Best ODI XI You Have Seen

[Furball]

That attack is just sick. Would be interesting to see if anyone could make the nuclear-warhead all-pace attack work today.

Australia are giving it a go with Tait, Nannes and Johnson in T20s. If they got Lee fit it would be fun to watch.

 

[Burgey]

What !!!!!

Think he means it's awesome mate.

Collis King an interesting character wasn't he? Read in Holding's bio that he thought Collis could really have been anything but just didn't kick on as he ought to have.

What a team they were.

 

[Burgey]

You didn't read my post

Sorry mate, I did actually. Fair points.

 

[Richard]

That attack is just sick.

There was an even better one that played in, IIRR, 1981/82 - was either that four plus Sylvester Clarke or that four with Croft substituted for Marshall plus Clarke. The batting in that side would've been lesser though - Kallicharran gone by then and Richardson not yet in. The only weak-link in that 1979 side was Collis King who wasn't much of a OD player - and ironically he played a pivotal knock in the 1979 Cup final, which was about the only occasion he made double-figures in his ODI career.

Would be interesting to see if anyone could make the nuclear-warhead all-pace attack work today.

Not so long ago, South Africa (Pollock, Kallis, Elworthy, Donald, Klusener) did indeed - that was 1999, a decade and more ago yes, but ODI cricket was easily recogniseable for what it is today by then, unlike in 1979 - though I can't help but doubt that most of those WIndians would've been aught but excellent ODI bowlers.

Even England in 2000 (Caddick, Gough, Mullally, Ealham, White) had an all-seam attack of varied excellence, albeit not exactly the ferocity of the WIndian and SAfrican aforementioned quintets.

 

[Richard]

Collis King an interesting character wasn't he? Read in Holding's bio that he thought Collis could really have been anything but just didn't kick on as he ought to have.

Was unbelievably unlucky with selection. Made his Test debut in England in 1976, replacing Larry Gomes, and did pretty well, but then completely inexplicably wasn't picked against Pakistan in 1977, 35-year-old Maurice Foster and 32-year-old Irvine Shillingford were preferred. Then Richard Austin, an all-rounder of sorts and a much inferior batsman to King, got in in 1978 and after the Packer schism Rowe came back - again without much justification. And thereafter King was never quite the player he had been.

As I say though, was never much of a player in the shorter game and it's really ironic that his most pivotal knock came in a ODI.

 

[wpdavid]

Was unbelievably unlucky with selection. Made his Test debut in England in 1976, replacing Larry Gomes, and did pretty well, but then completely inexplicably wasn't picked against Pakistan in 1977, 35-year-old Maurice Foster and 32-year-old Irvine Shillingford were preferred. Then Richard Austin, an all-rounder of sorts and a much inferior batsman to King, got in in 1978 and after the Packer schism Rowe came back - again without much justification. And thereafter King was never quite the player he had been.

As I say though, was never much of a player in the shorter game and it's really ironic that his most pivotal knock came in a ODI.

King & Richards played in a charity match at my school when WI toured in 1976. Wonderful occasion - Richards, as you would expect, found it all absurdly easy. You had to feel a bit sorry for Edrich, who also played but looked second rate in comparison to Viv.

King ended up going on a rebel tour to SA didn't he? Sad way to finish, but his international career was over by then.

 

[Migara]

1. Greenidge
2. Haynes
3. Richards
4. Kallicharan
5. Lloyd (Captain)
6. King
7. Murray (Keeper)
8. Roberts
9. Garner
10. Holding
11. Croft

Thats the West Indies side which won the 1979 world cup. The same 11 played throughout the tournament. There have been few better sides than that if any in either form of the game.

I'd like to put them on a turner against a three man spin attack (like Pakistan, Indian or SL in mid 90s) and see whether they could defend a target of 200.

 

[kiwi_chick]

I'd like to put them on a turner against a three man spin attack (like Pakistan, Indian or SL in mid 90s) and see whether they could defend a target of 200.

Easy. Injure the batsmen by aiming for the head, groin etc, so that their is nobody left to bat for them. Game over.

 

[wpdavid]

I'd like to put them on a turner against a three man spin attack (like Pakistan, Indian or SL in mid 90s) and see whether they could defend a target of 200.

Richards to see them home with 5 for 20 after the new ball had accounted for the top 3.

