Who would you pick in the Greatest Cricket XI of YOUR Lifetime?

[mr_mister]

Anwar
Amla
Ponting
Lara
Tendulkar
Waugh
Gilchrist
Wasim
Warne
Ambrose
McGrath

 

[morgieb]

I'll use 2000 as the start for this as that was when I actually started watching/paying attention to cricket.

Hayden
Sehwag (Smith outside of the subcontinent)
Ponting
Tendulkar
Lara
Kallis
Gilchrist+
Warne
Steyn
Muralitharan
McGrath

Pollock to come in on seamer-friendly surfaces

Plenty of batsmen unlucky to miss.

 

[Red]

Sehwag
Greenidge
V.Richards
Tendulkar
Lara
S.Waugh
Gilchrist
Warne
Wasim
Ambrose
McGrath

 

[Red]

More going on players I can remember than a particular date. I remember Viv quite well but remember very little of Hadlee.

ODIs

Tendulkar
Watson
Ponting
V.Richards
Devilliers
Dhoni +
Flintoff
Kapil
Wasim
Garner
Murali

 

[Zinzan]

This is a really tough exercise. I first starting watching as a nipper in the mid 1980s; so on the fly, my test side would be;

1st XI

Gavaskar
Greenidge/Smith
Richards
Lara
Kallis/Sangakkara
Gilchrist+
Imran*
Hadlee
Marshall
Wasim/Ambrose
Warne


Off the top of my head, finding it tough to split the all-round capacity of Kallis or the almost freakish (when not-keeping) Sangakkara at no. 5 and between Greenidge and G Smith to partner Gavaskar as opener.

Unlucky to miss out; Ponting, Murali, Tendulkar, Waugh, McGrath, Hayden, Dravid & Sehwag, Donald, Steyn.

So many that I might as well do a 2nd XI which would be something like;

2nd XI
Sehwag
Hayden/Langer
Ponting
Tendulkar
Pietersen/Crowe
Flower +
Botham
Pollock/Donald
Steyn
Murali
McGrath

 

[Daemon]

Dravid
Sehwag
Ponting
Tendulkar
Sanga
Kallis
Gilchrist
Pollock
Harris
Steyn
Murali


Haven't thought it through at all and I'm surely missing someone obvious. Pollock and Gilchrist a but of a stretch as I wasn't watching cricket keenly until after they retired. Sanga over Lara because Lara was playing really poorly every single time I watched him

 

[OverratedSanity]

^^^ Love the Dravid pick. I have no doubt he'd have made a brilliant opener

First XI:

Dravid
Sehwag
Ponting
Tendulkar
Lara
Kallis
Gilchrist
Warne
Steyn
Ambrose
McGrath

Second XI:

Smith
Taylor
Sangakkara
Pietersen
Amla
Waugh
Healy
Wasim
Waqar
Donald
Murali

 

[kingkallis]

Following cricket since 1991

My Favourite XI:

Matthew Hayden
Graeme Smith (c)
Brian Lara
Sachin Tendulkar
Jacques Kallis
Steve Waugh
Adam Gilchrist +
Wasim Akram
Shane Warne
Curtly Ambrose
Glenn McGrath

12th man: Ricky Ponting

Honorable mentions: Dale Steyn, Muttiah Muralitharan, AB de Villiers, Rahul Dravid, Hashim Amla, Kumar Sangakkara, Kevin Pietersen, Andy Flower, Allan Donald, Waqar Younis

 

[watson]

01. Gordon Greenidge
02. Geoff Boycott
03. Viv Richards
04. Brian Lara
05. Sachin Tendulkar
06. Jacques Kallis
07. Alan Knott
08. Imran Khan
09. Malcolm Marshall
10. Shane Warne
11. Dennis Lillee

 

[Burgey]

Greatest in my time (1969 - present)

Boycott
Gavaskar
Ponting
V Richards
Tendulkar*
Lara
Gilchrist
Akram
Warne
Marshall
McGrath

For entertainment as well as greatness:

Sehwag
Greenidge
V Richards
Lara
Botham
Imran
Gilchrist
Akram
Warne
Lillee
Akthar

 

[Cabinet96]

People to rage. But I'm being genuine.

Graeme Smith*
Alastair Cook
Kumar Sangakkara
Sachin Tendulkar
Jacques Kallis (5)
Younis Khan
Matt Prior +
Mitchell Johnson/Stuart Broad (3)
Dale Steyn (1)
James Anderson (2)
Muttiah Muralitharan (4)

Picking batsman was A LOT harder than bowling. Had to leave out some really quality players I've watched over the years, such as Ponting, Clarke, KP and AB. Could probably cheat and include Warne, Gilchrist and McGrath but I literally only watched 10 tests they played, so it can't really be justified over the people selected instead.

