ODI Team of 2017

As the year of 2017 comes to an end, the reflection of what has been an outstanding year of cricket begins. Picking the ODI team of the year or any team is a hard challenge as some players who have performed can be missed out. Thus I have composed an ODI team that consists of the best players of the year of 2017 that would provide adequate balance and performance to compete in all conditions around the world.

The main ICC global event of 2017 has been the ICC Champions Trophy. Underdogs Pakistan won the trophy in spectacular fashion as they defeated arch-rivals India in an emphatic win to claim the elite trophy and hold a place in history.

Much like my prefered test team of 2017, selecting the team was immensely difficult because there have been so many outstanding performances and encapsulating tours.

Same as the test selection, I start with the openers. When choosing these players, I want batsmen who compliment each other's batting style and can lay a solid foundation for the players down the order. In my opinion, the best players for the job are Quinton de Kock and Rohit Sharma. With the left-hand and right-hand combination due to cause opposition bowlers to be thrown off their length, their ability to rotate the strike is going to be key. I wanted to have one player in Quinton de Kock to act as the aggressor in the partnership to maintain a ticking run rate and capitalise during the powerplays. De Kock's ability to be able to take the game away in the matter of an hour is what makes him so dangerous and a hard wicket for opposition to take. His class and elegance at the crease make him a treat to watch and a true entertainer. Moreover, de Kock's glovework makes him an excellent wicketkeeper also for my side. Rohit Sharma can beautifully compliment de Kock's aggression and provide a stable foundation for the incoming batsmen. Sharma is a key player in this team, his ability to score hundreds, but more importantly big hundreds, simply crushes opposition. This was demonstrated in the India series against Australia, where his long innings and large hundreds, simply took the game away from the Aussies and gave them little chances once he was set.

Once a foundation has been laid, someone who can carry the momentum or gain it back again is critical. Moreover, my number 3 not only in my view is the best batsmen, but also someone who can bat the full innings. There are two players that come to mind when considering who can fill this role. These are Babar Azam and Virat Kohli. However, I have chosen Babar to be the number 3 batsmen as I believe that he is the best player in batting the full 50 overs. Having a record-breaking career, his ability to score hundreds when the team is in a spot of bother and classy strokeplay, it is hard to leave a player that is averaging 67 with the bat out of the team. Seeing him although not performing his best in the Champions Trophy, the series against Sri Lanka, Australia and the West Indies saw him break records on a regular basis. Whilst he is not necessarily a big hitter of the ball, his timing against both pace and spin in all conditions around the world only highlight the class of the player and the bright future ahead of him.

Moving the start of the middle order, the number 4 is going to be the batsmen who can dictate the game. Hence, the best-limited overs player in the world, in my opinion, is Virat Kohli who I can see easily adapt to the role of batting at number 4 and score heavily. I think that with his ability to score runs at any rate or pace is key to a player batting at number 4 who can bring a team back on track or take the team to a position that takes the game away from the opposition in the matter of an hour. Scoring 6 hundreds at an average of 76, there is no doubt that we are in the midst of witnessing a modern great of the game.

At number 5 I want a player who can act as a "crisis" man and an effective hitter of the ball. South African captain Faf du Plessis easily suits this role. I love his style and aggression at the crease which makes him one of the best in the world which saw South Africa reach the number one rankings earlier this year and a 5-0 whitewash against Australia. His capacity to score at a rapid rate and or play a long innings demonstrates the versatility of the player that he is and the extent of his brilliant batting. His leadership qualities in being aggressive and a great analyser of the game will make him an excellent captain for my side.


Despite it being very cliche, the number 6 position will go to an all-rounder, who has proven his destruction and ability to take the game away from the opposition and that is Ben Stokes. With a batting average of 62 and 14 wickets, he is the dangerous addition to the team that can provide handy and quick runs down the order. His century against Australia in the Champions Trophy saw the Aussies on their knees against the ho
sts and eventually was the turning point in the game where they were eliminated from the tournament.

Probably among one of my favourite cricketers of the year so far. Hardik Pandya the Indian all-rounder will take the number 7 position on my team due to his insane capacity to change the game in short period of time and occupy the crease in crucial moments of the game. His Champions Trophy heroics in the final which consisted of a 43 ball 76 was one innings that made me admire his character and all-around ability as a player. However, his career was most uplifted against Australia's horror tour to India where he both exploited the Aussies with both bat and ball and saw the series taken away from them the moment he got settled at the crease. Pandya can provide more than handy overs with the ball hence, his all-round ability is something that I would want on this team.


For my official tail-enders, I have decided to go with 3 seamers and one spinner. The spinner for my team that has some decent ability with the bat is 19-year-old leg spinner, Rashid Khan. The young sensation from Afghanistan has taken 41 wickets at a mind-blowing average of 10.53 and an economy rate of 3.96. Whilst it is debatable that he has been bowling to fairly mediocre teams around the world and has not yet had the chance to bowl to elite nations. However, seeing him bowl in the Carribean Premier League earlier this year, he was certainly causing some headaches for many overseas elite players.

The three frontline bowlers that I have decided to go with are Hasan Ali (Pakistan), Mitchell Starc (Australia) and Jasprit Bumrah (India). Firstly to Hasan Ali who I believe has been the ODI player of the year. For his outstanding 45 wickets at an average of 17.04 complimenting his economy rate of 5.03, he has certainly been the best bowler of 2017. His efforts in helping Pakistan claim the Champions Trophy earlier this year and with his enthusiasm and celebrations, he certainly brings the game alive and fuels it with his passion. His 12 wickets in Australia, 15 in the Champions Trophy, 6 in the Carribean and 14 against Sri Lanka, saw him at the top of the wicket-takers in every series of 2017. Hasan Ali would be my first change bowler, who has most of his wickets taken in the middle overs of the innings, which only explains why many teams that have played Pakistan recently cannot make big totals.

Moreover, Mitchell Starc's left arm pace will provide plenty of variation considering the team having 4 right arm fast bowlers. His incredible knack of taking wickets in his first spell has been an outstanding trait. Although he has not been on the top of leaderboards for wickets due to injury, his capacity as a premier fast bowler cannot be avoided. Hence, I would have Mitchell Starc take the new ball along with Jasper Bumrah who has been India's stand out bowler for 2017. India without a doubt is on a freaky run of success and are demonstrating that they are currently the powerhouse of cricket at the moment, which Bumrah has been the spearhead of. I think that this fast bowling opening combination will provide plenty of pace and early movement in all conditions around the world.

The twelfth man that I have decided to go with is Mohammad Hafeez (Pakistan). Most likely in spin-friendly conditions, I would replace Faf du Plessis with Hafeez so I could have an established batsman but another spin bowling option.

Overall, I view this team as being a combination of players that each provides something different but together can compete in all conditions around the world on a consistent basis.

ODI TEAM OF 2017: Rohit Sharma (India), Quinton de Kock (South Africa), Babar Azam (Pakistan), Virat Kohli (India), Faf du Plessis (South Africa), Ben Stokes (England), Hardik Pandya (India), Rashid Khan (Afghanistan), Mitchell Starc (Australia), Hasan Ali (Pakistan), Jasprit Bumrah (India), Mohammad Hafeez (Pakistan)(12th Man)