At the final closeout of 2025, Cricket Australia revealed their best Test XI for the year 2025, and it is an unbiased group of players based on their recent exploits in red-ball cricket. They also backed a non-Australian skipper for his commendable rise in Test cricket in 2025.
2025 has been one of the most exciting years in terms of Test cricket. The year ends with several memorable performances and the establishment of new individual and team records. Undoubtedly, South Africa and Australia were the two glorious teams of the year who achieved rare feats.
South Africa blanked India on home soil, while the Australians were almost invincible that year, losing just 2 of their 11 Tests, which also included the WTC 2025 final. They also set a record by dismissing the West Indies for 27 in an innings at their home ground.
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England and India, the other two red-ball heavyweights in recent times, have started the WTC in one way or another. The two teams played the most intense and competitive series of the Nordic summer; However, both these teams ended the year on a drastic note, with England losing the Ashes and India being whitewashed at home.
India and Australia combine for top spot in Cricket Australia’s Test XI
India’s premier Test opener KL Rahul has had one of the best years of his Test career. Resuming his Test career since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2024-25, KL Rahul has become a regular in the Test team after the retirement of former captain Rohit Sharma.
In England, no foreign opener has had such a wonderful journey as the Indian batter. In 5 matches, Rahul has accumulated 532 runs with two centuries and the same number of half-centuries. Although he failed to continue the streak against South Africa, it will go down as one of his finest years in Test cricket. He finished with 813 runs from 10 matches at an average of 45.16.
Australian explosive hitter Travis Head joins KL Rahul at the top of the rankings. However, Head did not feature as an opener in the Australian team. When Usman Khawaja was injured, Head was promoted to open the inning, which appeared to be a breakthrough for the batter.
He broke the chains, scored two hundreds in the Ashes, first in Perth and then in his hometown of Adelaide, and finished the year as the second highest run-getter, behind India’s Shubman Gill. Although Head scored a terrific 170+ in Adelaide, his 123 in the second innings of the first Ashes match remains his most exciting heist.
WTC-winning skipper chosen to anchor middle order
Cricket Australia really showed courage in naming a foreign skipper as the best for 2025. They avoided Pat Cummins, the Australian skipper who has missed the majority of matches the Australians have played in recent times.
Although Temba Bavuma also did not feature in all of South Africa’s matches, but in every match that he won, he led the Proteas to victory. If not for the 66 he made against Australia despite a torn hamstring, the Proteas might have missed out on their maiden ICC title on another occasion.
Bavuma also showed some dominance with the bat, averaging 51.66 in 4 matches with a highest score of 106.
Not the Rishabh pants; Cricket Australia names this wicketkeeper in its best XI
However, Cricket Australia chose Alex Carey as their wicketkeeper. One of the South Australian gloveman’s finest years, Carey hit 767 runs down the order at an average of 47.93 with two Test hundreds.
It was also impossible to overlook Carey’s expertise behind the wickets. In 11 matches, he took 44 catches and completed 5 stumpings as well, and was effective in many of Australia’s dismissals during the Ashes. Rishabh Pant, the Indian wicketkeeper who also had an exceptional series in England, was found inconsistent against South Africa.
Ben Stokes features in Cricket Australia’s XI
Ravindra Jadeja, the veteran Indian all-rounder, had his best year with the bat. Playing in England, the batter was India’s second highest run-scorer and finished the year with 764 runs with the bat.
He was among the few batters to show resistance against the South African bowling attack in Guwahati. However, Jadeja was less effective with the ball, as his 25 wickets came at an average of 38.2, his worst since 2014. He was named the 12th man.
England skipper Ben Stokes was chosen as the only all-rounder in the team. Stokes, who returned to bowling after several years in red-ball cricket, relished his outings with the ball throughout the English and Australian summer. With 496 runs and 33 wickets in 9 matches, Stokes can also be named the best all-rounder of 2025.
Mitchell Starc and Jasprit Bumrah make Cricket Australia’s XI
Australian speedster Mitchell Starc and Indian paceman Jasprit Bumrah are two of the most common names in the best Test XI of modern times. The two national greats have often produced astonishing numbers. Starc this time finished at the top of the order with 55 wickets in 11 matches and was Australia’s savior in the Ashes in the absence of skipper Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.
Bumrah, on the other hand, had a much worse season compared to his stellar run in 2024, where he finished with 71 wickets in a calendar year. However, his exploits in England and at home impressed everyone. The two new additions include Australian Scott Boland and Protea spinner Simon Harmer.
Harmer had a memorable series in the subcontinent against Pakistan and India, as he finished with 30 wickets in 4 matches. Scott Boland, meanwhile, has emerged as a major force for Australia in the absence of veteran coach Josh Hazlewood.
Cricket Australia’s best Test XI in 2025: KL Rahul, Travis Head, Joe Root, Shubman Gill, Temba Bavuma (C), Alex Carey (wk), Ben Stokes, Mitchell Starc, Jasprit Bumrah, Scott Boland, Simon Harmer, Ravindra Jadeja (12th man)
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