All-Time XI of players from Associate nations

The game of cricket is slowly beginning to grow as a sport with wider appeal and is reaching places it had never been to before. The number of countries which are playing competitive cricket at the moment is quite large and the foundation for making it a global sport seems to have been laid.The term ‘Associate nations’ refers to those countries who have not been granted Test status yet, but continue to play international cricket on a regular basis, mostly among themselves and also in major ICC tournaments. Some of the primary Associate countries at present include Ireland, Afghanistan, Kenya, Scotland, Canada and Netherlands.We have picked an all-time XI taking into account some of the best performers for these cricketing nations over the years in international cricket.Let’s take a look at the players who made the cut:

#1 Mohammad Shahzad (Afghanistan)

Mohammad Shahzad is currently Afghanistan’s batting hero as he proved with his performances in his team’s recent triumph over Zimbabwe in both ODIs and T20Is. Shahzad has been playing international cricket since 2009 and has performed exceptionally in the two formats that Afghanistan play.

In ODIs, he has close to 1300 runs at a 35 plus average with 4 centuries, the most by any batsman for his country. Shahzad is the leading run-scorer for Afghanistan in T20Is with 1111 runs at an average of just under 31 and an impressive strike rate of slightly below 136.

Mohammad Shahzad is still just 27 years old and seeing the way his country is progressing at the moment, he may have a lot left to do with the bat in his career.

#2 William Porterfield (Ireland)

Ireland skipper and opening batsman William Porterfield has been their most prolific batsman across formats. In 84 ODIs, the southpaw has scored 2460 runs at a decent average of 30.75 and also has 7 centuries to show for his efforts.

Porterfield has been equally impressive in T20Is too with 734 runs in 40 innings at an average of a shade under 22. His captaincy is an added feature in his resume as he has led the Irish team with a lot of pride and decent success to go with it.

At 31, William Porterfield may still have enough gas left in the tank to lead Ireland’s charge at least in the next 2 to 3 years, if not more.

#3 Ryan ten Doeschate (Netherlands)

Despite having retired from international cricket quite a while ago, Ryan ten Doeschate still holds the record for the highest average in ODI cricket. Tendo, as he is fondly called, scored more than 1500 runs in his career at an outstanding average of 67, which may be nearly impossible to surpass.

Ten Doeschate has easily been the most popular player for his country and perhaps even among all associate nations. He also did well with the ball for his country claiming 55 wickets in 33 matches at a brilliant average of 24.12.

Ryan ten Doeschate’s final appearance in Netherlands colours came during the 2011 ICC World Cup, where he scored two centuries including one in his last ODI against Ireland.

#4 Ashish Bagai (Canada)

Former Canadian wicketkeeper batsman Ashish Bagai has, by far, been their best batsman in both ODIs and T20Is. In a 10-year career, Bagai led the way for Canada scoring close to 2000 ODI runs at an average of slightly below 38 and a top score of 137 not out against Scotland.

Ashish Bagai’s T20 career lasted just 9 matches, but he managed to score 284 runs at a very good average of 40.57 with 2 half-centuries. The dimunitive batsman was also a handy wicketkeeper and donned the big gloves for most of his career.

Bagai drew the curtains on his career in the year 2013 at quite an early age of 31 as he wanted to resume his career in finance.

#5 Steve Tikolo (Kenya)

Steve Tikolo has been the biggest name in Kenyan cricket for years and it shows in the fact that he is their leading run-scorer in ODI cricket by a huge margin. Tikolo’s 18-year long career in Kenyan colours saw him score 3428 runs in 135 ODIs at an average of just over 29.

He was also a useful off-spinner and took 94 wickets with a best of 4 for 41 against Canada in 2007. Tikolo was also among the best captains Kenya ever had as he led them during their highly successful 2003 World Cup campaign, where they reached the semis before eventually losing to India.

