On the eve of the 2023 Cricket World Cup, Wisden writers have picked their current men’s ODI world XI – here’s who made the cut.

There were a couple of selection criteria for this side. Players were selected based on a combination of recent form and overall pedigree, and could only be considered for positions or roles they fulfill regularly for their country. For example, an opener could not be bumped down to No.3 for having a superior recent record to the batter selected at three, but an inferior record to the two openers. Equally, the bowling attack was selected as a whole rather than on an individual basis. The two best new-ball bowlers make the team alongside the best bowlers in the middle overs.

In short, this is not a team of the best 11 players in the world, but the best men’s ODI team in the world.

Watch Yas Rana and Ben Gardner pick a current men’s ODI world XI:

Wisden’s current men’s ODI world XI – the selections

Shubman Gill

Gill was a non-negotiable at the top. He has been the standout opening batter over the last year, with five ODI centuries in 2023 alone. His overall average after 35 games sits at 66.1 (the second-highest of anyone who’s played at least 20 matches) at a strike rate of over 100. Having long been touted as the heir to India’s superstars of the last decade, this year has marked his final ascension to the world’s elite. The World Cup, on home soil with India as starting favourites, could be his coronation.

Travis Head

There were several options considered for the second opener. Jonny Bairstow was floated as a potential option given his status as one of the best openers in the format’s history, but lack of recent ODI cricket discounted him. Rohit Sharma was also considered, but his less devastating recent record means Travis Head was selected above him. Since January 2022 he averages 61 and strikes at 127.08. He’s scored runs all around the world and cemented himself as a world-class ODI opener.

Babar Azam

It was a two-player shootout for the No.3 spot. Virat Kohli and Babar Azam, two greats of the modern game with the former arguably the greatest ODI player ever. Neither’s pedigree is in question here, but on recent record Babar just gets in over Kohli. No one has scored more runs at No.3 than Babar (1,424) over the last two years and no one has more hundreds in the position in the same timeframe (five). His consistency also gives him the edge. He has scored more than 50 in 16 of his 25 innings in the last two years, with the next closest players having done so eight times during that period.

Shakib Al Hasan

Shakib was selected as a spin-bowling all-rounder to bat in the top four. Originally, Ben Stokes was put in this position for both his overall history and recent success at No.4. However, in order to find the best balance of the side with  Stokes unable to bowl and only one specialist spinner in the XI, he was replaced by Shakib. Shakib’s recent ODI returns might pale in comparison to others in this XI, with a batting average of just under 40 this year and 14 wickets in 13 innings. But, his overall status as Bangladesh’s best and taking into consideration the best balance for the side sees him get the No.4 spot.

David Miller

Miller sometimes slips under the radar as one of the best ODI batters in the world. He has the ability to fill several different roles in a side, as an innings finisher or someone capable of steadying the middle order. He is one of very few players to average 40 and strike at above a run a ball cross their careers, while since the start of 2020, those numbers rise to 60 and 115. KL Rahul was also considered to take this position, but he was just edged out.

Jos Buttler (wk)

Buttler was another non-negotiable. Quite simply, he is the standout wicketkeeper in ODI cricket right now, and perhaps the most adaptable batter in the world. Since the beginning of 2022 he averages 59.43 with two centuries and five fifties. No wicketkeeper in that time has scored more runs at a higher average than Buttler, and none have a higher strike rate. While he is expected to bat at No.5 for England in the World Cup, the majority of his ODI career has been spent at No.6.

Hardik Pandya

Once Shakib was confirmed in the top four, a seam-bowling all-rounder was needed to bat seven. The only realistic choice was Hardik Pandya. With a speciality for late-innings pyrotechnics, a bowling economy rate of 5.51 and an average of 21.95 since January 2022, to go with 22 wickets in that time, he ticks every box.

Mitchell Starc

Starc will take the new ball in this XI. He’s arguably the greatest World Cup bowler of all time, sitting in the top five wicket-takers in the tournament’s history having played in just two editions. There’s no one more devastating in the powerplay, and his hat-trick in Australia’s warm-up for the upcoming competition was an ominous sign of the threat he poses coming into the tournament. Trent Boult’s name was mentioned as a potential option, but Starc’s record just about pips Boult as a new-ball bowler.

Haris Rauf

With new-ball options taken care of, a seamer who could bowl during the middle overs and fill in later in the innings was required. The choice here was between Mark Wood and Haris Rauf. Given that Wood has only played two ODIs since the end of 2021, Rauf was the obvious pick. While not always grabbing the headlines in a packed Pakistan pace attack, Rauf takes wickets in the hardest phase of the game while also being reliable at the death.

Adam Zampa

Zampa just got in as a specialist spinner over Kuldeep Yadav. It’s harsh on Kuldeep and if this side was playing on a spinning surface he would most likely edge out one of the seamers. But, Zampa’s track record of taking wickets in all conditions and that he has a longer track-history of performance than Kuldeep puts him in as the first choice.

Jasprit Bumrah

Bumrah was another pick that needed very little discussion. There are no other seamers capable of performing at his level across the innings. He’s devastating with the new ball, arguably the best death bowler there is and capable of ripping a side apart in the middle overs. Only three players have taken more wickets at a lower average than Bumrah since January 2022 – all the more impressive when considering the length of time Bumrah has spent out of the game injured.

Wisden’s current men’s ODI world XI – the line-up

1. Shubman Gill
2. Travis Head
3. Babar Azam
4. Shakib Al Hasan
5. David Miller
6. Jos Buttler (wk)
7. Hardik Pandya
8. Mitchell Starc
9. Haris Rauf
10. Adam Zampa
11. Jasprit Bumrah

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