Select Your Best Test Cricket Team and Win $1,000 AUD!
Think you can create the ultimate Test cricket team? Here’s your chance to win $1,000 AUD by picking your best Test XI, following these simple rules:

1. Team Composition:
- Your team can only include a maximum of Two players from any one Test-playing nation.
- Select 11 players in batting order to form a balanced cricket team of batters, bowlers and a wicket keeper. Please nominate your wicket keeper.

2. Eligibility:
- You can only select players you’ve personally seen play a Test match live or on television.
- For instance, if you were born in 1970, players like Don Bradman are ineligible.

3. How to Submit Your Team:
- To participate, you must be a registered user on CricConnect.
- Register by providing your full name, email address, and password. Validate your email address, then publish your team in the answer section under this competition post.
- Teams published solely on CricConnect’s social media pages will not be considered.

4. Limitations:
- You can submit only one team.

5. Competition Period:
- Entries close at 12:00 pm AEST on 31st January 2025.

6. Winner Selection:
- All eligible entries will be entered into a random draw to win $1,000 AUD.
- The winner will be announced at 4:00 pm AEST on 31st January 2025.

7. Prize Details:
- There will be one winner only, receiving $1,000 AUD.

Start brainstorming your best Test team and submit your entry for a chance to win!

Have fun.

Here’s my best test team in batting order

1 - Graeme Smith
2 – Graham Gooch
3 – Ricky Ponting
4 - Viv Richards
5 – Sachin Tendulkar
6 - Jacques Kallis
7 – Kumar Sangakkara - wicket keeper
8 - Wasim Akram
9 - Shane Warne
10 - Curtly Ambrose
11 - Jasprit Bumrah

Players
Australia 2, South Africa 2, England 1, West Indies 2, India 2, Sri Lanka 1, Pakistan 1

1 – Kumar Sangakkara
2 – Kane Williamson
3 – Jacques Kallis
4 - Sachin Tendulkar
5 – Brian Lara
6 – Joe Root
7 – Adam Gilchrist (wk)
8 – Shane Warne
9 – Stuart Broad
10 - Curtly Ambrose
11 - Jasprit Bumrah

Players
Sri Lanka 1, New Zealand 1, South Africa 1, India 2, West Indies 2, England 2, Australia 2

1 - Alistair Cook
2 - Matthew Hayden
3 – Brian Lara
4 – Joe Root
5 – Sachin Tendulkar
6 – Jacques Kallis
7 – Kumar Sangakkara
8 – Shane Warne
9 - Curtly Ambrose
10 – Muttiah Muralitharan
11 - Jasprit Bumrah

Players
England 2, Australia 2, West Indies 2, India 2, South Africa 1, Sri Lanka 2

1 – Alistair Cook
2 – Virender Sehwag
3 – Greg Chappell
4 – Viv Richards
5 – Sachin Tendulkar
6 – Garry Sobers
7 – Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
8 – Wasim Akram
9 – Richard Hadlee
10 – Shane Warne
11 – Stuart Broad

England 2, Australia 2, West Indies 2, India 2, Sri Lanka 1, New Zealand 1, Pakistan 1

1 – Tom Latham
2 – Tamim Iqbal
3 – Kane Williamson
4 – Virat Kohli
5 – Steve Smith
6 – Ben Stokes
7 – Dinesh Chandimal (wk)
8 – Ravi Ashwin
9 – Pat Cummins
10 – Kagiso Rabada
11 – Jimmy Anderson

New Zealand 2, Bangladesh 1, India 2, Australia 2, England 2, South Africa 1, Sri Lanka 1

1. Desmond Haynes
2. Alistair Cooke
3. Kevin Peterson
4. Sachin Tendulkar
5. Jacques Kallis
6. Steven Waugh
7. Jeffrey Dujon W/K
8. Kapil Dev
9. Wasim Akram
10. Shane Warne
11. Alan Donald
West Indies 2 - England 2 - Australia 2 - India 2 - South Africa 2 - Pakistan 1

1. Alistair Cook
2. Graeme Smith
3. Greg Chappell
4. Vivian Richards
5. Sachin Tendulkar
6. Jacques Kallis
7. Kumar Sangakkara - wicket keeper
8. Richard Hadlee
9. Malcolm Marshall
10. Wasim Akram
11. Shane Warne

Players
Australia 2, South Africa 2, England 1, West Indies 2, India 1, Sri Lanka 1, Pakistan 1, New Zealand 1

