Anyone interested in playing a cricket (ODI) draft game?

[OpeningBatsman]

                              TEAM @OpeningBatsman/@Cricketics



Well, I honestly believe we have the most balanced squad in the tournament. Some teams are packed with hitters without any one to hold the innings together so they could easily be 5 down for 50, while some other teams are so poor in bowling depth that they will concede 300+ every game.

 

The batting

                                            OPENERS

 The openers are the highly successful World Cup winning pair of Adam Gilchrist and Mark Waugh.

Gilly is also the captain of my side and he will keep wickets. Not only is Gilly the best WK batsman of all time (hands down), he's a very shrewd captain (conquered the final frontier in India with regular captain absent). The duo partnered during the 1999 Cricket World Cup in England, a tournament that Australia went on to win beating Pakistan in the final. Gilchrist and Waugh scored 3853 runs, including eight century run stands and twenty half- century run stands

                                         MIDDLE ORDER

At no.3, NZ skipper and a guaranteed future ATG Kane Williamson. This guy is not only technically correct (Avg 45) but also scores at a very fast clip (Strike rate 83) and ideal for a team with openers like Gilly n Waugh. Already regarded as NZ’s best ever, there is nothing more pleasing than watching Kane in his full flow.

The destructive Kevin Pieterson comes at #4. KP was one of the most stylish batsman to play for England. His never say die attitude and fighting spirit made him a force to reckon in the cricketing world.  A maverick and match winner on his own, KP is the ideal no 4 any team can have.

 

 

Following KP will be Mohd Azharuddin. At his best there was no equal to Azhar. Such an artist with the wrist and a delight to watch, he could take apart any bowling attack on his day. One of the best Indian fielder ever to play cricket. He was a complete fielder and could field in all position. (9378 runs in 334 matches)

 

At #6 , I have the best finisher the ODI game has ever seen. The OG, incomparable Michael Bevan. Unlike today’s players, Bevan faced some of the best bowlers ever to play and still averaged 50+ coming in at no.5/6. No total is safe as long as Michael Bevan is in and...

                                              LOWER ORDER

to support him at no.7 we have one of the most underrated AR in cricket - Dwayne bravo. Excellent death bowler with slower deliveries and yorkers, he can also hit them big  in the final few overs. Made for limited overs cricket.

 

 

Adding to the late order batting muscle, Shaun Pollock , comes in at no.8. One of the best all rounder to play ODI (underrated), he averages 26 with the bat, batting at no.8 and 9!!

 

The bowling

The combination of  Michael Holding, Shaun Pollock, Waqar Younis and the GOAT Shane Warne has to be the best bowling combo any team would love to have at their disposal, given the batting prowess my side possess.  Not to forget they will be ably supported by the wily Bravo. We also have Kevin Pieterson and Michael Bevan to bowl their part time spin and Mark Waugh who could bowl both spin and military medium according to the conditions.

 

What happens when one has the bloodline of legendary cricketers like Peter and Graeme Pollock? One of the greatest disciplined bowlers in the history of the game, Shaun Pollock  has 393 odi wickets @ an avg of 24.5 and an amazing economy rate of 3.67.

 

Pure poetry in motion.
King of yorkers and reverse swing.

Waqar, one of the fastest bowler of his era and virtually unplayable with the older ball and a wicket taker with the new ball as well, has taken 416 wickets @23.84.

 

With Whispering Death Michael Holding to partner them, we have the most complete fast bowling unit in this competition. His bowling was smooth and very fast, and he used his height (6 ft 3 1⁄2 in ) to generate large amounts of bounce and zip off the pitch.

 

Shane Warne – the name is enough.

THE FIELDING

Imagine Adam Gilchrist keeping with Azhar, Shane Warne and  Mark Waugh waiting in the slips.  Three of the finest slip catchers the world has seen.  Add to it, gun fielders like, Pieterson, Williamson, Bravo, Bevan etc, this team will easily save 25-30 runs in every match and take breathtaking catches, such a joy to watch.

 

 

 Ladies n Gentlemen, this is a team full of champions and truly a team for all conditions with batting depth till 9, bowlers and all rounders for any pitch conditions and one of the best fielding team one can assemble.

If you like this team, do make sure to vote for it when the competition begins today/tomorrow. Other teams might have one or two of your favorite players, but remember this is a team game and the votes must go to the best team.

 

Cheers.

