The Three Best All-Format Cricketers For Each Nation In The Top Flight

With the advent of T20 cricket, each country is now having to appoint specialists for each format of the game. Hence, we have seen the concept of all-format cricketers gaining pace. These players represent a nation in all three formats of the game. They possess the skill to adapt themselves to different versions of the game quickly.

India - Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah

Team India currently has three good all-format cricketers, which has been helping them do well in recent years. While Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah are the first names on any playing XI of Team India, in recent months Rohit Sharma has done well in the longer format and hence, he also features in this list. The likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Rishabh Pant also belong to this category of all-format cricketers.

England - Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Jos Buttler

No country has adopted the 'specialist' concept better than England. Their best limited-overs batsman - Eoin Morgan does not play Test matches and their best batsman - Joe Root hardly features in the T20Is. However, when it comes to cricketers who play all three formats, Stokes, Archer and Buttler stand at the top of the pile.

Australia - Pat Cummins, Steve Smith and David Warner

One of the reasons for Australia's success in the past was that they had a strong core group that played well in all formats. However, at the moment, they are lacking it. Pat Cummins is a superb five-day bowler, but he could leak runs in the T20 format. Nevertheless, he is still preferred in all three formats. Steve Smith struggles in T20Is, but he is Australia's best bet in the batting department. Warner is one player who does equally well across versions.

South Africa - Kagiso Rabada, Quinton de Kock and Anrich Nortje

South Africa is struggling in this regard. Kagiso Rabada is the only player who is doing well in all three formats. Anrich Nortje is climbing the charts while QDK is the only batsman who is an all-format player for the Proteas.

New Zealand - Kane Williamson, Trent Boult and Tim Southee

While Kane Williamson is certain in all three formats, Trent Boult and Tim Southee also play in all the New Zealand squads. There are also players like Santner, Taylor and Jamieson who come close.

Pakistan - Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan actually has a decent core in this regard. Babar Azam is the best batsman for Pakistan and Rizwan is now the man in form. Afridi is one bowler whom the management can rely upon in all three formats.

West Indies - Jason Holder, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo (Both are inactive in Tests)

Interestingly, in the latest contracts handed out by West Indies, only Jason Holder has received the all-format contract. Although they are not active in Tests, Gayle and Bravo have been good in the longer format in the past and hence, feature in this list.

Sri Lanka - Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews and Niroshan Dickwella

This is one team that's struggling a lot in recent years. Nevertheless, they have a few cricketers who represent the country in all three formats. Sri Lanka would need more players to be stepping up in the coming seasons.

Bangladesh - Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim

Bangladesh actually has a decent group of all-format cricketers. This trio is on whom they depend in most games in all formats. However, they would like to have a pacer come into this group in the subsequent years.