This draft is based on player performances in ICC World Cups and Champions Trophy only, only performances in these tournaments count, performances outside these tournaments carry no weight. Please vote according to this criteria.
TEAM 12OunceEpilogue
1. Sachin Tendulkar
2. Brendon McCullum (Cpt) (Wkt)
3. Ramnaresh Sarwan
4. Graeme Hick
5. Sean Williams
6. Mohammad Mahmudullah
7. Jacob Oram
8. Brad Hogg
9. Chaminda Vaas
10. Jerome Taylor
11. Roger Binny
TEAM THE CAT
1 M. Guptill
2 G. Turner
3 R. Dravid
4 F. du Plessis
5 G. Thorpe
6 A. Flower (wk)
7 I. Khan (capt)
8 G. Swann
9 M. Marshall
10 M. Holding
11 N. Bracken
12OunceEpilogue writeup
Batting:
1. Tendulkar - The all-time greatest WC run scorer (2,278) across 45 matches including a record six centuries. Also holds the record for most runs in a single tournament (673 in 2003, where he was also Player of the Tournament) and top scored in 1996 with 523, and has been named Player of the Match a record nine times.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 152, Average: 56.95, Strike Rate: 88.98 50s: 15, 100s: 6
2. McCullum - An all-time great keeper-batsman, particularly in the short form, Baz also has the fourth best WC strike rate in history (120.85), which paired with a decent average of 33.73 ensures a lightning start for my innings. By no means a prolific WC captain, his record of eight wins and only a single defeat nevertheless shows he has the nouse to take control at this level, and his trademark innovation in his field settings may well come to the fore here. His keeping is superb, while his ability to push up to the stumps to pressurise batsmen facing medium-fast bowling, as he has done for his compatriot Oram to fine effect in ODI cricket, is a huge feather in his cap.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 101, Average: 33.73, Strike Rate: 120.85 50s: 6, 100s: 1
3. Sarwan - A top-class WC performer, with an enviable 46.19 average, Sarwan’s crowning glory in tournament cricket was the Champions Trophy of 2004, where he took away two Player of the Match awards and was named the overall Player of the Series in his side’s victorious campaign. A particular highlight was his gorgeous 56 not out in the semi final against Pakistan, where he salvaged the innings after both openers departed for a combined six runs and Brian Lara left him at the crease having retired hurt.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 92, Average: 46.19, Strike Rate: 75.00 50s: 3, 100s: 0
4. Hick - A solid, steady presence in the mould of Sarwan (Avg. 42.33, S/R 74.01) Hick was an integral part of England’s World Cup ’92 finalists, as evidenced by his superb 83 off 90 balls against South Africa in the semis. Though he isn’t known for scoring runs particularly quickly, here he showed he can do just that against top opposition in a beautiful innings that included nine boundaries.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 104*, Average: 42.33, Strike Rate: 74.01 50s: 6, 100s: 1
5. Williams -
Averaging north of 50 at just over a run a ball, Williams specialises in piling on runs for his team in the heart of the middle order. Seven of his 11 WC innings came at strikes rates above 100, including a Player of the Match-worthy outing against the UAE in 2015. Understandably Williams has never had the chance to showcase his talents at the business end of tournaments but he is a truly top-class dynamo of a batsman as proven by his fine WC figures.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 96, Average: 54.67, Strike Rate: 101.23 50s: 5, 100s: 0
6. Mahmudullah -
He made history in 2015 with his country’s first World Cup century in a defeat of England, then followed this up in the resulting quarter final against New Zealand with his second; a monstrous 128 off 123 balls including 15 boundaries. In the process he set the highest Bangladeshi wicket partnership in ODI history and laid a solid claim to the title of his country’s greatest ever World Cup batsman.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 128*, Average: 56.71, Strike Rate: 77.69 50s: 1, 100s: 2
7. Oram -
An intelligent lower-middle order batsman, Oram can be an able foil for the likes of Williams and Mahmuddullah. It’s impressive that three of his best four World Cup totals were made undefeated, including a fine 63 against England in 2007 (in which he backed up Scott Styris) and a 35 against Canada in the same tournament where he partnered an irrepressible McCullum, who was letting fly at over two runs per ball.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 63*, Average: 23.55, Strike Rate: 71.94 50s: 1, 100s: 0
8. Hogg -
Hogg didn’t get much chance to showcase his skills with bat in hand at World Cup level but he proved in a couple of cameos he is capable of contributing at over a run a ball. His 40* versus Scotland in 2007 was smacked off only 15 deliveries.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 40*, Average: 17.40, Strike Rate: 104.82 50s: 0, 100s: 0
9. 10. 11. - Vaas, Taylor, Binny - All three lower order batsmen are capable of carrying the bat, with double figure averages across the board and a pleasing strike rate for Taylor of over 80 at World Cups. For Vaas a handful of innings in the mid to high 20s and a smattering of undefeated stands attest to his ability to stay the course in partnership with a more established colleague and make contributions himself.