 

Edited May 17, 2017 by OpeningBatsman

[zakk]

  

[Unstable Joe]

TEAM ALL STARS XI

Openers

1. The Silent Assailant - Martin Guptill

The Kiwi aggressive batsman is almost a certain choice of the side at one end of the opening wicket and rarely has it happened that Martin Guptill disappointed his devotees. With a highest ever world cup score of 237* Martin Guptill has scored 5414 runs in 143 ODI match and averages at 43.25 in ODIs with 12 centuries and 32 fifties. 

2. Hit Man - Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma has broken several ODI records and has placed himself as one of the best opening batsmen in the modern generation. Opening the batting has definitely helped Rohit’s approach to the game; not alone his technique, but the mental aspect of the game too. The 29-year-old has achieved a special feat in his ODI career which most batsmen could'nt even dream of doing – he is the only batsman to have scored two double centuries in ODI’s. Sharma has scored 5008 runs in 148 matches at an impeccable average of 42.08, with a highest individual score of 264, which is very unlikely to be broken.

 

Middle Order

3. The Undoubted King - Jacques Kallis

The Numero Uno, Jacques Kallis, is one of the greatest cricketers of all time, being the only cricketer in the history of the game to hold more than 10,000 runs and 250 wickets in both one day and Test match cricket. He has been described by Kevin Pietersen and Daryll Cullinan as the greatest cricketer ever to play the game. One of the most consistent players over the past decade, he has scalped 259 wickets at 31.90 and scored over 11,000 runs at 45.84. He is a formidable right-handed batsman and a wicket-taking medium pacer.

4. The Six-Fingered Wonder - Sir Gary Sobers

If asked to pick a few cricketers from the bygone era who would have thrived in limited-overs cricket had they an opportunity to play a lot of it, Garry Sobers’s name would have featured unanimously in all the lists. The world’s greatest all-rounder at the time was so entertaining as a batsman, bowler and fielder that despite playing only the longest format of the game for a significant part of his career, there was no doubt in people’s mind the world over that the southpaw was cut out for One-Day cricket. He was the most natural cricketer you would ever want to see and quite simply he could do it all. He is in the top ten greatest batsmen of all time, he took over 200 Test wickets and was a sensational fielder who could field in multiple positions.

5. The Innovative Genius - Martin Crowe (VC)

 

A talismanic cricketer and an inspirational leader Crowe was a widely recognised batsman for his technique and knowledge of the game. He became famous for his out-of-the box captaincy and batting prowess. He debuted against Australia in 1982 aged 19 and gained many fans with his skill to hit the ball all around the park. He was the pillar of New Zealand cricket in the 1980s and early 1990s, leading the batting line-up along with Richard Hadlee, who shouldered bowling responsibilities. Crowe played 77 Tests and 143 one-day internationals for New Zealand in a 13-year career. He scored 5,444 Test runs at an average of 45.36 with 17 centuries. Crowe's 299 against Sri Lanka stood as the record-highest score by a New Zealander in Tests for two decades, before Brendon McCullum crossed that landmark with a triple hundred against India in 2014.

 

6. Ruthlessly Efficient Captain - Steve Waugh (C)

 

Steve Waugh is one of only 12 players to have run over 10,000 Test runs, led Australia to fifteen of their record sixteen consecutive Test victories, and to victory in the 1999 Cricket World Cup. He was an innovative captain who never gave up hope even in the most adverse of situations. Waugh is one of the best captains of all time, and his batting abilities are top-notch. All this contributes to him being appointed as the Captain of this All Stars XI team.

 

Lower Order

7. The Caged Tiger - Imran Khan

 

One of the greatest players from Pakistan, Imran Khan is best remembered for making a name for himself when the West Indian bowlers were creating havoc. He is still revered for his reverse swing and pace, taking 182 ODI wickets in 175 matches at an average of 26.61 with best figures of 6/14. He finished his ODI career with 3709 runs, at an average of 33.41, with a high score of 102*.

8.  The Cobra Behind The Stumps - Mark Boucher (WK)

 

Widely considered as one of, if not, the greatest keepers of all time, Boucher held the record for most number of dismissals as keeper at the international level – 998! And if not for the serious eye injury which put an end to his career, he would have become the first gloveman to affect 1,000 dismissals in international matches. Boucher effected 555 dismissals in Tests (the highest by anyone till date) and 444 in the shorter formats including 424 in ODIs (behind only Sangakkara and Adam Gilchrist) and 19 in T20Is. He averaged just below 30 across both formats, which may not be considered great, but his value to the team as a crisis batsman was unrivalled. This makes him the wicket keepr of the All Stars XI.

