Test XI, by our ratings

Best New Zealand Test XI

The pool is the 24 New Zealand players in the Beat My 11 database with at least 50 Tests, across every era, with one all-rounder in the side. The XI has 2 openers, 3 middle-order batters, 1 wicketkeeper, 2 all-rounders and 3 fast bowlers, picked by our ratings: the highest-rated players at each position, in whichever of the three XI shapes in the game rates best as a team.

All eleven players are from New Zealand.

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	Tom Latham	opener	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	95 Tests; 6,450 runs at 39.1, 17 hundreds
2	John Wright	opener	New Zealand	1970s, 1980s, 1990s	82 Tests; 5,334 runs at 37.8, 12 hundreds
3	Kane Williamson	middle-order batter	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	110 Tests; 9,515 runs at 54.1, 33 hundreds
4	Martin Crowe	middle-order batter	New Zealand	Legends, 1980s, 1990s	77 Tests; 5,444 runs at 45.4, 17 hundreds
5	Ross Taylor	middle-order batter	New Zealand	2010s	112 Tests; 7,683 runs at 44.7, 19 hundreds
6	Brendon McCullum	wicketkeeper	New Zealand	2000s	101 Tests; 6,453 runs at 38.6, 12 hundreds; 209 dismissals
7	Richard Hadlee	all-rounder	New Zealand	Legends, 1970s, 1980s	86 Tests; 3,124 runs at 27.2, 2 hundreds; 431 wickets at 22.3, 36 five-wicket hauls
8	Chris Cairns	all-rounder	New Zealand	1990s, 2000s	62 Tests; 3,320 runs at 33.5, 5 hundreds; 218 wickets at 29.4, 13 five-wicket hauls
9	Trent Boult	fast bowler	New Zealand	2010s	78 Tests; 317 wickets at 27.5, 10 five-wicket hauls
10	Neil Wagner	fast bowler	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	64 Tests; 260 wickets at 27.6, 9 five-wicket hauls
11	Tim Southee	fast bowler	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	107 Tests; 391 wickets at 30.3, 15 five-wicket hauls

Next in line

Player	Position	Nation	Career Test stats
Stephen Fleming	middle-order batter	New Zealand	111 Tests; 7,172 runs at 40.1, 9 hundreds
BJ Watling	wicketkeeper	New Zealand	75 Tests; 3,790 runs at 37.5, 8 hundreds; 276 dismissals
Daniel Vettori	all-rounder	New Zealand	113 Tests; 4,531 runs at 30, 6 hundreds; 362 wickets at 34.4, 20 five-wicket hauls
Chris Martin	fast bowler	New Zealand	71 Tests; 233 wickets at 33.64, 10 five-wicket hauls

What stands out

Between them the eleven played 974 Tests. Ross Taylor has the most (112) and Chris Cairns the fewest (62).
The best batting average in this XI is Kane Williamson's 54.1, and the best bowling average is Richard Hadlee's 22.3.
The deepest position is wicketkeeper, with 4 to choose from for 1 place. The thinnest is opener, with 2 for 2 places.
Left out: Stephen Fleming has the best batting average of anyone left out (40.1, 111 Tests, middle-order batter), and Chris Martin the best bowling average (33.64, 71 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 1973 (Richard Hadlee's debut year) to the present day.
None of these eleven is in the all-time XI.

How this XI was picked

Pool by position: 2 openers, 11 middle-order batters, 4 wicketkeepers, 3 all-rounders, 4 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.

Start drafting