smash84
The Tiger King
Number 09 Sir Richard Hadlee
Highest Ranking 3
Total Points 791
Number of Votes Received 50/57
Rank in 1st Edition 10
What they said of him
“"Richard Hadlee was a left handed batsman who liked to hit the ball very hard. He was an accurate right arm swing and seam bowler with a good technique and fluent action, with an economic approach to the crease. He was the master of rhythm and swing." (One knight on another. Sir Donald Bradman on Sir Richard Hadlee)
"I think he was the best corridor bowler that I have ever played against or seen at pace, not medium pace, very sharp……He was a majestic bowler.” (Geoff Boycott, himself one of the most difficult to dislodge openers in cricket, on Richard Hadlee)
“Very skillful, very intense, studied the game, studied the opposition, he focused on the goals that he wanted to achieved and he achieved them” (Former South African captain Kepler Wessels)
Sir Richard Hadlee
One of the greatest fast bowlers of all time and counted as a very good all rounder, Richard Hadlee, is the finest cricketer to come from New Zealand and he takes his place of honor at number 9 in CW’s greatest cricketers of all time. Few players in the history of cricket have carried the fortunes of their team to quite the same extent as Richard Hadlee. By the time he retired from international cricket in 1990, at the age of 39 and with a knighthood newly conferred upon him for his services to the game, Hadlee had cemented his place as one of the great fast bowlers of all time, and lifted New Zealand to unprecedented feats in the Test arena. As the first player to reach 400 Test wickets, Hadlee was always assured of immortality, but in addition to his matchless skills with the ball, he was also a hard-hitting batsman of unquestioned skill. His first great demolition job came in Wellington in February 1978 - five years on from his debut - when his 10 wickets, including 6 for 26 in the second innings, condemned England to a first defeat against the Kiwis. However, it was for the Australians that he preserved his finest efforts, and his 15-wicket haul in Brisbane in 1985-86 remains one of the most talked-of moments in Trans-Tasman rivalry. He needed just 79 matches to reach 400 wickets - a phenomenal strike-rate - and he was still very much at the top of his game when, in 1990. Having such a strong attitude about his own cricket, Hadlee was bound to be a majority of one from time to time. But as the years roll by and other New Zealand candidates bid for greatness, they will have to improve on his heroics in that marvellous 1970-90 reign. With cricket changing its shape year by year, with Test cricket being squeezed into corners not required for one-day matches, it may well be that not even the finest New Zealander of the future will surpass the Test deeds of Richard Hadlee. He bowed out against England at his adopted home of Trent Bridge - his second-innings haul of 5 for 53 included a wicket with his very last delivery.
Highest Ranking 3
Total Points 791
Number of Votes Received 50/57
Rank in 1st Edition 10
What they said of him
“"Richard Hadlee was a left handed batsman who liked to hit the ball very hard. He was an accurate right arm swing and seam bowler with a good technique and fluent action, with an economic approach to the crease. He was the master of rhythm and swing." (One knight on another. Sir Donald Bradman on Sir Richard Hadlee)
"I think he was the best corridor bowler that I have ever played against or seen at pace, not medium pace, very sharp……He was a majestic bowler.” (Geoff Boycott, himself one of the most difficult to dislodge openers in cricket, on Richard Hadlee)
“Very skillful, very intense, studied the game, studied the opposition, he focused on the goals that he wanted to achieved and he achieved them” (Former South African captain Kepler Wessels)
Sir Richard Hadlee
One of the greatest fast bowlers of all time and counted as a very good all rounder, Richard Hadlee, is the finest cricketer to come from New Zealand and he takes his place of honor at number 9 in CW’s greatest cricketers of all time. Few players in the history of cricket have carried the fortunes of their team to quite the same extent as Richard Hadlee. By the time he retired from international cricket in 1990, at the age of 39 and with a knighthood newly conferred upon him for his services to the game, Hadlee had cemented his place as one of the great fast bowlers of all time, and lifted New Zealand to unprecedented feats in the Test arena. As the first player to reach 400 Test wickets, Hadlee was always assured of immortality, but in addition to his matchless skills with the ball, he was also a hard-hitting batsman of unquestioned skill. His first great demolition job came in Wellington in February 1978 - five years on from his debut - when his 10 wickets, including 6 for 26 in the second innings, condemned England to a first defeat against the Kiwis. However, it was for the Australians that he preserved his finest efforts, and his 15-wicket haul in Brisbane in 1985-86 remains one of the most talked-of moments in Trans-Tasman rivalry. He needed just 79 matches to reach 400 wickets - a phenomenal strike-rate - and he was still very much at the top of his game when, in 1990. Having such a strong attitude about his own cricket, Hadlee was bound to be a majority of one from time to time. But as the years roll by and other New Zealand candidates bid for greatness, they will have to improve on his heroics in that marvellous 1970-90 reign. With cricket changing its shape year by year, with Test cricket being squeezed into corners not required for one-day matches, it may well be that not even the finest New Zealander of the future will surpass the Test deeds of Richard Hadlee. He bowed out against England at his adopted home of Trent Bridge - his second-innings haul of 5 for 53 included a wicket with his very last delivery.
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