Bowlers

9. Ravalpindi Express - Shoaib Akhtar

There are fastest bowlers and than their is Shoaib Akhtar, he consistantly bowled over 150 km/h in his career albeit short one. Reached a world record speed during World Cup 2003 against England when he produced a 161.3 km/h speed of a ball to England’s knick Knight. He become the first bowler to reach speed of 100 miles an hour in official ICC match. He has taken 247 wickets in 163 ODIs at an an average of 24.97 with best figures of 6/16. He enters this team as the primary spearhead.

10. The Physiological Phenomenon - Courtney Walsh

 

A physiological phenomenon, Walsh had an unbreakable body, for he holds the record for most balls bowled by a fast bowler in the history of Test cricket — 30,019. He has taken 227 wickets from 205 ODI matches at an average of 30.47 with best figures of 5/1 against Sri Lanka. His durability guarantees him a place in this XI.

11. Smiling Assassin - Muttiah Muralitharan

The ‘smiling assassin’ packed 800 Test wickets in 133 Test matches and 534 wickets in 350 ODIs.  Without a doubt one of the greatest spinners of all time. Murali’s achievements, abilities, talent and longevity cannot be expressed/defined/explained in words. One has to witness the magic and then feel blessed. His action was scary and those scary eyes wide open chased away the Batsman’s intentions of scoring against Murali. He is one of the GOAT spinners and thus, makes his way into this team.

 

TEAM ALL STARS XI - KEY NOTES

• Balance : 4 Specialist Batsmen, 2 Perfect All-Rounders (Equally top-notch batting & bowling), 1 Bowling all-rounder, a wicket-keeper crisis batsman, 2 specialist fast bowlers, and 1 specialist Spinner
• Fast Bowling Line-Up : A devastating pace bowling line-up in Shoaib Akhtar, Courtney Walsh and Imran Khan. They are Supported by all-rounders - Sir Gary Sobers and Jaques Kallis, making it a total of SIX pace bowling options.
• Spin : Muttiah Muralitharan leads the spin attack with support from Sir Gary Sobers and Rohit Sharma, if needed.
• Opening : Rohit Sharma and Martin Guptill. Both openers have had successfull careers in ODI cricket. Both have scored Double 100s in ODIs with Rohit Sharma having scored 2. Rohit has the highest individual score in ODIs (264) with Guptill having the second highest (237*).
• Middle Order : A top-level middle order in Jaques Kallis, Sir Gary Sobers, Martin Crowe and Steve Waugh
• Finishers : 2 Bonafide flinishers and crisis batsmen in Imran Khan and Mark Boucher.
• Keeping : The Keeper with the most amount of dismissals in international cricket - 998, in Mark Boucher.
• Fielding : Plenty of amazing fielders in Rohit Sharma, Martin Guptill, Jaques Kallis, Steve Waugh, and Imran Khan.
• Captaincy : A lot of experienced captains in the team that can help and give inputs to the main captain Steve Waugh and Vice Captain Martin Crowe : Sir Gary Sobers, Jacques Kallis, Imran Khan, Courtney Walsh have all captained their national teams while Rohit Sharma has captained the IPL side Mumbai Indians to the title twice.
• I wholeheartedly believe that this is the best side in the tournament, with balance, pace, spin, batting, keeping, and finishing. Hence, I named it the All Stars XI. If you like the team, then don't forget to vote for us! ;)

[BeautifulGame]

[BeautifulGame]

First round matches up.Please vote in them

[kira]

              Kira's Invincibles 

 

Welcome to the most balanced and the most intimidating team of the tournament. I have named this team the Invincibles because I truly believe that this is a team for all conditions, this team has all the bases covered and it would be near impossible for any team to beat it in any conditions.  This team has great fast bowlers, great spinner, great finishers, great allrounders, great openers, great middle order, last but the not the least-:>one of the greatest captain in limited overs cricket. Mediocrity has no place in this team, each and every player of this team is a world beater.

This team has 5 world champions and a 2 time world cup winning captain. 

 

Let's look at the team in detail:-

Openers

 

Dilshan and De kock form a very formidable and intimidating opening pair. Both the openers are not only averaging near or above 40 but they also have great strike rates of 86 and 95 respectively. With such high strike rates, this opening pair will ensure that power plays are utilized properly and since both the openers have a knack of making centuries, they will continue on to build a long opening stand at a very good run rate.

