DUBAI: Four Indian cricketers, including batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar and 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev, were on Monday named in the Greatest All Time Test XI chosen in an online poll.
The other two — Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag — beat a host of legendary cricketers to be named in the two openers’ slot. They beat competition from the likes of Geoffrey Boycott, Jack Hobbs, Len Hutton, Hanif Mohammad and Herbert Sutcliffe.
Four Australians, two West Indians and one Pakistani also made it to Peoples’ Dream XI as more than a quarter of million people voted on ICC’s official website as part of the build-up to the England-India Test match at Lord’s to celebrate the 2000th cricket Test.
Tendulkar occupied the number four batting spot, one slot down Australian legend Don Bradman and one above West Indian Brian Lara, who was chosen at number five. The trio beat the likes of Greg Chappell, Wally Hammond, George Headley, Javed Miandad, Graeme Pollock, Ricky Ponting and Vivian Richards.
Kapil was chosen as the lone all-rounder ahead of the likes of Ian Botham, Richard Hadlee, Jacques Kallis, Imran Khan, Gary Sobers and Frank Worrell.
Australian Adam Gilchrist won the poll for wicket-keeper by beating the likes of Mark Boucher, Jeff Dujon and Rod Marsh while Shane Warne got the nod of online voters ahead of the likes of India’s Bishan Singh Bedi and Anil Kumble and Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan.
Wasim Akram, Curtly Ambrose and Glenn McGrath were named in the three fast bowlers’ slots.
The likes of Michael Holding, Dennis Lillee, Malcolm Marshall and Courtney Walsh missed out.
ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said the enthusiasm shown by the fans by taking part in the online poll in huge numbers showed Test cricket’s popularity.
“The huge interest generated during the past month was amazing as media and supporters worldwide speculated and then selected the fan’s Greatest Test team of all time.
“It supports our view of the everlasting popularity of Test match cricket,” he said.
“It would have been quite special to see this team take the field of play given the array of batting and bowling talent contained within the playing eleven.
“Selecting from such greats is no easy job, and not surprisingly, the selection mainly reflects modern players seen by present day supporters.
“There are many greats from the past who would have easily merited selection in this team, but it is nevertheless interesting to see the fans view on their greatest eleven of all time,” he said.
Greatest All Time XI:
Virender Sehwag, Sunil Gavaskar, Donald Bradman, Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Kapil Dev, Adam Gilchrist (wk), Shane Warne, Wasim Akram, Curtly Ambrose, Glenn McGrath. (PTI)