No South African cricketer has been included in the ICC Test Team of the Year, despite their team securing a spot in the Test Championship final.
India’s young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been recognized for his brilliant performances with the bat in red-ball cricket throughout the year. He earned a place in the ICC Test Team of the Year. However, South Africa, despite their success, failed to have any representation.
The ICC announced the Test Team of the Year for 2024 on Friday, with England contributing the most players (4), followed by India with 3. New Zealand had 2 representatives, while Australia and Sri Lanka had 1 each.
Jaiswal, one of the team’s openers, had a stellar year. In 15 Tests, he scored 1,478 runs—the second-highest in 2024—with an average of 54.74, including 3 centuries and 9 fifties. Notably, two of his centuries were double hundreds.
The other opener is England’s aggressive batsman Ben Duckett, who scored 1,149 runs in 17 Tests at an average of 37.06. His tally included 2 centuries and 6 fifties, making him the year’s third-highest run-scorer.
New Zealand star Kane Williamson made the team as a top-order batsman. Despite battling injuries for much of the year, he delivered an impressive performance, scoring 1,013 runs in 9 Tests at an average of 59.58, with 4 centuries and 4 fifties.
England’s Joe Root, the year’s leading run-scorer, was an obvious inclusion. He amassed 1,556 runs in 17 Tests at an average of 55.57, including 6 centuries and 5 fifties. Root also became England’s most successful Test batsman, surpassing Alastair Cook, and reached 1,000 runs in a calendar year for the fifth time in his career. He is also in the running for ICC Cricketer of the Year.
Another Englishman, Harry Brook, also earned a spot in the XI. Brook scored 1,100 runs in 12 Tests at an average of 55, with 4 centuries, including a triple century (317) against Pakistan in Multan. He became the sixth English batsman to score a triple hundred in Tests.
Sri Lankan middle-order batsman Kamindu Mendis had a standout year as well, scoring 1,049 runs in 9 Tests at an average of 74.92, including 4 centuries and 3 fifties.
England’s Jamie Smith was named the team’s wicketkeeper. Smith, who made his Test debut in July, scored 637 runs in 9 matches at an average of 42.46, with 1 century and 4 fifties.
India’s spin-bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja also made the cut. In 12 matches, he scored 984 runs at an average of 42.78, including 2 centuries and 4 fifties, while also taking 48 wickets with his left-arm spin.
The team features three specialist pacers: Australia’s Pat Cummins, New Zealand’s Matt Henry, and India’s Jasprit Bumrah. Cummins, who took 37 wickets in 9 Tests, was named captain for the second consecutive year. Henry claimed 48 wickets in 9 matches.
Bumrah had a sensational year, taking 71 wickets in 13 Tests, the highest by any bowler in 2024. Remarkably, he became the first bowler in Test history to claim 70+ wickets in a calendar year at an average below 15. He is also a contender for the ICC Cricketer of the Year award.
ICC Test Team of the Year 2024:
Yashasvi Jaiswal (India), Ben Duckett (England), Kane Williamson (New Zealand), Joe Root (England), Harry Brook (England), Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka), Jamie Smith (England) (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (India), Pat Cummins (Australia) (c), Matt Henry (New Zealand), Jasprit Bumrah (India).
