I don't think you need to open with Gilchrist and Afridi, and I don't think you need to fill it up with power-hitters. Also, what are you going to do with nine bowling options? Mine is:

1. Adam Gilchrist
2. Mark Waugh
3. Sachin Tendulkar
4. Viv Richards
5. Brian Lara
6. Mike Hussey
7. Lance Klusener
8. Shane Warne
9. Dennis Lillee
10. Joel Garner
11. Allan Donald

12. Glenn McGrath

That gives the team an express pace-bowler, a fast-medium swing bowler, a tall hit-the-deck bowler, a brisk medium-pacer, an offie in Richards and a leggie. The batting lineup is full of aggressive, but heavy-scoring, batsmen.

You have chosen a brilliant one day team, it has always been my beleif that the best bowlers I have seen were (1) Lillee (2) Ambrose (3) Marshall (4) McGrath (5) Garner (6) Warne.

What I have done though in picking my team is calculated the players bowling abilities with there batting talents.

In reality the likes of "Botham", "Hadlee", "Cairns", "Imran", "Kapil Dev" etc are not much weaker in there bowling abilities as those mentioned above, though there batting averages are so much superior.

Ten bowling options and a Wicketkeeper who bats is the way to go I think, if this team was chasing 300 to win and were 8 for 200 with 10 overs to go they could still win the game.

The six major bowlers in my line up were all capable of smashing 100 in very quick time apart from "Warne" who could hit a quick fire 50 if needed.

Not only this but they could all take a 5 wicket haul and destroy the best batting line ups in there 10 over spells.

I for one would love to see "Gilchrist" and "Afridi" bat together, imagine the freedom they would have to smash the attack knowing that "Hadlee" at 10 could score a 100 and "Warne" at 11 a 50.

Welcome to the forum but dude can you cut your font size down please, I feel like I'm being yelled at.

I like Cairns but he shouldn't be in your team at number 8, there are far stronger bowlers to have at that position, you dont really need an allrounder there given the strength of the batting lineup.

Also Bevan and Kluesner perform the same role so they can't really be in the same side.

As for your poitn abotu the side being 200/8 and needing 100 to win and being capable of winning, they'd never be in that position.

Unless of course they happen to play the Second Greatest ODI XI! How about:

1. Saeed Anwar
2. Desmond Haynes
3. Dean Jones
4. Jaques Kallis
5. Michael Bevan
6. Jonty Rhodes
7. Mark Boucher
8. Richard Hadlee
9. Wasim Akram
10. Michael Holding
11. Muthiah Muralitharan

12. Andrew Symonds

I can not understand what is a batsman with an average of 23.75 doing in the best world 11. I understand that you would want your batsmen to score fast, but you also want one who would score. Afridi is a blind hitter? Dont you have better chance of fast scoring with someone like Gayle or Tendulkar. Also, if you have a fast scorer like Gilly to open, you want someone who can play with him....not someone who would fight for the scoring opportunities. Also, you dont want an Afridi who would in 9 out of 10 cases, fall cheaply putting pressure on the rest.

Also, I agree with the point from sittingduck on Klusner and Bevan. That team is already packed with all rounders. Cairns, Klusner and bevan....they all play the same roles, dont they?

I think Aurilius' s team looks very good to me.

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My computer can beat me at chess.....but its no match for me at kick boxing.

Exactly. I fear the XI lined up in the thread-starter could enter a world cup of all time great sides.... and not even get out of the group stages!

The moment they hit a sporting pitch and faced an attack of Akram, Marshall, Ambrose, Garner and Muralitharan (quite adequate batting depth) the thread-starter side would be stuffed... and as for the top six.. you could pick stacks of different combinations, but the following side wouldn't be too bad:

Sachin Tendulkar
Barry Richards
Dean Jones
Kumar Sangakkara+
Javed Miandad
Zaheer Abbas
Wasim Akram
Malcolm Marshall
Curtley Ambrose
Joel Garner
Muttiah Muralitharan

Over a 12 game series.... I'd expect this side to emerge clear winners over the team in the thread-starter!

Agreed, but come on- as great as Barry Richards obviously was, you can't really have him in the Greatest ODI side, can you? Otherwise, why not have Bradman or Hobbs or Pollock or Weekes, or any one of dozens of greats that never played ODIs?

By the way, what if you applied the all-rounder concept to picking a Test side?

Bobby Simpson
Eddie Barlow
Jacques Kallis
Tony Grieg
Keith Miller
Gary Sobers
Imran Khan
Tim Zhoerer
Richie Benaud
Ray Lindwall
Chaminda Vaas

Howzat?

^^ Not a bad team at all


Its kinda hard to understand how can you have a world best 11 without the great Wasim Akram?, and its kinda funny Ricky Ponting couldn't make it to any of the above mention squads...
Here is my team at the time when the players were at their peak.

Gilchrist
Saeed Anwar
Tendulkar
Brian Lara
Viv Richards
Javed Miandad
Lance Klusner
Imran Khan (the captain of course)
Wasim Akram
Waqar Younis (when he used either bowled out, OR crush the batsman's toe)
Shane Warne

Ricky Ponting the 12th man.

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Had cricket been a religion, Imran Khan would've been the god.

Good team on paper, but aren't you a little worried that the attack of Khan, Wasim and waqar might be a little one-dimensional? After all, they're all genuinely fast reverse-swing specialists.

As for Ponting- to be honest, I wonder how he'd perform against genuinely good fast bowling (by that I mean the type that can sustain a good line and length). I think he was exposed a little by India and Sri Lanka bowling a good line and length consistently, and to a lesser extent, by England's bowling attack in 2005. But if you go with the theory that the 12th Man should be a very good fielder, then I'd certainly agree with his selection on that basis.