In over 30 years of watching cricket, the best batsman we have had the pleasure to see is Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards.
A billion souls in India will doubtless disagree and other may proffer Ricky Ponting or Viv's fellow West Indian Brian Lara as the greatest of modern day batsmen, but for us it is Richards every time.
He entered the arena like a gladiator. By the time his cocksure strut to the crease had been completed, many bowlers had already been cowed. Those that hadn't soon were once the maroon capped Richards had unleashed some of his dazzling array of destructive strokeplay.
King Viv is 60 today, which beggars belief. How the West Indian side of today could do with his talent, leadership and indomitable pride.
Happy birthday Sir Viv.
Where next?
The best 30 batsmen ever - Part 1: 30-21, Part 2: 20-11, Part 3: 10-1
Cricket's top ten master blasters
An all-time West Indies Test XI
Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
Being cricket obsessives and regarding The Clash as the best rock group ever, anything that combines the words 'Punk' and 'Cricket' is bound to grab our attention at The Reverse Sweep. Throw in a bit of English humour with an amusing play on words and voila, you have a winning combination.
Therefore the t-shirts and other clothing apparel made by the guys at Punk Cricket gets a big tick in the box from us.
We were sent a 'Bodyline - Ashes Winners 1932' t-shirt in striking red, which went down very well given its imaginative design, heavyweight material and the fact that it contained the hallowed names of Jardine, Verity, Larwood, Voce, Hammond, Sutcliffe et al.
The 'Viv Richards Master Blaster' went down just as well and has an original sunflower and maroon colour scheme and depicts the greatest batsman we've ever seen in the flesh with that familiar SS Jumbo in his powerful hands.
We get asked to do a fair amount of advertorials (or should that be blogvertorials?) at the Reverse Sweep, but Punk Cricket was one that we couldn't turn down because we just think that they are damn good.
Go and have a look for yourself and be seen in the kind of gear that your average MCC member would shy away from.
Where next?
Cricket heroes: Douglas Jardine
Cricket heroes: Hedley Verity
Cricket heroes: Viv Richards
They also played cricket - an XI of illustriously named Cricketers
Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
This week saw the publication of our 1000th post since we started The Reverse Sweep in 2009, which we suppose is cause for some mild celebration.
Cricket Heroes & Zeroes is perhaps the most prominent feature of this blog, so here is a team of our cricket heroes to muse over whilst we sip our celebratory glass of Bollinger (and no Doug, we don't mean you).
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Jack Hobbs
The Master. We were in awe of his staggering accomplishments as a youngster and we still are.
See Cricket heroes: Jack Hobbs
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Victor Trumper
The thinking man's Bradman. Stylish, effervescent and with all the strokes. The first batsman to hit a Test hundred before lunch.
See All-time Australian Ashes XI: The Openers
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Viv Richards
Sachin acolytes will doubtless disagree, but King Viv is the not only the most destructive but the best batsman we've seen in 30 plus years of watching cricket. And what about that swagger?
See Cricket heroes: Viv Richards
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David Gower
Our first cricket memory that really resonates was our boyhood hero Gower nonchalantly dispatching his first ball in Test cricket to the boundary.
See cricket heroes: David Gower
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Douglas Jardine (Captain)
England's greatest captain and the foe of Bradman in the notorious (and ultimately successful) Ashes expedition of 1932/33.
See cricket heroes: Douglas Jardine
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Keith Miller
Flamboyant cricketer? Check. War hero? Check. Alleged dalliances with Princesses? Check. What's not to like?
See Keith Miller: Champion all-rounder, war hero & raconteur
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Ian Botham
He may divide opinion as a commentator, but for any English born, cricket loving child of the late seventies and early eighties, Beefy was the original comic book hero.
See All-time England Ashes XI - All-rounder, plus Botham's Ashes and 10 reasons why Ian Botham may have worn sunglasses at the premiere of 'From the Ashes'
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Henry Blofeld
Don't laugh. Until he lost an argument with a bus, Blofeld was a promising enough schoolboy wicketkeeper to be talked about as a future Test player. But it is Blofeld's eccentric, irreverent and unmissable commentary on Test Match Special that gets him in here.
