DHAKA: Alastair Cook and MS Dhoni have been named captains of the ICC`s Test and ODI Teams of the Year. Dale Steyn was included in the Test side for the sixth successive year, while Dhoni made the ODI line-up for the sixth consecutive year as well. Performances between August 7, 2012 and August 25, 2013 were considered by a panel chaired by former India captain Anil Kumble, also the ICC cricket committee chairman.
ICC Test Team of the Year (in batting order)
Alastair Cook (capt), Cheteshwar Pujara, Hashim Amla, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni (wk), Graeme Swann, Dale Steyn, James Anderson, Vernon Philander, R Ashwin (12th man)
ICC ODI Team of the Year (in batting order)
Tillakaratne Dilshan, Shikhar Dhawan, Hashim Amla, Kumar Sangakkara, AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Saeed Ajmal, Mitchell Starc, James Anderson, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell McClenaghan (12th man)
Hashim Amla was named in the Test side for the fourth straight year, while Cook made an appearance for the third year on the trot.
"It is always tough to decide on the Test and ODI teams of the year, with so many worthy candidates to consider based on the players` performances between 7 August 2012 and 25 August 2013," Kumble said. "The selection panel had a lengthy debate on all the top performers during the performance period and a number of combinations were considered.
"The selectors did utilise a vast amount of statistics from the period under observation, but we also took into account other factors like the opposition, pitch conditions, match situation and the like. But when you have only 12 places to fill from a big group of world-class players, there will always be a few who will miss out. In the panel`s expert opinion, it has selected the best Test and ODI teams based on performances over the past 12 months."
The other members of the panel were former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis, former England captain Alec Stewart, former South Africa batsman Graeme Pollock, and former New Zealand women`s player Catherine Campbell.
Source: ESPNcricinfo.com
