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The CW50 - No.4

bagapath

International Captain
this is the thread about the 4th greatest cricketer of all time. and the person we are talking about right now doesnt even deserve to read this thread.
 

Matt79

Hall of Fame Member
Pretty pleased with where Warne came out in this process. I had him at 8, but I think I was having a brain snap that day - would have had him in my top 5 most days. For me, Warne encapsulates a lot of my definition of greatness - the part for which runs/wickets on the board and statistical brilliance is a necessity, but ultimately only a small part of their story. My favourite player to watch EVER - doubt I'll ever enjoy cricket as much again.
 

silentstriker

The Wheel is Forever
Not that it means anything to this ranking (as the best innings I've seen in my lifetime was not played by Tendulkar), but what is the best exhibition of spin bowling over a whole series that everyone has seen in their lifetime?

I saw every ball of Ashes 2005 pretty much, and while obviously Warne was great, I maintain that Harbhajan in 2001 vs. Australia was the exhibition best spin bowling I've seen - every ball seemed to land exactly where it was supposed to. More impressive than even Laxman's innings IMO.
 

gvenkat

State Captain
We're just one short of the all time top three, and so the countdown continues with a footy player who spun leggies down in his spare time.


4.


Shane Warne | Cricket Players and Officials | Cricinfo.com
Nominated by 100% of voters - highest ranking no.1

It is a testament not only to Shane Keith Warne's extraordinary ability as a legspinner but also to his monumental impact on the game of cricket as a whole that he is the one and only player to have been nominated by everyone who contributed a list to this exercise. Acknowledged (with apologies to the Tiger and the Pimpernel) as the greatest legspin bowler of all time, more than one good judge of the game has gone further and claimed that Warney is - by both deed and legacy - the greatest bowler of any kind ever to pick up a ball, and as the highest ranking pure bowler on our list it would seem that CricketWeb agrees. One of the most charismatic, talked about and spectacularly controversial sportsmen of his or any other generation, Warne's talents as a cricketer were sometimes almost eclipsed by his seemingly self-destructive nature and peerless ability to become tabloid fodder. Warne more than once referred to his life as a soap opera and he wasn't wrong. But it was a soap opera that kept the eyes of the cricketing world - and much of the world beyond cricket, for that matter - glued to the blonde Victorian leggie for the better part of two decades.

Warne's early career gave no indication of the superstardom which would follow. A frustrated Australian Rules footballer, he was selected for Australia after just a handful of First Class matches and suffered a drubbing on Test debut from India's batsmen - not the last time that would happen, incidentally. But within a year he was winning a Test in Sri Lanka, taking 7-for against the West Indies and then capturing the world's attention with "that" ball to Mike Gatting which preceded a triumphant Ashes series. 1993 was the first of three consecutive years in which Warne would take more than 50 Test wickets, and for much of the '90s he was virtually unplayable. His 300th Test wicket came in January 1998, but after that came several barren years - injuries, loss of form, a balooning of weight and more regular brushes with authority, the press and fans. Despite continued ODI success and particular praise as a clever and enterprising captain, he was overlooked for the Test captaincy and even dropped on one occasion, and it seemed that the best of Warney had been and gone. But in a remarkable turnaround Warne took 31 wickets in the 2001 Ashes series, and in the ensuing years he was better than ever. Controversy was still never far away - an enforced year off for taking banned diuretics saw to that - but his bowling was simply sublime. Ironically, in a career of so many triumphs Warne's crowning individual performance came in defeat - his 40 wickets in the 2005 Ashes series, in a losing cause and all, was one of the all time great Test displays. Retiring after the 5-0 revenge drubbing in 06/07 with a then world record 708 Test wickets to his name, Warne's position as the second biggest name in the history of Australian cricket has become more and more assured with time and reflection. If and when the movie of his life is made, we'll surely all be queueing up to see it.


Only three to go now and you know who they are, so I'll keep them rolling tomorrow...

You would be better of rolling all 3 together.. we all know who it is and the suspense would not be there.. If the third person is revealed. :)
 
For me, Warne encapsulates a lot of my definition of greatness - the part for which runs/wickets on the board and statistical brilliance is a necessity, but ultimately only a small part of their story. My favourite player to watch EVER - doubt I'll ever enjoy cricket as much again.
Agreed. He is the cricketer of the generation and arguably the greatest bowler of all time. To pick 700 wickets with an action like that...just amazing.
 

Uppercut

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Uppercut

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I had him about 6th or 7th ftr. On a different day he could have been number one, it all depends how I choose to define greatness. By quite a distance my favourite cricketer of all time.
 

Fusion

Global Moderator
I had him about 6th or 7th ftr. On a different day he could have been number one, it all depends how I choose to define greatness. By quite a distance my favourite cricketer of all time.
Hmm, shocked by the bolded statement. If you’re defining greatness in terms of what personal impact a cricketer had on you and your love for the game, then fair enough. If not, then I would like to know by what measure of greatness is Warne the greatest cricketer ever? Specially over a Bradman. No matter where I look, be it stats in their relative fields, their winning record, the revolutionary affect they had on their craft, the mesmerizing impact they had on their sport, Bradman is ahead. Not having a go at you, but would be interested to know by what definition you may consider him the greatest ever to play the game.
 

Furball

Evil Scotsman
Hmm, shocked by the bolded statement. If you’re defining greatness in terms of what personal impact a cricketer had on you and your love for the game, then fair enough. If not, then I would like to know by what measure of greatness is Warne the greatest cricketer ever? Specially over a Bradman. No matter where I look, be it stats in their relative fields, their winning record, the revolutionary affect they had on their craft, the mesmerizing impact they had on their sport, Bradman is ahead. Not having a go at you, but would be interested to know by what definition you may consider him the greatest ever to play the game.
In my case, simply the greatest I'd seen.
 

Uppercut

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Hmm, shocked by the bolded statement. If you’re defining greatness in terms of what personal impact a cricketer had on you and your love for the game, then fair enough. If not, then I would like to know by what measure of greatness is Warne the greatest cricketer ever? Specially over a Bradman. No matter where I look, be it stats in their relative fields, their winning record, the revolutionary affect they had on their craft, the mesmerizing impact they had on their sport, Bradman is ahead. Not having a go at you, but would be interested to know by what definition you may consider him the greatest ever to play the game.
It's hard to define. You get to a stage when discussing greatness where you can't really quantify what makes you hold a particular cricketer in such high regard. Some people see it with regards to Warne, others don't, but I'm not exactly alone. It's a bit like if you were to ask me why I think so highly of Charles Dickens.

I can show you where to look, Symcox's face after being bowled round his legs in the previously posted video being one of many examples. But if you don't see it, I can't show it to you. If that makes sense :).
 

NUFAN

Y no Afghanistan flag
Hey The Sean, is it possible that you provide the full list, even people outside the top 50? I don't mind if you do it after you've announced the final 3.
 

Jono

Virat Kohli (c)
Uppercut, this is exactly the same reason why your Benaud's etc. had Sachin as the greatest batsmen since Bradman... particularly in the 90s.

It breaks simple stat analysis and record.
 

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