Here’s my best test team in batting order

1 - Brendon McCullum - wicket keeper
2 – Alastair Cook
3 – Steve Smith
4 - Sachin Tendulkar
5 – Jacques Kallis
6 - Shivnarine Chanderpaul
7 – Ben Stokes
8 - Kagiso Rabada
9 - Wasim Akram
10 - Shane Warne
11 - Jasprit Bumrah

Players
Australia 2, South Africa 2, England 2, India 2, West Indies 1, Pakistan 1, New Zealand 1

Difficult but here goes.
1- Adam Gilchrist (AUS/WK)
2- Brian Lara (W.I)
3- Jacques Kallis (S.A)
4- Joe Root (ENG)
5- Viv Richards (W.I)
6- Kayne Williamson (N.Z)
7- Richard Hadlee (NZ)
8- Wasim Akram (PAK)
9- Shane Warne (AUS) Capt.
10- Dale Steyne (S.A)
11- Muttiah Muralitharan (SRI)
Aust 2
NZ 2
S.Africa 2
W.I 2
PAK 1
SRI 1
ENG 1

Matthew Hayden (AUS)
Alistair Cook (ENG)
Kane Williamson (NZ)
Sachin Tendulkar (IND)
Brian Lara (WI)
Kumar Sangakkara (SL) (WK)
Jacques Kallis (SA)
Wasim Akram (PAK)
Shane Warne (AUS)
Malcolm Marshall (WI)
Jasprit Bumrah (IND)

Players
Australia (2) West Indies (2) Sri Lanka (1) India (2) Pakistan (1) New Zealand (1) South Africa (1) England (1)

1. Graeme Smith (SA)
2. Alastair Cook (ENG)
3. Viv Richards (WI)
4. Ricky Ponting (AUS) (Captain)
5. Sachin Tendulkar (IND)
6. Jaques Kallis (SA)
7. Kumar Sangakara (SRI) (WK)
8. Shane Warne (AUS)
9. Richard Hadlee (NZ)
10. Wasim Akram (PAK)
11. Malcolm Marshall (WI)

AUS (2)
SA (2)
WI (2)
IND (1)
PAK (1)
SL (1)
ENG (1)
NZ (1)

S. Gavaskar
G. Smith
S. Tendulkar
S. Smith
J. Root
K. Sangakkara (Wk)
J. Kallis
W. Akram
R. Hadlee
S. Warne
M. Marshall

1. S. Gavaskar
2. M. Hayden
3. J. Kallis
4. S. Tendulkar
5. V. Richards
6. A. Flower (wk)
7. I. Khan
8. S. Warne
9. R. Hadlee
10. M. Marshall
11. J. Anderson

Don Bradman 3
Shane Warne 9
Vic Richards 5
Gary Sobers 6
Barry Richards1
Jasprit Bumrah 11
Dale Steyn 10
Imram Khan 8
Wasim Akram 9
Sachin Tendulkar 4
Kumar Sangakkara
Sunil Gavaskar 2

1. Cook
2. G. Smith (c)
3. Lara
4. Kallis
5. Tendulkar
6. Root
7. Sangakkara
8. Warne
9 Akram
10. Bumrah
11. McGrath

Joe Root has gone from England's best since 2000 to England's best ever these past 5 years.
So many great Australians to choose from, but Warne and McGrath did it so bloody well for so long.. Cummins likely to replace McGrath once all said and done. Wasim is the greatest left armer I've seen.
Kallis in my opinion is the greatest of all time, closely followed by Sangakkara. Tendulkar best pure Batsman I've seen, Lara best Left Hander I've seen. 12k Test runs as an opener is unbelievable, while big Biff's record as an opener and captain speaks for itself.

Quite a challenge.

My team is:

Barry Richards (SA)
Virender Sehwag (I)
Brian Lara (WI)
Sachin Tendulkar (I)
Graeme Pollock (SA)
Kumar Sangakkara (SL) - WK
Garfield Sobers (WI)
Richard Hadlee (NZ)
Wasim Akram (P)
Shane Warne (A)
Dennis Lillee (A)

The hardest thing is leaving out so many

1- Matthew Hayden
2- Martin Crowe
3- Brian Lara
4- Sachin Tendulkar
5- Jacques Kallis
6- Adam Gilchrist (wk)
7- Wasim Akram
8- Malcolm Marshall
9- Muttiah Muralitharan
10- Allan Donald
11- James Anderson

AUS x 2, WI x 2, SA x 2, NZ x 1, INDIA x 1, PAK x 1, SL x 1, ENG x 1

As a 2001 baby, this was very hard.

