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Knighted XI v the rest

F

Fuller Pilch

Hall of Fame Member
A few, but not that many, cricketers have been knighted. Some of them, however, are amongst cricket's greats (especially among top order batsmen). A quick Wikipedia search shows who is included.

Pick a non-knights XI to play an XI of knights. Who would win? I'm picking the rest to win due to the lack of specialist spinners and keeper amongst those knighted but it would be interesting as the knights have Bradman.

Note - this is not an exercise to comment on the value or otherwise of knighthood.

This is my team of knights. You might disagree:
(Perhaps pick Botham or Worrell instead of Weekes for more bowling or Hall instead of Bedser)

Hobbs
Hutton
Bradman (c)
IV Richards
Weekes
Sobers
Walcott (wk)
Hadlee
Bedser
Roberts
Ambrose

Do you agree with the knighted XI? Who would be in the unknighted XI? Who would win?
 
trundler

trundler

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That knighted XI can't be bettered.

Gavaskar
Sutcliffe
Smith
Tendulkar
Lara
Hammond
Gilchrist
Imran
Warne
Steyn
McGrath

Better bowling but any side with Bradman and the 2 Hs at the top can't be topped.
 
trundler

trundler

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Botham instead of Bedser is an arguable pick. Not sure I'd go with it though. Knott not being knighted bit of a buzz kill.
 
trundler

trundler

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Lmao whoops. Marshall for Steyn obvs. So used to having in the first XI he didn't enter my mind at all.
 
Prince EWS

Prince EWS

Global Moderator
I like Bedser in that team just because his bowling was a bit different (ie. effectively slow leg cutters half the time). Someone who describes his bowling in this way seems like a useful part of that attack in lieu of a specialist spinner:

Most fast bowlers pre-war bowled outswingers because of the lbw law [then in vogue]. The ball had to pitch [in line] stump to stump before an lbw appeal was upheld. Inswingers were rather frowned upon by the so-called experts - not many were bowled, so Don never really had to cope with the late inswing bowling and especially difficult was such a bowler who could also get the ball to move from leg to off after the ball pitched. I needed to develop such a ball. Today they call this a legcutter and because of the big seam on the ball these days it deviates upon pitching. Balls just after the war had hardly any seam, so I found I had to actually spin the ball. I found my big hands helped the process and that I did not have to change my action at all.

I didn't want the ball to swing in, so I held it across the seam as if gripping the ball for a legbreak. When it pitched it went away off the track like a big-spinning legbreak. Obviously I had spun the ball. Sid looked down the pitch and said, 'What's bloody going on?' I walked back for the next ball, again holding the ball across the seam, and Peter Smith, an older Essex player fielding at mid-on, observed my grip and said, 'You can't hold a new ball like that.' Next ball I held it the same way and again it skipped off the pitch, just like a legbreak. It took me another 18 months to achieve the accuracy I wanted. Developing that ball confirmed what I had always believed - that bowlers should try things and think for themselves.
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I'd sooner leave Roberts out if I was trying to find a place for Botham.
 
Last edited:
iPankajKhanna

iPankajKhanna

Cricket Spectator
Ian Botham is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders of the game. Very difficult to leave him out. Just so you could have someone who can spin? Sobers could ball a bit of spin. Roberts way to lethal to be warming the benches. By the way - who would be your head coach - Sir Geoffrey Boycott?
 
Line and Length

Line and Length

Cricketer Of The Year
If The Don had a perceived weakness it might have been against leg spin and a well-disguised wrong-un. If it hadn't been for the emotion of the moment, Bradman might not have fallen to Hollies - but who knows. Bradman v Warne would be an encounter worth watching.
 
SillyCowCorner1

SillyCowCorner1

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Line and Length said:
If The Don had a perceived weakness it might have been against leg spin and a well-disguised wrong-un. If it hadn't been for the emotion of the moment, Bradman might not have fallen to Hollies - but who knows. Bradman v Warne would be an encounter worth watching.
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Bradman would have walloped him good.
 
Migara

Migara

Cricketer Of The Year
Bradman vs Marshall would have been sweet.
Bradman vs Kumble on a sticky dog is another
Bradman vs Barnes is a thing to watch.
 
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