Bowling:
1. Vaas (L-Fast) -
On paper one of the greatest World Cup bowlers of them all. 49 wickets (23 in 2003 making him that World Cup’s leading wicket taker) at 21.22 on average is a fine return, and his ability to swing the ball both ways at searing pace makes him a nasty proposition for any batsman. Three Player of the Match awards, including 4/22 in a six run win against West Indies in 2003 (where an embattled Sarwan scored an unbeaten 47 off 44 balls to get the Windies so close), proves Vaas’s quality at this level. His hat trick against Bangladesh with the opening three deliveries of their innings in 2003, the first and only such feat of its kind, epitomises the magic that can happen when you give this man the new cherry.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 261.4 Maidens: 39 Wickets: 49 Average: 21.22 Strike Rate: 32.04 Economy: 3.97 Best: 6/25
2. Taylor (R-Fast)-
Taylor’s pace has terrorised batsmen at at tournament level, not least in the Champion’s Trophy of 2006 where his chart topping effort of 13 wickets powered West Indies to the final. In a group match with Australia Taylor took the first ever CT hat trick; removing Hussey, Hogg and Lee while taking Ricky Ponting here for just a single run and later in the final for a duck. His average at the tournament was 22.07 and his strike rate was 26.30, and it was only fine batting from Watson and Martyn and a terrible middle order collapse from his own team that cost Taylor a winner’s medal.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 121.3 Maidens: 5 Wickets: 23 Average: 27.57 Strike Rate: 31.70 Economy: 5.22 Best: 3/15
3. Oram (R-Fast) -
Along with Hogg, Oram makes the 25 lowest averages and strike rates in World Cup history (min. 20 wickets taken). His relationship with McCullum behind the stumps is to his advantage and having taken scalps such as those of Gayle, Sarwan and Samuels in 2007 and Graeme Smith and Faf Du Plessis in 2011 Oram has demonstrable ability to trouble the very best opponents.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 182.2 Maidens: 21 Wickets: 36 Average: 21.33 Strike Rate: 30.39 Economy: 4.21 Best: 4/39
4. Binny (R-Fast) -
Binny’s tournament was the 1983 World Cup. There he took all but one of his 19 WC wickets to make him the leading wicket-taker at the tournament and thus was an integral part in India’s triumph. He is most fondly remembered for his superb 4/29 in which he shredded Australia’s top order with the ball, contributed a fine 21 with the bat including two boundaries and picked up the Player of the Match award. With a strike rate mostly below 30 and an average always in the teens or low 20s facing Binny in 1983 was a tall order, as the likes of Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd (twice) and Allan Border (also twice) found to their cost.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 95 Maidens: 9 Wickets: 19 Average: 20.11 Strike Rate: 30.00 Economy: 4.02 Best: 4/29
5. Hogg (L-Leg Spin) -
As alluded to above Hogg’s numbers put him in the top 20 best average and strike rate for any bowlers to have taken more than 20 wickets at World Cups, putting him in elite company in tournament cricket. Usually economical, having only twice gone for more than five an over out of 21 World Cup appearances, he proved his worth time and again in occupying an end. However it is his wicket-taking in Australia’s 2003 triumph (in the absence of their more celebrated leg spinner) and 2007 for which Hogg is most fondly remembered. His brand of left arm leg spin deceived many a seasoned batsman, including the likes of Younis Khan, Mahala Jayawardene (in both ’03 and ’07) and Yuvraj Singh in the ’03 final. However it was Andy Flower, on 62 and in fine touch, who famously succumbed to Hogg’s lethal flipper in a match that would see the Aussie claim a further two wickets and finish the match averaging only 16.57 with a sub-20 strike rate. As he proved during his team’s two tournament wins Hogg has the toolkit to worry any batsman, but the way in which he spun the Netherlands’ tail off the field in 2007, before doing the same to New Zealand’s lower-middle order later in the tournament, suggests he is best deployed later in the innings to rip through the lower half of his opponent’s card.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 182.2 Maidens: 21 Wickets: 36 Average: 21.33 Strike Rate: 30.39 Economy: 4.21 Best: 4/39
Summary:
Batting:
Rock-solid top order with one of the draft’s best opening partnerships, who will build a winning platform quickly and effectively, being followed by two 40+ averaging steady-Eddies with crucial business end tournament experience. At five and six we have two batsmen with demonstrable records of defying the minnow status of their respective countries to pile runs on the board against quality bowling, while numbers seven and eight are able to both contribute themselves and back up a more exalted partner. The tail has no slouches with the bat.
