Wisden’s current World Test XI was announced on July 1. Here's a look at seven players who missed out on selection.
Wisden’s current World Test XI: Who made it?
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ben Duckett, Steve Smith, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Matt Henry, Kagiso Rabada, Jasprit Bumrah, Nathan Lyon.
Read more about Wisden's current World Test XI here.
Who was unlucky to miss out of Wisden’s current World Test XI?
All numbers are from the start of the World Test Championship 2023-2025.
Also read: Jadeja vs Stokes, Rabada vs Cummins: The toughest debates in picking Wisden's current World Test XI
Aiden Markram (South Africa)
M: 11 | 708 runs at 37.26 | HS: 136 | 2 hundreds
Part of that ordinary average has to do with the fact that Markram plays his home Tests in South Africa, the lowest-scoring of the Test-playing nations in the WTC era. He played two of the best innings of the 2023-2025 cycle: the 106 on a burning deck against India in Cape Town, and the classic in the final.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “We had originally had Markram in the team, and then Duckett then goes and makes one of those match-defining hundreds and that is a knock, I think, that can push someone into an XI like this.” - Ben Gardner, Wisden.com managing editor.
Kane Williamson (New Zealand)
M: 11 | 1,152 runs at 54.85 | HS: 156 | 5 hundreds
Williamson has New Zealand’s most runs, most hundreds, and most fifty-plus scores. Even in this phase, his numbers look phenomenal (especially at home), and his stature as one of the contemporary giants is not in doubt.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “He’s missed the harder games, really, like that tour of India that they won three and it was without Williamson. Then he makes three hundreds in four innings against what's the South African fourth-string side when the SA20 was going on. So that’s why he's not in there, even though he is obviously a brilliant, brilliant player.” - BG.
Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka)
M: 13 | 1,255 runs at 62.75 | HS: 182* | 5 hundreds
With a 5,000-run cut-off, Mendis’ first-class average of 61.60 is the eighth-best of all time, but his Test average (62.67) is even more, albeit slightly. His five hundreds have come in three different countries. At 26, he is a slightly late starter, but it has been a dream start so far.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “You’re picking number five and a lot of that work is at seven. There’s a bit of fudging going on, but then also it’s only a sample size of 13 Tests, which isn’t massive.” - BG.
Temba Bavuma (South Africa)
M: 8 | 711 runs at 59.25 | HS: 113 | 2 hundreds
After 10 games, Bavuma is still unbeaten as Test captain. In 2025, he led South Africa to their first global title since 1998. With a 1,500-run cut-off, no South African averages more than his 48.61 in the 2020s – all this, while playing his home Tests in batting-unfriendly South Africa.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “It’s just because the sample size just isn’t big enough. Even though he’s been captain for two and a half years now, but he is injured a lot." - BG. "[He has] only played eight Test matches in two years.” - Yas Rana, Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast host.
Pat Cummins (Australia)
M: 19 | 83 wickets at 23.22 | BBI: 6-28 | 6 five-fors
The Australian captain finished as the highest wicket-taker in the 2023-25 WTC, where he also led his team to a second consecutive final. He had exceptional numbers – but there were only three slot for fast bowlers, and Bumrah and Henry had taken up two.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “It’s Cummins or Rabada who misses out ... It’s 84 wickets at 24 overall and an average of 35 (33.25) in away Test matches." - YR. "So that’s just not quite at his very best ... And just looking at that World Championship final, I just came out of it thinking that Rabada was the standout bowler, even though Cummins took six in the game. So that’s why we’ve gone with Rabada.” - BG.
Travis Head (Australia)
M: 21 | 1,317 runs at 35.59 | HS: 152 | 3 hundreds
Arguably the best all-format batter in contemporary cricket, Head – with his ability to score at breakneck pace – can take the game away from the opposition in quick time. That makes him one of the most feared batters in the world.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “Travis Head is up there with Duckett as the best all-format batter in the world, but Test is the format where he is the format where he's probably the weakest, and where, especially over the last bit of time, he's been good but not great." - BG.
Ben Stokes (England)
M: 21 | 1,069 runs at 32.39 | HS: 155 | 1 hundred
25 wickets at 32.28 | BBI: 4-66 | 4 five-fors
Stokes has led England through one of the most exciting phases of their history, virtually eliminating the draw from Tests they play in. Barring that, his numbers suggest that he is still a more than a handy batting all-rounder.
Wisden’s reason to leave him out: “We’ve tried to make this a team for all conditions, but this is the spot where that’s absolutely trickiest. If you’re picking a team for England, it’s definitely Stokes (over Ravindra Jadeja). You’d expect him to outperform Jadeja with the bat and to be much more useful with the ball. In Asia, Jadeja is close to a cheat code where he can average loads of the bat and he can average 22 with the ball." - BG. "And he does a job overseas where he's containing, and even though he might not take loads of wickets, that is really useful when you’re constructing a side for overseas Test matches. And he is still good enough to do a job in the top seven with the bat as well." -YR. "Whereas Stokes in Asia, his record with the bat is actively very poor.” - BG.
