No Sri Lankan good enough for ESPNcricinfo’s Test Eleven for 2011

Thursday, 5 January 2012 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

There are no Sri Lankans in the ESPNcricinfo’s Test Eleven of the year 2011 though Mahela Jayawardena and Lasith Malinga have made it to the ODI side.

India on the other hand had managed to see Rahul Dravid included in the Test XI whilst five of his teammates including skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, were chosen for the ODI XI.

Batting icon Sachin Tendulkar could not find a place in either of the elevens.

Dravid, placed at his usual number three spot in batting order, had a magnificent run in 2011 in which he scored 1145 runs with the help of four centuries.

England players dominated the Test XI of the year as six of them featured in the side, including ICC Test Player of the Year Alastair Cook, pace duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad, middle-order batsmen Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell and wicket-keeper Matt Prior.

Pakistan are represented by opener Mohammed Hafeez and off-spinner Saeed Ajmal.

The other players in the Test XI are West Indian all-rounder Darren Bravo and South African fast bowler Dale Steyn.

In the ODI XI, Virender Sehwag, who struck individual ODI highest score of 219 against the West Indies recently, was chosen as opener.

Australian Shane Watson was named as Sehwag’s opening partner, followed by young Indian Virat Kohli. India’s World Cup hero Yuvraj Singh was at number five, followed by Dhoni.

Paceman Zaheer Khan was the lone Indian bowler in the bowling line-up.

Other players in the ODI XI are Pakistanis Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal and Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson.

Test XI: Alastair Cook, Mohammad Hafeez, Rahul Dravid, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Darren Bravo, Matt Prior, Stuart Broad, Dale Steyn, Saeed Ajmal and James Anderson.

ODI XI: Virender Sehwag, Shane Watson, Virat Kohli, Mahela Jayawardene, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Shahid Afridi, Mitchell Johnson, Lasith Malinga, Zaheer Khan and Saeed Ajmal.