The 16 clashes that missed out on Ultimate Test Series challenge

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Ahead of the ICC World Test Championship Final, we’re looking to crown The Ultimate Test Series.

We’ve whittled it down to 16 Test series from all time, which we’ll reveal over the coming days. From there, we'll need your help.

Keep your eyes across our social channels and get voting when the time comes.

To give you an idea of the calibre of the 16 selected series, here are 16 that just missed the cut.

1877 – Australia vs England

Test cricket’s first-ever series was an instant classic and saw the rise of the longest standing record in the game. The Bannerman.

Five years prior to the birth of the Ashes, Australia and England met in the first official Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Captained by Dave Gregory, the Australians elected to bat first and only one player managed to pass 20.

In a total of 245, Charles Bannerman scored 165 runs. The 67.34 per cent of Australia’s total he contributed remains the single highest percentage of runs in a completed Test innings ever. The hosts went on to win that Test by 45 runs.

The tourists bit back in the second match, this time managing to keep Bannerman quiet in a tight four-wicket victory, successfully chasing a target of 121.

1948 - South Africa vs England

England took out the five-match series 0-2, but both wins could have wound up going the Proteas’ way.

George Mann’s England outfit prevailed on the last ball of the series opener in Durban. With the tourists chasing 128 to win, all four results were still on the cards going into the final three deliveries of the match. Scores were levelled on the third last delivery, drawing a line through South Africa’s hopes of victory but leaving a tie on the cards with England eight down. The penultimate ball was a dot, and after a mid-pitch conference tailenders Alec Bedser and Cliff Gladwin agreed to run no matter what happened on the final delivery. Gladwin failed to connect with the final ball but with a leg bye England scraped the most nerve-jangling of victories.

The next three matches were draws, most notable for batting great Denis Compton returning career-best figures of 5/70 in the third Test of the series, but the campaign got the finish it deserved at Port Elizabeth.

Needing to win the match to draw the series, South Africa captain Dudley Nourse set England a target of 172 to win in 95 minutes. Not satisfied with settling for a draw, England chased with gusto and were cruising at 104/1 only to slide to 153/7. Going into the final 10 minutes, 19 runs were still required. It was only with a minute to spare that they got the job done, with 10 runs coming from three consecutive deliveries.

1948 - England vs Australia

Don Bradman and his famous team were at the peak of their powers in 1948 and England and the UK’s counties found that out the hard way when the Invincibles toured.

Australia played a total of 31 first-class matches, including five Ashes Tests, across a mammoth 144-day campaign and did not lose once, taking out the Ashes 4-0.

The series pitted some of cricket’s greatest ever players against one another. Alongside Bradman, Australia had the services of ICC Hall of Famers Keith Miller, Neil Harvey and Ray Lindwall. England meanwhile had Alec Bedser, Jim Laker, Denis Compton and Len Hutton – all also ICC Hall of Famers.

As things turned out, it was two of the youngest Invincibles who would dominate the Ashes series. Morris topped the run-scoring with 696 at 87 and Lindwall was the lead bowler with 27 wickets at 19.62.

1950 - England vs West Indies

A milestone moment for the West Indies, the tour of England in 1950 saw them begin their march to ascendancy in international cricket. Having gained Test status 22 years ago, the tour not only saw them registering their first-ever Test victory in England but also a convincing 3-1 series win.

All four matches in the series were allocated five days which proved to be a wise decision, resulting in some enthralling contests. After a defeat in the opening Test in Manchester, the Caribbean outfit bounced back with great aplomb at Lord's clinching a 326-run victory.

The result would turn the tide of the series, as an increasingly confident West Indies team swatted away the hosts with convincing victories at Trent Bridge and the Oval.

The likes of Frank Worrell, Alf Valentine, Everton Weekes, Sonny Ramadhin and Clyde Walcott were all key performers throughout the course of the series for the West Indies - becoming heavyweights of the game.

1970 - South Africa vs Australia

South Africa's 4-0 clean sweep of Australia in 1970 still remains a reminder of what could have been. Widely considered to be one of the finest sides in the history of the game, the South African outfit featured some of the biggest names in world cricket.

Led by Ali Bacher and having world-class talents such as Peter Pollock, Graeme Pollock, Barry Richards and Mike Proctor in their ranks, the South Africans were simply too hot to handle for Bill Lawry and his men.