See cricket heroes: Henry Blofeld
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Hedley Verity
England's greatest ever spinner died a hero leading his men into battle in the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943. 1956 first-class wickets at an incredible 14.90 is the ultimate evidence of Verity's genius.
See cricket heroes: Hedley Verity
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Malcolm Marshall
If Richards is the best batsman we've ever seen, then Marshall is the best bowler. Marshall had everything. Express pace, a nasty bouncer (just ask Mike Gatting and Andy Lloyd) and the ability to swing the ball both ways.
See cricket heroes: Malcolm Marshall
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Harold Larwood
Bodyline's scapegoat is reputed to have been the fastest bowler ever and he certainly executed Jardine's cunning plan to the letter. His dignified response to being ostracised by the establishment proved he was as brilliant a man as he had been the most fearsome of fast bowlers.
See All-time Ashes XI and also Bodyline and nine other Ashes controversies
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Where next?
Cricket Heroes: Graham Dilley R.I.P
Check out all our other Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
There's an interesting (if rather long) interview over on Cricinfo with Daren Ganga, skipper of Trinidad & Tobago in which he talks about the possible future demise of the West Indies cricket side.
Whilst Ganga clearly has an axe to grind with the selectors and the WICB in general, it is rather worrying how candid he is about the the likelihood of Trinidad & Tobago and other island nations breaking away and going it alone.
Ganga has built an impressive reputation as an astute leader - something so lacking within the current West Indies side and the upper echelons of the WICB - so his views carry more weight than most.
He talks a lot of sense about striking a balance between the player power being lobbied for by WIPA and the dictatorial stance of the WICB. Indeed, one wonders if he had been negotiating with the board on behalf of Chris Gayle whether the current impasse would have been reached.
Ganga also seems credible when he talks about the potential of the separate island nations going it alone in international cricket, pointing to the success of the Jamaican sprint team and his own islands reaching the football World Cup in 2006 (funnily enough he didn't mention the Jamaican bobsleight team made famous in Cool Runnings).
As a child of the seventies and eighties, it is inconceivable that the West Indies cricket team could disappear. Not just because they were a formidable side (Viv Richards and Malcolm Marshall are the best batsman and fast bowler respectively that we've seen play the game), but also because of the pride, desire, unity and strong leadership they had.
Unfortunately, it seems that the current crop of players don't take the same pride in wearing the maroon cap - can anyone imagine Richards foregoing the chance to play for the West Indies in favour of playing in some spurious T20 league for the likes of the Baghdad Bandits?
No, thought not. Whilst there is talent in the ranks, there is as much disunity, lack of pride and poor leadership inside and outside the team.
So it may be that Ganga's prophecy may come to pass. That will be a sad, sad day for cricket lovers everywhere.
Where next?
Our all-time West Indies XI to celebrate the release of 'Fire in Babylon'
Chris Gayle may be cool, but we're not sure even he can carry this look off...
Fire in Babylon - relive the glory years of West Indies cricket & weep at its current parlous state
Time for a coup d'etat at the WICB over Chris Gayle cock-up
Chris Gayle slams the WICB after being compared to a drugs lord
Top 20 Cricket Blogs: 14 - WICB Exposé / @wicbexpose
Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
As we wrote yesterday, we're pretty excited at the prospect of seeing 'Fire in Babylon', the film about the great West Indies cricket side of the 1970's and 80's.
The comparison between that team and the current sorry outfit is frightening and hopes cannot be high for the team is it embarks today on a home Test series with Pakistan having not won any of its previous 18 Tests.
But as Fire in Babylon retells, the West Indies has a rich heritage of magnificent cricketers. To coincide with the release of the film, here is our all-time West Indies XI:
1. Gordon Greenidge (108 tests, 19 hundreds, average 44.72) - A vivid memory of our childhood was Greenidge's brutal unbeaten 214 at Lord's in 1984, which made mincemeat of a victory target of 344. Immensely powerful and destructive, Greenidge was the template for the modern breed of attacking openers like Sehwag and Dilshan. Formed two of the greatest opening partnerships of all time with Desmond Haynes for the Windies and Barry Richards for Hampshire.