Bowling:
The bowling attack is finely balanced with every member of the unit having experience of wicket taking at tournament level. Vaas’s world-class left arm swing will combine nicely with Taylor’s raw right arm pace. Oram’s numbers prove his brand of right arm medium-fast bowling can keep any batsman honest while Binny’s wicket taking heroics in ’83 prove his right arm fast bowling also has what it takes. Our spinner is underrated by many but as his numbers, key wicket-taking and winner's medals prove Hogg has serious World Cup pedigree.
The Cat writeup
1. M Guptill. W/c average 57.78 including 237 n/o v Windies in the 2015 Q/F. Strike rate 89 as opener. Never really made it in Test cricket but one of the most effective openers ever in the ODI game.
2. G Turner. W/c average 61.20 Had every shot in the book by the end of his career and could score as fast as anyone when required.
3. R Dravid. W/c average 61.42. The wall. The end.
4. F Du Plessis. W/c average 53.90. S/R 84. Classy innings builder, very composed and reliable.
5. G. Thorpe. W/c average 54.14. Just the man if you need someone to nurse the tail and chase down a run chase.
6. A. Flower W/c average 32.60. Decent average in the world cup considering he had to practically carry the team in the early days. A great innings maker proved by an innings of 145 in the Champions Trophy. Also great glove work. Wicket keeper.
7. I Khan W/c batting average 35.05, bowling average 19.26 @3.86 r/o. The captain. Took an average side in 1992 and transformed them into champions.
8. G Swann. W/c batting average 15.00, bowling average 25.75 @4.54 r/o. Far more capable with the bat than shown, would be a great foil for Thorpe late on.
9. M, Marshall W/c average of 24.98 @3.08. So hard to score against, Marshall is up there as possibly the greatest fast bowler in history. Had every skill, deadly bouncers, a leg cutter and could swing the ball either way.
10. M Holding W/c average of 17.05 @ 2.94. Again so difficult to put away 'Whispering Death' just didn't bowl bad balls and was a dangerous as they come. What a pairing with Marshall.
11. N Bracken. W/c average of 16.12 @ 3.60. Even managed to drop Glenn McGrath to first change bowler in 2006. Could swing and seam the ball in either direction whilst containing even the best batsmen. No1 ranked bowler in the world by 2008. Left arm bowler to add further to the balance.
Have tried to balance this team with a bit of everything. The opening NZ pair combine old and new techniques however Turner really could step on the gas when the time was right. Dravid needs no explanation and I'm really happy with Du Plessis and Thorpe to craft the middle order.
Flower was a great player - if you can't get to Gilchrist in time then he'd be amongst the best of the rest for me anyway. Imran Khan was a worthy 1st round pick - deadly in both areas of the game and a great captain on top of that.
I'm chuffed with the bowling attack, especially picking up Marshall late on. Swann was a superb attacking spinner, Holding, Khan, Marshall and Bracken are going to give nothing away their economy is ridiculous and no batsman is going to feel great seeing that lineup in front of him.
