Harsha Bhogle has unveiled his Test Team of the Year 2024, which is dominated by England players and features only two Indians. Bhogle’s Test Team of the Year 2024 has three English players, two Indians, and four players from Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand.
The well-known broadcaster has picked the young Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal as the first pick of his Test Team of the Year. Yashasvi Jaiswal has so far amassed 1332 runs in 27 innings at an average of over 52 with the help of seven fifties and three hundreds, both at home and away.
Harsha Bhogle reveals his star-studded Test Team of 2024
His second opener is England’s Ben Duckett, who has scored a hundred in Rajkot and in Multan and five fifties to finish the year with 1,100 runs to his name in Test cricket. Speaking about his openers, Harsha Bhogle said on Cricbuzz: “Yashasvi Jaiswal did everything that was asked of him as an opener, so he is my first pick in the Test Team of 2024. I have picked Ben Duckett because of the runs he has scored across the world.”
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Coming to the very crucial number three batting position, the Indian commentator has picked the New Zealand legend Kane Williamson, who scored 1013 runs in just 18 innings at an average of nearly 60 with the help of four hundreds and as many fifties. Harsha also mentioned Shubman Gill, Travis Head, and Marnus Labuschagne.
But Bhogle said that “it was very difficult for me to look beyond Kane Williamson, even though his numbers are skewed by a bout of heavy scoring at home, but how do you put aside someone who’s made huge runs at No. 3?” Meanwhile, Harsha Bhogle selected Joe Root at No. 4 in his Test team of the year.
Joe Root has amassed 1556 runs in 31 innings at an average of over 55 with the help of five fifties and six hundreds for England in 2024. The commentator then picked Harry Brook by saying that ‘he’s going to be a special player.’He pointed out that Brook got a lot of runs in Pakistan and New Zealand, saying the Englishman just manufactures runs.
Harsha Bhogle hails Harry Brook as a special player
However, Harsha mentioned that Brook struggled when the ball started to turn, but he made 1,100 runs at an average of 55 with the help of four hundreds, so he was an easy pick for him at No. 5. Bhogle said, “He’s (Brook) going to be a really special player as he evolves. I just love the audacity with which he plays.”
Then, he picked Sri Lankan star Kamindu Mendis at No. 6. He was just overwhelmed by Mendis’ carnage, having scored 1,049 runs at an astounding average of 75, with 5 centuries to his name this year.
Harsha stated, “I wondered what Mendis was doing when I started seeing his scores at No. 7, then I watched him bat, and I wondered even more what he was doing batting at No. 7. Eventually, Sri Lanka started to push him up; he’s going to be some player. I only hope Sri Lanka looks after him, gives him the right numbers, and stays with him, even if he goes through a little downward patch.”
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He then named Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan as his number seven player and wicketkeeper of his Test Team of the Year 2024. India’s left-arm spinner and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja got the No. 8 spot in Bhogle’s Test XI of the year. Jadeja scalped 44 wickets and scored over 500 runs in 11 Tests in 2024. He will add more in the Boxing Day Test against Australia.
Jasprit Bumrah to lead the pace attack of Harsha Bhogle’s Test XI of the Year
Harsha Bhogle’s bowling attack featured Gus Atkinson (52 wickets in 11 Tests), Kagiso Rabada (32 wickets from 7 Tests), and Jasprit Bumrah (62 wickets in 12 Tests). The broadcaster said that he went with one spin specialist, three fast bowlers, and Joe Root, his fifth bowler, in his Test XI of 2024.
Praising Bumrah, Harsha said, “What a joy it has been to watch Jasprit Bumrah across formats, across situations, across countries; there isn’t a bowler in world cricket at the moment like Bumrah, and he is carrying his country’s bowling attack everywhere he goes.”
Here’s Harsha Bhogle’s Test Team of the Year 2024:
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ben Duckett, Kane Williamson, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Kamindu Mendis, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Gus Atkinson, Kagiso Rabada, Jasprit Bumrah (C).
