From Sunil Gavaskar to Sachin Tendulkar: India’s best performers in away Tests and an all-time XI

Selecting an all-time XI for any team, in any sport, under any criteria, is an exercise fraught with pitfalls but (or perhaps because of that very fact) it is also interesting. There is rarely going to be agreement among fans, players or experts of the game in arriving at the best set of players when you navigate different eras and it becomes especially tough in a sport like cricket that has evolved so much with time. Playing conditions, and even the volume of cricket, is so vastly different from decade to decade but at the same time, it adds flavour to an exercise of determining the best of the best.

Here, we will go about determining an all-time India XI for Tests to be played away from home. It is a subjective exercise of course, but one that will try to use statistics to back the selections.

First up, let’s take a look at the chart-toppers over the years in the three departments: batsmen, bowlers and all-rounders.

(Note: Scroll to right or swipe across on mobile screens if all the columns of a table are not visible on your screen)

Automatic picks

From the sheer weight of numbers in the above three tables, it is easy to fill up certain spots in an all-time India XI for a Test match away from home comforts. The top three run-scorers are a shoe-in for most all-time XIs for India (and perhaps even around the world), and it is no surprise they have great records away from home. Among the bowlers, the top three are once again automatic selections with Kapil Dev taking the spot of the all-rounder for being the only Indian with more than 2,000 runs and 100 wickets in away Tests. Manoj Prabhakar and Ravichandran Ashwin might have better average difference than Kapil in the table above, but without any offence to them, there is no argument whatsoever as to who is the greatest all-rounder India has ever produced.

In essence, there is not much sense in talking about the merits of the following six names featuring in the final selection.

First-choice batsmen: Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid

First-choice bowlers: Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan

First-choice all-rounder: Kapil Dev

Against best of the best

In the next step to determine the XI, we proceed to see the best Indian performers against the best sides of all time.

It is widely accepted that three Test teams have the strongest claims to be considered the greatest of all time. Sir Don Bradman’s Australia of the 1930s and 40s, the invincible West Indies side of the 1980s and Steve Waugh’s Australia either side of the turn of the century. These sides, according to a 2011 study in ESPNCricinfo, each have a strong claim to be the most dominant side the world has ever seen, not just for the talent they possessed but for registering wins with sensational consistency.

As an extension, any debate of the best Test cricketers should ideally take into consideration how players / teams performed against these behemoths of the game. To be the best, you have to be as good as the greatest of your peers. It, therefore, made for an interesting read to see how Indian batsmen and bowlers performed in the backyard of these all-time great teams.

Here’s a look at India’s leading performers (in terms of batting average and wickets taken) against the three best Test teams of all time: Australia (Jan 1930 - Nov 1952), West Indies (Feb 1981-Dec 1989), Australia (Oct 1999-Nov 2007).

The above tables are interesting for a couple of reasons. Dattu Phadkar and Vinoo Mankad could have made legitimate claims for the all-rounder spot in the all-time away XI based on how competitive they were in an era when India were anything but. In fact, in terms of the difference between batting and bowling averages, Phadkar (batting ave: 52.33, bowling ave: 31.75) is the second best in the world from that era when it comes to matches played in Australia, behind only West Indies’ Gerry Gomez.

However, the presence of a certain Kapil Dev means that spot is already taken.

The above batting table is why, at the end of this report, you will see Mohinder ‘Jimmy’ Amarnath feature in the final XI. The tales of his courage against the most fearsome bowling attack in their own backyard is the stuff of cricketing legends. Many will remember 1983 as the year Amarnath won man of the match awards in the semi-final and final of the World Cup, leading India to the path-breaking title. But did you know that he registered 1000 Test runs that year as early as May? Five hundred and ninety of those runs came in one series against the likes of Roberts, Marshall, Holding and Garner in their own backyard, where he played the hook shot to great effect and made a name for himself. India did not win a Test but Jimmy was deservingly named player of the series. Amarnath also scored three centuries and three fifties in his ten innings against a rampant Imran Khan’s Pakistan earlier in that season.

Among the bowlers, no one from around the world came close to Kapil Dev’s tally of 35 wickets in that era, with Ian Botham placed second in the wicket-takers list at 26. The Indian’s strike rate of 51.5 is second best only to Imran Khan (among those who took more than 10 wickets in WI during that era). India’s bowling line-up did not have the greatest resources otherwise, however, with Ravi Shastri coming in second behind Kapil.

