Draft: The Future-Gen Stars

[Master Bates]

revisiting this a few years down the road and see who picked the best squad as we will get to know all these players very well.

Sure. If I get time, I will try to differentiate the teams on things likes total caps, average caps per player, average age per player etc.

Maybe @Aislabie could do so?

 

[Aislabie]

My last pick was a real head-versus-gut decision and my head won out. So Ben Charlesworth will be my twelfth man while Pathum Nissanka gets the opening spot. It actually offends mecthat he (with a first-class average of around 65) doesn't get a go as a Test opener, while Danushka Gunathilaka (with a first-class average ariund 28) has had eight Tests in that role. Nissanka is well-organised, patient and technically faultless.

1. Aiden Markram
2. Pathum Nissanka
3. Marnus Labuschagne
4. Kusal Mendis
5. Sarfaraz Khan
6. Ollie Pope
7. Wiaan Mulder
8. Rashid Khan
9. Pat Cummins
10. Kamlesh Nagarkoti
11. Sandeep Lamichhane

@CerealKiller has picks

 

[Master Bates]

Pathum Nissanka

I had him in my mind but did not pick him as his list a and T20 stats were not good enough. Very promising batting lineup for tests but most of them are aggressive players. A test team without enough defensiveness might not work always. What do you say?

 

[Master Bates]

@Aislabie @AsadRM which players you guys think that deserved to be in this draft?

For me, it was a shocker that no one picked Andile Phehlukwayo. Also no Josh Phillippe.

 

[Aislabie]

I had him in my mind but did not pick him as his list a and T20 stats were not good enough. Very promising batting lineup for tests but most of them are aggressive players. A test team without enough defensiveness might not work always. What do you say?

All of my players are good enough to bat in the manner that the team requires of them, so long as they are given clarity about their roles.

For Markram and Nissanka, their role is to bat until lunch; that means that they ought to be on average facing 80-100 balls most innings. Ideally more of course, but that's their role. Whether they score 20 runs or 80 in that time doesn't affect their role very much.

Then Marnus and Mendis at three and four - their job is to score big hundreds. Marnus does that all the time, but Mendis struggles because he doesn't have the same support around him in the Sri Lankan side (as well as looseness outside off).

At five and six you want more dynamic players, so again - Sarfaraz and Pope should do this role perfectly. I concede that a better bat at seven might be preferred, but Mulder is entirely competent enough.

- - -

Our ODI team is alright.

TOP ORDER HITTERS - Markram and Mendis
DYNAMIC ACCUMULATOR - Marnus
ANCHOR ACCUMULATOR - Nissanka
MIDDLE ORDER HITTERS - Sarfaraz, Pope, Rashid
FIREFIGHTER - Mulder

- - -

T20 team similarly okay:

POWERPLAY HITTERS - Markram & Mendis
ACCUMULATOR - Marnus or Nissanka
FINISHING HITTERS - Sarfaraz & Pope
UTILITY or SUPP. BATSMAN - Marnus or Nissanka

- - -

As an effort at an all-format team I am proud of it

 

[Aislabie]

@Aislabie @AsadRM which players you guys think that deserved to be in this draft?

For me, it was a shocker that no one picked Andile Phehlukwayo. Also no Josh Phillips.

There are a bunch; of those I've played with and against, Josh Tongue, Anshy Rath, Paddy Rowe, Matt Fisher, Dom Bess and Ben Charlesworth absolutely could have been picked up. Miles Hammond also not too bad, but not developing enormously well tbh

Charlesworth and Rowe are absolutely the two best teenagers I've ever seen

 

[Master Bates]

I've played with

Have you played First Class cricket?

 

[Aislabie]

Have you played First Class cricket?

No, my knees fell to bits before I got quite that far. Even if I had I'd never have lasted because I didn't want it enough. Plus I detested the whole culture that surrounded it, especially at Worcestershire

 

[Master Bates]

No, my knees fell to bits before I got quite that far. Even if I had I'd never have lasted because I didn't want it enough. Plus I detested the whole culture that surrounded it, especially at Worcestershire

Then how did you know all those guys, Benjamin Aislabie?

 

[Aislabie]

Then how did you know all those guys, Benjamin Aislabie?

I mean firstly I'm not Benjamin Aislabie; he lived and died a long time ago

But the answer is by variously getting close to and into the system; by playing a lot of games against English private schools, and generally through wandering cricket

I haven't played at all in a couple of years though

 

[Master Bates]

I mean firstly I'm not Benjamin Aislabie; he lived and died a long time ago

Did you really think I didn't know that? If you did, then

 

[CerealKiller]

Extremely sorry for the delay, didn’t have time to research. My final two picks are Saud Shakeel, 24-year old leftie from Pakistan, averaging 52 in 52 List A matches, and Nyeem Young of the West Indies, who in the recent U19 World Cup, he first made 61 against Australia to take his team home in a tricky chase, then in the next match against England, smashed 66 off 41, before taking a 5-fer with his medium pace. The next Andre Russell?

CerealKiller’s XI
1. Haider Ali
2. Shai Hope
3. Shreyas Iyer
4. Saud Shakeel
5. Rassie van der Dussen
6. Nyeem Young
7. Shadab Khan
8. Sam Curran
9. Kagiso Rabada
10. Kuldeep Yadav
11. Naseem Shah

 

[Master Bates]

@Aislabie Review time?

For me, this might be the exclusions XI:
01. Tom Kohler-Cadmore / Abhimanyu Easwaran
02. Ishan Kishan / Niroshan Dickwella
03. Hanuma Vihari / Joe Clarke
04. Glenn Phillips / Rahmat Shah
05. Shimron Hetmyer
06. Hardik Pandya / Shreyas Gopal
07. Andile Phehlukwayo / Tom Curran / Axar Patel
08. Akila Dananjaya / Mehidy Hasan Miraz / Qais Ahmad (Aislabie)
09. Hasan Ali / Keemo Paul
10. Mayank Markande / Rahul Chahar
11. Alzarri Joseph / Wes Agar / Lahiru Kumara

If you have players in your mind, then share those names. Or you can share your own XIs.

@Aislabie @AsadRM @CerealKiller

 

[Aislabie]

I'm amazed that so few of us have mentioned young Afghan players like Darwish Rasooli, Bahir Shah, Shahidullah Mandozai, Qais Ahmed and so on. I know their domestic stats and ages are a bit questionable but they're still very good.

I'm also not sure anybody picked up guys like Will Sutherland or Ravi Bishnoi who are both very young and very impressive. Bit of a missed opportunity really, but more a reflection of how few of us were taking part.

 

[Master Bates]

I'm amazed that so few of us have mentioned young Afghan players like Darwish Rasooli, Bahir Shah, Shahidullah Mandozai, Qais Ahmed and so on. I know their domestic stats and ages are a bit questionable but they're still very good.

I'm also not sure anybody picked up guys like Will Sutherland or Ravi Bishnoi who are both very young and very impressive. Bit of a missed opportunity really, but more a reflection of how few of us were taking part.

If more members would have participated, then I am sure some of these would have been picked.