Finding out the best decade for test cricket: The tournament thread! 12 ATG XIs duke it out.

[smash84]

noughties and forties i reckon

 

[honestbharani]

60s and 70s

 

[Slifer]

00s and 40s

 

[ma1978]

00s and 70s

 

[_00_deathscar]

WTF 90s already knocked out?

 

[harsh.ag]

00s and 70s

 

[Red_Ink_Squid]

2000s & 40s

 

[Fuller Pilch]

2000s and 40s

 

[stephen]

00s and 40s

 

[kyear2]

1960's and 1970's

 

[CricAddict]

WTF 90s already knocked out?

Yeah wtf. 90s getting beat is an atrocious decision.

 

[CricAddict]

I just had a look at the teams again and while 80s bat deep with all their all-rounders, 90s have them beat both in terms of batting quality and bowling quality.

Basically, this is just a win for all-rounders.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

Nah 80s have much better openers and better pace bowlers. 90s have a stronger middle order and Shane Warne.

Combined 80s/90s side

Gavaskar 80s
Greenidge 80s
Lara 90s
Tendulkar 90s
Richards 80s
Border 80s
Imran 80s (c)
Hadlee 80s
Healy 90s (wk) (worse batter than Dujon but was great keeping to Warne)
Marshall 80s
Warne 90s

7-4 to the 80s. Would be an amazing combined 80s & 90s side.

 

[Victor Ian]

Can't agree. That 80's team has an amazing attack. It's 4 frontline bowlers are a step up on what made the Windies unbeatable in that decade. When you have 4 bowlers of that quality, they showed a spinner was not needed. I voted 90's but really could have gone either way. Marshall, Hadlee, Imran and garner. They are just going to wreck teams time and again. You are never getting that comfortable spell where you can score.

 

[smash84]

I just had a look at the teams again and while 80s bat deep with all their all-rounders, 90s have them beat both in terms of batting quality and bowling quality.

Basically, this is just a win for all-rounders.

The 80s bowling is just relentless. There is just no break. The 90s have almost a meme tail and their openers aren't really good either. Their middle order is better but the depth in 80s makes up for it.

 

[CricAddict]

Nah 80s have much better openers and better pace bowlers. 90s have a stronger middle order and Shane Warne.

Combined 80s/90s side

Gavaskar 80s
Greenidge 80s
Lara 90s
Tendulkar 90s
Richards 80s
Border 80s
Imran 80s (c)
Hadlee 80s
Healy 90s (wk) (worse batter than Dujon but was great keeping to Warne)
Marshall 80s
Warne 90s

7-4 to the 80s. Would be an amazing combined 80s & 90s side.

How is Greenidge better than Gooch let alone Saeed Anwar? And Steve Waugh is better than Border definitely. Hadlee and Imran better than Akram, Ambrose and Donald purely on bowling is definitely disputable too.

 

[stephen]

Yeah but Warne is the difference between the sides IMO. It can't be overstated just how incredible it is to have a world class spinner between overs 40 and 80. The 80s side is going to be dangerous up front but have long periods of containment in the middle overs. Kapil is entirely wasted in the 80s side. He doesn't offer anything at all that isn't offered by playing a better batsman or a spinner.

The 80s openers are better, but the middle order - the place where most of the runs come from - certainly favours the 90s.

And Ambrose/ Donald/ Wasim/ Warne is a bowling attack isn't any worse than the 80s attack pace- wise. It's probably the best balanced attack of any decade tbh.

 

[stephen]

How is Greenidge better than Gooch let alone Saeed Anwar? And Steve Waugh is better than Border definitely. Hadlee and Imran better than Akram, Ambrose and Donald purely on bowling is definitely disputable too.

Greenidge was a great batsman but it always amuses me that virtually every argument used to denigrate Hayden can be applied to Greenidge. And Greenidge has a worse overall record.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

How is Greenidge better than Gooch let alone Saeed Anwar? And Steve Waugh is better than Border definitely. Hadlee and Imran better than Akram, Ambrose and Donald purely on bowling is definitely disputable too.

Let's agree to disagree but since Gooch couldn't handle Terry Alderman I definitely can't rate him ahead of Greenidge and Anwar was okay but not in GG's class. Greenidge just struggled a bit towards retirement which affected his average.

Hadlee definitely ahead of Akram, Ambrose, Donald in bowling while Imran is on a par with those three but brings so much with his presence, batting, and leadership. Border was definitely better than Waugh. Waugh was terrible in the 80s when the quality of bowling was better.

 

[mr_mister]

How is Greenidge better than Gooch let alone Saeed Anwar? And Steve Waugh is better than Border definitely. Hadlee and Imran better than Akram, Ambrose and Donald purely on bowling is definitely disputable too.

No-one here rates Anwar over Greenidge in tests, so I'm surprised at your use of"let alone"