A comprehensive 170-run victory in the first Test match in Cape Town was followed by a win by an innings and 129 runs in Durban. The mighty Australians, who had only lost a single Test in their nine previous matches prior to the series, could not reverse their fortunes in Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth, succumbing to 307 and 323-run defeats respectively.

This would turn out to be a final bow for the legendary South African side, as they would not participate in another international series for 21 years.

1971 - England vs India

A watershed year for Indian cricket as a memorable victory in the Caribbean was followed by their first-ever series win in England.

Playing 19 first-class fixtures, the Indian team won 7 of those, losing 1. Led by Ajit Wadekar, India managed to draw the first two Test matches of the series at Lord's and Old Trafford, holding on by just two wickets in the first.

In the final Test at the Oval, India trailed by 71 runs in the first innings, scoring 284 in reply to England's 355. But the genius of Bhagwath Chandrasekhar turned the match on its head, as he spun a web around the English batting line-up in the second innings.

His haul of 6/38 saw England skittled out for 101, setting the Indians a target of 173. Skipper Wadekar (45), Dilip Sardesai (40) and Gundappa Viswanath (33) then played classy knocks to ensure India's 4-wicket victory, as the year 1971 was etched in the memories of Indian cricket fans forever.

1976/77 – Australia vs Pakistan

A seminal series in Pakistani cricket history, it was the 1976/77 tour of Australia that proved the launching pad for the nation’s success on the field in the decades to come.

Having conceded a 272 run first-innings lead, the Pakistanis rallied to draw the first Test off the back of centuries from Zaheer Abbas and Asif Iqbal. It was a match that also saw valiant performances from Dennis Lillee and Kerry O’Keeffe, who bowled 65 of the 84 overs on day four due to injuries to Jeff Thomson and Gary Gilmour.

The Australians, who had missed out on victory by only 24 runs in the first Test, would not be denied in the second match, dealing the tourists a resounding 348-run defeat after tons from captain Greg Chappell, Gary Cosier and Rick McCosker.

It was in Sydney that everything changed for Pakistan. Roused by the captaincy of Mushtaq Mohammad, a star was born at the SCG as a young Imran Khan cut a swathe through the Australian batting order. The till then exciting but flaky prospect took six wickets in both innings to kickstart a career that would climb incredible heights.

Even with Lillee in the side, the Australians were never going to successfully defend a target of just 32.

1985 – Sri Lanka vs India

Sri Lanka went into their Test series against India in 1985 as the firmest of underdogs.

In their three years since becoming a Test-playing nation, the Sri Lankans had not won a match. India arrived as the reigning world champions with an XI featuring the likes of Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Mohinder Amarnath.

It only took one Test for it to become clear the Indians would be pushed all the way.

The Indians only managed to set Sri Lanka a target of 123 to win in the series opener. The hosts looked on course to reel that in after a rapid 38-run opening stand but had to settle for the draw after four wickets fell in quick succession.

They would not be denied victory in the second Test, as a nine-wicket match from Rumesh Ratnayake paved the way for a famous 149-run win in Colombo.

The Indians fought hard to level the series in its final match, but with Roy Dias (106) and captain Duleep Mendis (124) standing tall, Sri Lanka scraped a draw by two wickets and took out the series 1-0.

1992/93 – Australia vs West Indies

It had been 15 long years since Australia had put their hands on the Frank-Worrell Trophy when the two teams met in 1992/93 but Allan Border’s team had reason to believe going into the third match of the five-Test series.

The first match, a see-sawing encounter, had seen the West Indies hold on for a draw by two wickets, and in the second Australia ran away with a 139-run victory as Shane Warne took 7/52.

It was in the third Test where a young Brian Lara would shift the momentum of the series and pave the way for a 2-1 victory for the tourists. With the West Indies in trouble at 31/2 after a mammoth Australian first innings, Lara came to the rescue with his maiden Test century, scoring an incredible 277.

It was enough to force the draw, which was all the opening the West Indies needed to fight back to win the series. At Adelaide Oval they would hold on for a one-run victory with Craig McDermott falling at the final hurdle.

In the series decider Curtly Ambrose produced arguably his most famous spell, taking seven wickets for one run across 32 balls as Australia slipped from 85/2 to 119 all out. It was too steep a hill to climb for Australia from there and the West Indies went on to win by an innings and 25 runs.