2. George Headley (22 tests, 10 hundreds, average 60.83) - One of the greats of the game. In 22 tests, when he pretty much was the West Indies batting, Headley hit ten centuries including eight against England. His test match average is one of the best in history, and the tag of the 'Black Bradman was certainly justified. Indeed, Headley's admirers responded by calling Bradman the 'white Headley', and the fact that is a compliment to the Don shows just how good the pioneering Headley was.
3. Sir Viv Richards (Captain, 121 tests, 24 hundreds, average 50.23) - The most devastating batsman in the history of the game, Richards was absolutely unstoppable on his day. His style was a mixture of swagger and intimidation, and bowlers visibly cowered when faced with an on-song King Viv. It is fitting that he has the fastest-ever Test century, from just 56 balls against England in Antigua during the 1986 tour. With Worrell and Lloyd not making the cut, Richards is captain of our all-conquering Caribbean XI.
4. Brian Lara (131 tests, 34 hundreds, average 52.88) - Holds the record for the highest Test and First Class scores of 400 not out and 501 not out respectively. When he started his career, the West Indian era of dominance was on the wane. By the time he finished it, his side was in the doldrums. As a result Lara spent most of his time trying to keep his side afloat, which makes his record all the more remarkable. Perhaps his best achievement was in 1999 at home to Australia, when he single-handedly won the second and third tests with scores of 213 and 153 not out. He scored a century too in the fourth test, but couldn’t prevent Australia squaring the series.
5. Everton Weekes (48 tests, 15 hundreds, average 58.61) - One of the immortal 'three Ws', Walcott believed that Weekes was the best all-round batsman of the three. An attacking batsman with a vast array of strokes, Weekes made an electric start to his test career reaching 1,000 runs in only his 12th innings; one fewer than Bradman. During this run he also scored five centuries in consecutive innings against England and India - still a Test record.
6. Sir Gary Sobers (93 tests, 26 hundreds, average 57.78, 235 wickets at 34.03) - Cricket’s greatest all-rounder. With the bat, Sobers mixed elegance with power and for a long time held the record for the highest Test score until he was usurped by Lara. Perhaps his best innings though came for the Rest of the World against Australiain 1972 when Sobers played an innings of 254 described by Bradman as "probably the greatest exhibition of batting ever seen in Australia". Batting wasn't his only talent either. Indeed, he could bowl left arm fast medium as well as both orthodox and leg spin.
7. Sir Clyde Walcott (44 tests, 15 hundreds, average 56.68, 53 catches, 11 stumpings) - Ok, Walcott wasn't as good a keeper as Dujon and even relinquished the gloves following back trouble (not that he would have to bend over too much keeping to this attack). But how can you leave out someone this good? Walcott played an instrumental role in the first West Indian victory on English soil at Lord’s in 1950 scoring 168 not out. Along with Weekes, he was arguably the best batsman in the World during the mid-1950s, reaching his peak with an incredible five hundreds and 827 runs during Australia’s first Test series in the Caribbean. This team bats deep!
8. Malcolm Marshall (81 tests, 376 wickets at 20.94) - If picking the batsmen was hard, whittling down a long line of brilliant West Indies fast bowlers is even harder. Including Marshall though wasn't difficult as he was arguably the best of the lot. Fearsomely fast and with the ability to swing the ball both ways, Marshall was often unplayable and England in particular were frequent victims. His strike rate of 46.22 was as phenomenal as his premature death at the age of 41 was tragic. No doubt, Marshall has reduced Bradman's average of 99.94 since he joined the heavenly all-time greats on the elysian cricket field.
9. Curtly Ambrose (98 tests, 405 wickets at 20.99) - The most menacing bowler of his generation and given his dislike for speaking to the media, was like a silent if giant assassin. Once took seven wickets for one run in the most devastating of spells against Australia, but as England fans we remember him blasting out Mike Atherton's side for just 46 in Port of Spain more.
10. Joel Garner (58 Tests, 259 wickets at 20.97) - Can anyone imagining having to face Ambrose and Garner on the same bouncy wicket? When we picked this side last time, we opted for a spinner (Sonny Ramadhin), but this time partly in honour of 'Fire in Babylon' we go for four quicks. 'Big Bird' was a legend and unleashed one of the most devastating yorkers the game has ever seen from his monstrous 6'8" frame.