 

Number 3 

At no. 3 we got one of the greatest odi batsman in the world, a bonafide legend, a proven performer, a nightmare for the bowlers, the man, the myth, the legend Ricky "freaking" Ponting. Ponting is the last man the opposition wants to see walking out when they take a wicket, Ricky is no stranger to big tournaments and high pressure games, he's can easily take the game away from the opposition in a matter of minutes. The best bit about Ponting's game is his counter attacking mode against fast bowlers, you can be the fastest bowler in the world but if Ponting decides to pull you, the ball will only end up out of the ground. I don't think any team's no. 3 batsman can match my no. 3  (maybe kohli)

 

The middle order 

With Joe root and Hussey I have good a very very solid middle order, both Root and Hussey average near 50 in ODI cricket. Both these players are very good players of spin and rotate the strike with ease. The middle overs will be no problem for these too guys, they can stop a collapse, build big partnerships at a very good run rate with out taking any risks. These too are a perfect foil to my top order, they are capable of rebuilding from a collapse and also launching a attack if the platform is provided from the top.

 

The Finishers

Hussey is also one of the best finishers in the world and with raina and flintoff to back him up, you can expect a lot of fireworks in the death overs. The trio of Hussey, Raina and Flintoff will ensure that the team will always end on a high. Not to forget Mitchell Johnson's hitting ability in the lower order which adds an extra dimension to the finishing ability of this team, this team will have absolutely no problems putting huge scores on board or chasing down huge scores (Although that won't be an issue in the first place with the bowling attack I've got)

 

The Bowlers

Opening bowlers

Now coming to my favorite aspect about this team. The bowling attack of this team is its USP. I think I have got the best bowling attack out of all team. 

Starting off, we have Glenn McGrath and Mitchell Johnson opening the bowling. McGrath is arguably the greatest odi bowler, there is no pitch in this world where mcgrath can't take wickets, he has dominated some of the greatest batsmen in the world, not to forget his stellar World cup record. On the other end, mitchell johnson with his 150 k thunderbolts adds the x-factor in my team, if the pitch is fast and bouncy you can expect a few broken ribs. The opposition will have tough time getting off to a brisk start against these 2. 

 

First Change:

Morne morkel is the first change bowler, He's tall, he's accurate, he's like a mini mcgrath, once you think that mcgrath has finished his spell, in comes morkel. There is no respite for the batsmen. 

 

The spinners:- 

 ]

In saqlain mushtaq, I have arguably the best spinner of odis in the history of cricket. An average of 21 is unheard of for a spinner, the great mushtaq has even trouble the greatest players of spin bowling, a feat which even greats like murali and warne couldn't achieve. Mushtaq's accuracy and wicket taking ability makes him the perfect bowler for the middle overs. He's not only stop the run flow but also take wickets, thus giving the team the best chance to bowl out the opposition before 50 overs.

To aid Mushtaq I've also got part timers like dilshan and raina who are more than capable of providing crucial breakthroughs and breaking partnerships.

 

The fifth bowler:-

With an average less than 25, I don't think many fifth bowlers in the world can compete with flintoff. Flintoff with his medium pace and swing has troubled a lot of batsman during his playing days. In swinging conditions flintoff can run through the side single handedly. 

 

A bowling attack of McGrath, Morkel, Johnson , Saqlian, Flintoff, Dilshan/Raina will be a night mare for any team, I don't see us chasing more than 250 in any match with such a strong bowling attack, expect a lot 100 all outs for the opposition. 

 

All in all, I think this team will win the match on every ground in the world, because this team has players for all conditions:-

 

If the pitch is fast and bouncy-> De kock, Ponting, hussey,Johnson, morkel, mcgrath will lead the team to victory

If the pitch is flat:-> De kock, Ponting, Dilshan,Raina, Hussey, Root, McGrath, Flintoff will lead the team to victory

If the conditions aid swing:-> De kock Ponting, Root, McGrath, Flintoff, Morkel will lead the team to victory

If the pitch is a turner:-> Saqlain, Dilshan, Raina, Root, Hussey will ensure a victory for us.

 

No matter what conditions you throw at us, the invincibles will conquer you.

 

 

Edited May 17, 2017 by kira

[iam_rahul]

How do I play this ?

[OpeningBatsman]

5 minutes ago, kira said:

           

No matter what conditions you throw at us, the invincible will conquer you.

