Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir named his all-time Indian Test XI, naming Anil Kumble the captain of the side.
With cricket coming to a standstill due to the outbreak of novel coronavirus, former and current cricketers have become significantly active on social media platforms to talk about their life in the sport and beyond. While many are organising Q&A sessions on Twitter, some are also conducting live sessions on Instagram.
Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir participated in one such live discussion with Sports Tak, where he talked about the impact of COVID-19 on sports and his playing days in international cricket.
During the conversation, he was also asked to name his all-time Test XI.
Gambhir picked Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag as the openers of the side. The latter has opener with Gambhir for a significant part of his Test career. Gavaskar, widely regarded as one of the best batsmen of his generation, was the first to breach the 10,000-run mark in the longest format of the game.
The duo would be followed by Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar -- the stalwarts of India's batting lineup. The ICC Hall of Famers aided India to many memorable victories during their time with the side. Tendulkar also holds the record for most runs in Test cricket.
At no. 5 and 6 in Gambhir's lineup are Virat Kohli and Kapil Dev. Virat, currently the captain of the Indian team, is arguably the best all-format batsman in the world at the moment. Kapil Dev, meanwhile, is widely regarded as India's greatest all-rounder.
While former Indian captain MS Dhoni will keep the wickets in Gambhir's side, the bowling lineup includes two spinners and two pacers.
Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble -- India's spin twins for a significant period of time, find place in Gambhir's lineup. While Kumble is India's highest wicket-taker in the longest format (619), Harbhajan, too, has picked 417 wickets in his career. Kumble also captains Gambhir's team.
Zaheer Khan (311 wickets) and Javagal Srinath (236 wickets) are the fast bowlers in his side.
Gautam Gambhir's all-time Test XI (India): Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Kapil Dev, MS Dhoni (wk), Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble (c), Zaheer Khan, Javagal Srinath.
