Former Indian cricketer, VVS Laxman has revealed his Test XI and has chosen twelve world-class cricketers. He is currently one of the commentators in the ongoing India vs Sri Lanka Test series. During the match, he revealed his list of players keeping in mind their abilities to play in the subcontinent conditions. Laxman designated Virat Kohli as captain but he kept only one more player from the Indian side who is Ravichandran Ashwin.
According to Laxman’s list, David Warner and Hashim Amla are the openers of his team. Despite adding former English Test skipper Alastair Cook and English speedster James Anderson to his wishlist, Laxman preferred to go with David Warner.
On being asked by his co-commentator Aakash Chopra about not picking Cook, he said,
David Warner is an impact player. I will always choose him over Cook.
Though VVS has chosen Warner over Cook, it’s a fact that the Aussie opener has a poor record while playing in the Indian subcontinent. Warner hasn’t scored a ton in India while Cook has scored 5 in the subcontinent out of 31 total centuries.
Let’s have a look at VVS Laxman’s Test XI team:
1. David Warner
2. Hashim Amla
3. Joe Root
4. Virat Kohli (c)
5. Steven Smith
6. AB de Villiers (wk)
7. Shakib Al Hasan
8. Ravichandran Ashwin
9. Mitchell Starc
10. Kagiso Rabada
11. Josh Hazlewood
12. Kane Williamson (12th Man)
Having AB de Villiers as wicketkeeper-batsman is a pretty bold move but not picking up Cheteshwar Pujara in the squad is quite shocking. Among the bowlers, Laxman has chosen Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Kagiso Rabada and Ravichandran Ashwin in his playing XI. No player from Sri Lanka and Pakistan are on the list.