11. Michael Holding (60 tests, 249 wickets at 23.68) - It could have been Roberts, Hall, Walsh or even the pioneer Constantine, but we settle for Whispering Death as our final quick. Could well be the fastest bowler in history and he certainly had the longest run-up. His run-up and delivery were poetry in motion for all who watched except for the terrified batsman at the other end. Now an erudite and forthright commentator, Holding is perhaps best remembered for his monumental 14 for 149 at The Oval in 1976.
12th man - Sonny Ramadhin (43 tests, 158 wickets at 28.98) - Wins a toss-up with Lance Gibbs, although we never saw either of them bowl live in the flesh. Ramadhin could spin the ball both ways and bowl off and leg breaks and it is this versatility that tipped the scales in his favour. Was the hero when West Indies won their first test at Lord's with 11 for 152 in 1950.
Where next?
Fire in Babylon - relive the glory years of West Indies cricket & weep at its current parlous state
Cricket heroes: Malcolm Marshall
Cricket heroes: Viv Richards
Cricket heroes: Michael Holding
Time for a coup d'etat at the WICB over Chris Gayle cock-up
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
We’re pretty excited at the prospect of watching the ‘Fire in Babylon’ film (see trailer below) about the legendary West Indian side of the 1970's and 80's here at The Reverse Sweep.
It will certainly be a trip down memory lane to see the likes of Holding, Garner, Marshall and Richards in full flow and putting the jeepers up opposition batsmen and bowlers once again.
In our view that West Indies team is the greatest cricket side of them all – better than Bradman’s Invincibles, better than the England side that toured Australia in 1928/29, and better than Steve Waugh’s formidable Australian unit of 1999-2003.
And we don’t think we are looking through rose tinted spectacles either. Between 1980 and 1995 (yes, we know the film covers 1974-84 only), the West Indies played 29 Test series, winning 20, drawing 9 and losing none. To dominate for that long without losing a single rubber is not only phenomenal, it is unparalleled.
That makes all the sadder still the state that West Indies cricket finds itself in today. Their best batsman and premier all-rounder prefer to play the IPL to a home Test series with Pakistan. The team is in a lowly position in the rankings (and has been for some time) having not won a Test for 18 matches. And perhaps worst of all the WICB is in such a disgraceful and parlous state that it makes Ijaz Butt’s PCB look like a well-run organisation.
Whilst talented youngsters like Devendra Bishoo, Andre Russell, Adrian Barath and Darren Bravo suggest that there may be some light at what has been an extremely long tunnel; hopes cannot be high for the future of West Indian cricket.
So the prospect of watching ‘Fire in Babylon’ is an even more enticing and nostalgic prospect than it otherwise would be.
Where next?
Cricket heroes: Malcolm Marshall
Cricket heroes: Viv Richards
Cricket heroes: Michael Holding
Time for a coup d'etat at the WICB over Chris Gayle cock-up
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
Judging by the pitiful batting performances from the West Indies in the first two ODIs with Pakistan, it would seem that they are missing Chris Gayle more than he is missing them.
Such is the scarcity of talent in West Indies cricket that the WICB can ill-afford an undignified slanging match with its best batsman and former captain.
Gayle really rubbed salt into the wound by scoring a blistering 55 ball hundred in his first match for Bangalore having just arrived by plane from the Caribbean – it would seem that Gayle is far too cool for jet lag.
The IPL versus international cricket conundrum could easily be solved by inserting a window for the IPL into the international schedule, and whilst we certainly have no love of the IPL here at The Reverse Sweep, this does appear to be the most sensible thing to do.
But until it does cricket boards like the WICB would be well advised to apply a more intelligent approach to its best players.
For example, the WICB could have publicly suggested to Gayle that they would allow him to miss the ODI series with Pakistan to play in the IPL, providing that he committed to participate in the Test series that follows.
Faced with the probable uproar that a refusal of this compromise would likely have provoked, Gayle would doubtless have complied.
As it is, the WICB is now faced with the very real prospect of a long-drawn out stand-off with its best batsman and possibly his premature retirement from international cricket. If even half of what Gayle says about the lack of communication from the WICB is true, then the WICB has made yet another colossal cock-up.
Whilst Gayle is not entirely innocent in this sorry tale, it is the WICB who should take most of the blame for the way they have completely mishandled the situation. Sadly, the lunatics took over that particular asylum a long, long time ago.
