In a surprising selection, Australia’s Mitchell Marsh named a combined all-time ODI XI featuring players from Australia, India, and England, but excluded some of the biggest names including Rohit Sharma, Glenn McGrath, Ricky Ponting, and MS Dhoni. Notably, no Australian pace bowler made it into Marsh’s chosen eleven, and all ODI World Cup-winning captains of the 21st century were snubbed.
India, England, and Australia have dominated ODI cricket in the 21st century, with Australia winning four World Cups and both India and England securing one each. Ahead of the upcoming three-match ODI series against Shubman Gill-led India, Marsh was asked by Fox Cricket to pick a combined XI of these “Big Three” nations. Some significant omissions included legendary captains Ricky Ponting and MS Dhoni.
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Opening Slots
For the opening batsman slots, Marsh had five options Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, Mark Waugh, David Warner, and Jonny Bairstow. He went with David Warner, his former opening partner, and picked Sachin Tendulkar as Warner’s opening partner, stating, “Nothing can go past King Sachin.” In the batting department among top and middle order, Marsh chose Virat Kohli, Joe Root, and Michael Bevan, leaving out Australia’s World Cup-winning captains such as Ricky Ponting.
He also overlooked wicketkeepers MS Dhoni and Jos Buttler, instead selecting Adam Gilchrist for the role.
Among all-rounders, Marsh humorously remarked on his own absence from consideration. He chose Andrew Symonds as the only all-rounder, praising him mainly for his ball-striking skills during a time when ODIs used just one ball throughout the innings.
For the bowling lineup, Marsh had nine contenders: Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble, Jasprit Bumrah, Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee, Shane Warne, Adam Zampa, Darren Gough, and James Anderson. Choosing Anil Kumble as the sole spinner over Shane Warne, Marsh automatically selected Jasprit Bumrah. Of the five Australians allowed, he picked Darren Gough and James Anderson as his two pacers, notably excluding the skilled McGrath and fast bowler Brett Lee.
Marsh’s combined Australia-India-England all-time ODI XI stands as:
David Warner, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Michael Bevan, Andrew Symonds, Adam Gilchrist, Anil Kumble, Jasprit Bumrah, Darren Gough, and James Anderson.
This coming series will see Marsh lead Australia in the absence of the injured Pat Cummins, with the first ODI scheduled to take place at Perth Stadium on October 19.