'The greatest fast bowler doesn't get in the XI': Jasprit Bumrah, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill's place sparks debate

When you have close to 7000 runs in five Tests, some of the most lion-hearted bowling performances and a tied series after every match went down to five days, it will always be a difficult task to select a combined XI. Former England cricketers Alastair Cook, Michael Vaughan. David Lloyd (Bumble), and Phil Tufnell attempted the near-impossible task and, needless to say, got engaged in a huge debate about multiple cricketers. India's captain Shubman Gill, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah and KL Rahul return to the pavilion(PTI)

There were unanimous choices, make no mistake. Shubman Gill, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Rishabh Pant, Ben Stokes and Mohammed Siraj were confirmed in the XI without much debate but the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Jasprit Bumrah got the experts thinking.

While Gill's place in the combined XI after scoring 754 runs in the five Tests might not have been a topic of debate, his batting position certainly was. And it was purely because of Vaughan's desperation of trying to somehow fit Jaiswal in the top order. Bumble, Tufnell and Cook more or less agree on the opening pair of Ben Duckett and KL Rahul, but Vaughan wanted Jaiswal in the XI. If not as an opener, then as a No.3, which Cook didn't agree with as he felt Shubman Gill and Joe Root were automatic choices at No.3 and No.4.

Here's how the debate around Jaiswal and Jadeja went in The Overlap Cricket podcast.

Vaughan: We're going to pit our composite team of the series.

Tufnell: Little Ducky is my favourite.

Bumble: Duckett and KL Rahul.

Vaughan: No, Yashasvi Jaiswal?

Tufnell: No, Duckett Rahul for me. Yeah, I'll have him. Just for the punch up. He's always there. He's always there, isn't he, Little Ducky? Who are you having? He's always there.

Vaughan: I do like Duckett.

Cook: No, Ducky's definitely in. Depends if we want two... Well, I... Smashing, like, as in, like... Attacking left-hander will go one and one.

Vaughan: Well, can we... Can we have Yashasvi at number three? You've just mentioned three openers. Can we have... If not, who's going to bat at three?

Tufnell: Well, hold on a minute. We've got to get Shudman, Gill, Root and Brook in there. They're bankers. And Stokes. Yeah, and Stokes at six.

Bumble: We can't have them all there. We can't have them all.

Cook: No, Shubman Gill can back three, can't he? Let's go Gill at three, Root four, Brook five.

Vaughan: No, Yashasvi?

Tufnell: Let's just get them down and we can slot them in afterwards.

Bumble: He doesn't get in. Sorry, mate.

Vaughan: Well, Root... Shubman Gill and Root four and five, yeah?

Cook: Yeah, three and four.

Vaughan: Three and four?

Cook: I don't know how else you get them all in.

Bumble: Well, Stokes at six. Captain.

Vaughan: Rishabh Pan at seven. Yeah, all right, that's the keeper.

Bumble: Jadeja eight.

Tufnell: Jadeja eight.

Cook: Oh, you reckon? Well, I'm just thinking, mate.

Vaughan: What about Washington Sundar's offspin with his drift?

Cook: Are you going with Jadeja? You've got six wickets, 150, didn't he?

Jaiswal scored 411 runs at an average of 41 in five Tests, whereas Duckett scored 462 and KL Rahul 532 runs.

Jasprit Bumrah doesn't find a place

The next debate was about whether they should include "the best fast bowler," Jasprit Bumrah. Vaughan agreed that Bumrah was perhaps the best bowler he had ever seen, but based on his performances in this series, he could not include him in the combined XIas India did not win a single game he played in.

Vaughan: Well, Siraj at 11.

All agreeing: Yeah. Siraj 11. Let's go Siraj. Yeah.

Bumble: Gus Atkinson!

Cook: He's only played one game.

Tufnell: I'm going to throw one in there as a bowler… Josh Tongue.

Vaughan: 19 wickets. Only played three matches. Big fella, the hoover. Hoover's up the tail.

Cook: I'm just trying to think of who else. Are we having Bumrah?

Tufnell: Oh, I forgot that (laughs).

Vaughan: Well, I have him as the greatest I've seen, but... He's the greatest bowler I've ever seen. In this series, I can't have him in. Because he's played two games and they haven't won.

Bumble: Let's get this straight. The greatest bowler I have ever seen doesn't get in the team.

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