It takes a lot to make the PCB appear competent, but the continued ineptitude of the WICB is doing just that.
A coup d’etat at the WICB is long overdue. Now is the time to hand over the reins of power to the likes of Sir Viv Richards, Michael Holding and Clive Lloyd.
Like Obi-Wan Kenobi was for Princess Leia, that really is West Indian cricket’s only hope.
Where next?
An all-time West Indies Test XI
Check out all our Cricket heroes and zeroes
An XI of unlikely World Cup heroes and a not so heroic 12th man
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
At the risk of upsetting at least a billion souls, we’ll happily declare that Sir Vivian Richards is the not only the most destructive batsman we have seen with our own eyes at the Reverse Sweep, but the greatest.
No collection of World Cup Cricket Heroes would be complete without the presence of Richards, who with apologies to Ricky Ponting in 2003 and Adam Gilchrist in 2007 played the best knock ever in a World Cup final – Richards’ 138 not out against England in 1979.
Whether it was his cocksure strut to the crease, the fact that he batted nonchalantly without a helmet or that his sole mission in life seemed to be to destroy the opposition bowling attack, Richards was pure theatre.
There will be those who will counter that Tendulkar or Lara of batsmen of the last 30 years are greater, and we know that there are many arguments to suggest they are better than King Viv.
But memorable events from your childhood always seem better and whether it was pounding the England attack at Lord’s in the 1979 Final or obliterating England again with a 56 ball hundred (the quickest ever in Tests) at Antigua in 1986 then the name of Viv Richards is always uttered in awe in the Reverse Sweep household.
Finally, whilst it may not have been a World Cup match, Richards in our view played the greatest one day innings of them all at Old Trafford in 1984. West Indies slipped to 102 for seven and then 161 for nine, but Richards coaxed Michael Holding into a last wicket stand of 106 from the final 14 overs of the innings. Richards scored 93 of these runs to finish on 189 not out from 170 balls.
Simply devastating. Simply heroic. Simply King Viv.
Where next?
Read about our other cricket heroes and zeroes
Check out our Reverse Sweep XIs
Read all our 2011 World Cup posts here
The best 30 batsmen ever - Part 1: 30-21, Part 2: 20-11, Part 3: 10-1
Cricket's top ten master blasters
An all-time West Indies Test XI
If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep
Last year we wrote a post for World Cricket Watch, where we named our top 20 batsmen of all time. As we explained a couple of days ago, now seems a good time to revisit this. Firstly, so we can extend the list this time to 30. But secondly, because we are prepared to admit that we erred somewhat last time in placing Sachin Tendulkar behind Ricky Ponting in the all-time batting pantheon. Given that the Ashes were on at the time, we must have done it out of fear that Ponting would inspire his side to retain the little urn.
Today, in the final part we count down from 10 to 1. At this point we should add, that this exercise was just as difficult as it was last year when we wrote a similar piece for World Cricket Watch. This time, despite extending the list to 30 names, there was still no place for the likes of Jacques Kallis, Zaheer Abbas, Steve Waugh, Adam Gilchrist, Frank Woolley, CB Fry, Neil Harvey, Kumar Sangakkara, Martin Crowe, Geoff Boycott, David Gower, Ted Dexter, Clive Lloyd, Gordon Greenidge, or Aravinda da Silva. Next time, we might have to go for a top 50!
If you missed our earlier posts on this subject, please check out the batsmen who filled numbers 30-21 and 20-11.
10. Victor Trumper (
9. Brian Lara (
8. Sachin Tendulkar (
7. George Headley (
6. William ‘W.G’ Grace (
5. Vivian Richards (
4. Jack Hobbs (
3. Walter Hammond (
2. Garfield Sobers (
1. Donald Bradman (
West Indies' home test series with South Africa kicks off today at Port of Spain with the hosts in utter disarray after a dismal World T20 and then seven straight defeats to today's opponents in the recent Twenty 20 and one day internationals.
Rarely can the once great West Indies side have been in such a negative mind set with captain Chris Gayle admitting that "Losing has become a habit, but we have to put that behind us and look forward to the Test series." It will be a major surprise should they even draw the series with Graeme Smith's side and for people like us who grew up with the dominant West Indian team of the 1980s, that is still quite hard to get used to.
