Best XI Of Players Who Have Donned The Number 10 Jersey In Cricket

Number 10 Jersey in cricket holds great importance. It has great sentiments attached to it as Sachin Tendulkar used to don number 10 during his playing days. In Football, only the legendary players had worn the jersey number 10, however, it doesn’t apply in cricket. Over the years, we have seen a lot of cricketers donning the number 10 jersey.

Players from different teams have donned the number 10 jersey. In this article, we have compiled the best XI of players who have donned the Number 10 Jersey.

Best XI Of Players Who Have Donned The Number 10 Jersey In Cricket

1. Sachin Tendulkar

The legendary Indian cricketer, Sachin Tendulkar began his international cricket career with 99-number jersey before switching to number 33. Tendulkar finally took up the number 10 jersey which he wore till his retirement.

He also donned the number 10 while playing for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. Sachin Tendulkar finished his cricketing career with most runs in ODIs and Test Cricket. He has managed to hit 100 centuries in international cricket.

2. Craig McMillan

Former New Zealand cricketer, Graig McMillan also finds his name in the list. He also wore the number 10 jersey for the majority of his career.

He was a right-handed batsman and also bowled medium-pace. In his illustrious career, McMillan played 55 Tests and 197 ODIs, scoring 3116 and 4707 runs respectively.

Besides, he also represented New Zealand in 8 T20 internationals, in which he managed to score 187 runs at an average of 31.2. The former New Zealand cricketer has six centuries to his name in Test Cricket.

3. Stuart Law

Stuart Law played 54 one-day internationals but only one Test match for Australia. He made his one-day international cricket debut in 1994-95. An injury to Steve Waugh helped him make his debut in the Test Cricket.

He scored an unbeaten 54-run knock in that Test. However, Law was included from the playing XI upon Waugh’s recovery. In his one-day international cricket career, Stuart Law played 54 matches, scoring 1237 runs at an average of 26.89.

4. David Miller

South African cricketer, David Miller wears a number 10 jersey in Cricket. He is currently an integral part of South Africa in white-ball cricket. He wears the iconic number in all formats of the game.

So far, in his international cricket career, he has played 137 one-day internationals and 95 T20 internationals, scoring 3367 and 1786 runs respectively. David Miller has 5 centuries and 16 half-centuries in one-day internationals. Besides, he also has a hundred in T20 internationals.

5. Shahid Afridi

Pakistan’s legendary cricketer, Shahid Afridi wore the number 10 jersey from the day of his debut to his retirement. The former Pakistan skipper was known for his destructive batting.

He held the record for scoring the fastest ODI century in 37 balls for close to 17 years before being broken by Corey Anderson. No cricketer has hit more sixes than Shahid Afridi in one-day internationals.

He was an indispensable asset for Pakistan in the shortest format of the game. He played as many as 398 one-day internationals and 99 T20Is for Pakistan and scored 8064 and 1416 runs respectively. He has 395 and 98 wickets in ODIs and T20Is respectively.

6. Darren Lehman

A handy batsman at lower down the order and also a left-arm orthodox bowler, Darren Lehman was an integral part of Australia’s white-ball team in the early 20s. He made his debut in 1996 but only became a regular in 2001.

The former Australian cricketer wore jersey number 10 from 2004-05. Lehman went on to play 117 one-day internationals for Australia and scored 3078 runs at an average of 38.96. He also served as the coach of the Australian Cricket Team but stepped down from the post in 2017 after the ball-tampering scandal.

7. Geraint Jones

Former cricket, Geriant Jones played for England as their first choice wicket-keeper batsman between 2004 and 2006. He wore Jersey number 10 during his cricket playing career.

Jones represented England in 51 one-day internationals and 34 Tests, scoring 862 and 1172 runs respectively. For those of you who don’t know, Jones later also played for Papua New Guinea between 2012 and 2014.

8. Shardul Thakur

After Sachin Tendulkar, only one Indian cricketer Shardul Thakur wore the number 10 jersey in cricket. He, however, received a lot of backlash from fans across the nation for the same.

Following the heavy backlash, the BCCI unofficially retired the jersey number. Shardul Thakur is currently a vital part of Indian Cricket in all three formats. So far in his international cricket career, he has played 4 Tests, 15 ODIs, and 24 T20 internationals, picking 14, 22, and 31 wickets respectively.

9. Allan Donald

Former legendary bowler, Allan Donald wore a number 10 jersey while playing for South Africa. Donald was the first South African bowler to reach 300 wickets in Test Cricket.

He is currently the fourth-highest wicket-taker for South Africa in Test Cricket. In 72 Tests, he has 330 wickets at an average of 22.25. Besides, he has also played 164 one-day internationals and picked 272 wickets for South Africa. Since retiring, Donald has been a coach with a number of teams, including international sides.

10. Peter Siddle

Peter Siddle is an Australian fast bowler who currently plays for Tasmania in first-class cricket and List-A cricket. Besides, he also plies his trade for Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League.

Peter Siddle produced some sensational spells for Australia in international cricket. He played 67 Tests and 20 ODIs for Australia, picking 221 and 17 wickets respectively. Peter Siddle wore the number 10 jersey from 2008 till his retirement in 2019.

11. Shaheen Shah Afridi

After Shahid Afridi, Shaheen Shah Afridi is the second Pakistani cricketer to wear the number 10 jersey. On 16^th September 2021, he took to Twitter to inform about his new jersey number.

“I am humbled and honoured that I will be now representing Pakistan in shirt #10 of Lala @SAfridiOfficial. Nothing but Pakistan,” the fast bowler wrote on his social media handle.

Earlier, he used to wear the number 40 jersey. Shaheen Shah Afridi is Pakistan’s premier fast bowler. He played an instrumental role with the ball in helping Pakistan reach the semi-final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.