Test XI
Best All-Time Test XI
The pool is the 286 Test players in the Beat My 11 database who played at least 50 Tests, with one all-rounder in the side. The XI has 2 openers, 3 middle-order batters, 1 wicketkeeper, 1 all-rounder, 1 spinner and 3 fast bowlers. It starts from our ratings, then we made the final choice by hand: Don Bradman opens with Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar bats at four, because an all-time XI needs both.
This XI draws on 6 nations: Australia (3), India (2), South Africa (2), Sri Lanka (2), West Indies (1), Zimbabwe (1).
Career Test totals from the Beat My 11 database, as of 22 October 2026.
The XI, in batting order
| # | Player | Position | Nation | Played in | Career Test stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunil Gavaskar | opener | India | Legends, 1970s, 1980s | 125 Tests; 10,122 runs at 51.1, 34 hundreds |
| 2 | Don Bradman | opener | Australia | Legends | 52 Tests; 6,996 runs at 99.9, 29 hundreds |
| 3 | Kumar Sangakkara | middle-order batter | Sri Lanka | Legends, 2000s, 2010s | 134 Tests; 12,400 runs at 57.4, 38 hundreds |
| 4 | Sachin Tendulkar | middle-order batter | India | Legends, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s | 200 Tests; 15,921 runs at 53.8, 51 hundreds |
| 5 | Steve Smith | middle-order batter | Australia | 2010s, 2020s | 125 Tests; 10,920 runs at 56, 37 hundreds |
| 6 | Andy Flower | wicketkeeper | Zimbabwe | 1990s, 2000s | 63 Tests; 4,794 runs at 51.5, 12 hundreds; 162 dismissals |
| 7 | Jacques Kallis | all-rounder | South Africa | Legends, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s | 166 Tests; 13,289 runs at 55.4, 45 hundreds; 292 wickets at 32.6, 5 five-wicket hauls |
| 8 | Muttiah Muralitharan | spinner | Sri Lanka | Legends, 1990s, 2000s | 133 Tests; 800 wickets at 22.7, 67 five-wicket hauls |
| 9 | Malcolm Marshall | fast bowler | West Indies | Legends, 1980s | 81 Tests; 376 wickets at 20.9, 22 five-wicket hauls |
| 10 | Glenn McGrath | fast bowler | Australia | Legends, 1990s, 2000s | 124 Tests; 563 wickets at 21.6, 29 five-wicket hauls |
| 11 | Dale Steyn | fast bowler | South Africa | Legends, 2000s, 2010s | 93 Tests; 439 wickets at 22.9, 26 five-wicket hauls |
Next in line
| Player | Position | Nation | Career Test stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Len Hutton | opener | England | 79 Tests; 6,971 runs at 56.7, 19 hundreds |
| Adam Gilchrist | wicketkeeper | Australia | 96 Tests; 5,570 runs at 47.6, 17 hundreds; 420 dismissals |
| Garfield Sobers | all-rounder | West Indies | 93 Tests; 8,032 runs at 57.8, 26 hundreds; 235 wickets at 34, 6 five-wicket hauls |
| Shane Warne | spinner | Australia | 145 Tests; 708 wickets at 25.4, 37 five-wicket hauls |
| Dennis Lillee | fast bowler | Australia | 70 Tests; 355 wickets at 23.9, 23 five-wicket hauls |
What stands out
- Between them the eleven played 1,296 Tests. Sachin Tendulkar has the most (200) and Don Bradman the fewest (52).
- The best batting average in this XI is Don Bradman's 99.9, and the best bowling average is Malcolm Marshall's 20.9.
- The deepest position is middle-order batter, with 102 to choose from for 3 places. The thinnest is fast bowler, with 50 for 3 places.
- Left out: Garfield Sobers has the best batting average of anyone left out (57.8, 93 Tests, all-rounder), and Jasprit Bumrah the best bowling average (19.8, 52 Tests, fast bowler). An average is only part of a rating, which also counts how often a player takes wickets or scores hundreds, and how long he lasted.
- Their Test careers run from 1928 (Don Bradman's debut year) to the present day.
- Of the other XIs on this site, the one that shares the most players with this one has 9: the XI of the Legends era.
How this XI was picked
Pool by position: 54 openers, 102 middle-order batters, 34 wicketkeepers, 24 all-rounders, 22 spinners, 50 fast bowlers.
Our ratings use seven career measures. Openers, middle-order batters and wicketkeepers are rated on batting average, runs per player-match, century rate. Spinners and fast bowlers are rated on bowling average, wickets per bowler-match, five-wicket-haul rate, ten-wicket-match rate. All-rounders are rated on all seven. Every player is ranked against the whole database, and players with short careers are weighted toward the average so a hot streak cannot outrank a long career.
The XI takes the highest-rated players at each position, then uses whichever of the three XI shapes in the game rates best as a team. Ratings are not shown here: draft your own XI to see them.
Think you can pick a better XI? Draft yours across seven eras and see if it beats mine.
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