1. Alistair Cook
2. Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
3. Ricky Ponting (c)
4. Sachin Tendulkar
5. Brian Lara
6. Jacques Kallis
7. Kane Williamson
8. Shane Warne
9. Dale Steyn
10. James Anderson
11. Muttiah Muralitharan

Aus (2) Eng (2) SA (2) SL (2) WI (1) Ind (1) NZ (1)

1 – Gordon Greenidge
2 – Graeme Smith
3 – Sachin Tendulkar
4 – Jacques Kallis
5 – Martin Crowe
6 – Ian Botham
7 – Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
8 – Shane Warne
9 – Malcolm Marshall
10 – Jasprit Bumrah
11 – Dennis Lillee

West Indies 2, South Africa 2, India 2, New Zealand 1, England 1, Sri Lanka 1, Australia 2

1 – Alistair Cook
2 – Graeme Smith
3 – Sachin Tendulkar
4 – Viv Richards
5 – AB de Villiers
6 – Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
7 – Richard Hadlee
8 – Shane Warne
9 – Malcolm Marshall
10 – Jasprit Bumrah
11 – Glenn McGrath

West Indies 2, South Africa 2, India 2, New Zealand 1, England 1, Sri Lanka 1, Australia 2

1. Virenda Sehwag
2. Barry Richards
3. Viv Richards
4. Sachin Tendulkar
5. Kumar Sangakkara
6. Imran Khan
7. Adam Gilchrist (wk)
8. Wasim Akram
9. Shane Warne
10. Dale Steyn
11. Curtley Ambrose

West Indies 2, Australia 2, Pakistan 2, India 2, South Africa 2, Sri Lanka 1.

1. Graeme Smith
2. Sachin Tendulkar
3. Ricky Ponting
4. Kane Williamson
5. Brian Lara
6. Jacques Kallis
7. Kumar Sangakarra
8. Shane Warne
9. Stuart Broad
10. Wasim Akram
11. Jasprit Bumrah

1 A Cook
2 G Geenridge
3 R Ponting
4 S Tendulker
5 B Lara
6 J Kallis
7 K Sangakarra
8 W Akram
9 S Warne
10 R Hadlee
11 D Steyn

2 Australia 2 West Indies 2 South Africa 1 India 1 Sri Lanka 1 Pakistan 1 England 1 New Zealand

1 Virendar Sehwag
2 Joe Root
3 Sachin Tendulkar
4 Viv Richards (c)
5 Kane Williamson
6 Kumar Sangakara
7 AB De Villiers (wk)
8 Wasim Akram
9 Shane Warne
10 Malcolm Marshall
11 Dennis Lillee

1. Cook (Eng)
2. Gooch (Eng)
3. Tendulkar (IND)
4. Lara (WI)
5. Abbas (PAK)
6. Kallis (SA)
7. Gilchrist (AU)
8. Warne (AU)
9. Bumrah (IND)
10. Marshall (WI)
11. Donald (SA)

AU - 2
Eng - 2
IND - 2
WI - 2
SA - 2
PAK - 1

My team is as follows:
1. Alistair Cook (ENG)
2. Virender Sehwag (IND)
3. Ricky Ponting (AUS)
4. Sachin Tendulkar (IND)
5. Shivnarine Chanderpaul (WI)
6. Jacques Kallis (RSA)
7. Kumar Sangakkara (SL) WK
8. Shane Warne (AUS)
9. Dale Steyn (RSA)
10. Muttiah Muralitharan (SL)
11. James Anderson (ENG)

Players:
India (2), South Africa (2), West Indies (1), Australia (2), Sri Lanka (2), England (2)

1. A. Cook ( England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
2. A.B De Villiers ( South Africa 🇿🇦)
3. Sachin Tendulkar ( India 🇮🇳)
4. Brian Lara (West Indies 🏝️)
5. Jacques Kallis ( South Africa 🇿🇦)
6. Imran Khan ( Pakistan 🇵🇰)
7 . Adam Gilchrist ( Australia 🇦🇺) WK
8 . Shane Warne ( Australia 🇦🇺)
9. Wasim Akram ( Pakistan 🇵🇰 )
10. Malcolm Marshall ( West Indies 🏝️)
11. Muttiah Muralidiran ( Sri Lanka 🇱🇰)

Team Gen X

1. VVS Laxman - India
2. Stephen Fleming - New Zealand
3. Sachin Tendulkar - India
4. Ricky Ponting - Australia
5. Brian Lara - West Indies
6. Jacques Kallis - South Africa
7. Andy Flower (WK) - Zimbabwe
8. Carl Hooper - West Indies
9. Shane Warne - Australia
10. Darren Gough - England
11 Allan Donald - South Africa

In batting order.

