Top 5 captains and their lucky charm in Test Cricket

In Test cricket, every captain has preferred names whom they pick based on the playing conditions. Some players in return, help their captains to attain great success with their performances while few seem to bring the ‘luck factor’ with them and ensure the same. In this article, we look at Test captains and their lucky charm players i.e. captains who never lost a Test match when a certain player is picked in the playing XI. It could be due to the performances of those players or the balance they bring to the team with their inclusion.

Here we look at top five lucky charms of Test cricket with whom their captains never lost a match:

5. Clive Lloyd and Roger Harper – 13 matches:

Roger Harper made his Test debut under Clive Lloyd’s captaincy on their tour of India in 1983/84. The off-spinner got a chance during the time when the pacers were ruling the Caribbean team’s domination in World Cricket. He featured in the 4-match home Test series against Australia in 1984 which was won by West Indies with a score-line of 3-0 after the first game ended in a draw.

It was followed by a 5-0 whitewash over England during their 5-match away series. West Indies won each of the first three matches during the Australian tour in the 1984-85 season which extended their winning streak to 11; the then longest winning streak in Test cricket. Harper didn’t get to play the first two Tests in Brisbane and Perth but featured in Adelaide Test win and a draw at the MCG.

He didn’t play the final Test in Sydney which also turned out to be Lloyd’s final Test as the Caribbean side lost it and brought an end to a 27-match unbeaten streak in the longer format which is still a record. Harper played a total of 13 Tests under Lloyd out of which West Indies won 11 while another two ending in a draw. The off-spinner bagged 32 wickets in those 13 Tests at an average of 28.56.