Rohit, Pant, Ashwin in ICC Men's Test Team of 2021; Kane Williamson picked as captain

The Indian trio of Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant and Ravichandran Ashwin feature in the ICC Men's Test Team of 2021 announced on Thursday. New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has been named as the captain of the team.

Williamson led the Kiwis to victory in the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) as they defeated India in the final.

Apart from three Indians, the ICC Men's Test Team of 2021 has two New Zealand players, three Pakistani cricketers and one each from Australia, Sri Lanka and England.

Rohit had a marvelous year in Tests in 2021. He smashed 906 runs at an average of 47.68 with two centuries. Both his tons came against England - one in Chennai and the other at The Oval.

2021 also saw Pant play some incredible Test knocks. He smacked 748 runs in 12 matches at an average of 39.36.

He scored a brilliant ton against England at Ahmedabad and made an unforgettable 89* against the Aussies at The Gabba. Behind the wickets, he effected 39 dismissals in 23 innings.

Despite not featuring in any of the Tests in England, off-spinner Ashwin ended 2021 with 54 wickets in nine matches at an average of 16.64. He bamboozled batters in the home series against England and New Zealand.

Ashwin also chipped in with the bat, scoring 355 runs at an average of 25.35. He scored a vital century against England in Chennai.

The 2021 Test team's skipper Williamson scored 395 runs in four matches at an average of 65.83 with one century.

Dimuth Karunaratne (902 runs in seven Tests), Marnus Labuschagne (526 runs in five Tests), Joe Root (1708 runs in 15 Tests) and Fawad Alam (571 runs in nine Tests) were the other batters in ICC’s Men Test Team of 2021.

Kyle Jamieson, Shaheen Afridi find a place in ICC Men's Test Team of 2021

New Zealand all-rounder Kyle Jamieson was rewarded with a spot in the side for claiming 27 wickets in five matches at an average of 17.51. He also scored 105 runs and was the Player of the Match in the WTC final against India in Southampton.

Jamieson was partnered by Pakistan's pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi, who picked up 47 wickets in nine matches at an average of 17.06.

Fellow Pakistan fast bowler Hasan Ali also found a place in the team after claiming 41 wickets in nine Tests at an average of 16.07.

ICC Men's Test Team of 2021: Dimuth Karunaratne (Sri Lanka), Rohit Sharma (India), Kane Williamson (c, New Zealand), Marnus Labuschagne (Australia), Joe Root (England), Fawad Alam (Pakistan), Rishabh Pant (India), Ravichandran Ashwin (India), Kyle Jamieson (New Zealand), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan), and Hasan Ali (Pakistan).