Picking an XI of Test Cricket's Most Disappointing Players in 2013
While 2013 has witnessed some remarkable feats from the Test cricket world's best players, it has been a year that has contained plenty of forgettable performances, as well.
Amid the success enjoyed by men such as Michael Clarke, Ian Bell and Virat Kohli, a less fortunate group have endured a rather painful 12 months.
By either failing to live up to previous lofty standards, or by fading away under the intense spotlight of Test cricket, there is a sizeable collection of players eager to put 2013 behind them.
So just who are those men? Which players make it into Test cricket's most disappointing team of the year?
Those unfortunate souls are presented on the following slides.
1. Virender Sehwag
1 of 11
Team: India
Matches in 2013: 2
Key Stat: 27 runs at 9.00
For the first time since making his comeback to Test cricket in 2007-08, Virender Sehwag was dropped from India's side for the third Test against Australia in March.
A sustained run of poor form in 2011 and 2012 had placed immense pressure on the aggressive opener, with Sehwag entering this year with his position under threat.
Given the chance to repay the selectors' faith, the 35-year-old took his place in India's side for the series against Australia, but scores of two, 19 and six across the first two Tests saw the dashing right-hander dropped.
Unable to reclaim his place in the side since, Sehwag has been forced to watch the emergence of a new generation of Indian batsmen that may prevent him from wearing his nation's colours again.
2. Mohammad Hafeez
2 of 11
Team: Pakistan
Matches in 2013: 5
Key Stat: 102 runs at 10.20
On a team that relies far too heavily on Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistani opener Mohammad Hafeez endured a terrible run of form in 2013 to provide little assistance to his captain.
In five matches across two series against South Africa and Zimbabwe, the 33-year-old couldn't manage a score in excess of 22, as Pakistan's top-order consistently crumbled in an all-too-familiar fashion.
While Hafeez has impressed during his second-coming as a Test batsman, his inability to discover any sort of form in 2013 saw the right-hander dropped for his side's final two Tests of the year.
An average of just 10.20 over the last 12 months won't provide the selectors with any confidence that he's ready to return in 2014.
3. Shane Watson
3 of 11
Team: Australia
Matches in 2013: 11
Key Stat: 717 runs at 32.59 and 5 wickets at 54.40
If you were to reverse Shane Watson's batting and bowling averages for 2013, you'd be looking at one of the most dominant players in the game.
But the reality is that you're staring at Test cricket's biggest frustration.
The Australian all-rounder has put together yet another underwhelming 12 months, continuing to disappoint as one of his team's leading batsmen, whilst being largely unthreatening with the ball.
A technical deficiency on the front foot derailed his Ashes campaign in England in July and August, as James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Tim Bresnan homed in on his immovable front pad.
As the Ashes shifted to Australia, shot selection then plagued the 32-year-old, seeing some rather forgettable dismissals in the opening three Tests of the series.
While Watson has scored two hundreds this year; both were compiled once the pressure of each series had been well and truly released.
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4. Kevin Pietersen
4 of 11
Team: England
Matches in 2013: 10
Key Stat: 638 runs at 33.57
Those who have singled out Kevin Pietersen as the main culprit in England's Ashes defence in Australia are well wide of the mark.
However, it can't be ignored that the flamboyant batsman has suffered a poor run of form in 2013.
Known for his breathtaking and match-defining innings, Pietersen has scored just one hundred this year, with Peter Siddle rising to become his unlikely tormentor.
With England's top-order regularly stuttering, the 33-year-old has consistently found himself in delicate situations from which he's been unable to thrive.
Along with a poor overall return, a handful of ugly dismissals have made 2013 a poor year for one of England's true greats.
5. Jacques Kallis
5 of 11
Team: South Africa
Matches in 2013: 7
Key Stat: 194 runs at 17.63
Amid the leanest year of his career, it appears as though Jacques Kallis' glittering time in Test cricket is set to approach its end.
Unquestionably South Africa's greatest cricketer of all time, Kallis has only managed to pass double figures in two of his last eight innings, sparking many to conclude that the 38-year-old is quickly headed for retirement.
While his team has managed to maintain its position at the pinnacle of the game, the incomparable all-rounder has been unable to make any meaningful contributions.
With both reflexes and clarity deserting him, Kallis will find it incredibly difficult to rediscover his best at a time when he's approaching 40.