 

[Migara]

Easy. Injure the batsmen by aiming for the head, groin etc, so that their is nobody left to bat for them. Game over.

Ha Ha! You think the Pakistani guys were soft ****s playing bouncers? Or SRT, Dravid, de Silva etc for that matter?

 

[Migara]

Richards to see them home with 5 for 20 after the new ball had accounted for the top 3.

Or the other war round? after doing well against pace crumbling to spin? That side was never ever tested with high quality spin except when they faced Qadir.

 

[Richard]

King & Richards played in a charity match at my school when WI toured in 1976. Wonderful occasion - Richards, as you would expect, found it all absurdly easy. You had to feel a bit sorry for Edrich, who also played but looked second rate in comparison to Viv.

King ended up going on a rebel tour to SA didn't he? Sad way to finish, but his international career was over by then.

Did indeed. Same was true of Lawrence Rowe. The Rebel tours were a sad way to finish careers which had promised much but ultimately slipped away.

Whereas the likes of Croft and Clarke just had it all \ nearly had it all and might well have done soon, then threw it away.

 

[wpdavid]

Or the other war round? after doing well against pace crumbling to spin? That side was never ever tested with high quality spin except when they faced Qadir.

The Indian spin attack in 1974/5 wouldn't have been too shabby, especially on their own soil. iirc WI won 3-2, when Richards & Greenidge were still kids, but still made some telling contributions. They would only have improved against the slow stuff as they matured.

 

[Richard]

Both Greenidge and Richards made their debuts in the opener of that 1974/75 series. Greenidge scored 200 in 2 innings' on debut, Richards scored 192* in his sophomore game; other than that, neither did a great deal IIRR.

 

[wpdavid]

Both Greenidge and Richards made their debuts in the opener of that 1974/75 series. Greenidge scored 200 in 2 innings' on debut, Richards scored 192* in his sophomore game; other than that, neither did a great deal IIRR.

That's pretty much right - Lloyd was still the main man in those days.
It's one of those series that would be absolutely fascinating to see footage of, although I know it probably doesn't exist.

 

[Richard]

Have read that "not a single ball of live cricket had ever been telecast in India" as of 1977/78. Whether that means no cricket was ever recorded on film is another matter.

 

[SJS]

Have read that "not a single ball of live cricket had ever been telecast in India" as of 1977/78. Whether that means no cricket was ever recorded on film is another matter.

20th December 1966.

This match between Sobers's West Indians and the Prime Minister's XI at the Ferozeshah Kotla was the first cricket match to be telecast live in India.

 

[Richard]

Really? WoW. I guess then that the accompanying Test series must also have been?

If so, does that and any subsequent pre-1991/92 footage still exist, to your knowledge?

 

[SJS]

Really? WoW. I guess then that the accompanying Test series must also have been?

If so, does that and any subsequent pre-1991/92 footage still exist, to your knowledge?

I dont think the series was covered. That match was covered as the inaugural live coverage of any type and Delhi being the centre of Doordarshan (the state-owned TV network) they decided to cover this match since no Test was being played in delhi in that series. I don't think there was television available anywhere else in the country then. I think Bombay got it next in 1972. Of course it was all black and white.

I am trying to recall which was the first ever Test one saw on television. I just cant remember anything before Kapil Dev's first ever test series in 1978 against Pakistan.

Definitely there was no coverage upto and of the 1971 tour by Lawry's Aussies because we missed Vishy's debut hundred at Kanpur and saw him for the very first time in the Test at delhi that followed. I remember, after being fascinated by Vishy'd forty odd at Delhi, telling my friends how great it would have been if we had television coverage and watched his hundred in Kanpur.

I just asked my wife if she remembered and she said she thinks she has seen me watching cricket on TV from the day we got married (in Dec 1973) but I think she may just 'feel' like she has never seen me doing anything else at home for four decades !

It was surely in the mid 70's and not before I think.

My first recollection of live TV keeps going back to Kapil's great bowing and Zaheer's batting in that series I just mentioned. I will try and find out for you when I get back to India.

 

[Richard]

I was aware of Doordarshan televising the odd big game before 1991/92 - and, incredibly so it seems to modern ears, never mind paying anything for the privelage they demanded small fees to cover the cost of production! But it'd be fascinating to hear specific details, if you can find any for me, great.