ICC Men’s Test team of the year 2022

Ben Stokes

ICC Men’s Test team of the year 2022 has been revealed. As, 11 players made the ICC Men’s Test Team of the Year because of their exceptional performances in 2022 with the bat, the ball, or their all-around skills.

These were the 11 players who were chosen for the ICC’s Men’s Test XI of the Year in 2022 because of their exceptional performance in Test cricket :-

1. Usman Khawaja – Australia :- 

Usman Khawaja’s re-entry into Australia’s Test XI could not have begun any better as he scored hundreds in both of his innings against England, including a magnificent 137 in the first and an undefeated 101* in the second. The fourth Ashes Test in Sydney ended in a draw for Australia, but Khawaja’s run total secured him additional opportunities in 2022, and he took full advantage.

The talented left-hander contributed significantly to Australia’s well-earned success by scoring 496 runs and a staggering 165.33 on average during the series victory in Pakistan. He hit two hundreds and two other scores in the nineties.

Khawaja struck three more half-centuries in 2022 despite his slightly waning form, finishing the year with 1080 runs.

2. Kraigg Brathwaite – West Indies :- 

As his team defeated England early in 2022, the West Indies skipper and opening batter was the series’ leading scorer and unquestionably the squad’s star batter for the year. In an individual effort that will have kept his opponents up at night, Brathwaite scored fifty runs in each of the first two Tests he played against England as well as a marathon 160 in the first innings of the second Test. The right-hander demonstrated his talent with 174 runs in the match at Perth against Australia in November, including a magnificent rearguard 110. He hit 94 and 51 in the first innings of each of the Test victories over Bangladesh in June. He scored 687 runs overall in 14 innings, averaging 62.45, for the entire year.

3. Marnus Labuschagne – Australia :- 

Marnus Labuschagne, who scored a tonne of runs in the second half of 2022, comes in at number three. The Australian’s 90 in the first innings of the first Test against Pakistan was his highest score in that series, and he scored 104 against Sri Lanka in Galle in July to record his maiden century of the year. However, Labuschagne was at his best at the start of the Australian summer, making an incredible 502 runs in just four innings against the West Indies. His 957 runs in total for the year were completed at a 56.29 average.

4. Babar Azam – Pakistan :- 

The Test captain of Pakistan had a stellar year with the bat in 2022, amassing four hundreds and an additional seven half-centuries. He scored an astounding 1184 runs at an astounding average of 69.94 in nine games, with one hundred against each of the four Test opponents he played. Babar Azam scored 390 runs during the eagerly awaited home series against Australia, and he added 348 more when England visited later in the year. He still holds the record for the greatest individual Test score with his 196 against the Australians in Karachi in March.

5. Jonny Bairstow – England :-

Jonny Bairstow of England had the best year of his career despite missing the winter tour of Pakistan due to a broken leg.He began the year with hitting a century against Australia in Sydney. He also had a stellar opening innings of the West Indies trip, going for 140. But a golden patch at the start of the English summer will make Bairstow’s year stand out. Bairstow scored consecutive runs of 136, 162, 71*, 106, and 114* throughout the course of five innings, beginning in the second innings of the second Test against New Zealand and continuing to the conclusion of the match against India at Edgbaston.

6. Ben Stokes – England :- 

Although Bairstow may have excelled with the bat during England’s incredible comeback in 2022, Ben Stokes was the one who brought about the transformation and developed such a remarkable attacking mindset. Since taking over the team at the beginning of the English summer, Stokes’ captaincy has revolutionised England, assisting them in nine victories. He has also shown success with both the bat and the ball. At a lower average of 36.25 down at number six, Stokes scored 870 runs throughout the year and scored two centuries. Additionally, he utilised himself in a variety of roles to take 26 wickets in the year. In the series victory over South Africa, where he took 10 wickets at a mere 15.70, his bowling had a particularly significant impact.

7. Rishabh Pant – India :-

Averaging 61.81 runs per innings and striking out at a strike rate of 90.90, India’s keeper-batter had another outstanding season with the bat. He scored 680 runs in 12 innings. The fact that Pant’s team scored two centuries and four fifties in a single season is only half the tale; his destructive style of batting gave his team’s innings a boost all year long. In Test matches in 2022, he hit 21 sixes. He was also a competent gloveman, making six stumpings and taking 23 catches. However, it might be a while before we see Pant in a Test match again since the 25-year-old is still recovering from the wounds he received in a terrible vehicle accident only two days before the year’s end.

8. Pat Cummins – Australia :- 

At the conclusion of 2022, Australia’s Test skipper guided his team to the top of the World Test Championship standings. In addition to having one of his finest annual results with the ball, Cummins’ leadership was exceptional throughout the entire year.

9. Kagiso Rabada – South Africa :- 

The spearhead of South Africa’s offence had an outstanding year with the ball in a variety of situations. In total, Rabada claimed 47 wickets from nine games in 2022, doing so at a meagre average of 22.25. The 27-year-old took at least 10 wickets against each of the four opponents he faced, and his performances were constant across all of the series in which he participated. Rabada impressed the most at home with 14 wickets at 20.53, but he was also quite efficient in England, Australia, and New Zealand. His average was also very steady across the various conditions.

10. Nathan Lyon – Australia :- 

The front-line spinner for Australia saw action in 2022, bowling more than 500 overs. Lyon did an excellent job for his squad both at home and on the road, taking 47 wickets in 11 Tests with an average of 29.06 overall. Before showcasing his skills on turning grounds by taking 11 wickets in Sri Lanka, he was expected to deliver a mountain of overs in the successful Test series played away in Pakistan. Additionally, he was particularly productive at home, as he took 24 wickets at an average of 21.33.

11. James Anderson – England :- 

The veteran swing bowler for England keeps putting on world-class performances despite his advanced age. In 2022, Anderson reached 40 years old, although he is still regarded as one of the best bowlers in the world. He grabbed 36 wickets in nine Test matches at an economy rate of 2.42 and an average of just 19.8. Given the high scoring style of England’s games for the majority of the year and Anderson’s economy being by far his team’s best, the final number is somewhat anomalous. Anderson, an expert at working in English-speaking environments, has again demonstrated his amazing efficacy away from home by doing extraordinarily well for his side in Pakistan. Another total outlier, the 40-year-old concluded the series with eight wickets, an average of 18.50, and an economy rate of just 2.20. His average and economy rates were the best of any bowler on either side of the series.