Test Top 5s (as of now)

[91Jmay]

Not seen a thread like this, might be fun to track periodically how our lists change:

Batsmen:
1) Steve Smith
2) Kane Williamson
3) Joe Root
4) Virat Kohli
5) Azhar Ali

HM: De Kock, Pujara, Ross Taylor, Dave Warner

Pace bowlers:
1) Dale Steyn
2) Mitchell Starc
3) KG Rabada
4) Josh Hazelwood
5) Stuart Broad

HM: Vernon Philander, Trent Boult

Spin bowlers:
1) R Ashwin
2) Rangana Herath
3) Yasir Shah
4) Nathan Lyon
5) Ravi Jadeja

All rounders:
1) Ben Stokes
2) Shakib Al Hasan
3) Angelo Mathews
4) R Ashwin
5) Moeen Ali

Assorted comments, Spinners first 3 picked themselves but after that I'd say there is a real paucity of quality options going around. Ali might be contentious to some at 5 on the batsmen slot but I rate him very highly and edges out Warner/Taylor et al because he has scored runs in a good variety of conditions. I expect De Kock to rapidly move up the list though, potentially going as far as 1#. Pace bowlers there to me a clear and obvious top 3, with 4-8 or so being a real logjam of good bowlers. All rounders is hard as basically all of them are primary skilled in one discipline with a bolt on extra.

 

[Tom Flint]

Shakid got to be in the spinners top 5. Always seems to pick up 2/3 for very few runs. And has done it consistently for a number of years

 

[91Jmay]

Shakid got to be in the spinners top 5. Always seems to pick up 2/3 for very few runs. And has done it consistently for a number of years

Yeah, I will make an all rounders top 5 thinking about it. He could probably be in over Lyon/Jadeja but I don't feel strongly about it either way.

 

[StephenZA]

I dont think you can include Steyn at the moment, we don't even know if/when he will come back for certain. Philander probably deserves to be top 5. And Morkel deserves an HM with the way he has bowled recently.

 

[91Jmay]

I dont think you can include Steyn at the moment, we don't even know if/when he will come back for certain. Philander probably deserves to be top 5. And Morkel deserves an HM with the way he has bowled recently.

Yeah, I just can't not have Steyn 1# until he has retired. Vern was very close, him and Broad was virtually a tie but I reckoned over 18 month period (roughly my window) Broad had stayed a bit fitter basically. Morkel was at the back end of the mentioned logjam, would have had a few before him.

 

[harsh.ag]

- Azhar Ali definitely above Kohli for me.
- Starc seems overrated there.
- Jadeja > Shakib > Lyon
- All rounders are --> Stokes, Shakib, Matthews, Moeen, Ashwin

 

[Pratters]

How about a top 5 pure a keepers all FC cricket?

 

[91Jmay]

- Azhar Ali definitely above Kohli for me.
- Starc seems overrated there.
- Jadeja > Shakib > Lyon
- All rounders are --> Stokes, Shakib, Matthews, Moeen, Ashwin

Yeah, Starc maybe slightly high. Lyon has done more away from home than Jadeja at this point, still not sure I'd really pick Jadeja as a lone spinner anywhere outside of Asia where as I certainly would with Lyon. It's fair call that he is far better than Lyon in spinning conditions though, again I don't feel strongly about that though and could be wrong. Mathews is a good call as an allrounder, he will go straight into edited list.

 

[honestbharani]

what sort of a bracket is your "now"? Last 12 months?

 

[honestbharani]

what sort of a bracket is your "now"? Last 12 months?

When I asked this, for some reason the below post had not loaded. Sorry JMay..

Yeah, I just can't not have Steyn 1# until he has retired. Vern was very close, him and Broad was virtually a tie but I reckoned over 18 month period (roughly my window) Broad had stayed a bit fitter basically. Morkel was at the back end of the mentioned logjam, would have had a few before him.

But even if you take 18 months, I dont think Steyn will be ahead by that much.

 

[91Jmay]

Yeah I should have written it in the original post, fair call. I am probably being disingenuous including him at 1# given my own criteria but he is top 5 all time for me so I still can't comfortably move him yet.

 

[honestbharani]

yeah.. its tough to be objective with ATGs. I know the feeling. I never had Lara as anything less than #1 for as long as he was playing. Even when he obviously was not #1.

 

[Pratters]

I'll put Morris as 5th all rounder. Can bowl and bat. The pace he came up with recently in that ODI was quite some thing. Don't like Morris but he has a fair bit of talent.

 

[harsh.ag]

I'll put Morris as 5th all rounder. Can bowl and bat. The pace he came up with recently in that ODI was quite some thing. Don't like Morris but he has a fair bit of talent.

He's not in his country's first XI.

 

[grecian]

Root is so much better than Williamson, not sure on what metric you can put him ahead.

 

[marc71178]

Can Mathews really be called an all rounder? Don't they like have to bowl?

 

[Pratters]

He's not in his country's first XI.

Would have been better placed were South African policies not focused on giving coloured players more opportunities.

 

[harsh.ag]

Would have been better placed were South African policies not focused on giving coloured players more opportunities.

He wouldn't. They have far better bowlers and he isn't a good enough batsman to be at number 6/7.

 

[Shri]

Batsmen:
1) Steve Smith
2) Kane Williamson
3) Joe Root
4) Virat Kohli
5) Azhar Ali

HM: De Kock, Pujara, Cook

Pace bowlers:

1) Josh Hazelwood
2) Vernon Philander
3) K Rabada
4) Stuart Broad
5) Umesh Yadav

HM: Dale Steyn, Trent Boult

Spin bowlers:

1) Ravi Jadeja
2) Ravi Ashwin
3) Rangana Herath
4) Yasir Shah
5) Nathan Lyon

All rounders:

1) Ben Stokes
2) Ravi Ashwin
3) Shakib Al Hasan
4) Ravi Jadeja
5) Moeen Ali

My opinion.

 

[Bijed]

Can Mathews really be called an all rounder? Don't they like have to bowl?

He bowls himself with the new ball these days tbf

But I wouldn't have him in anyway, his batting recently has been nothing special and whilst from memory his bowling has been actually quite tidy, it's not as if he's been a big wicket-taking threat.

I'd probably replace him in the list with Herath who has definitely been the roundest player in the last 18 months