Who Is The Greatest Cricketer Of All Time?
Sky News are conducting a poll on whether Brian Lara is the greatest cricketer of all time. At the moment it appears that only 25% of respondents believe so. I would also side with the no voters.
I assess a player's greatness by examining the effect their performances have on the games that they play in. There is nothing Lara, or any batsman, can do to prevent the opposition from batting their team out of the game. Similarly bowlers are equally powerless to prevent a batting collapse. Therefore the greatest player of all time must be an all-rounder.
Great all-rounders have that special ability to influence a game with either bat or ball at crucial times. Using that criterion Botham, Kallis and Flintoff would be in my top five cricketers. However, the best all-rounder of all time is Garry Sobers. His ability to bowl off-spin as well as pace was a selectors dream and his ability to win the game with either bat or ball was legendary. The ex-England captain Mike Denness commented that he and his follow batsman would be worried if Sobers didn't score any runs as they knew he would bowl at them with a belief that this would be the way he'd make his impact on the game.
There has been no greater all-rounder, there has been no greater cricketer, than Sir Garry Sobers.
posted by Unknown @ 8:48 pm
8 Comments:
Hi Pat...
Though such polls are fun I feel we shouldnt compare players from different eras.
Sobers' is a strong case... but then Bradman didn't need to bowl... he won matches with his bat anyways :-)
Hi Reem, You're back!
Agreed it's just a bit of fun on an otherwise slow news day.
Any full discussion would have to mention Bradman, either to nominate him as the best or to explain why they thought their particular choice was better.
My view remains that the greatest player has to be an all-rounder due to the value they bring to the team.
Yes Pat...i'm back...
I feel your blog is a better place to chat about cricket controversies than "biggies" like cricinfo or baggygreen...
I want to add another twist to the greatest cricketer debate :)
South Africa!
What would have the Pollocks, Proctors and Barry Richards' international records been if South Africa had continued to play?
Yet another angle:
What about leadership? Captaincy in cricket is more difficult than in other sports becasue of the onfield spot decisions they need to make... and as a result their individual records may not be as good as those of the players they motivate to perform.
Hi Reem,
I hadn't considered the Captaincy angle and you're right, a good captain can turn a game just as easily as a good batsman or bowler. But Garry Sobers was captain too so I won't revise my decision!
It's impossible to know how good Pollock, Proctor and Barry Richards really were as they weren't tried out against the best for a sustained period. Graeme Hick would have been added that list if the powers that be hadn't decided that he could play for England.
Thanks for the comments, real food for thought!
The incomparable Imran Khan was the greatest cricketer of all time. This man could win a match both with the ball as well as with the bat -not to mention his abilities in inspiring a team to great achievements such as the World cup. . .
Too right Adrain! To leave the great Imran Khan out of a discussion of who the 'Greatest EVER Cricketer' is to show absolute Folly. This man takes it hands down. Some people STILL persist with Gary Sobers as the Greatest. This clearly needs looking at again. Gary NEVER had the kind of competition as that what was in play from mid 70s to the late 80s, when the likes of Imran had to deal. Gary's runs were gotten againt 'pidly podly' or 'rolly polly' bowlers who NEVER warranted the need for a helmet. Indeed Never once did Gary wear a helmet as it was not needed. Nothing like the demon bowlers such as Dennis Lillee, Jeffery Thompson and the 'Battery' of fast bowlers that a batsman of the 'modern era' has to deal with. Some people still persist with Botham as the greatest. Botham was a great player for only HALF of his playing life. That was the FIRST half of his life as a cricketer. The second half was 'gifted' to him by the England selection committee desperate for him to bring out something of his old self. As a sharp contrast to the incomparable Imran, go back to the final of 1992 world cup. This was the final match either of them played for their respective countries. That final result of the 1992 World Cup, is just about the result of who was the better of Imran Versus Botham. Of-course, I will take nothing away from Ian Botham. He was one of the Greatest Cricketers of all time. Only Imran was " THE " Greatest of All time.
Sachin Tendulkar. The GOD of cricket. I dont think anybody can deny the fact that Sachin Tendulkar is the greatest player ever in the history of cricket. He is really a miracle.
SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR - THE REAL CRICKETER AND THE GOD OF CRICKET :
His records were really amazing .no one deserves it.played the international cricket f0r 24 years with huge expectations and under huge pressure.and also played with 3 generation cricketers.he almost smashed the dangerous bowling attack of bowlers like akram,warne,muralidharan,waqar yunis,akthar,imran khan,ian botham,lee,steyn,morkel,mitchel johnson,caddick,pollock,allan donald,ambrose,walsh,jason gillespie and etc.,
he is the true and gentle cricketer bcoz he was given out for abt 70 times by wrong decisions but he never appeal or complianed about those decisions.no fight with any players, not involved in any problems,not under estimate and compared any players and etc.,
he was the night mare of all great bowlers.he was fully dedicated and sacrifice his life to cricket.played with many injuries even at crucial time.
SALUTE THE MASTER
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