Best Test XI of 2022

The year 2022 saw some riveting action in the Test arena. Teams showed immense grit and determination and fans witnessed some breathtaking action on the cricket field. Be it Bangladesh registering their first-ever win against New Zealand on the latter’s turf, Australia’s epic series win on Pakistan soil, or England's ‘Bazball’ explosion which took world cricket by storm, 2022 saw it all. In 2022, there were many players who raised their hands and delivered the goods for their respective teams. However, there were certain cricketers who were phenomenal throughout the year and set the Test arena ablaze with their jaw-dropping performances frequently. Here is the best Test XI of 2022: 1. Usman Khawaja Usman Khawaja has been a proven performer for Australia in the Test arena. The 36-year-old has featured in 55 matches and scored 3967 runs at an average of 45.59. He made a stunning comeback to the longest format of the game, smashing twin centuries in the 4th Ashes Test in Sydney in January 2022. Khawaja has not looked back since his return and has kept stacking up runs for Australia at the top of the order. He notched up 1080 runs in 11 Tests at an average of 67.50 in the last calendar year and provided Australia with solid starts on a consistent basis. The southpaw’s sensational run with the bat has taken the load off veteran cricketer David Warner, who is known to do the heavy lifting at the start of the innings. Khawaja has become an integral part of the Australian batting line-up and the team management would hope the ace batter continues his rich vein of form going forward. 2. Kraigg Brathwaite Kraigg Brathwaite has been an inspirational leader for the West Indies and has led them from the front in the longest format of the game. He has featured in 81 matches and notched up 5089 runs at an average of 34.85. The ace batter was quite phenomenal in the last calendar year. He featured in seven games in 2022 and amassed 687 runs at an average of 62.45. When the West Indies locked horns with England in the second game of the three-match Test series in Bridgetown, Brathwaite played a brilliant knock of 160 runs off 489 deliveries in the first innings to take his team to a strong position. Then again in the second innings, the opening batter played a gritty knock of 56* runs off 184 balls to deny England a win. Brathwaite also showed his class in Australia. In the first match of the series in Perth, he scored 64 runs off 166 deliveries in the first innings and then struck a sensational century in the second innings. The West Indies skipper carried the whole batting line-up on his shoulders last year and the team management will hope other batters also turn up to support the Barbados-born. 3. Joe Root Joe Root has been a run machine for England in Test cricket. He has featured in 127 matches and amassed an insane tally of 10629 runs at an average of 49.43. The 32-year-old was simply sensational last year and aggregated 1098 runs at an average of 45.75, including five centuries. In the second match of the three-match Test series against New Zealand, Root brought his A-game into play and smashed a majestic century in the second innings while chasing 277. Though wickets tumbled at the other end, he kept his cool and took England across the line. Root was in pristine touch in the rescheduled fifth Test against India and played an amazing knock of 142* runs off 173 deliveries to help his team hunt down 378 runs against a potent Indian bowling attack. The former England skipper will look to continue the good work in the years to come. For Better Experience: Download CricTracker Mobile App 4. Babar Azam Babar Azam has been the backbone of the Pakistan batting line-up across formats. In the longest format, the 28-year-old has tackled top-quality bowling attacks with ease and piled on runs for fun. He has featured in 46 Tests and accumulated 3645 runs at an average of 49.25. In 2022, Babar was quite phenomenal and was the leading run-getter of the year, with 1184 runs to his name in nine matches at an average of 69.64, including four centuries. He weathered the storm whenever his team was in trouble and held the innings together. One of his prominent performances came in the second test against Australia in Karachi. In the second innings, the Pakistan skipper played a marathon knock of 196 runs off 425 deliveries and took the game towards a draw. The ace batter will be eager to maintain his superb run with the bat and make 2023 his own. 5. Jonny Bairstow Jonny Bairstow’s stature in the Test arena has witnessed a meteoric rise in the last year or so. The 33-year-old has bought into England’s fearless brand of cricket and knocked the wind off top-quality bowling line-ups. He featured in ten matches in 2022 and smashed 1061 runs at an average of 66.31 When England locked horns with New Zealand in the final game of the three-match Test series in Leeds, the hosts were reeling at 55 for 6 in the first innings but Bairstow played a counter-attacking knock of 162 runs off 157 balls to put his team in a strong position. Then again in the second innings, the ace batter went into T20 mode and hammered 71 runs off 44 balls to seal the game for his side. Again, Bairstow showed his batting might in the fifth Test against India in Birmingham. In the first innings, he steadied the ship when England were in trouble and played a magnificent knock of 106 runs off 235 balls. In the second innings, he turned a daunting target of 378 into a cakewalk with his breathtaking stroke play and smashed 114* runs off 145 balls to take his side across the line. 6. Ben Stokes Ben Stokes is one of the finest all-rounders in world cricket at the moment. He has been a match-winner with both bat and ball and has proven his