Harsha Bhogle picks India’s all-time Test XI

Picking an all-time India XI is never an easy task with several prominent cricketers having represented the national team. However, veteran Indian commentator Harsha Bhogle did the same on the occasion of his 60th birthday. On Monday (July 19), he named India’s all-time Test XI which was studded with cricket icons. Needless to mention, Bhogle would have faced the ‘problem of plenty’ which selecting this hypothetical team. While there were many big guns in the line-up, there were also some notable exclusion.

Starting with the openers, Bhogle unsurprisingly went with Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag. The former duo tormented many potent bowlers in the 80s and piled up a mountain of runs. Gavaskar, in fact, was the first cricketer to reach the 10,000 run landmark. On the other hand, Sehwag redefined the opener’s role with his blitzes at the top-order. The dasher used to attack from the outset and many potent bowlers have faced his wrath.

The iconic duo of Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar was next in the order. Piercing Dravid’s defenses was a hefty task and the same earned him the title of ‘The Wall.’ Speaking of Tendulkar, Master Blaster is the highest run-scorer in the format and his inclusion was inevitable. Picking up the top four wasn’t really a challenge with the problem of plenty not being an issue.

No Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman in Harsha Bhogle’s elite team

However, that’s not the case for the remaining positions. Omitting the likes of Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, and Mohammad Azharuddin, Bhogle, who named this XI in a video for Cricbuzz, placed current Indian skipper Virat Kohli at number five. Kohli has already become a legend of the game and it would be interesting to see how far he goes.

The wicket-keeper’s slot was occupied by MS Dhoni while Kapil Dev was named the all-rounder. Besides showing their prowess as cricketers, both these players also proved their mettle in the captaincy department. Bhogle picked Ravichandran Ashwin and Anil Kumble as the spin twins of the team ahead of Harbhajan Singh. Ashwin and Kumble have made and shattered several records with their turning deliveries and their batting skills have been handy as well.

Harsha Bhogle Picked his India's Test XI:-

1. Sunil Gavaskar.
2. Virender Sehwag.
3. Rahul Dravid.
4. Sachin Tendulkar.
5. Virat Kohli.
6. Ms Dhoni (WK).
7. Kapil Dev.
8. Ravi Ashwin.
9. Anil Kumble.
10. Javagal Srinath.
11. Zaheer Khan.

— CricketMAN2 (@man4_cricket) July 19, 2021

Javagal Srinath and Zaheer Khan were named the two fast bowlers of the team. The duo was known to set the speed gun on fire and their ability to swing the ball made them even more lethal. While not many can question Srinath and Khan’s selection, Ishant Sharma’s omission surprised a few.

Harsha Bhogle’s India Test XI: Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Kapil Dev, Ravichandran Ashwin, Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath Zaheer Khan