We believe that a strong West Indies side is important for the world game and the brand of cricket they play is always one that is good on the eye, so in the vain hope that it may inspire Chris Gayle and his troops here is our all-time West Indies test XI. Unsurprisingly, none of the current team were even close to making it, and when you consider that the likes of Sir Frank Worrell, Desmond Haynes, Clive Lloyd, Richie Richardson and Rohan Kanhai also didn't make the final cut, then the rich heritage of Caribbean cricket is abundantly clear. And that was just the batsmen. Jeff Dujon, Joel Garner, Courtney Walsh, Andy Roberts, Wes Hall, Charlie Griffith, Learie Constantine, Lance Gibbs and Alf Valentine were also regretfully ruled out.
1. Gordon Greenidge (108 tests, 19 hundreds, average 44.72)- A vivid memory from our childhood was Greenidge's brutal unbeaten 214 at Lord's in 1984 against England to make mincemeat of a victory target of 344. Immensely powerful and destructive, Greenidge was the template for the modern breed of attacking openers like Sehwag and Dilshan, but this West Indian was better than them all. Formed two of the greatest opening partnerships of all time with Desmond Haynes for the Windies and Barry Richards for Hampshire.
2. George Headley (22 tests, 10 hundreds, average 60.83) -The 'Black Bradman' (or was Bradman the 'White Headley'?) has a claim to be the Windies best batsman ever. Despite single-handedly being the West Indian batting line-up on his own, Headley still scored an astonishing ten centuries in his 22 tests. Normally batted at three, but is picked as an opener here as no doubt his supreme brilliance could have easily be transferred to this role.
3. Sir Viv Richards (Captain, 121 tests, 24 hundreds, average 50.23) - Regarded by cricket aficionados as probably the most devastating batsman in the history of the game, King Viv was absolutely unstoppable on his day. His style was a mixture of swagger and intimidation and most bowlers seemed to visibly cower when faced with an on-song Richards. It is befitting that he is the scorer of the fastest-ever Test century, from just 56 balls against England on his home island of Antiguaduring the 1986 tour. With Worrell and Lloyd not making the cut, Richards also captain's our all-conquering Caribbean XI.
4. Brian Lara (131 tests, 34 hundreds, average 52.88) - The man with the highest Test and First Class scores of 400 not out and 501 not out respectively. When he started his career, West Indies' era of dominance was on the wane. By the time he finished it, his side was in the doldrums and as a result he spent most of his time trying to keep the side afloat making his record even more impressive. Perhaps his best achievement was in 1999 in the home series against Australia, when he single-handedly won the second and third tests with scores of 213 and 153 not out after his side had been obliterated in the first test. He scored a century too in the fourth and final test, but couldn’t prevent Australia squaring the series.
5. Everton Weekes (48 tests, 15 hundreds, average 58.61) - One of the immortal 'three Ws', Walcott believed that Weekes was the best all-round batsman of the three. An attacking cricketer with a vast array of strokes, Weekes made an electric start to his test career reaching 1,000 runs in only his 12th innings; one fewer than Bradman. During this run he also scored five centuries in consecutive innings against England and India - still a test record.
6. Sir Gary Sobers (93 tests, 26 hundreds, average 57.78, 235 wickets at 34.03) - Widely regarded as Cricket’s greatest all-rounder. With the bat, Sobers mixed elegance with power and for a long time held the record for the highest Test score until he was usurped by his fellow West Indian Brian Lara. Perhaps his best innings though came for the Rest of the World against Australiain 1972 when Sobers played an innings of 254 which was described by Bradman as "probably the greatest exhibition of batting ever seen in Australia". But batting wasn't his only talent. Indeed, he could bowl left arm fast medium as well as both orthodox and leg spin.
7. Sir Clyde Walcott (44 tests, 15 hundreds, average 56.68, 53 catches, 11 stumpings) - Ok, Walcott wasn't as good a keeper as Dujon and even had to relinquish the gloves following back trouble, but how can you leave out someone this good? Walcott played an instrumental role in the first West Indian victory on English soil at Lord’s in 1950 scoring 168 not out. Along with Weekes, he was arguably the best batsman in the World during the mid-1950s reaching his peak with an incredible five hundreds and 827 runs during Australia’s first Test series in the Caribbean. This team bats deep!