 

[Coronis]

94

Hayden
Smith
Sangakkara
Tendulkar
Lara
Kallis
Gilchrist
Wasim
Warne
Steyn
McGrath

Wasim over Ambrose for the variety he brings. Was surprised that Waqar took his wickets at 27 since I was born.

 

[The Battlers Prince]

I first took interest in cricket in about 1990 and AB and McDermott were my favourites until Shane Warne came along.

My Favourite XI
1. Alastair Cook (the series in Australia in 10-11 was so demoralising in its brilliance) Tubby unlucky to miss out here
2. Matt Hayden (the imposing nature of his batting and bloody size of the man)
3. Jacques Kallis (the amount of times an early wicket would be taken against SA but Kallis would steady the ship, just brilliant in my book)
4. BC Lara (both the most devastating and brilliant in every way)
5. Rahul Dravid (I always tossed and turned between Dravid and Sachin, but the fightback with Laxman at Eden Grdena pushed this guy higher by a long way since then)
6. Allan Border (I was a huge fan of him batting at six late in his career, I never felt out of it when we still had him to come) Ponting unlucky to miss out here
7. Ian Healy (I am a HUGE fan of Gilchrist's batting but I'd be lying if I said I thought Healy wasn't worth more with the gloves)
8. Wasim Akram (the swing, the bouncer, I didn't care if they beat our team, it was worth it)
9. Shane Warne
10. Sir Curtly Ambrose (as good as any I've seen)
11. Glenn McGrath (was the perfect foil for Shane Warne and formed the best bowling partnership alongside Ambrose/Walsh)

Pollock, Boon and Anil Kumble would be the others unlucky to miss out

 

[weldone]

Graeme Smith
Rahul Dravid
Brian Lara
Sachin Tendulkar
Steve Waugh*
Jacques Kallis
Adam Gilchrist +
Dale Steyn
Curtly Ambrose
Muttiah Muralitharan
Glenn McGrath

 

[Daemon]

Greatest in my time (1969 - present)

Boycott
Gavaskar
Ponting
V Richards
Tendulkar*
Lara
Gilchrist
Akram
Warne
Marshall
McGrath

For entertainment as well as greatness:

Sehwag
Greenidge
V Richards
Lara
Botham
Imran
Gilchrist
Akram
Warne
Lillee
Akthar

Batting Tendulkar at 5 would arguably end up being more entertaining than the Entertaining XI

 

[social]

B Richards
Hayden
Viv - the best bat by far
GS Chappell - the 2nd best
Kallis - best all-rounder
Sobers - genius bat
Gilchrist - the greatest cricketer
Imran
Marshall
Warne - seriously contemplated leaving him out as would hardly be needed
McGrath - best bowler

 

[The Battlers Prince]

B Richards
Hayden
Viv - the best bat by far
GS Chappell - the 2nd best
Kallis - best all-rounder
Sobers - genius bat
Gilchrist - the greatest cricketer
Imran
Marshall
Warne - seriously contemplated leaving him out as would hardly be needed
McGrath - best bowler

If you truly saw Sobers bat but rate him lower than Viv, you are the first I've heard. Most I've talked to said Viv was absolute muscle and was imposing like that. Sobers was just brilliance, had such timing the ball would travel to the boundary quicker than anyone else and like you say genius.

 

[social]

If you truly saw Sobers bat but rate him lower than Viv, you are the first I've heard. Most I've talked to said Viv was absolute muscle and was imposing like that. Sobers was just brilliance, had such timing the ball would travel to the boundary quicker than anyone else and like you say genius.

Viv was a genius

Played in an era chock-full of express bowlers and took them to the cleaners without a helmet

I've actually never heard of anyone that rates Garry above Viv so there you go!

Splitting hairs really

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Greenidge
Taylor
Lara
Richards
Tendulkar
Botham
Gilchrist
Warne
Hadlee
Marshall
McGrath

Feel a bit sick leaving out Kallis, Imran, Waqar and Wasim but think the bowling is still amazingly strong. Only controversial pick would be Tubby but I loved his style and the character he showed in 97 at Edgbaston under that pressure swung it for me.

 

[The Battlers Prince]

Viv was a genius

Played in an era chock-full of express bowlers and took them to the cleaners without a helmet

I've actually never heard of anyone that rates Garry above Viv so there you go!

Splitting hairs really

For sure, I guess it depends what you like. Both intimated bowlers and took them apart piece by piece