TEAM 12OunceEpilogue
1. Sachin Tendulkar
2. Brendon McCullum (Cpt) (Wkt)
3. Ramnaresh Sarwan
4. Graeme Hick
5. Sean Williams
6. Mohammad Mahmudullah
7. Jacob Oram
8. Brad Hogg
9. Chaminda Vaas
10. Jerome Taylor
11. Roger Binny
TEAM THE CAT
1 M. Guptill
2 G. Turner
3 R. Dravid
4 F. du Plessis
5 G. Thorpe
6 A. Flower (wk)
7 I. Khan (capt)
8 G. Swann
9 M. Marshall
10 M. Holding
11 N. Bracken
12OunceEpilogue writeup
Batting:
1. Tendulkar - The all-time greatest WC run scorer (2,278) across 45 matches including a record six centuries. Also holds the record for most runs in a single tournament (673 in 2003, where he was also Player of the Tournament) and top scored in 1996 with 523, and has been named Player of the Match a record nine times.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 152, Average: 56.95, Strike Rate: 88.98 50s: 15, 100s: 6
2. McCullum - An all-time great keeper-batsman, particularly in the short form, Baz also has the fourth best WC strike rate in history (120.85), which paired with a decent average of 33.73 ensures a lightning start for my innings. By no means a prolific WC captain, his record of eight wins and only a single defeat nevertheless shows he has the nouse to take control at this level, and his trademark innovation in his field settings may well come to the fore here. His keeping is superb, while his ability to push up to the stumps to pressurise batsmen facing medium-fast bowling, as he has done for his compatriot Oram to fine effect in ODI cricket, is a huge feather in his cap.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 101, Average: 33.73, Strike Rate: 120.85 50s: 6, 100s: 1
3. Sarwan - A top-class WC performer, with an enviable 46.19 average, Sarwan’s crowning glory in tournament cricket was the Champions Trophy of 2004, where he took away two Player of the Match awards and was named the overall Player of the Series in his side’s victorious campaign. A particular highlight was his gorgeous 56 not out in the semi final against Pakistan, where he salvaged the innings after both openers departed for a combined six runs and Brian Lara left him at the crease having retired hurt.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 92, Average: 46.19, Strike Rate: 75.00 50s: 3, 100s: 0
4. Hick - A solid, steady presence in the mould of Sarwan (Avg. 42.33, S/R 74.01) Hick was an integral part of England’s World Cup ’92 finalists, as evidenced by his superb 83 off 90 balls against South Africa in the semis. Though he isn’t known for scoring runs particularly quickly, here he showed he can do just that against top opposition in a beautiful innings that included nine boundaries.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 104*, Average: 42.33, Strike Rate: 74.01 50s: 6, 100s: 1
5. Williams -
Averaging north of 50 at just over a run a ball, Williams specialises in piling on runs for his team in the heart of the middle order. Seven of his 11 WC innings came at strikes rates above 100, including a Player of the Match-worthy outing against the UAE in 2015. Understandably Williams has never had the chance to showcase his talents at the business end of tournaments but he is a truly top-class dynamo of a batsman as proven by his fine WC figures.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 96, Average: 54.67, Strike Rate: 101.23 50s: 5, 100s: 0
6. Mahmudullah -
He made history in 2015 with his country’s first World Cup century in a defeat of England, then followed this up in the resulting quarter final against New Zealand with his second; a monstrous 128 off 123 balls including 15 boundaries. In the process he set the highest Bangladeshi wicket partnership in ODI history and laid a solid claim to the title of his country’s greatest ever World Cup batsman.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 128*, Average: 56.71, Strike Rate: 77.69 50s: 1, 100s: 2
7. Oram -
An intelligent lower-middle order batsman, Oram can be an able foil for the likes of Williams and Mahmuddullah. It’s impressive that three of his best four World Cup totals were made undefeated, including a fine 63 against England in 2007 (in which he backed up Scott Styris) and a 35 against Canada in the same tournament where he partnered an irrepressible McCullum, who was letting fly at over two runs per ball.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 63*, Average: 23.55, Strike Rate: 71.94 50s: 1, 100s: 0
8. Hogg -
Hogg didn’t get much chance to showcase his skills with bat in hand at World Cup level but he proved in a couple of cameos he is capable of contributing at over a run a ball. His 40* versus Scotland in 2007 was smacked off only 15 deliveries.
