Alastair Cook – Seems strange
to select someone who already has 19 test centuries to his name but Alastair Cook
is only 26 and almost certain to go on long into the future breaking
records. Having worked his way into the ODI team he is now captain there and
will surely take over from Andrew Strauss in the test format. Not pleasing on
the eye but Cook is a force of nature, fighting an average technique to score
bags of runs – showing cricket is a game played primarily in the head at the
highest level. It says a lot about the lack of young quality openers on the
international stage that I had to pick someone who has accomplished so much
already in their career - that's not to say he won't achieve a lot more in his career, because he certainly will.
Kane Williamson – Classical
in style and methodical in approach, Kane Williamson is surely the future of New
Zealand batting. Already a regular in all formats of the game, Williamson made
his debut for New Zealand at 20 after an impressive start to his first class
career. Has already a season of county cricket under his belt at
Gloucestershire and two ODI’s hundreds to go with his maiden test hundred made
in India. He seems to be a professional and reasoned player who is cool under
pressure and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is given the New Zealand captaincy relatively
early in his career. Normally bats at 3 but due to the lack of young, quality
openers currently in international cricket is forced into opening in this team.
Darren Bravo – Flamboyant
and vivacious in his strokeplay Darren Bravo passes a striking resemblance to
Brian Lara in his style at the crease; if he has half the career of Lara, he
will be a very accomplished player.(His identical statistics to Lara after 12
matches is an amazing coincidence - 941 runs @ 47.05 with 2 hundreds). Already
a regular in all formats of the game for West Indies, Bravo has already shown
he can deal with foreign conditions in his spells in test cricket. Brilliant hundreds in India and Bangladesh
have shown an ability to play the spinning ball and he already looks a more
accomplished batsman than all of the current West Indian batsmen bar Shiv
Chanderpaul. Hopefully he continues to develop and becomes the mainstay of West
Indian batting for the next 15 years, because if he does it will definitely be
good to watch.
Virat Kohli – Another of
the conveyor belt of immensely talented Indian batsmen, Virat Kohli looks like
he has a lot to look forward to once the elder greats of Indian cricket pass
on. Already a regular in ODI cricket with a World cup to his name, Kohli is not
short of big match experience. Already averaging in the mid 40’s after 69
matches in ODI cricket batting in the middle order, Kohli looks accomplished and
classy whenever he reaches the crease and plays with a freedom and aggression that
mark him out as a player that whether he’s playing well or not will always be
in the headlines. A few deficiencies in the longer game have been noted but
Kohli is that talented that any problems should be ironed out and he will
surely become another of India’s wealth of world class batsmen.
Umar Akmal – Possibly a controversial choice given the spot
fixing rumours hanging over the head of both Umar Akmal and his brother Kamran
but there is no doubt that Umar is the most talented of batsman. Umar at 19
made a brilliant century on debut in the unfamiliar conditions of New Zealand
showcasing magnificent stroke play and mental aptitude. His
career since has been up and down but there is no doubting his ability and if
he gets everything right he could join Inzaman ul Haq and Javed Miandad as batting
pantheons of the Pakistani game; he really is that talented.
Dinesh Chandimal – Diminutive in stature Dinesh Chandimal is not short on options for strokeplay and has already shown such on the international stage. Playing primarily as a batsman at present Chandimal is also an accomplished wicketkeeper who surely will take the gloves in the near future for Sri Lanka. Strongest against spin he loves scoring runs and has an exceptional first class record. He already has a tour of England under his belt where he scored an ODI century and looked accomplished and level headed. Replacing Kumar Sangakkara will be a thankless task but I’ve seen nothing to suggest that Chandimal won’t have a hugely successful international career. 
Angelo Mathews – Already
earmarked as a future captain of Sri Lanka, Angelo Mathews looks destined for a
hugely successful career as a batting allrounder. Batting at present is his
stronger suit and a test batting average of 44 after 19 tests is nothing to be
sniffed at. He is very strong all around the ground and seems to be extremely
adaptable as he is able to alter his batting style seamlessly between different
formats and positions. In test cricket so far he has played a more mature,
steady style whereas his one day game is more suited around aggressive hitting
and good running between the wickets.
His bowling has taken a backwards step in the last year or so but I’ve
seen enough to know that he will be a more than useful backup bowler who could
surprise a few with his pace. 
Ravichandran Ashwin – Ostensibly
there is no outstanding young spinner in the world game at current. Devendra
Bishoo has looked promising and done well for West Indies but leg spinners are
always suspect to loss of form and the West Indian setup seems to get through a
large base of players. Ravi Ashwin has usurped Harbhajan Singh to take his
place in the Indian test team after initially making his way into the ODI team.
An offspinner with a high action and plenty of variation Ashwin seems well
suited to the ODI game but on his test debut he shone taking 9 wickets and
generally outfoxing some poor West Indian batting. Ashwin is also a more than
capable lower order batsman which will give him a massive advantage over a lot
of candidates fighting for his spot in the Indian team. Ashwin having made his
way into a strong Indian Team in all 3 formats seems now set for a long career
– although his bowling maybe lacking something if he wants to become a great of
the game.
Tim Southee – Already an experienced competitor on the
international stage, Tim Southee made his international debut at 19 and has
been improving ever since. Not an out and out quick bowler, Southee bowls at a
lively pace but is more an exponent of swing bowling and has shown an ability
to swing the ball in both directions with no discernible change of action. His
batting is also useful and he will no doubt provide quick runs down the order
with his powerful hitting style. Seemingly equally accomplished in all 3 forms
of the game, it is likely that Southee will be the leading figure in New
Zealand crickets bowling for the next 10+ years.
Pat Cummins – Only 18 and already having made an
accomplished test debut for Australia where he outshone the other Aussie
bowlers, Pat Cummins has all the makings of a potential great. Standing at
6’3’’ and already capable of bowling at 150km/h + whilst swinging the ball away
from the right hander he is one of the most exciting players to burst onto the
international stage in recent time. Already capable of competing on the
international stage against the very best; if he continues to develop and all
importantly stays injury free, Australia could have another future star on
their hands.
Steven Finn – With already 50 test wickets against his name
(quickest for England) Finn is already a well known figure in international
cricket. The beanpole fast bowler standing at 6’7’’ is capable of bowling
150km/h + and has showed impressive control in recent months. In and out of a
strong England bowling unit in recent times it is unlikely to be long before
his natural talents mean he is a regular in all formats of the game. It is only
a shame that Mohammed Amir cannot be called upon to compliment Cummins and Finn
in what would have been and out of this world front 3.
Just Missed Out: Usman Khawaja, Seekuge Prasnna, Mitchell Starc, Junaid Khan, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Mitchell Marsh, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ohja, Cheteshwar Pujara, Devendra Bishoo, Kemar Roach, Ben Stokes, James Taylor, Brendan Taylor, Martin Guptill, Matthew Wade/Tim Paine
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