International Test cricket is back after a long gap from franchise cricket and other white-ball series. Most of the big teams are currently featuring in the Test matches. Amidst this, former India National Cricket Team batter Cheteshwar Pujara has picked his current best Test XI in the world. There have been some shocking exclusions from the list.
Cheteshwar Pujara named five Indians in the list, with the most players from the country, followed by Australia, who are currently playing against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team, and the rest from the other countries. Surprisingly, there has been no cricketer added to the list from New Zealand, who have been performing well in the traditional format of the game.
Cheteshwar Pujara, while speaking in a video uploaded by Cricinfo, spoke about how a team is formed, from openers to bowlers. Aiden Markram and KL Rahul are featured as the two Test openers, followed by the middle order and then the all-rounders and three pacers. He also revealed that if the match is in SENA countries, he would include one more pacer-bowling all-rounder instead of a spinner.
Pujara in the video said, "My current World Test XI is: I'll start with Aiden Markram and KL Rahul to open. Joe Root at No. 3, [Steve] Smith at No. 4, and Shubman Gill at No. 5. So, this is 3, 4, and 5. No. 6 will be a wicketkeeper; that will be Rishabh Pant. All-rounder will be Ravindra Jadeja at No. 7."
Will Jadeja be the allrounder in your world Test XI? pic.twitter.com/EfhleTFwHr
— Cricinfo (@cricinfo) August 22, 2026"Unfortunately, Ben Stokes has retired, so he's not there. Otherwise, I would have picked him. Then, No. 8 will be another spinner, which will be Nathan Lyon. The seamers will be [Jasprit] Bumrah, [Pat] Cummins and [Josh] Hazlewood."
"So, these are the three seamers. This is on a normal track, but if this game is somewhere else in the world, whether it's England or Australia, then I might add a fast-bowling all-rounder instead of Ravindra Jadeja."
Why have KL Rahul and Aiden Markram been picked?
Aiden Markram has been a sensational opener for South Africa across formats. The T20I skipper has also been amazing in the red-ball format. His amazing innings of 136 runs in the last ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia helped his side to win their maiden WTC mace.
Rahul has also been one of the most versatile batters for India, as he bats wherever the team wants him to bat and has been given the most difficult roles in ODI and Test cricket: to bat in the middle order and to open the innings, respectively. He has performed every time the side needed him.
Joe Root, Steve Smith and Shubman Gill find a place in Cheteshwar Pujara's XI
Joe Root, Steve Smith and Shubman Gill have been in sensational form in the traditional format. The current England Test captain is the leading run-getter among active cricketers, followed by Smith and Gill. After taking over the captaincy has been scoring consistently in the red-ball format.
Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja are another two Indians on the list for their amazing brand of cricket in this format. Pujara also mentioned that he would have added Ben Stokes to the team; however, he retired recently.
Cheteshwar Pujara's current Test 11: Aiden Markram, KL Rahul, Joe Root, Steve Smith, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Nathan Lyon, Jasprit Bumrah, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood
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