Shane Warnes predicts England will surpass best of Australian cricket
Peter Lalor The Australian
August 17, 2011 8:44AM
If the thought of England being the best in the world wasn't bad enough, now Shane Warne is predicting that its cricket team could be better than the Australian dynasties of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
"This current group of England players could become better than all those Australian players as a team and individuals," he wrote in an English newspaper.
"All the signs are good for England."
England humiliated Australia last summer, winning three Tests by an innings and the series 3-1.
The home side is leading India 3-0 in the current four-Test series, a result that has handed it India's No 1 place in the rankings.
England has won eight of its past nine Tests, four of those by an innings.
Warne went through the great Australian teams and the current English outfit place by place, and awarded four certain spots to England, but conceded three other players could make the cut.
He said opener Matthew Hayden would always win over Andrew Strauss when picking a side, but Justin Langer would lose his place to Alastair Cook.
"JL made 20 Test hundreds but Cook is a better player, who at 26 shows a desire for scoring runs beyond his years," he wrote.
Warne says Ricky Ponting is "one of the great players of the modern era" and would easily take his place at three ahead of Jonathan Trott, but at four it was impossible to separate Mark Waugh and Kevin Pietersen.
Surprisingly, the leg-spinner chose Ian Bell over Damien Martyn. He picked Steve Waugh over Eoin Morgan with reservations.
"In time Morgan, with his flair and imagination, could become a better, more attacking player," he wrote. "It is too early to judge, but the promise is there."
Warne also thought Adam Gilchrist would hold his place ahead of Matt Prior, but said that could change if the Englishman continued to improve.
The leg-spinner was more patriotic when it came to picking bowlers, including himself.
Warne opted for himself over Graeme Swann and said he would have the pace of Brett Lee in any side. He thought that Jason Gillespie at his best was as good as Glenn McGrath and his double hundred nudged him ahead of Stuart Broad.
He acknowledged that James Anderson was currently best in the world, but could not edge out McGrath.
Warne believes England can remain No 1 for some time to come.
"They have all the ingredients in place to dominate," Warne wrote.
"In Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook they have solidity. Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan add unorthodoxy, variety and quick scoring.
"The bowlers can stick to and execute plans brilliantly. But they also bat well. They score fast and their bowling has variety. James Anderson, Tim Bresnan and Stuart Broad are all good fielders too.
"There is no weak link. It is a great time to be involved in English cricket."
But Warne believes history will reserve its judgment on how good this current side is.
"England need to be as consistent over next two years home and away before they can be truly compared to some of the great sides, but the basics and the platform are in place," he wrote.
"The best Australian team I played in was probably during early 2000s. We had great individuals before, but as a team, the early part of the last decade was a special time."
