Former New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin picked his all-time playing XI in a video posted by Lord’s Cricket Ground’s Facebook page. Franklin picked three players from New Zealand and a couple from his former Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Mumbai Indians.
The team picked by Franklin includes cricketers from New Zealand, India, Australia, England and West Indies.
From India, James Franklin picked the great Sachin Tendulkar, Mumbai’s swashbuckling batsman Rohit Sharma and Harbhajan Singh. Franklin has played a lot of cricket with these three cricketers in Indian Premier League, in Mumbai Indians’ colours.
From England, he picked Alastair Cook, who is the all time leading run-scorer for England in Test cricket. Cook is one of the most technically correct batsmen in the world and he is the right man for opening the innings.
From New Zealand, James Franklin picked picked Nathan Astle, Brendon McCullum and Shane Bond.
From his neighbouring country Australia, James Franklin picked Andrew Symonds and Mitchell Johnson.
Check out his all-time XI here:
James Franklin’s All Time XI: Alastair Cook, Nathan Astle, Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Rohit Sharma, Andrew Symonds, Brendon McCullum (c & wk), Harbhajan Singh, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Shane Bond.
OUR VIEW: James Franklin has not picked a very populous team. But, it is still very solid. Franklin has picked characters who express themselves freely on the field and give their best.