Best Test XI of 2019
Ben Stokes played, probably, two of the greatest innings by an English batsman this calendar year.
8. Nathan Lyon
If someone utters Nathan Lyon and 2019 in the same breath, the first visual that will come into several minds will be of Lyon holding his head down in agony after having missed the all-important run-out in the closing stages of that Headingley Test. The agony would accentuate to the hilt with the realization that he didn’t have the review at his disposal, on the very next ball when he trapped Ben Stokes plumb in front.
That disappointment notwithstanding, Nathan Lyon still had a pretty good year in Test match cricket. The off-spinner finished at the numero-uno spot as far as most wickets for spinners around the world is concerned. The most successful Aussie off-spinner of all time claimed 41 wickets in 22 innings at an average of 33.73.
Best spell- 6-49 vs England, Edgbaston 2019
If Steven Smith was instrumental in breaching the fortress that is the Edgbaston Cricket Ground, so was Nathan Lyon.
The off-spinner claimed 6-49 in the second innings, which included the wickets of Joe Root, Joe Denly, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali, to help the Aussies notched up a 251-run win in the opening Test.
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