Wisden, the highly respected cricket publication, today named Virender Sehwag as the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008 and Mahendra Singh Dhoni captain of its first ever Dream Test XI which has five Indians in the ranks.
Flamboyant batsman Kevin Pietersen is the lone English player in the XI, while the
Smith is Dhoni's deputy in the side.
The three selectors who picked the squad were former
"The criteria for selection are simple: the best eleven to play a Test match, no matter the opposition, guided by performances in 2008, and taking into consideration the amount of Test cricket they played in the year, the quality of their opponents, and that indefinable blend of class and form," Wisden said.
It turned out to be a double delight for Sehwag who became the sixth player to be adjudged the Leading Cricketer in the World, an award instituted in 2004.
The five previous winners have been Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Andrew Flintoff, Muttiah Muralitharan and Jacques Kallis.
"Virender Sehwag had to beat off the strongest of challenges by Graeme Smith to become the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008. Sehwag did so by taking the task of opening Test innings to a new level," Wisden observed.
"He sought, and often achieved, mental domination from the first ball by scoring faster than any other opening batsman has ever done on a regular basis in Test cricket," it said.
Team:
- Virender Sehwag
- Graeme Smith
- Ricky Ponting
- Sachin Tendulkar
- Kevin Pietersen
- Shivnarine Chanderpaul
- Mahendra Singh Dhoni(W,C)
- Harbhajan Singh
- Zaheer Khan
- Dale Steyn
- Mitchell Johnson
