ESPNcricinfo’s Test team of 2016: Kohli and Ashwin feature in a stunning lineup

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The opening stand is in good hands with a triple-centurion (Azhar Ali) and a man who carried his bat through an innings and his team to victory (Kraigg Brathwaite).

The middle order is manned by three of the four batsmen widely considered to be the best in the world at the moment. (The fourth, Kane Williamson, had a comparatively quiet year.) Jonny Bairstow, at No. 6, broke the record for most Test runs by a wicketkeeper in a calendar year.

He is followed by a five-man bowling attack that would give most batsmen sleepless nights. Two of those five, incidentally, are world-class allrounders. Would any captain be greedy enough to ask for more?”

The XI:

1. Azhar Ali

2. Kraigg Brathwaite

3. Joe Root

4. Virat Kohli

5. Steven Smith

6. Jonny Bairstow (WK)

7. Ben Stokes

8. Ravichandran Ashwin

9. Rangana Herath

10. Mitchell Starc

11. Kagiso Rabada

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