Next up, the Australian side from 1999 to 2007. This was an era where India were consistently real challengers to Australia home or away and that is reflected in the fact among the best six batsmen Down Under (runs scored), four are Indians with only Brian Lara and Michael Vaughan not from the sub-continent. VVS Laxman made a name for himself by being a constant thorn in the Australian side, home and away and it is no surprise to see him top of the table.

Among the bowlers too, two Indians top the charts for most wickets Down Under in this era among all teams, not just for India. Kumble and Ajit Agarkar both have been part of memorable wins in Australia and they took more wickets than anyone else in the world in this period in Australia.

The remaining spots

We are now left with some tough choices in filling up the remaining five spots.

First up, the opening partner for Gavaskar.

This really comes down to two names: Gautam Gambhir or Virender Sehwag, two men who have given India plenty of solid platforms in their time as openers together. Gambhir, at his best, has the temperament of a Test opener as his numbers show but with the technically impeccable Gavaskar at one, Sehwag gets the nod for his explosive style that, in many ways, redefined India’s approach to Test cricket under Sourav Ganguly.

Moving on to complete the middle order, and this is where the toughest decision comes up. Based on the above tables, we invite Amarnath into the XI, albeit not at the position where he made a bulk of his best away runs. With Dravid at No 3 and Tendulkar at No 4, Amarnath moves to the lower-middle order. We are certain he can adapt to that challenge or we always have the option of moving the quintessential team-man Dravid a few places down.

But what of Dilip Vengsarkar, the only non-English cricketer to hit three Test hundreds at Lord’s Surely, however, Laxman cannot be left out? But then, there is a certain Virat Kohli who warrants a selection based on his sheer volume of runs (and centuries) away from home. Each of these three names can be selected in the XI on their merits, but Kohli gets the nod as a modern-day great who has enjoyed a phenomenal record in Australia and and the way he bounced back from the horror England tour in 2014 to top score in 2018.

Next selection is that of the wicketkeeper-batsman. This might not be a debate if one is selecting an all-time India XI but given MS Dhoni’s not-so-flattering record away from home, his selection will have to be confirmed after we look at a few other names in contention. Only three Indian WK-batsmen have scored more than 1,000 Test away runs. While Rishabh Pant got off to a fantastic start in that aspect, by scoring centuries in England and Australia on his first tours, his career has hit a roadblock since.

The selection comes down to Dhoni, Farokh Engineer and Syed Kirmani; all three of them are top ‘keepers at their best but Dhoni’s batting record gets him the nod.

And finally, to complete the bowling unit. Since we are looking to select a XI for a Test away from home, here’s where we give ourselves the leeway to pick a 12th man, to have the option between choosing the second spinner for subcontinent conditions or a pace-heavy bowling attack for ‘SENA’ conditions.

The second spinner spot is also a tricky call with Harbhajan Singh, R Ashwin and BS Chandrasekhar registering good cases for their selection but the choice here has to be Bishen Singh Bedi for his sheer consistency and control; to have the ability to shine even in unhelpful conditions. He had a big heart and his record in Australia (35 wickets at 27.51), New Zealand (20 wickets at 24.65) and the West Indies (33 wickets at 33.69) are solid indicators of his class.

With Kapil Dev and Zaheer Khan already in the final list, the third pacer slot goes to the bowler (with at least 50 away Test wickets) who features in the top three of players with the best average AND best strike rate: Jasprit Bumrah. The other name at the top of those lists is Irfan Pathan, who would be a useful addition to the squad, but for the sheer impact he has had in his short Test career so far, Bumrah gets the nod. It is remarkable that he has picked up a five-for in every single country he has played Test cricket so far, to go with a hat-trick in West Indies where he was near unplayable. He still needs to add longevity and consistency to his career, but fitness permitting, no one can bet against Bumrah finishing as one of the greatest pacers India has ever produced.

And, voila, we have arrived at a squad that could, perhaps, give the best ever teams a run for the money in their backyard.

Agree with our selections? Who will captain this side? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section of the article or tweet to us @thefield_in.

All statistics courtesy ESPNCricinfo Statsguru.