World Cup Stats- High Score: 40*, Average: 17.40, Strike Rate: 104.82 50s: 0, 100s: 0
9. 10. 11. - Vaas, Taylor, Binny - All three lower order batsmen are capable of carrying the bat, with double figure averages across the board and a pleasing strike rate for Taylor of over 80 at World Cups. For Vaas a handful of innings in the mid to high 20s and a smattering of undefeated stands attest to his ability to stay the course in partnership with a more established colleague and make contributions himself.
Bowling:
1. Vaas (L-Fast) -
On paper one of the greatest World Cup bowlers of them all. 49 wickets (23 in 2003 making him that World Cup’s leading wicket taker) at 21.22 on average is a fine return, and his ability to swing the ball both ways at searing pace makes him a nasty proposition for any batsman. Three Player of the Match awards, including 4/22 in a six run win against West Indies in 2003 (where an embattled Sarwan scored an unbeaten 47 off 44 balls to get the Windies so close), proves Vaas’s quality at this level. His hat trick against Bangladesh with the opening three deliveries of their innings in 2003, the first and only such feat of its kind, epitomises the magic that can happen when you give this man the new cherry.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 261.4 Maidens: 39 Wickets: 49 Average: 21.22 Strike Rate: 32.04 Economy: 3.97 Best: 6/25
2. Taylor (R-Fast)-
Taylor’s pace has terrorised batsmen at at tournament level, not least in the Champion’s Trophy of 2006 where his chart topping effort of 13 wickets powered West Indies to the final. In a group match with Australia Taylor took the first ever CT hat trick; removing Hussey, Hogg and Lee while taking Ricky Ponting here for just a single run and later in the final for a duck. His average at the tournament was 22.07 and his strike rate was 26.30, and it was only fine batting from Watson and Martyn and a terrible middle order collapse from his own team that cost Taylor a winner’s medal.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 121.3 Maidens: 5 Wickets: 23 Average: 27.57 Strike Rate: 31.70 Economy: 5.22 Best: 3/15
3. Oram (R-Fast) -
Along with Hogg, Oram makes the 25 lowest averages and strike rates in World Cup history (min. 20 wickets taken). His relationship with McCullum behind the stumps is to his advantage and having taken scalps such as those of Gayle, Sarwan and Samuels in 2007 and Graeme Smith and Faf Du Plessis in 2011 Oram has demonstrable ability to trouble the very best opponents.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 182.2 Maidens: 21 Wickets: 36 Average: 21.33 Strike Rate: 30.39 Economy: 4.21 Best: 4/39
4. Binny (R-Fast) -
Binny’s tournament was the 1983 World Cup. There he took all but one of his 19 WC wickets to make him the leading wicket-taker at the tournament and thus was an integral part in India’s triumph. He is most fondly remembered for his superb 4/29 in which he shredded Australia’s top order with the ball, contributed a fine 21 with the bat including two boundaries and picked up the Player of the Match award. With a strike rate mostly below 30 and an average always in the teens or low 20s facing Binny in 1983 was a tall order, as the likes of Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd (twice) and Allan Border (also twice) found to their cost.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 95 Maidens: 9 Wickets: 19 Average: 20.11 Strike Rate: 30.00 Economy: 4.02 Best: 4/29
5. Hogg (L-Leg Spin) -
As alluded to above Hogg’s numbers put him in the top 20 best average and strike rate for any bowlers to have taken more than 20 wickets at World Cups, putting him in elite company in tournament cricket. Usually economical, having only twice gone for more than five an over out of 21 World Cup appearances, he proved his worth time and again in occupying an end. However it is his wicket-taking in Australia’s 2003 triumph (in the absence of their more celebrated leg spinner) and 2007 for which Hogg is most fondly remembered. His brand of left arm leg spin deceived many a seasoned batsman, including the likes of Younis Khan, Mahala Jayawardene (in both ’03 and ’07) and Yuvraj Singh in the ’03 final. However it was Andy Flower, on 62 and in fine touch, who famously succumbed to Hogg’s lethal flipper in a match that would see the Aussie claim a further two wickets and finish the match averaging only 16.57 with a sub-20 strike rate. As he proved during his team’s two tournament wins Hogg has the toolkit to worry any batsman, but the way in which he spun the Netherlands’ tail off the field in 2007, before doing the same to New Zealand’s lower-middle order later in the tournament, suggests he is best deployed later in the innings to rip through the lower half of his opponent’s card.
