Greatest test XI of the modern era
Test cricket is cricket in its most pristine form. Since its inception in 1877, Test cricket delighted the lovers of the game and produced a long list of greats. With the phenomenal success of T20 format, the game’s oldest format took a considerable beating and lost a fair bit of its sheen.
However, it still commands its share of die-hard supporters that follow the format keenly. T20 format or ‘the slam-bang version’ of the game may be immensely popular today, but the joy produced by test cricket is unadulterated and unmatchable.
The new era from 1990 saw the emergence of all-time greats like Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne and is commonly referred to as the ‘modern era.’ Many records were shattered in this era and Test cricket became more competitive.
In this article, we embark upon the task of choosing the greatest test XI from the modern era.
Unsurprisingly, Australia has the largest number of players in this team as it has been the most dominant side since the 1990s in all formats of the game. Here is the ‘greatest test XI’ of the modern era.
#1 Virender Sehwag
Throughout his glittering career, Virender Sehwag remained one of India’s most impactful batsman in all formats and enlivened test cricket like few others. He was an epitome of fearlessness and pulverised many bowling attacks. He broke the barrier of triple hundreds in tests twice, an astonishing feat that remained elusive even for the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
The way in which he tamed the bowling attack of Pakistan in 2004 in Multan on his way to his first triple hundred remains etched forever in the memories of the Indian fans.
Sehwag’s audacity to go for boundaries while batting on the brink of important milestones fetched him countless admirers. Getting to his 300 with a massive six off the bowling of Saqlain Mushtaq is a case in point.
What set Sehwag apart from the rest of the prolific batsmen was the red-hot pace at which he amassed his runs. Sehwag struck at the rate of 82 runs per hundred balls in test cricket, a rate which is unmatched in tests and which is considered very impressive in ODI cricket too. At a time when test cricket was becoming wearisome, ‘Viru’ injected new life into it with his exhilarating stroke-play.
Sehwag’s conversion rate of fifties into hundreds (23 hundreds out of 55 fifty plus scores) is admirable too. Since Sehwag is the most aggressive opening batsman in the modern era, he is an automatic choice for the first opening slot.