best test eleven of players age 30 and over

What would be your best test eleven, of players aged 30 and over this would be mine:

1.Taufeeq Umar
2.Tillkaratne Dilshan
3.Rahul Dravid
4.Sachin Tendulkar
5.Ricky Ponting
6.Jacques Kallis
7.Mark Boucher (wk)
8.Saeed Ajmal
9.Graeme Swann
10.Zaheer Khan
11.Chanaka Welegedra

Strauss should open and captain, he is certainly a far better player than Umar. Other than that, decent team. I'll have a think about who the over-30s are, and get back to you.

Isn't Watson over 30? He's surely a better bet than Laxman on recent form anyway. Kallis? Why do people always overlook Kallis?

It seems to be an era for young fast bowlers at the moment, so not sure who to pick there...

Mike Selig wrote: Kallis? Why do people always overlook Kallis?

Yeah mate, it is astounding, it seems to me almost a case of everyone is making a point they don't rate him.

sorry, genuinely forgot about Kallis?

so did i

I would say the top 6 should be:
Strauss
Watson
Dravid
Tendulkar
Kallis
Ponting.

Then I'm not sure. I guess Boucher as a keeper (MfC? You're the keeping expert on here). Swann and Ajmal can both play as Kallis and Watson give you two more seaming options. Zaheer obviously. Have I forgotten someone obvious. Harris rather than Weledegara? He's a better bowler, if often injured... Is Rampaul over 30? He's quite useful... Or Chris Martin even? You are always going to be missing a genuine pace-bowling wicket-taker by picking "oldies".

sorry biligontek i would have kallis over Laxman

I thought you guys might find this interesting.

Dr' Ali Bacher was interviewing Jacques Kallis regarding his career, and at the end of the interview he Asked Jacques who he rated better. Lara or Tendullkar.

His answer was Lara.

He believes Lara as a Batsman was better at manipulating bolwers and field placings, and hence more difficult to bowl to.

well Boucher's keeping is a birt dodgy at the moment, I think his reflexes are slowing so he's trying to anticipate where the ball is going a bit which is never a good thing (particularly if you get it wrong). Stewart and Gilchrist had a similar problem in the latter stages of their career.

Haddin and Dhoni are the other two candidates. Haddin kept very badly in the last innings he played, but other than that has been ok. I'd probably pick Dhoni, who's bounced back well from a torrid time with the gloves in England. Rampaul isn't over 30, I'd pick Martin instead of Welegedera. So
Strauss (capt)
Dilshan
Dravid
Tendulkar
Kallis
Ponting
Dhoni (wk)
Swann
Zaheer
Ajmal
Martin

interesting point biltong. I think it's Vaughan who in his autobiography rates Lara as one of the hardest players he had to captain against because it was so hard to set a field for him.

4 players who nearly made the cut in my side are:

Laxman, Dhoni,Harris,Martin

To be honest the team isn't far from my World Test XI

1. Sehwag
2. Dravid
3. Sangakkara
4. Tendulkar
5. Kallis
6. Pietersen
7. Dhoni (Prior to replace him when he hits 30 in a couple of months time)
8. Swann
9. Zaheer Khan
10. Harris
11. Martin

Reserves: Watson, Clarke, Boucher, Ajmal, Welegedara

Other very good players over 30: Strauss, Trott, Smith, Gambhir, Laxman, Hussey, Dilshan, Samaraweera, Younis Khan, Misbah, Chanderpaul, Haddin, Rehman, Herath, Vettori, Aizaz Cheema, Johnson.

Notably less pace bowlers

Is Jimmy A not 30 yet? He must be close.

Shelsey, I like your team most of the lot, I think.

Shelsey93 wrote:To be honest the team isn't far from my World Test XI

1. Sehwag
2. Dravid
3. Sangakkara
4. Tendulkar
5. Kallis
6. Pietersen
7. Dhoni (Prior to replace him when he hits 30 in a couple of months time)
8. Swann
9. Zaheer Khan
10. Harris
11. Martin

Reserves: Watson, Clarke, Boucher, Ajmal, Welegedara

Other very good players over 30: Strauss, Trott, Smith, Gambhir, Laxman, Hussey, Dilshan, Samaraweera, Younis Khan, Misbah, Chanderpaul, Haddin, Rehman, Herath, Vettori, Aizaz Cheema, Johnson.