 

 

[iam_rahul]

this game is missing stephen fleming, abdul qadir, tom moody, darren lehman, abdur razzak, jonty rhodes, trescothic, hollioke, chanderpaul..wow so many 

[Stuge]

Just now, iam_rahul said:

this game is missing stephen fleming, abdul qadir, tom moody, darren lehman, abdur razzak, jonty rhodes, trescothic, hollioke, chanderpaul..wow so many 

and NO Bangladeshis :P

[iam_rahul]

1 minute ago, Stuge said:

and NO Bangladeshis :P

shakib ul hasan is good 

[kira]

30 minutes ago, Stuge said:

and NO Bangladeshis :P

 

28 minutes ago, iam_rahul said:

shakib ul hasan is good 

I thought about picking sakib but then I checked his averages against non minnows and I wasn't impressed

[kira]

32 minutes ago, iam_rahul said:

this game is missing stephen fleming, abdul qadir, tom moody, darren lehman, abdur razzak, jonty rhodes, trescothic, hollioke, chanderpaul..wow so many 

Except Razzak and rhodes, there rest of the players were mediocre and didn't deserve to be picked ahead of those picked above

[OpeningBatsman]

46 minutes ago, kira said:

Except Razzak and rhodes, there rest of the players were mediocre and didn't deserve to be picked ahead of those picked above

Yes. Though, I think stephrn fleming wouldn't have been a bad choice over someone like Jayawardene, given his captaincy skills, but ya his avrg is on the lower side

Edited May 17, 2017 by OpeningBatsman

[kira]

13 minutes ago, OpeningBatsman said:

Yes. Though, I think stephrn fleming wouldn't have been a bad choice over someone like Jayawardene, given his captaincy skills, but ya his avrg is on the lower side

Agree, didn't notice jayawardene in the teams

[Sooda]

 BG this is a fantastic idea, wish I'd noticed it earlier would have liked to take part... 

[BeautifulGame]

6 minutes ago, Sooda said:

 BG this is a fantastic idea, wish I'd noticed it earlier would have liked to take part... 

Cheers mate

 

I am sure if there is enough interest we could do a similar test draft once this is over.

[OpeningBatsman]

16 hours ago, Unstable Joe said:

 

 

TEAM ALL STARS XI - KEY NOTES

• Balance : 4 Specialist Batsmen, 2 Perfect All-Rounders (Equally top-notch batting & bowling), 1 Bowling all-rounder, a wicket-keeper crisis batsman, 2 specialist fast bowlers, and 1 specialist Spinner
• Fast Bowling Line-Up : A devastating pace bowling line-up in Shoaib Akhtar, Courtney Walsh and Imran Khan. They are Supported by all-rounders - Sir Gary Sobers and Jaques Kallis, making it a total of SIX pace bowling options.
• Spin : Muttiah Muralitharan leads the spin attack with support from Sir Gary Sobers and Rohit Sharma, if needed.
• Opening : Rohit Sharma and Martin Guptill. Both openers have had successfull careers in ODI cricket. Both have scored Double 100s in ODIs with Rohit Sharma having scored 2. Rohit has the highest individual score in ODIs (264) with Guptill having the second highest (237*).
• Middle Order : A top-level middle order in Jaques Kallis, Sir Gary Sobers, Martin Crowe and Steve Waugh
• Finishers : 2 Bonafide flinishers and crisis batsmen in Imran Khan and Mark Boucher.
• Keeping : The Keeper with the most amount of dismissals in international cricket - 998, in Mark Boucher.
• Fielding : Plenty of amazing fielders in Rohit Sharma, Martin Guptill, Jaques Kallis, Steve Waugh, and Imran Khan.
• Captaincy : A lot of experienced captains in the team that can help and give inputs to the main captain Steve Waugh and Vice Captain Martin Crowe : Sir Gary Sobers, Jacques Kallis, Imran Khan, Courtney Walsh have all captained their national teams while Rohit Sharma has captained the IPL side Mumbai Indians to the title twice.
• I wholeheartedly believe that this is the best side in the tournament, with balance, pace, spin, batting, keeping, and finishing. Hence, I named it the All Stars XI. If you like the team, then don't forget to vote for us! ;)

Oh the colorssss 

[sourab10forever]

Everyone coping my style 

[OpeningBatsman]

1 minute ago, sourab10forever said:

Everyone coping my style 

mine is different 

Edited May 18, 2017 by OpeningBatsman