1999 - England vs New Zealand

New Zealand went into the 1999 tour of England looking to defeat opponents that had gotten the better of them in each of their past four series, with their own famous victory in 1986 a long and distant memory.

For England the series looked like the perfect opportunity to bounce back after a demoralising Cricket World Cup campaign and the first match of the series provided them just the morale boost they were after. Bowled out for 126, England's conceded a 100-run first innings lead to leave their hopes of victory looking slim. However, off the back of a five-wicket haul from Andy Caddick they fired back to bowl New Zealand out for 107 in their second innings. Playing just his third match, nightwatchman Alex Tudor took out Player of the Match honours with an unbeaten 99 that helped England to a seven-wicket victory. To make matters worse for New Zealand, star fast bowler Simon Doull suffered a series-ending knee injury.

However, the defeat did not prove too stiff a blow for New Zealand to bounce back from. At Lord's, they rolled England for 186 off the back of a Chris Cairns six-for and went on to win the Test by nine wickets after a Matt Horne century. At Old Trafford they were similarly dominant only to be denied a chance at victory by the rain after taking a first-innings lead of 297 thanks to tons from Nathan Astle and Craig McMillan.

With scores level at 1-1, England had the chance to sneak the series in the decider when they reduced New Zealand to 87/6 only for the Black Caps to fight their way to a total of 236 thanks to half-centuries from Stephen Fleming and No.10 Daniel Vettori. England went on to be bowled out for 153 but had another chance to take control of the Test when they had the Kiwis faltering at 79/7. Instead, a rapid 80 from Cairns helped New Zealand set the hosts a target of 246 - 84 runs too many for them

2008 - Sri Lanka vs India

India's tour of Sri Lanka in 2008 promised to be a cracker of a contest with both sides boasting heavyweight batting lineups and genuine quality in their spin departments. In the end, both skillsets were on full display, with a mystery spinner unknown to the world making the difference.

Sri Lanka's batting fired big in the opening Test at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground in Colombo, with skipper Mahela Jayawardene leading the charge with a graceful 136. The Sri Lankans posted a first innings score of 600/6 declared, which was a task too big for the Indians to overcome. Muttiah Muralitharan registered figures of 5/84 and 6/26, as Sri Lanka won the match by an innings and 239 runs. Making his debut, Ajantha Mendis ran riot in the company of Muralitharan, taking four wickets in each innings.

With their backs against the wall, the Indian team brilliantly fought back in Galle, courtesy of a Virender Sehwag double ton. The aggressive opener carried his bat, scoring 201 out of India's 329 runs in the first innings as Mendis picked up another six wickets. Harbhajan Singh's six-for restricted Sri Lanka to 292, with India then setting a target of 307 for the Sri Lankans to chase down. With a collective bowling effort, India would bowl out Sri Lanka for 136, putting the series on the line in the final Test match in Colombo.

Mendis, who finished with 10 wickets in the second Test, stepped up to the plate in the final match, with his five-wicket haul restricting India to an under-par first-innings score of 249. Kumar Sangakkara's 144 put his side in the driving seat, an advantage which they would capitalise upon, posting a score of 396. In reply, India could only manage to score 268, setting a target of 122. The Sri Lankans Lankans would achieve the task without much fuss, registering an eight-wicket win on the fourth day, to further enforce what a tough proposition they were in their own backyard. Mendis would end the series with a staggering 26 wickets at 18.38.

2012 - India vs England

Ahead of the 2012-13 tour, India remained somewhat of a final frontier for Alastair Cook and his men. Having not won a series in India since the 1984/85 tour, England headed into the tour well-equipped to compete with the hosts in their own backyard.

After India's comfortable nine-wicket victory in the opening Test in Ahmedabad, many predicted that the series would follow a familiar pattern of the hosts dominating in home conditions. But Kevin Pietersen produced what has been described as one of the finest knocks ever in Mumbai to turn the course of the series. His blistering 186 at the Wankhede Stadium set the tone as England fought back to win the match with 10 wickets in hand.

Skipper Cook then delivered the goods in Kolkata, with his 190 leading England to a seven-wicket victory in the third Test at the Eden Gardens.

Despite India's best efforts to level the series in Nagpur, the visitors stood steadfast in their efforts to script a historic series victory. The contest ended in a draw, with England clinching the series.

The 2-1 win in India remains one of England's finest achievements to this very day. Apart from the brilliance of Pietersen and Cook, the efforts of England's spin-twins, Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar, and pace spearhead James Anderson were also widely lauded.

