India’s Pujara, Murali Vijay in ‘ Test team of 2013’

Test victory in 2013 in their opponent’s backyard from 41 completed matches to date, discounting matches featuring battlers Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

Although the report mentioned that South Africa beat Pakistan away from home, it however, said that the team did it in Dubai, technically a home game for Pakistan but essentially a neutral venue, adding that the last year proved there is not much between the top sides in the world and home-ground advantage is the decisive factor.

According to the report, Pujara and Vijay are among the first names in the ‘fantasy Team of the Year’, with Pujara drawing comparisons to batting stars of bygone eras with his lust for the long innings and scoring a triple-century as a 13-year-old, adding that Pujara averages 67 after just 16 Tests and 62 for the year

The report further said that although Vijay did not take up cricket seriously until he was in his late teens, he is a late-bloomer as evidenced by two massive centuries against Australia in India and some high-class resistance this week against the mighty South African attack in Durban.

The other names included in the ‘Team’ are veteran South African Hashim Amla, Australian captain Michael Clarke, England batsman Ian Bell, Amla’s teammate and ODI skipper AB de Villiers, Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, and bowlers Stuart Broad, Dale Steyn, Saeed Ajmal, Mitchell Johnson and Ryan Harris, the report added.