Rahul Dravid IGNORED! Michael Clarke Names India-Australia Combined Test XI Of 21st Century

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2015 ODI World Cup-winning captain of Australia, Michael Clarke has revealed a surprising India-Australia Test XI of 21st century, where he has left out a few notable names, especially from the Indian side and also included a shock name.

Clarke, who was himself a solid Test player for the Aussies during his playing days has left himself out of the list and his picks are solely based on the player's approach to the game and not the statistics.

No Rahul Dravid & VVS Laxman In Combined XI

The 43-year-old assembled an all-time XI featuring a blend of legendary cricketers, ensuring a formidable balance across batting, bowling and wicket-keeping. But in the list, the likes of Rahul Dravid or VVS Laxman were ignored, who were absolute beasts for India and are legendary as far as the longest format of the game is considered. Before naming the XI, he has sincerely apologised for all the big names he didn't mention.

For the opening pair, he opted for the explosive duo of Virender Sehwag and Matthew Hayden, strategically maintaining a left-right combination at the top.

In the middle order, Clarke included Australian great Ricky Ponting, followed by Indian icons Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli at numbers four and five respectively. Rounding off his top six was Australia's modern batting maestro, Steve Smith, ensuring a solid core of world-class talent.

Wicket-Keeping Flexibility

The wicket-keeping spot introduced flexibility to his XI, as he made his choice contingent on the playing conditions. If the match were in Australia, Adam Gilchrist would take the gloves, but for matches in India, Clarke favored former Indian skipper MS Dhoni for his adaptability to subcontinental conditions.

Among spinners, Shane Warne, regarded as one of the finest leg-spinners in cricket history, was Clarke's sole choice. The pace attack featured a formidable trio: Glenn McGrath for his metronomic accuracy, Jasprit Bumrah for his versatility and lethal yorkers, and Ryan Harris, a shocking name yet personal favorite pick from Clarke's playing days.

12th Man

To account for variations in conditions, he also also named a 12th man based on the venue. Mitchell Johnson was chosen for Australian conditions to exploit his raw pace, while Zaheer Khan was preferred in India for his expertise in natural and reverse swing. Clarke highlighted that Zaheer's skills were effective even in Australian conditions, while Johnson's speed made him a game-changer at home.