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Over the years, cricket has evolved a lot, more specifically ODI cricket. Initially, when the ODI game started it was viewed as a mini Test match where the batsmen treated the opening phase like a Test match and gradually increased the scoring rate. The score in excess of 200 was considered decent and dependable.
However, it was the 1996 World Cup that changed the dynamics of batting especially at the top of the order. Players like Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Saeed Anwar started attacking the bowlers in the first 15 overs and scoring briskly during that period.
Now, with the advent of T20 cricket, ODIs has been revolutionized. The modern-day players see it as an extended T20 match. Such has been the proficiency of the modern-day batsmen that scores in excess of 300 runs have become just par these days.
So, we look at the players who are the modern day greats and have the potential to become all-time greats, especially when it comes to 50 over format provided they continue to perform in the same manner as they have done.
The team combination will be of 5 batsmen, 1 Wicket-keeper, 1 All-Rounder, 4 bowlers (3 pacers and 1 spinner). Players who currently playing International Cricket have been considered.
#1 Rohit Sharma (India)
Rohit Sharma is an Indian international cricketer who is the vice-captain of the India national team in limited-overs formats. He is a right-handed batsman and an occasional right-arm off break bowler.
Undoubtedly, Rohit Sharma is currently one of the best openers in the limited-overs format. He can destroy any bowling line-up once he gets settled. Rohit is the only player to score three double centuries in ODI cricket with the highest score of 264, which is a world record. The way he times the ball makes him a treat to watch. He is equally good against both the pace and spin bowlers. He currently occupies the fourth position in ODI batsman rankings.
In 183 matches for India, Sharma has scored 6748 runs for India at an impressive average of 45 and a strike rate of 87.18.
He, without any doubt, deserves his place as an opener in the starting XI.
#2 Jonny Bairstow (England)
Jonny Bairstow is an English cricketer, who plays cricket for England.
The right-hander is an aggressive batsman who likes to dominate the opposition bowlers from ball one and put the opposing team under pressure. He has all the shots in the book and can score in any conditions and against any kind of bowling attack.
He has been in scintillating form over the past couple of his years and he is the prime reason behind England's rise to the number one position in the ICC ODI Team Rankings.
Despite being aggressive in his gameplay, he has the ability to score big hundreds and bat till the death overs, which is the biggest attribute of any world-class opener. He currently occupies the tenth position in ODI batsman rankings.
In 51 matches for England, Jonny Bairstow has scored 1962 runs at an impressive average of 50.31 with an equally impressive strike rate of 105.31.
He definitely deserves his place as an opener in this team.
#3 Virat Kohli (India)
Virat Kohli is an Indian international cricketer who currently captains the India national team. An elegant right-handed batsman, Kohli is regarded as one of the best batsmen in the world
Virat Kohli is the best in the business across all formats, especially in the ODI format. He is currently ranked no.1 in ODI cricket and is believed to be the best chaser the world has ever seen by many cricketing pundits.
The great thing about his batting is that he can adapt his batting according to the situation i.e he can accelerate the innings from the very first ball once the top-order provide a flying start and he can also look to build the innings if early wicket(s) has fallen.
Virat is adept in scoring at around six an over during the middle overs without taking too many risks and setting the foundation for the finishers of his respective teams so that they can take advantage of the death overs without the fear of getting bowled out before their quota of allocated 50 overs.
In 211 matches for India, Virat has scored 9,779 at an average of 58.21 and a strike rate 92.12.
He definitely deserves his place at number 3 in this team.
#4 Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Babar Azam is an international Pakistani cricketer who plays in all three formats for Pakistan. He captained the Pakistan Under-19 cricket team at the 2012 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup and is the current vice-captain for the Pakistan national team. Babar Azam has fantastic records in the One Day Cricket.
Azam is the second joint fastest batsman to reach 1000 ODI runs. He also holds the record of scoring most runs after first 25 ODI Innings by any batsman in the world. He is one of the best batsmen for Pakistan at the moment, especially in the limited-overs format. He currently occupies the second position in ODI batsman rankings.