8. Malcolm Marshall (81 tests, 376 wickets at 20.94) - If picking the batsmen was hard, whittling down a long line of brilliant West Indies fast bowlers is even harder. The decision to include Marshall though wasn't difficult as he is arguably the best of the lot. Fearsomely fast and with the ability to swing the ball both ways, Marshall was often unplayable and England in particular were frequent victims. His strike rate of 46.22 was as phenomenal as his premature death at the age of 41 was tragic. No doubt, Marshall has reduced Bradman's average of 99.94 since he joined the heavenly all-time greats.
9. Curtly Ambrose (98 tests, 405 wickets at 20.99) - It was a split decision with big bird Joel Garner, but it's the equally large Ambrose who just sneaks our vote. Once took seven wickets for one run in the most devastating of spells against Australia, but as England fans we remember him hustling out Mike Atherton's side for 46 in Port of Spain more.
10. Michael Holding (60 tests, 249 wickets at 23.68) - It could have been Roberts, Hall, Walsh or even the pioneer Constantine, but we settle for Whispering Death as our third quick. Could well be the fastest bowler in history and he certainly had the longest run-up. His run-up and delivery were poetry in motion for all who watched except for the terrified batsman at the other end. Now an erudite and forthright commentator, Holding is perhaps best remembered for his 14 for 149 at The Oval in 1976.
11. Sonny Ramadhin (43 tests, 158 wickets at 28.98) - Wins a toss-up with Lance Gibbs, although we never saw either of them bowl live in the flesh. Ramadhin could spin the ball both ways and bowl off and leg breaks and it is this versatility that tipped the scales in his favour. Was the hero when West Indies won their first test at Lord's with 11 for 152 in 1950.
I've already posted this as part of my latest 'Reverse Sweep' column for Pongo Cricket and World Cricket Watch, but wanted to include it on my own blog too. I had planned it to be my 100th post since I started this blog just before Christmas, but I managed to cock that one up. So therefore, I am now celebrating my 102nd post. Hooray!
A list of my cricketing heroes
As some of you will know, the brain behind Cricket With Balls has recently embarked on Cricket Sadist, which is described as “the cricket magazine for sadists and masochists, not tragics”. Anyway, the first issue is due out on 1 April and I contributed a piece on Douglas Jardine, my all-time cricketing hero. So in order to promote the magazine and subsequently therefore ensure (I hope) that my Jardine piece makes the cut, here is a list of my all-time cricketing heroes.
Douglas Jardine – You’ll have to read Cricket Sadist to find out why Jardine (below) is at number one, if my article makes the cut that is….
Hedley Verity – England’s greatest ever spinner who tragically died prematurely as a hero in World War II. He took 7 wickets for 9 runs in what proved to be his last match for Yorkshire.
Donald Bradman – He may have been the scourge of England, but 99.94 mean no other words are necessary.
David Gower – My favourite player as a schoolboy. I even tried but failed to change my natural right handed style to be a left hander like him. And like me, also a David G.
Keith Miller – Not only a brilliant cricketer, but also a raconteur and notorious cad. What’s not to like?
Harold Larwood – Jardine’s main weapon in Australia in 1932/33 refused to apologise for Bodyline and never played for England again. I like people with strong principles.
Ian Botham – Great cricketer, crap commentator. But always a hero of mine simply because of 1981 when as a wide eyed nine year old I watched his historic feats at Headingley, Edgbaston and Old Trafford.
Viv Richards – The coolest cricketer ever? He even makes Chris Gayle look positively uncool in comparison.
W.G.Grace – Of all the many reasons to like Grace this is my favourite. When he was bowled once, first ball, he promptly picked up the bails and replaced them, repositioning himself to take the next ball. The umpire, not unnaturally, objected. "Don't be silly," said WG, and pointed to the crowd. "They've come to see me bat, not you umpire." Magical.
Paul Collingwood – I know. But here I’ve picked the cricketer that reminds me most of my own batting ‘style’. Well the Brigadier Block version anyway.
And I still haven't written about Victor Trumper, Imran Khan, Gary Sobers, SF Barnes... The list goes on. More cricketing heroes on the 202nd, 302nd and so on posts!
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