GAYLE
LONDON (CMC):
WEST INDIES batting superstar Brian Lara is one of three West Indian players who have been included in the initial squads for the ICC World XI teams to take on Australia's Test and One Day International sides in the ICC's Super Series in Australia in October this year.
Lara, who holds both the Test and first class batting records for the highest score, has been named among 39 of the biggest names in world cricket, along with emerging stars Ramnaresh Sarwan and Chris Gayle.
However, while Lara and Sarwan have been selected to both the Test and ODI squads, Gayle will only feature in the ODI squad.
WINDIES LEADER
The 36-year-old Lara has continued to be the West Indies' premier batsman, hitting two centuries in the just completed Digicel Test series against South Africa to finish with 393 runs.
He is also the West Indies' leading run-getter in Tests with 10,487 runs at an average of 53.30, including 28 centuries.
Sarwan also cashed in during the recent series as he compiled two centuries en route to 249 in the series at an average of 62.25. Overall, the right-handed, 24-year old averages a satisfactory 41.95 in Tests and a healthy 47.64 in ODIs.
Gayle, known for his devastating strokeplay, has already plundered 4,010 runs in 115 ODIs at an average of 37.83, including nine centuries. He is also five shy of 100 wickets in this form of the game.
WORLD TALENT
Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar, chairman of the selection panel, explained that the sides boasted some of the most talented players in the world.
"The squads are packed with fantastically talented players from around the world who will pose a serious challenge to Australia's supremacy in both forms of the game," Gavaskar said.
"It was incredibly difficult to confine our selections to just 30 players for each squad, but in the end and after much agonising and debate, the panel is confident that these are the best combinations of players for the challenge ahead."
The selection panel of Gavaskar, Mike Atherton, Sir Richard Hadlee, Clive Lloyd, Jonty Rhodes and Aravinda de Silva, did not use statistics alone as a guide but mulled over the players' overall career records in both Test and ODI cricket; their overall playing records against Australia and their performances against the world champion team in Australia and their positions in the LG ICC Rankings for both Test and ODI cricket.
