Aldo's team:
Team Aldo
Sir Jack Hobbs
Herbert Sutcliffe
George Headley (c)
Brian Charles Lara
Stan McCabe
Ted Dexter
Shaun Pollock
Don Tallon (wk)
Michael Holding
Sir Andy Roberts
Sir Alec Bedser
Brief Introduction of the Team
The team is composed of some of the most influential cricketers over the generations who led the way with their class and are immortals in the history of the sport.
Jack Hobbs and Herbert Sutcliffe
The greatest opening partnership in the history of test cricket - Hobbs and Sutcliffe compliment each other perfectly and dominated bowlers time and again. Sutcliffe scored 4555 runs averaging over 60 and Hobbs, the greatest opener in the history of the game scored over 5000 runs averaging almost 57.
Together they scored 3339 runs at an average of 87! Not were they statistically amazing, they did that on difficult to bat on pitches, with Hobbs' mastery of the skill of batting combined with Sutcliffe's impenetrable defence that was the cornerstone of the English team throughout their time. With them in the team you can be guaranteed of not losing early wickets no matter what the surface is. Two absolute legends who brought the best of each other when batting together.
George Headley and Brian Lara
Two of the greatest names to come from the islands, following the indestructible opening pair is George Headley and Brian Lara, two of the most talented batsmen you can imagine, with again the history of displaying that talent against the toughest of attacks in the toughest of circumstances. Headley - Averaging over 60 and carrying an otherwise below par WI team for years and standing up against the storm time and again, the ultimate fighter, so much so that he even defeated racism. And Lara - n undisputed great of the game, who is suited for all situations and has a history of playing iconic knocks.
With this top order, we are secured against the greatest bowling attacks in whatever the conditions can throw at us. Mentally the four are tough as nails and never back out of a fight, technically the four are flawless and marry flair, style, defensive astuteness, ability to play for hours and play according to the situation.
Stan McCabe and Lord Ted Dexter
Coming in at number 5 is the man who was always on Bradman's side when Australia dominated one team after another,
Stan McCabe, the man renowned for his magnitude of class and style, one who even fascinated Bradman himself. Lastly, 'Lord'
Ted Dexter, one of the most powerful and dynamic batsmen of his generation and a cornerstone of the English team during the 60s.
Bowling
Michael Holding and Andy Roberts
The bowling will be opened by
Sir Andy Roberts and
Michael Holding. An absolute fierce character and bowling with ferocious pace and deadly accuracy, Sir Andy was the original leader of the WI pace attack and for years one of the most feared bowlers in the world. Complimenting him perfectly, "Whispering Death", as he was called, would be steaming in with
lightning quick pace and accuracy, delivering toe crunching in-swingers and skull crushing bouncers with equal ease, he'll be an absolute terror on this pitch. Pollock will bowl his line and length deliveries tirelessly at a very decent pace.
Shaun Pollock will come as the first change. Pollock will bowl his line and length deliveries tirelessly at a very decent pace.
Sir Alec Bedser completes the pace battery. Bedser would be bowling long spells tirelessly wearing the opposition down and not giving an inch anywhere. This ensures we have brutal aggression and pace from one side and control, concentration and accuracy from the other, and nothing that the batsmen can put away.
Why we'll win?
The opposition has decided to bat first on this pitch, which could prove costly given my fearsome pace attack. I would have taken the field had I won the toss. Holding and Roberts will generate tremendous movement off this pitch at unplayable pace and an awkward bounce specially for Roberts' slow bouncer. Lawry and Langer is a solid opening pair but simply cannot be compared to mine, and I am likely to make early in roads and make it difficult for the opposition. Given the possibility of the number 3 walking in early in a situation where you need to slow down the storm coming at your face, you need someone like Dravid there, as intimidating as the sight of Sir Clyde smashing deliveries all over the park was, if he's coming in at number 3, he'll likely play his natural attacking game and not something you want in that situation. The top order is likely to put enough pressure on the strong middle order for my bowlers to get them out within a reasonable target.
Batting against Steyn and McGrath would be a challenge specially on this pitch, but I have just the top order to take care of a great bowling combo. Hobbs and Sutcliffe possess immaculate defensive technique and concentration, and precisely the type of opening pair you need against such skillful and intelligent bowlers. There's no chance of them giving away anything, they won't be flirting with deliveries outside off stump and once they face a few deliveries and get settled, they will start reading the movement much better. That is when Hobbs' completeness in batting comes to effect, and he starts milking the likes of Willis and Cairns for runs. His all round stroke play and late reading of the deliveries will be crucial here.
Coming in at 3 and 4 and Headley and Lara, who are perfect for either defensive or attacking style of play depending on the situation, unlike the opposition and will be carrying forward from the foundation laid by the openers. Here's a small quote about what Headley did for West Indies:
The extent to which Headley changed West Indies' cricketing fortunes can be gauged from the results: before he arrived on the scene, West Indies had lost all three Tests they had played,
against England in 1928, by an innings.
In his very first Test,
in Barbados against the same opponents, he scored 21 and 176 to help West Indies to their first drawn match. The performance kickstarted a glorious career that had some incredible highs despite the shortage of matches: in his
third Test he scored a hundred in each innings, a feat he repeated at Lord's nine years later, becoming the first cricketer to score a century in each innings in a Test at that ground. Of the first
14 hundreds that were scored by West Indian batsmen, 10 belonged to Headley. He finished his Test career with 2190 runs in 22 Tests, but his best years were before the Second World War, when he scored 2135 runs in
19 Tests at an average of 66.71.
During this period the entire West Indies team scored 8335 runs in these 19 games, which means Headley accounted for an incredible 25.61% of the runs scored by his team. The next-best batsman for West Indies before the War was opener Clifford Roach, who scored 952 runs in 32 innings. Talk of a one-man run machine.