2012 – Australia vs South Africa

Four years on from ending Australia’s long unbeaten series run Down Under, Graeme Smith’s South Africa did it again.

It was a campaign that saw Michael Clarke hit back-to-back double-centuries but best remembered for the marathon efforts of Faf du Plessis at Adelaide Oval.

After a high-scoring draw at the Gabba, Australia looked on course for victory in the second Test with Clarke’s 230 leaving South Africa with a target of 430 to win. Going into day five the Proteas were in a world of trouble at 77/4, with AB de Villiers and debutant du Plessis at the crease. The pair went on to soak up 68 overs, adding only 89 runs but eating away at Australia’s hopes of victory. De Villiers would fall after the lunch break but there would be no removing du Plessis, who stood tall to the end, seeing South Africa to safety with two wickets to spare.

Exhausted from their efforts in Adelaide, Australia went on to lose the series decider by 309 runs, crumbling under the weight of big centuries from Hashim Amla (196) and de Villiers (169).

2016 – Bangladesh vs England

Through the mid-2010s Bangladesh came on leaps and bounds in Test cricket, registering series wins over the West Indies and Zimbabwe. But it is their 1-1 draw against England in 2016 that will always stand out.

Chasing their first-ever Test victory against England, the Tigers came agonisingly close in the series opener. Chasing 286 to win after a six-wicket haul from debutant Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Bangladesh were well on course at 227/5. They then slipped to 238/8, inviting England back into the game.

Nevertheless, with Sabbir Rahman well set and scoring quickly, the match was still there for the taking. Alas, with Bangladesh just 22 runs away from winning the Test, Ben Stokes came up trumps, picking up two wickets in the space of three balls to secure an England victory.

That heartbreak proved an inspiration rather than a setback for Bangladesh, with the hosts rallying in the second Test to win by 108 runs. Chasing 273 to win, England were on course after a 100-run opening stand but slid to 164 all out as Mehidy and Shakib Al Hasan combined for 10 wickets.

2018 - Pakistan vs New Zealand

New Zealand achieved their first Test series win away from home against Pakistan in 49 years when they triumphed 2-1 in the UAE in 2018. It was far from an easy victory.

The Black Caps enjoyed their tightest ever Test win - and the fifth tightest by any team - in terms of runs in the opening match at Abu Dhabi. Bowled out for 153 in their first innings, the Kiwis did well to bowl Pakistan out for 227 in reply. Having set Pakistan a target of 176 to win, New Zealand's hopes of victory looked dead and buried as Sarfaraz Ahmed's team reached lunch on day four at 130/4.

Needing just 29 runs to win, the match was turned on its head when Babar Azam was run out. From there the wheels came off for Pakistan as Ajaz Patel took four wickets in the blink of an eye to conjure the most improbable of victories.

Pakistan bit back with a vengeance in the second Test, crushing New Zealand by an innings and 16 runs in a match that saw 14 Yasir Shah wickets. They looked on track to take out the series from there, taking a 74-run first innings lead before reducing New Zealand to 37/3 and then 60/4 in their second innings. In the company of Henry Nicholls (126), captain Kane Williamson (139) flipped the script but even he would not have been too hopeful of victory when they declared midway through the morning session on day five.

By lunch Pakistan were 55/5 and by tea they were all out, having slid from 131/6 to 156 all out.

2019 - South Africa vs Sri Lanka

Reeling from a 2-0 demolition at the hands of Australia, Sri Lanka arrived in South Africa with few giving them any chance of victory. They went on to become the first Asian side to ever win a Test series against the Proteas in their own backyard.

It is a series victory best remembered for the efforts of Kusal Perera in Durban, where he produced one of modern cricket's most memorable innings. Chasing 304 to win, the Sri Lankans were in a world of hurt at 110/5. Taking on an attack featuring Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada, Perera steadied the ship momentarily with Dhananjaya de Silva but was ultimately left to chase the final 78 runs with No.11 Vishwa Fernando. With Fernando standing bravely, Perera farmed the strike as much as possible and attacked South Africa's bowlers with glee, eventually finishing unbeaten on 153 in an incredible victory.

A match later they proved the victory was no one-off, making light work of a chase of 197 to win the second Test and the series 2-0. They are only the second side in the past 50 years to have clean-swept South Africa in South Africa after Australia in 2005/06.