Alistair Cook
Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
Ricky Ponting (c)
Brian Lara
Sachin Tendulkar
Jacques Kallis
Wasim Akram
Richard Hadlee
Shane Warne
Malcolm Marshall
Dale Steyn

1. V. Sehwag
2. S Jayasuriya
3. R. Ponting
4. S. Tendulkar
5. B. Lara
6. J. Kallis
7. M. Boucher (wk)
8. R. Hadlee
9. S. Warne
10. M. Marshall
11. M. Muralidaran

India 2 Sri Lanka 2 Australia 2 West Indies 2 South Africa 2 New Zealand 1

Tough working around the 2 per country limit....

My 11....

1) Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
2) Graeme Smith
3) Brian Lara
4) Sachun Tendulkar
5) Viv Richards
6) Kane Williamson (c)
7) Ian Botham
8) Richard Hadlee
9) Wasim Akram
10) Shane Warne
11) Dennnis Lillee

SL 1 / SA 1 / WI 2 / Ind 1 / NZ 2 / Eng 1 / Pak 1 / Aust 2

In batting order:

BARRY RICHARDS SOUTH AFRICA
VIV RICHARDS WEST INDIES
SACHIN TENDULKAR INDIA
GRAEME POLLOCK SOUTH AFRICA
GARFIELD SOBERS WEST INDIES
IAN BOTHAM ENGLAND
ALAN KNOTT W/K ENGLAND
WASIM AKRAM PAKISTAN
SHANE WARNE AUSTRALIA
DENIS LILLEE AUSTRALIA
MUTTIAH MURULIDARAN SRI LANKA

Born in 1955, I am old enough to have had the pleasure of watching Gary Sobers and Graeme Pollock in action!

1) Matthew Hayden
2) Sunil Gavaskar
3) Sachin Tendulkar
4) Brian Lara
5) Younis Khan
6) Kumar Sangakkara
7) Jacques Kallis
8) Wasim Akram
9) Richard Hadlee
10) Curtly Ambrose
11) Shane Warne

Keeping in mind this is a test match team

1. Sunil Gavaskar (India) – One of the greatest openers, known for his mastery against fast bowling.
2. Matthew Hayden (Australia) – Aggressive opener who dominated bowlers with his powerful stroke play.
3. Jacques Kallis (South Africa) – The best all-rounder of the modern era, offering stability at No. 3 and a reliable seam option.
4. Brian Lara (West Indies) – A genius batsman with an unmatched ability to play long, game-changing innings.
5. Steve Smith (Australia) – A modern-day maestro with an unparalleled consistency in Test cricket.
6. Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) (wk) – Exceptional batsman and reliable wicketkeeper, offering flexibility in the middle order.
7. Ben Stokes (England) (c) – Dynamic all-rounder with an ability to change games with both bat and ball, and a natural leader.
8. Richard Hadlee (New Zealand) – Among the best seamers in history and a capable lower-order batsman.
9. Shane Warne (Australia) – The greatest leg-spinner of all time, a magician with the ball.
10. Malcolm Marshall (West Indies) – Arguably the most complete fast bowler ever, with skill and pace.
11. Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) – The leading wicket-taker in Test history, a match-winner on any surface.

1- Graeme Gooch (ENG)
2- Virenda Sehwag (IND)
3- Sachin Tendulkar (IND)
4- Brian Lara (WI)
5- Jacques Kallis (SA)
6- Kumar Sangakkara (SRI)
7- Adam Gilchrist (AUS/WK)
8- Wasim Akram (PAK)
9- Shane Warne (AUS) Capt.
10- Dale Steyne (SA)
11- Curtly Ambrose (WI)
Aust 2
NZ 0
S.Africa 2
W.I 2
PAK 1
SRI 1
ENG 1
IND 2

1. Gordon Greenidge - West Indies
2. Barry Richards – South Africa
3. Ian Chappell – Captain – Australia
4. Viv Richards – West Indies
5. Javed Miandad – Pakistan
6. Ian Botham – England
7. Ian Knott – England
8. Imran Khan – Pakistan
9. Shane Warne – Australia
10. Richard Hadlee – New Zealand
11. Kapil Dev - India

12th man is Ian Smith from New Zealand. Great beer man, and supplier of Kiwi food.
This squad would go well anywhere in the world with a mixture of power, pave and guile.