Brad Hogg picks his WTC XI, leaves out the top 2 run-scorers

Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg has picked his XI for the recently concluded World Test Championship (WTC). The star-studded line-up is composed of four players from India, two each from England and New Zealand, and one each from Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Brad Hogg chose Rohit Sharma and Dimuth Karunaratne as his openers. Rohit was India's second-highest run-scorer in the WTC cycle, amassing 1094 runs at a staggering average of 60.77. Sri Lankan Test captain Karunaratne also led from the front, scoring 999 runs at an average of 55.50. Hogg said in a video on his YouTube channel:

"Rohit Sharma at the top of the order. He made four hundreds and two fifties. Yes, most of those runs were made in Indian conditions, very rarely did you see him bat away from home. It's very tough to put him in there but the amount of runs he puts on the board, I have to include him. He also did OK in the World Test Championship final in those tough conditions."

Brad Hogg named WTC-winning captain Kane Williamson as his team's skipper, who will come in at No.3, followed by Steve Smith and Babar Azam in the middle order. Indian captain Virat Kohli, who had, by his lofty standards, a moderate WTC campaign with the bat, didn't make it to the XI.

India can hold there heads high too, on what was an enthralling encounter. Hard fought cricket. They have had a successful couple of years, plenty more to come. #INDvsNZ #WTCFinal2021

— Brad Hogg (@Brad_Hogg) June 24, 2021

Interestingly, the top two run-scorers of the tournament - Marnus Labuschagne (1675 runs) and Joe Root (1660 runs) - also didn't find a mention in Hogg's team.

As expected, Brad Hogg picked Rishabh Pant as his wicketkeeper-batsman. The southpaw, who helped India win some memorable Tests in the WTC, also improved his skills behind the wickets to cement his place in the side. Hogg added:

"Pant, the way he dominated Australia, down here on Australian soil, you could not leave him out. He made a number of fifties, a crucial winning innings at the final Test at the Gabba and also a crucial 40 in the World Test Championship final to make sure India still kept their head above the water."

All-rounders and bowlers who made it to Brad Hogg's WTC XI

Ravichandran Ashwin, the WTC's best spinner by a huge margin of 15 wickets, and England's Ben Stokes were chosen as the team's all-rounders. The duo were supported by the WTC final's Player of the Match, Kyle Jamieson, who also topped the wicket-taking charts among the New Zealand bowlers with 42 snares.

Jamieson's extra height was the difference in the #WTCFinal2021 being able to bowl fuller in the first innings of the test match more effectively than the other bowlers, and the big wickets of Kohli and Pujara in the second innings. #IndiaVsNewZealand #INDvsNZ

— Brad Hogg (@Brad_Hogg) June 24, 2021

England's Stuart Broad and India's best pacer in the WTC final, Mohammed Shami, were the final two bowlers in the XI. However, five pacers who took more wickets than Shami, including Pat Cummins and Tim Southee, missed out.

Brad Hogg's complete WTC XI

Brad Hogg's XI: Rohit Sharma, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kane Williamson (c), Steve Smith, Babar Azam, Ben Stokes, Rishabh Pant (wk), Kyle Jamieson, Ravichandran Ashwin, Stuart Broad, Mohammed Shami.

12th man: Marnus Labuschagne