Pakistan's search for a dependable number 3 in the shorter formats has been an eternal one. However, with the arrival of Babar onto the big scene that search seems to have been completed.
Babar is also adept in scoring at around five to six an over during the middle overs without taking too many risks and setting the foundation for the finishers to capitalize in the death overs without the fear of getting bowled out before their quota of allocated 50 overs.
In 46 matches for Pakistan, Babar has scored 1973 runs at an impressive average of 54.81 and a decent strike rate of 85.67.
He deserves his place at number 4 in this list.
#5 Kane Williamson (New Zealand-Captain)
Kane Williamson is a New Zealand international cricketer who is currently the captain of the New Zealand national team. He is a right-handed batsman and an occasional off spin bowler and is considered as one of the best batsmen of the current generation. He is currently ranked at number 8 in ODI cricket in the batsman rankings.
Arguably New Zealand's finest batsman since the legendary Martin Crowe, Kane Williamson had been a wonder kid since his teenage days. His exceptional talent included the rare Non-Asian skill to play quality spin apart from being adept against fast bowling.
Williamson's batting is a purists delight. His classy strokeplay blending nicely with his footwork and gritty temperament. The only slight flaw that can be mentioned about his batting could be his relative inability to score quickly at will. One could argue that his role is that of a sheet anchor around which the other Kiwi batsmen revel. However, if he can raise his white-ball skills a notch upward, he could be a real phenomenon in world cricket. This is not to suggest that he hasn't produced impact knocks in the shorter formats. Williamson is also very clever in using his tactics as a captain.
In 127 matches for Newzealand, Williamson has scored 5157 runs at an amazing average of 46.88 and at a decent strike rate of 83.24.
He, not only deserves his place in the starting line up but also deserves to captain this side as well.
#6 Ben Stokes (England)
Ben Stokes is an English international cricketer and former vice-captain of the England Test team. He is an all-rounder who bowls right-arm fast-medium pace, and bats left-handed.
One of the most explosive all-rounders of the modern era, Ben Stokes' energy is infectious on the cricket field. He is extremely passionate in everything that he does and is an aggressive character means that there is seldom a dull moment when he is around. An attacking southpaw with a penchant for the big hits while also being capable of playing big innings, Stokes is also more or less equally good with the ball. He can bowl at moderately high speeds and has a knack of providing breakthroughs when nothing seems to work for his team.
In 70 matches for England, Stokes has scored 1846 runs at an impressive batting average of 35.5 and a healthy strike rate of 93.61. In terms of his bowling, in 70 matches, he has taken 58 wickets at an average of 39.72.
His bowling stats don't do justice to his talent and importance as a bowler. However, his knack up picking crucial wickets, make him a genuine match winner with both bat and bowl.
He, therefore, deserves his place as an all-rounder in this team.
#7 Jos Buttler (England-Wicket Keeper)
Jos Buttler is an English professional cricketer who plays for England cricket team. A hard-hitting batsman and a wicket-keeper, Jos Buttler, is seen as a player who has everything to succeed in the shorter formats of the game.
Buttler has become a vital cog in England's One Day plans, consistently scoring runs at a good pace. His scores at a brisk pace and England have benefited significantly with his important contributions down the order especially in the last 12 months or so.
The major advantage which Buttler has over his contemporaries is that he is one of the few batsmen who can score briskly against top quality spinners as well. He has been the backbone of England batting and is one of the prime reasons behind England's resurgence to the top of international cricket when it comes to 50 over cricket.
Furthermore, Buttler is extremely quick with his hands and is a more than a capable keeper.
In 117 matches for England, Buttler has scored 3148 at an average of 40.36 and a strike rate of 117.11 which is excellent, to say the least.
He will be the Wicket Keeper Batsman in this team.
#8 Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
Rashid Khan is an Afghan cricketer who represents the national team.
