As far as cricket is concerned, December has always been a busy month, with several of the main cricket-playing nations competing against one another for high-stakes series before the holiday season. With the Ashes between Australia and England, India hosting South Africa, and the New Zealand-West Indies Test series ongoing, this year is no exception.
Apart from the packed cricketing schedule, December also holds a particular date, when several cricketers share their birthdays. The unique date, December 6, is an extraordinary day and has the distinction of being the birthday of many cricketers, past and present. So let’s put together a fantasy side, a “Playing 11” made up of just cricket players born on December 6, to commemorate this momentous day.
Openers – Karun Nair, Nasir Jamshed
This imaginary team’s two chosen openers will be Karun Nair and Nasir Jamshed. Despite scoring a ton of runs in the home circuit, neither of them ignited the international scene for an extended amount of time.
Jamshed has played 68 games for Pakistan since making his debut for the national team in 2008. He scored all three of his ODI hundreds against India and amassed 1,832 runs in all three forms. Today is his 35th birthday. Karun Nair, an established batter in the Indian domestic circuit, rose to fame after his magnificent 303 against England in Chennai in 2016. In doing so, Nair became only the second-ever Indian to hit a triple century in Tests.
Nair’s triple century, however, couldn’t cement his place in the side, as he got to play only six Tests and two ODIs for India. However, he then made a much-awaited comeback earlier this year, playing four Tests. But couldn’t stamp his authority in the side after making just 205 runs in England. He is currently playing in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy after making his comeback to the Karnataka side.
Middle-order – Shreyas Iyer (C), Harry Tector, Glenn Phillips (wk)
Here comes a fiery middle order for this “December 6” XI. Shreyas Iyer, Harry Tector, and Glenn Phillips are all part of this, with Iyer leading the entire team. While Tector is one of the youngest players in this team and has turned 26, Iyer and Phillips are celebrating their 31st and 29th birthdays, respectively.
Talking about Iyer, he made headlines recently by becoming one of the most expensive IPL players ever. He was swooped in for a whopping Rs 26.75 crore, just Rs 25 lakh less than what LSG paid for Rishabh Pant. While currently ousted from the Indian T20I and Test teams, Iyer helped PBKS reach the final after a decade. In total, he has a total of 4832 runs across 127 international appearances for India. He is currently out with injury.
Tector is a talented batter who hails from Ireland. He made his international debut in 2019 and has since played 153 matches, scoring 4083 runs at a strike rate of 85.31. New Zealand’s Glenn Phillips is also part of his team. The South African-born player hasn’t played much cricket this year and also missed IPL 2025 due to injury. He is one of those rare individuals who can dish out performances in every department. While his explosive batting and electric fielding are renowned among many, Phillips is more than a handy off-spinner and can even keep wickets if needed.
All-rounders – Ravindra Jadeja, Andrew Flintoff and Sean Ervine
The all-rounder’s department will feature the likes of Andrew Flintoff, Ravindra Jadeja, and Sean Ervine. England legend Flintoff turns 48 today. The 2005 Ashes hero ranks only behind the legendary Sir Ian Botham in the list of greatest all-rounders England has ever produced. With more than 7,000 runs and 400 wickets in international cricket, Flintoff was one of the most enigmatic characters on the field.
The next in line is Ravindra Jadeja. He’s already established a reputation for himself. Jadeja, the top-ranked Test all-rounder right now, is perhaps the best athlete of his generation. Jadeja started out as a respectable batter and left-arm spinner but has now grown into an elite player for India. He recently made a startling switch from CSK to Rajasthan Royals (RR) and is currently playing the ODIs against South Africa. With 369 games played for India, Jadeja has amassed 7472 runs and 633 wickets, making him a superstar.
At No. 8 is the former Zimbabwean all-rounder Sean Ervine. The recently turned 43-year-old was one of the many talented cricketers from the African nation whose international careers were cut short due to the political unrest. The elder brother of Craig Ervine, Sean played 42 ODIs and five Test matches for Zimbabwe before opting to move to Australia and subsequently to England with Hampshire.
Bowlers – Jasprit Bumrah, RP Singh and Anshul Kamboj
We have an all-Indian pace attack, featuring one each from the past, present, and future. Jasprit Bumrah is among the biggest names on this XI, simply because of the niche he has created for himself. He is inarguably the greatest of his generation, spearheading the Indian bowling lineup for years now. Talking about his numbers, Bumrah has 482 wickets after just 221 matches for India. His average is just a meagre 20.60 along with a SR of 33.8.
Another Indian on the XI is RP Singh, who was part of the 2007 T20 World Cup-winning team. The left-arm pacer from Uttar Pradesh played 82 matches for India and claimed 124 wickets. He recently joined Ajit Agarkar’s selection panel as one of the selectors as well for the India men’s team.
At last is Anshul Kamboj, who startled everyone by taking a 10-wicket haul in a Ranji Trophy innings for Haryana. The skilled pacer turns 25 today and is a bright commodity for the future. Kamboj has been retained by CSK and will be the present and future of the side. He made his international debut earlier this year too and is gunning to make a comeback. With 93 wickets in 31 first-class games, Kamboj is a superb talent and his ability to swing the ball up front is magnificent.
Playing XI of cricketers born on Dec 6
| S. No. | Players |
|---|---|
| 1 | Karun Nair |
| 2 | Nasir Jamshed |
| 3 | Shreyas Iyer (C) |
| 4 | Harry Tector |
| 5 | Glenn Phillips (WK) |
| 6 | Andrew Flintoff |
| 7 | Ravindra Jadeja |
| 8 | Sean Ervine |
| 9 | Jasprit Bumrah |
| 10 | RP Singh |
| 11 | Anshul Kamboj |
