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[billyb]

I had some fun tonight working out who would make the cut for my dream England test squad since 2000. My lineup has some serious batting, but I struggled to pick one of my seamers...

1.   Alastair Cook (45.4 )
2.   Marcus Trescothick (43.8 )
3.   Kevin Pietersen (47.3)
4.   Jonathan Trott (44.1)
5.   Joe Root (48.1)
6.   Matt Prior (40.2)
7.   Ben Stokes (37.8 )
8.   Andrew Flintoff (this is the selection I struggled with...)
9.   Graeme Swann
10.   Stuart Broad
11.   James Anderson

Squad: Ian Bell (42.7), Michael Vaughan (41.4), Andrew Strauss (40.9), Monty Panesar, Matthew Hoggard, Steven Harmison, Chris Woakes.

Who would you go for? We've had some serious players over the last twenty years! The fact that Root is in at 5 says a lot.

[Buzz]

I can't believe you didn't pick Gilo as spinner.

Otherwise the batting is what it is, although Vaughan opening the batting before he was skipper was better than Cook and Trescothic and the batting order is a bit muddled (trott is three, KP is 4, then root, Stokes, prior.

Bowling is a pretty well balanced attack.

[SOULMAN1012]

Personally I would go with the following. Stokes is my All-rounder and although his career was short when fit Simon Jones walked in to my team all day long. Thorpe in for Root

1.   Alastair Cook (45.4 )
2.   Marcus Trescothick (43.8 )
3.   Jonathan Trott (44.1)
4.   Kevin Pieterson (47.3)
5.   Graham Thorpe (44.7)
6.   Matt Prior (40.2)
7.   Ben Stokes (37.8 )
8.   Graeme Swann
9.   Simon Jones
10.   Stuart Broad
11.   James Anderson

[Jimbo]

Is selecting Joe Root "pre captaincy" an option? If so he walks into this team.

[Warneymonster]

1.   Alastair Cook
2.   Marcus Trescothick
3.   Jonathan Trott
4.   Joe Root - Pre captaincy. Ian Bell if against current Root
5.   KP
6.   Alec Stewart
7.   Ben Stokes
8.   Chris Woakes - flipped a coin between woakes and jones
9.   Graeme Swann
10.   Stuart Broad
11.   James Anderson

[SLA]

For context: the English bowlers with the best strike rates since 2000 are:

1: Gough
2: Jones
3: Finn
4: Tremlett
5: Caddick

(min 50 wickets)

[SLA]

Also Thorpe scored 3500 runs at 53 since 2000, more than 5 runs better than the next highest average. Should be the first name on any teamsheet

[jp2408]

1. Cook
2. Trescothick
3. Vaughan (c)
4. Pietersen
5. Root
6. Stokes
7. Prior (+)
8. Flintoff
9. Swann
10. Broad
11. Anderson

I'm picking 'non captaincy' Root who averaged 53 (and 69 at number 5) and Vaughan as captain to manage Pietersen and Flintoff and buy us a few wickets with his captaincy. Vaughan averaged similar to Trott over a bigger sample size, brings captaincy nous and allows Root to bat freely.

Bell, Strauss, Bairstow, Hoggard, Woakes, Harmison, Panesar make up my 18 man touring squad.

[KettonJake]

I'm really struggling to whittle down my team but I have to say that Jones should be on every single team sheet. Unbelievable bowler.

[jp2408]

I'm really struggling to whittle down my team but I have to say that Jones should be on every single team sheet. Unbelievable bowler.

Sorry yes!! He replaces Hoggard in my squad.

[billyb]

Jones and Thorpe are great shouts. What a bowler Jones would have been without injury!

[A-Swing-And-A-Miss]

I'm picking 'non captaincy' Root who averaged 53 (and 69 at number 5) and Vaughan as captain to manage Pietersen and Flintoff and buy us a few wickets with his captaincy. Vaughan averaged similar to Trott over a bigger sample size, brings captaincy nous and allows Root to bat freely.

Bell, Strauss, Bairstow, Hoggard, Woakes, Harmison, Panesar make up my 18 man touring squad.

As a number 3 Vaughan's average is not particularly close to Trott's. Trott averages 46 whilst Vaughan averages 40...

For the ultimate test side you have to look at the most successful England test team in the period, and that was Strauss' team from 09 until he retired who made it to number 1 in the world rankings. The team that went abroad to both India and Australia and won. With that in mind my ultimate test team would be:

1. Cook
2. Strauss (c)
3. Trott
4. Pietersen
5. Bell
6. Stokes
7. Prior (+)
8. Swann
9. Broad
10. Anderson
11. Jones

[procricket]

Simon Jones got me out once and was good laugh on a night out.  He only came of 5 yards but my god he was still quick.....If he was not injured he could have been world class i think.

[Alvaro]

The team that started 26 December 2010

Cook
Strauss
Trott
Pietersen
Collingwood
Bell
Prior
Bresnan
Swann
Anderson
Tremlett

No other England side has brought as much joy as that XI.

[Manormanic]

Tough, and a selection full of compromises - I want Vaughan at his batting best, for exmple, so do I pick Strauss as the only other competent skipper? Do you go Anderson/Broad on longevity and ignore how brilliant Jones was, Hoggard's jaw dropping numbers against top order bat's and Harmison's ability to terrify? And what about Sidebottom, who for 18 months was the best of the lot?