Steve Tikolo also played 15 T20Is for the Kenyan national team and scored 345 runs at an average of slightly under 29 along with 12 wickets.

#6 Kevin O\'Brien (Ireland)

Kevin O’Brien has been the biggest star of Irish cricket for quite a few years now and continues to do the job for his team with both bat and ball. Remembered best for his blistering 50-ball century against England in the 2011 ICC World Cup, O’Brien has scored 2340 ODI runs so far at a more than decent average of 31.62.

With the ball, he has picked up 77 wickets an is the leading wicket-taker for Ireland in the 50-over format. O’Brien has also been a handy allrounder in T20Is with 508 runs and 37 wickets in 45 matches.

Kevin O’Brien has helped his team greatly in establishing themselves as a formidable opposition for stronger teams and will be hoping to take them to further heights.

#7 Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan)

Mohammad Nabi is one of the senior statesmen in the current Afghanistan team and also captained them during the 2015 ICC World Cup. Nabi has been one of his team’s best allrounders in both ODIs and T20Is.

In the 50-over format, Nabi has played 61 matches in which he has scored 1469 runs at 29.38 and picked up 55 wickets. He is Afghanistan’s leading wicket-taker in T20I cricket with 31 scalps in 35 matches and 481 runs with the bat to go with it.

The spin-bowling allrounder has been one of the stars for his team in their recent success against Zimbabwe, particularly in ODI cricket. Mohammad Nabi may still have a lot of work in hand considering Afghanistan’s meteoric rise in the cricketing world.

#8 Thomas Odoyo (Kenya)

Former Kenyan medium-pacer Thomas Odoyo has been the most successful bowler in ODIs among all associate nations. Odoyo picked up 145 wickets in the 136 matches that he played at a very decent average of slightly under 30.

He had a pretty good time with the bat too, as he scored in excess of 2400 runs with a century and 8 fifties. Odoyo was a key member of the great Kenyan team which qualified for the semi-finals of the 2003 ICC World Cup after beating the likes of Sri Lanka in the group stage.

Alongside players like Steve Tikolo, Thomas Odoyo is one of the greatest servants of Kenyan cricket over the past couple of decades.

#9 Majid Haq (Scotland)

Scotland off-spinner Majid Haq has been among their best bowlers in both limited-over formats. Majid has played 54 ODIs in his career so far and picked up 60 wickets at a pretty decent average of slightly under 33.

The offie’s best figures in ODI cricket of 5 for 54 came in a 8-wicket victory over neighbours Ireland. Haq is also Scotland’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is with 28 scalps in 21 matches at a fantastic average of a few notches below 17.

Majid Haq was last seen in action for Scotland during the 2015 ICC World Cup but was sent back following a controversial comment on Twitter. However, he was cleared to play by Cricket Scotland in June last year.

#10 Trent Johnston (Ireland)

Former Irish paceman Trent Johnston had quite a successful career with the ball for his country. In a career which lasted 7 years, he picked up a number of wickets for Ireland in the two formats that they played.

Johnston claimed 66 wickets in 67 ODIs with best figures of 5 for 14 against Canada and also has 32 wickets in T20Is. He was a useful lower batsman and averages around 20 in both ODIs and T20Is. Trent famously hit the winning runs when Ireland upset Pakistan in the 2007 ICC World Cup.

After retiring from international cricket in 2013, Trent Johnston is currently active in a coaching profile.

#11 Mudassar Bukhari (Netherlands)

Mudassar Bukhari has been one of Netherlands’ premier bowlers in the past few years. The Dutch medium pacer is the highest wicket-taker for his country in ODI cricket with 57 wickets in 46 matches.

Bukhari has been playing international cricket since 2007 and has also represented Netherlands in T20Is. In the shortest format, he has picked up 39 wickets in 34 matches at an impressive average of just under 19.

Mudassar Bukhari is also capable of contributing with the bat in the lower order and has 2 ODI fifties to his name.