+x+xI think the ICC got it spot on, except Kagiso Rabada for Starc
2019 Test team
Mayank Agarwal
Tom Latham
Marnus Labuschagne
Virat Kohli (captain)
Steve Smith
Ben Stokes
BJ Watling (wicketkeeper)
Pat Cummins
Mitchell Starc
Neil Wagner
Nathan Lyon
ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year: Ben Stokes (the 3rd time time an all-rounder has won after Kallis and Flintoff)
ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year: Pat Cummins
Mitchell Starc.. ICC you aint serious. Where was he during four games of the Ashes..warming the bench and carrying drinks because he came into the series in mediocre red ball form. Since then he has beat up on a sub standard Pakistan to get his big figure count.. one good match against the Black Caps. I'd have had JH also over Starc. He has hit back from some moderate wicket taking to post a solid year..topped off by his 20 @21 in the Ashes. He looked in prime form too in the little we saw of him in the NZ series. One of the balls of the series the one that castled Raval.
Stokes..cricketer of the year.. please.. the man other than one or two exceptional white ball like red ball innings in the Ashes..has done little. His FC figures remain moderate. I expect he got the gong for his white ball heroics in the World Cup.
Did you get paid Baggers?
If you want to look at Ashes then you would also have to consider Broad and Archer, especially Archer who also only played 4 games and took 22 wickets @ 20 and England won 2 of those tests, drew one, lost one. But Starc is the only contentious selection, but his record for 2019 of 42 wickets @ 20.7 and an incredible SR of 37 (better than Cummins SR 44) taking 2.8 wickets per innings compared to Cummins 2.6 W/Inn, it is hard to argue. Wagner deserves his spot 43 wickets @ 17.8 and a SR of 37.6 and taking 3.9 wickets per innings and is probably deserving of the title of "first picked bowler", not his fault NZ don't get the number of test matches others do.