mettle in the international arena time and time again. In Test cricket, the 31-year-old has featured in 89 matches and scored 5602 runs at an average of 36.14. On the bowling front, he has picked up 193 wickets at an average of 31.99. The Christchurch-born showed his all-round might in the last calendar year. Stokes played crucial knocks with the bat and scored 870 runs in 15 matches at an average of 36.25. Also, he played the role of the fifth bowler to perfection and bagged 26 wickets for his side. Besides Stokes’ all-round skills, he has displayed phenomenal leadership skills and helped turn England’s fortunes in the longest format of the game. With the flamboyant cricketer at the helm, the Three Lions have again become a force to be reckoned with. 7. Rishabh Pant (wk) Rishabh Pant has been a game-changer with the bat for India across formats. Test cricket has been his happy hunting ground where he has taken the attack to the opposition right from the get-go and scored 2271 runs in 33 games at an average of 43.67. He was in a rich vein of form in the last calendar year and notched up 680 runs in seven games at an average of 61.81. Pant was in his elements in the final game of the three-match series against South Africa. In the second innings, he arrived at the crease with India in a spot of bother at 58 for 4 and the Proteas pace attack breathing fire. But he smashed a scintillating century to bring India back into the match. Then in the fifth Test against England, the wicketkeeper-batter put up an exhibition of his swashbuckling stroke play in the first innings and hammered 146 runs off 111 deliveries. Besides Pant’s batting prowess, his keeping skills have improved with each passing game and the Uttarakhand-born is en route to becoming a skilled wicket-keeper. 8. Marco Jansen The stocks of Macro Jansen have grown leaps and bounds in the international circuit from the time he made his South Africa debut. The tall and lanky pacer extracted bounce even from the most docile surfaces and troubled top-quality batters during the entirety of 2022. Also, he has provided handy knocks while slotting in lower down the order. Jansen was phenoemenal in the year 2022. He featured in eight Tests and bagged 36 wickets at a superb average of 19.02. Further, the 22-year-old contributed 234 runs with the bat at an average of 21.27. One of Jansen’s stand-out performances came in the final game of the three-match Test series against England, where the Johannesburg-born wreaked havoc with the ball and grabbed his first five-wicket haul in the longest format of the game. Jansen, being a left-arm pacer has added variety to the Proteas' pace attack. And courtesy of his stellar performances, the bowling all-rounder has become a vital cog in the South African Test set-up. 9. Kagiso Rabada Kagiso Rabada has carried the mantle of the Proteas bowling attack across formats since the retirement of the likes of Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander and has been simply exceptional in his role. He has featured in 57 Tests and picked up 267 wickets at an average of 22.49 thus far. Rabada proved hot to handle in the last year and picked up 47 wickets in nine games at an average of 22.25. The speedster was skipper Dean Elgar’s go-to bowler in need of wickets and delivered the goods on most occasions. The speedster was at his best in the final game of the two-match Test series against New Zealand in New Zealand. Rabada took a sensational five-wicket haul in the first innings and then bagged three scalps in the second. He also showed his skills with the bat and played a vital 47-run-knock in the second innings. South Africa won the game by 198 runs and Kagiso was adjudged the Player of the Match. 10. Nathan Lyon Nathan Lyon has been Australia’s premier spinner in the game's longest format for over a decade now. The 35-year-old is known to strangle batters with his impeccable bowling and has made many match-winning contributions to his side. He has featured in 114 Tests and bagged 458 wickets at an average of 31.53. Lyon was in top form last year. He stemmed the flow of runs with his brilliant bowling and also provided timely breakthroughs. The wily spinner featured in 11 Tests in 2022 and picked up 47 wickets at an average of 29.06. In the first game of the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, Lyon weaved his magic and bagged a glorious five-wicket haul in the first innings. He continued his good work and picked up four wickets in the second innings. Riding on the ace spinner’s heroics, the Aussies defeated the Lankan Lions on their home turf. 11. James Anderson James Anderson has been a giant of a player in world cricket. He is the most successful pacer in the history of Tests, picking up a staggering tally of 675 wickets in 177 matches at an average of 26.13. Anderson is 40 years old, and most bowlers after getting to that age tend to hang their boots, but the ‘King of Swing’ has shown no signs of stopping. He is still leading the England pace attack and rattling batters with his swing. The Lancashire-born was his team’s wrecker-in-chief with the ball in 2022 and demolished batting line-ups for fun. He took 36 wickets in nine Tests at a stellar average of 19.80, including a remarkable five-wicket haul in the first innings of the fifth Test (rescheduled) against India in Birmingham. Anderson has been a match-winner with the ball and will again hold the cards for England in The Ashes 2023 as Stokes & co. bid to win back the urn from the Aussies.

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Best Test XI of 2022

In 2022, there were a lot of cricketers who set the Test arena ablaze with their jaw-dropping performances.

9. Kagiso Rabada

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