast of scorching pace but bowled with great ingenuity. He swung the ball efficiently and had a useful weapon in the form of off-cutters that often caught the batsmen unawares. Barring Vaas, the Lankan pace bowling unit lacked a world-class bowler for a long time.

Vaas finished his ODI career with exactly 400 wickets in 322 matches. His economy rate of 4.18 is appreciable too. He also holds the record for becoming the first ever bowler to claim 8 wickets in an ODI. It is a highly commendable record and more so for a pace bowler coming from a country like Sri Lanka that always had a dearth of quality fast men.

Till his retirement in 2008, Vaas remained the spearhead of the Sri Lankan pace bowling attack in both formats of the game and will be the leader of our pace attack as well.

#10 Javagal Srinath

Javagal Srinath was one of the finest ODI bowlers of the modern era

Javagal Srinath or the 'Mysore Express' is undeniably India's greatest pace bowler after Kapil Dev. He took over the responsibility of leading the Indian pace bowling attack from Kapil and served his country with distinction until his retirement in 2003. It was Srinath's bowling that added a lot of strength to a feeble Indian pace bowling battery and lent it a great deal of respectability.

When he was in his element, he bowled as impressively as anybody else in the world and troubled the best of batsmen.

In a fine career that began in 1991 against arch-rivals Pakistan, Srinath picked up 315 wickets in 229 matches at an economy rate of 4.44. He was adept at bowling in-swinging deliveries and slower balls. He performed brilliantly in the World Cup in 2003 as a player and as a mentor to the younger fast bowlers, till he was taken to the cleaners in the final by the rampaging Kangaroos.

In our dream team, Srinath will partner Vaas with the new ball.

#11 Muttiah Muralitharan

Muralitharan spun a web of deceit around the batsmen

Probably no other country relied upon a single player as much as Sri Lanka relied upon Muttiah Muralitharan. What made Murali lethal was his exceptional ability to spin the ball massively on surfaces where lesser bowlers were unable to extract even an iota of spin. Although regarded as an off-spinner, he could spin the ball prodigiously away from the right-hander too.

The Doosra, which is now an indispensable weapon in the armory of most spinners, owes much of its popularity to Murali. Murali not only snaffled wickets by the bucketload but did so whilst leaking very few runs as his ridiculously low economy rate of 3.93 demonstrates. It was so difficult to score off Murali that he was often asked to bowl at the death overs, which was unusual for a spinner.

He formed one half of the famous 'Shane Warne vs Muttiah Muralitharan' rivalry, that captivated the cricket lovers of the modern era. With 534 wickets in 350 ODIs and a mind-blowing 800 wickets in 133 Tests, he stands atop the list of the highest wicket-takers in both formats.

This smiling assassin from Kandy can be a thorn in the flesh of the batsmen on any pitch and hence, is an automatic choice for the slot of the lone spinner.