Notably less pace bowlers

Dravid is not really an opening batsman, I would add smith to that list.

I find Rahul to be just as effective opening, given that his style is essentially that of your typical opener anyway. A player of such compact technique will always be a success whether it be as opener or at first drop.

So what you are saying is you will use a makeshift opener in place of a specialist opener who has similar records?

Purely because I would want Dravid in my side - I feel he is more adept at all kinds of conditions, however I'd also want Kevin Pietersen in the lineup to add some further class and flair, so Dravid opening would make more sense from that perspective.

Shelsey93 wrote:To be honest the team isn't far from my World Test XI

1. Sehwag
2. Dravid
3. Sangakkara
4. Tendulkar
5. Kallis
6. Pietersen
7. Dhoni (Prior to replace him when he hits 30 in a couple of months time)
8. Swann
9. Zaheer Khan
10. Harris
11. Martin

Reserves: Watson, Clarke, Boucher, Ajmal, Welegedara

Other very good players over 30: Strauss, Trott, Smith, Gambhir, Laxman, Hussey, Dilshan, Samaraweera, Younis Khan, Misbah, Chanderpaul, Haddin, Rehman, Herath, Vettori, Aizaz Cheema, Johnson.

Notably less pace bowlers

Bit harsh on Ponting not to have him anywhere?

True. Ponting in for Sangakkara, then.

Ponting in and replace Dhoni with Sangakkara as wicket keeper (force him to do it)

Yeah even better idea that'd be an immense batting lineup, too!

Yeah, some team

1. Sehwag
2. Dravid
3. Ponting (C)
4. Tendulkar
5. Kallis
6. Pietersen
7. Sangakkara (W)
8. Swann
9. Zaheer Khan
10. Harris
11. Martin

Sangakkara.............................v............................Ponting

55.97.....................Test average..............................52.70
28...............................Test 100s...................................40
59.93.........................Ave. in last 2 yrs.....................39.73
7...............................100s in last 2 yrs............................2

Clear to me that Sangakkara is better over the last 2 years and therefore more deserving of a place in this team... to be honest I found it harder to leave Clarke and Trott out than I did Ponting - although he should have been in the very good players over 30 - an error

Goes to show that there are a lot of good batsman around at the moment and many of them are over 30 - in selecting a World XI I think Cook for Pietersen with Dravid at 3, Sachin 4 and Kallis 5 and de Villiers/Bell (too close to call) at 6. Prior would be in for Dhoni and the bowling attack would have Steyn, Anderson and Broad in for Zaheer, Harris and Martin.

Sangakarra is such a high quality batsman, and his record is so much better when he isnt keeping.

Now, a more challenging XI would be batsmen and keepers over 36 and bowlers (Nos. 8-11) over 33. From my over 30 team that would rule out Sehwag, Sangakkara, Pietersen, Dhoni, Swann and Harris.

Starting with the openers is difficult as this is an area where a lot of teams have younger players so I propose Michael Hussey, who has never opened in Tests, but has done quite a bit in FC cricket as one opener with Ponting - no stranger to the new ball in the No. 3 position - the other.

The middle order is a strong area with Tendulkar, Kallis and Chanderpaul and Laxman selected and Misbah still just missing out.

The keeping position is troublesome as nobody over 36 keeps regularly in Tests at the moment. Therefore, I've had to give Dravid the gloves (with Boucher in as a ringer on occassion) and bat him at 5 in this team.

The real difficulties come in the bowling department. As a spinner Saeed Ajmal qualifies and Chris Martin and Zaheer are shoe-ins as seamers. However, even with the lower age limit it is hard to find ageing seamers still playing Test cricket meaning that the place goes by default to New Zealand's Brent Arnel.

Therefore the full team is:

1. Michael Hussey
2. Ricky Ponting
3. Jacques Kallis
4. Sachin Tendulkar
5. Rahul Dravid (wk)
6. Shivnarine Chanderpaul
7. VVS Laxman
8. Zaheer Khan
9. Saeed Ajmal
10. Brent Arnel
11. Chris Martin

Interestingly, if my research is correct Martin was the oldest seamer to play Test cricket in 2011 by about 4 years