Rashid Khan became the youngest player to top the ICC Player Ranking for bowlers in ODIs. Khan became the fastest and youngest bowler to take 100 wickets in ODIs when he dismissed Shai Hope. He took 44 matches to take his 100th dismissal, breaking the previous record of 52 matches, set by Mitchell Starc of Australia. He is currently ranked no. 2 when it comes to bowlers rankings in the world. He is a match winner and can change the situation of the match anytime.
Rashid outnumbers leg breaks with googlies, something he has perfected into a reliable and somewhat retaliatory weapon and he executes it without being ever so predictable. Rashid bowls stump to stump - and does so at a quick pace, using his fingers more than the wrists, thus not allowing the batsman any time to shimmy out and get to the pitch of the ball.
In 46 matches for Afghanistan, Rashid has taken 108 wickets at an extraordinary average of 14.22 and a strike rate of 21.72 which is beyond belief.
It is a fact that majority of these matches have not been against top 10 sides. However, despite that fact, it is no small accomplishment.
Therefore, Rashid Khan is a certainty in this team.
#9 Hasan Ali (Pakistan)
Hasan Ali is a Pakistani cricketer. He made his international debut for Pakistan in August 2016 in a One Day International (ODI) match.
A modern-day fast bowler, who relies on variations rather than on raw pace, a breed rarely seen from Pakistan. A silky smooth action which helps him in his economic approach to the crease. He has several variations in his bowling and can trouble any batting line-up and is a key wicket-taking option especially in the middle overs.
He was instrumental in Pakistan winning the Champions Trophy Title in 2017 as he was named a player of the series. He became the quickest bowler for Pakistan to take 50 wickets in ODI cricket. He is currently occupying the third position in ODI cricket bowler rankings.
In 33 matches for Pakistan, Hasan Ali has taken 68 wickets at an amazing average of 20.88 and a strike rate of 24.01 which is phenomenal, to say the least.
He, therefore, deserves his place in the starting line up in this team.
#10 Trent Boult (New Zealand)
Trent Boult is a New Zealand international cricketer who plays as a bowler.
Unlike most bowlers, Boult has the ability to switch between the three formats effortlessly with minimum fuss. Such has his been his rise across formats that Boult has steadily displaced Tim Southee as the spearhead of the Kiwi pace attack. 2017 was a wonderful year for Boult in white-ball cricket as he picked up multiple 6-fers including a 7-fer. He is currently ranked at number 4 in the bowler rankings in ODI cricket.
Over the last few years, Boult has been a rather silent assassin as his numbers have been phenomenal, to say the least, but you wouldn't see him in the limelight at all. Boult's ability to swing the new ball and cleverly mix the pace/lengths at the death overs makes Boult a deadly white-ball customer. He is truly an asset for New Zealand cricket.
In 66 matches for New Zealand, Boult has taken 122 wickets at a more than impressive average of 24.84 and equally impressive strike rate of 29.03.
He deserves his place in the starting line up of this team.
# 11) Jasprit Bumrah (India)
Jasprit Bumrah is an Indian cricketer who plays as a right-arm fast bowler for the Indian national cricket team in all formats of the game.
Bumrah is arguably the best limited-overs bowler at the moment as he is dangerous with the new ball and is lethal in the death overs, thanks to his variations. He can tear apart any batting line-up with his pace and toe-crushing yorkers. His quick-arm action has made his variations almost indiscernible - starting from his slower deliveries to his reverse-swinging yorkers at the death. He is currently ranked at number 1 position in Bowler rankings in ODI cricket.
At just 24 years of age, Bumrah is a focused and exciting talent who has shown himself to be a fast and eager learner. Possessing the ability, temperament, and work ethic to be India's next spearhead and in the age of the death-over specialist, Jasprit Bumrah is here to stay.
In 37 Matches, Bumrah has picked 64 wickets at an average of 22.5 and a strike rate of 29.05 which is extraordinary, to say the least.
He, therefore, deserves his place on this team.
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