World Cup Stats- Overs: 182.2 Maidens: 21 Wickets: 36 Average: 21.33 Strike Rate: 30.39 Economy: 4.21 Best: 4/39
Summary:
Batting:
Rock-solid top order with one of the draft’s best opening partnerships, who will build a winning platform quickly and effectively, being followed by two 40+ averaging steady-Eddies with crucial business end tournament experience. At five and six we have two batsmen with demonstrable records of defying the minnow status of their respective countries to pile runs on the board against quality bowling, while numbers seven and eight are able to both contribute themselves and back up a more exalted partner. The tail has no slouches with the bat.
Bowling:
The bowling attack is finely balanced with every member of the unit having experience of wicket taking at tournament level. Vaas’s world-class left arm swing will combine nicely with Taylor’s raw right arm pace. Oram’s numbers prove his brand of right arm medium-fast bowling can keep any batsman honest while Binny’s wicket taking heroics in ’83 prove his right arm fast bowling also has what it takes. Our spinner is underrated by many but as his numbers, key wicket-taking and winner's medals prove Hogg has serious World Cup pedigree.
The Cat writeup
1. M Guptill. W/c average 57.78 including 237 n/o v Windies in the 2015 Q/F. Strike rate 89 as opener. Never really made it in Test cricket but one of the most effective openers ever in the ODI game.
2. G Turner. W/c average 61.20 Had every shot in the book by the end of his career and could score as fast as anyone when required.
3. R Dravid. W/c average 61.42. The wall. The end.
4. F Du Plessis. W/c average 53.90. S/R 84. Classy innings builder, very composed and reliable.
5. G. Thorpe. W/c average 54.14. Just the man if you need someone to nurse the tail and chase down a run chase.
6. A. Flower W/c average 32.60. Decent average in the world cup considering he had to practically carry the team in the early days. A great innings maker proved by an innings of 145 in the Champions Trophy. Also great glove work. Wicket keeper.
7. I Khan W/c batting average 35.05, bowling average 19.26 @3.86 r/o. The captain. Took an average side in 1992 and transformed them into champions.
8. G Swann. W/c batting average 15.00, bowling average 25.75 @4.54 r/o. Far more capable with the bat than shown, would be a great foil for Thorpe late on.
9. M, Marshall W/c average of 24.98 @3.08. So hard to score against, Marshall is up there as possibly the greatest fast bowler in history. Had every skill, deadly bouncers, a leg cutter and could swing the ball either way.
10. M Holding W/c average of 17.05 @ 2.94. Again so difficult to put away 'Whispering Death' just didn't bowl bad balls and was a dangerous as they come. What a pairing with Marshall.
11. N Bracken. W/c average of 16.12 @ 3.60. Even managed to drop Glenn McGrath to first change bowler in 2006. Could swing and seam the ball in either direction whilst containing even the best batsmen. No1 ranked bowler in the world by 2008. Left arm bowler to add further to the balance.
Have tried to balance this team with a bit of everything. The opening NZ pair combine old and new techniques however Turner really could step on the gas when the time was right. Dravid needs no explanation and I'm really happy with Du Plessis and Thorpe to craft the middle order.
Flower was a great player - if you can't get to Gilchrist in time then he'd be amongst the best of the rest for me anyway. Imran Khan was a worthy 1st round pick - deadly in both areas of the game and a great captain on top of that.
I'm chuffed with the bowling attack, especially picking up Marshall late on. Swann was a superb attacking spinner, Holding, Khan, Marshall and Bracken are going to give nothing away their economy is ridiculous and no batsman is going to feel great seeing that lineup in front of him.