6. Marlon Samuels
6 of 11
Team: West Indies
Matches in 2013: 7
Key Stat: 293 runs at 24.41
If the West Indies are ever to escape their apparent terminal decline, the team's senior players must be the ones to lead by example.
Simply put, Marlon Samuels hasn't done that at all in 2013.
Undoubtedly one of his side's most talented performers, Samuels has compiled an immensely disappointing year, failing to provide any form of support to the lonely Shivnarine Chanderpaul.
If one dismissal could sum up Samuels' year, it would be his atrociously ugly effort in the second innings in Wellington, where his desperate waft epitomised the West Indies' struggles across another poor season.
7. Matt Prior
7 of 11
Team: England
Matches in 2013: 13
Key Stat: 240 runs at 18.46 in 8 Tests versus Australia
Matt Prior was once an integral cog in England's world-beating machine, a free lower-order scorer who could quickly take the game away from the opposition.
Then 2013 arrived.
In the space of a few months, Prior has alarmingly gone from indispensable to ineffectual. With their counter-attacking wicket keeper suffering a dreadful year, England have been destabilised, resulting in the team's failure to score 400 in 23 consecutive Test innings.
With his batting form deserting him, Prior's keeping has also dropped in standard, suddenly placing him at risk of being axed.
Just a handful of months ago, that was an unthinkable situation.
8. Darren Sammy
8 of 11
Team: West Indies
Matches in 2013: 7
Key Stat: 8 wickets at 49.87
It's perhaps a little unfair on Darren Sammy to include him in this team, given the desperate situations the West Indies captain regularly finds himself in.
Yet, it's undeniable that Sammy doesn't possess the talents to legitimately hold down a third seamer's position at Test level; something that isn't helped by his rather shoddy batting.
Leading a side that lurches between feeble and embarrassing, Sammy has managed to capture just eight wickets for the year at almost 50 runs apiece. A batting average of 21.90 has certainly done little to help justify his place.
Although the West Indies are devoid of leaders, the continued presence of a captain that isn't up to Test standard can only harm the team long-term.
9. Harbhajan Singh
9 of 11
Team: India
Matches in 2013: 2
Key Stat: 5 wickets at 40.80
Harbhajan Singh is another player to have fallen victim to India's new generation, with the veteran off-spinner now looking increasingly unlikely to be a prominent member of his nation's team again.
Playing alongside Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in the first two Tests against Australia, Harbhajan struggled mightily, failing to truly threaten the team he had so often tormented previously.
With Ashwin and Jadeja stealing the headlines, the controversial off-spinner was axed for the final two Tests of the series and hasn't played since.
In a sign of things to come, Harbhajan is now without a central contract, leaving his Test career hanging in the balance.
10. Steven Finn
10 of 11
Team: England
Matches in 2013: 6
Key Stat: 20 wickets at 33.50
At first glance, Steven Finn's record for 2013 looks rather respectable. In fact, on a purely statistical level, Finn is hard done-by to find himself on this list.
However, numbers don't tell the whole story.
In Finn, England hoped they had unearthed a fearsome strike bowler capable of reducing the burden on James Anderson and Stuart Broad. With an ageing team, the hostile right-armer was supposed to become the source of exuberance in England's world-class bowling attack.
However, Finn has been unable to hold his place in the side, a lack of confidence and loss of technique reducing the 24-year-old to a shell of what selectors had envisaged of him.
Despite England's ongoing humiliation at the hands of Australia, Finn's performances on the tour thus far have done little to suggest he's ready to return.
11. Tino Best
11 of 11
Team: West Indies
Matches in 2013: 7
Key Stat: 11 wickets at 57.72
When your team's spearhead is claiming his wickets at almost 60 runs apiece, it's unlikely you'll win many matches.
That much has been true for Tino Best and the West Indies.
In the absence of Kemar Roach, Best has been required to shoulder the burden of being his side's strike bowler, a task he has been incapable of performing.
On the docile wickets in India, the bustling right-armer was unable to garner any sense of control or threat, watching his overs cost more than five runs each.
On more friendly surfaces in New Zealand, the result was much the same, with Best recording combined figures of 8-369 in three Tests against the Kiwis.
It's safe to say that Best will want to quickly forget much of 2013.
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