England dominate Test XI; Aussies absent

Five England players have been included in the ICC Test Team of the Year 2011, while no Australians were selected for the first time since the inception of the awards in 2004.

England's dominance in five-day cricket the past year has helped them to reach the number one Test spot in the ICC rankings for the first time. Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott, who were in terrific form during England's 3-1 Ashes success in Australia earlier this year, as well as bowlers Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann and James Anderson make it into the team.

There is also a strong South African presence with Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn also making it into the XI. Steyn makes the Test team for the fourth consecutive year.

Sachin Tendulkar is the lone Indian representative in the starting XI, with fast bowler Zaheer Khan pencilled in as 12th man.

Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who stood down as Test and ODI captain earlier this year, is the other non-Englisman/South African in the team. He is also named skipper of the side.

                                                      

                                        Cook and Trott - battling it out among the Englishmen.

Clive Lloyd, chairman of the ICC Awards selection panel, said they didn't just take statistics into account this year.

"The selection of this year's Test team was a difficult one with so many worthy candidates available to fill just 12 places. The team has a formidable line-up that bats well down the order and has bowlers with the ability and form to dismiss any opposition twice on any surface.

"The selection was a difficult process with so many outstanding performances available to look back on. All the top performers during the voting period were discussed at length and various combinations were considered.

"While selecting the squad, the selectors didn't rely only on statistics only but took into account all other factors like the opposition, pitch conditions, match situation etc. 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 team based on performances over the past 12 months."

Former Pakistan player Zaheer Abbas, South Africa's Paul Adams, Danny Morrison from New Zealand and England's Mike Gatting were also on the selection panel.

ICC Test Team
Alastair Cook (Eng)
Hashim Amla
Jonathan Trott (Eng)
Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)
Kumar Sangakkara (SL - wicketkeeper/captain)
AB de Villiers (SA)
Jacques Kallis (SA)
Stuart Broad (Eng)
Graeme Swann (Eng)
Dale Steyn (SA)
James Anderson (Eng)
Zaheer Khan (Ind, 12th man)