Test batsmen and bowlers peaks. Criteria: At least 5 years and at least 40 innings

[a massive zebra]

Hardly hit any sixes (maybe one in his test career?) so he must have been impossible to keep quiet and he was probably one of those batsmen who before you knew it had 80 to his name.

Bradman hit six sixes in his Test career, but hit four sixes in a single innings of 128 vs Victoria in 1934, four sixes in his innings of 369 vs Tasmania in 1936 and ten sixes in just three overs during his 22 ball century in a village game in 1931.

 

[Days of Grace]

6 sixes as far as I know in internationals for Don.
And where does Trumper ranks?As I see Clem Hill is in #10 but there is no sign of Trumper.

Trumper's peak is no.33 of those I have checked.

			Adj. Ave.	Adj. RPI	Adj. S/R	Inns
VT Trumper	1903	1911	56.86	50.68	64.97	46

 

[AndrewB]

Struggled in West Indies XI:

Marcus Trescothick: 166 @ 23.71
David Warner: 269 @ 26.90
Wally Hammond: 175 @ 25.00
Younis Khan: 333 @ 22.20
Vijay Hazare: 194 @ 19.40
Budhi Kunderan: 11 @ 3.67
Ian Botham: 241 @ 14.18 and 26 @ 39.50
Shane Warne: 17 @ 39.65
Derek Underwood: 5 @ 62.80
Bob Willis: 5 @ 51.00
Terry Alderman: 5 @ 94.60

 

[Days of Grace]

Bowlers ranked by peak. Qualification: At least 5 years AND 40 innings. I rank bowlers based on average, wickets per innings, and strike-rate (Weighting of 4:2:1). The averages and strike-rates have been adjusted by opposition and match conditions.

				Adj. Ave.	WPI	Adj. S/R	Inns
1​	Imran Khan	1981​	1987​	14.90​	3.38​	40.73​	42​
2​	M Muralitharan	2001​	2007​	17.06​	3.96​	47.43​	81​
3​	Sir RJ Hadlee	1984​	1989​	17.65​	3.51​	43.38​	55​
4​	Waqar Younis	1990​	1995​	18.86​	3.50​	35.61​	52​
5​	SF Barnes	1908​	1914​	19.00​	4.00​	50.98​	40​
6​	Shoaib Akhtar	2002​	2007​	18.79​	2.78​	38.40​	45​
7​	MD Marshall	1984​	1989​	18.83​	2.97​	43.22​	78​
8​	CEL Ambrose	1990​	1995​	17.78​	2.66​	48.86​	64​
9​	DW Steyn	2012​	2018​	18.38​	2.57​	43.71​	47​
10​	JC Laker	1951​	1957​	18.26​	2.60​	49.29​	40​
11​	AV Bedser	1949​	1954​	19.16​	2.94​	50.27​	48​
12​	Wasim Akram	1989​	1995​	20.46​	2.97​	48.02​	68​
13​	AA Donald	1996​	2001​	20.25​	2.74​	43.67​	74​
14​	IR Bishop	1989​	1995​	19.46​	2.53​	44.56​	40​
15​	DL Underwood	1967​	1972​	19.43​	2.70​	53.84​	43​
16​	PJ Cummins	2011​	2019​	19.87​	2.66​	48.12​	41​
17​	WJ O'Reilly	1932​	1946​	20.47​	3.05​	58.50​	44​
18​	GD McGrath	1999​	2005​	18.92​	2.36​	51.44​	109​
19​	DK Lillee	1976​	1981​	22.28​	3.17​	46.36​	60​
20​	AK Davidson	1957​	1963​	20.49​	2.81​	51.04​	58​
21​	SK Warne	2001​	2006​	21.78​	3.06​	49.55​	93​
22​	CV Grimmett	1930​	1936​	22.05​	3.33​	58.08​	42​
23​	MA Holding	1976​	1982​	20.80​	2.60​	44.93​	40​
24​	FS Trueman	1959​	1965​	22.10​	2.74​	43.76​	66​
25​	RR Lindwall	1947​	1953​	20.35​	2.32​	46.01​	63​

 

[OverratedSanity]

Shoaib

 

[Days of Grace]

Peak Test XI:

JB Hobbs
L Hutton
DG Bradman
IVA Richards
CL Walcott
GS Sobers
AC Gilchrist
Imran Khan
Sir RJ Hadlee
M Muralitharan
Waqar Younis

Adding Gilchrist by default as the wicketkeeper. Luckily I don't need to select any allrounders since Sobers and Imran fill no.6 and no.8 nicely.

 

[smash84]

Bowlers ranked by peak. Qualification: At least 5 years AND 40 innings. I rank bowlers based on average, wickets per innings, and strike-rate (Weighting of 4:2:1). The averages and strike-rates have been adjusted by opposition and match conditions.

				Adj. Ave.	WPI	Adj. S/R	Inns
1​	Imran Khan	1981​	1987​	14.90​	3.38​	40.73​	42​
2​	M Muralitharan	2001​	2007​	17.06​	3.96​	47.43​	81​
3​	Sir RJ Hadlee	1984​	1989​	17.65​	3.51​	43.38​	55​
4​	Waqar Younis	1990​	1995​	18.86​	3.50​	35.61​	52​
5​	SF Barnes	1908​	1914​	19.00​	4.00​	50.98​	40​
6​	Shoaib Akhtar	2002​	2007​	18.79​	2.78​	38.40​	45​
7​	MD Marshall	1984​	1989​	18.83​	2.97​	43.22​	78​
8​	CEL Ambrose	1990​	1995​	17.78​	2.66​	48.86​	64​
9​	DW Steyn	2012​	2018​	18.38​	2.57​	43.71​	47​
10​	JC Laker	1951​	1957​	18.26​	2.60​	49.29​	40​
11​	AV Bedser	1949​	1954​	19.16​	2.94​	50.27​	48​
12​	Wasim Akram	1989​	1995​	20.46​	2.97​	48.02​	68​
13​	AA Donald	1996​	2001​	20.25​	2.74​	43.67​	74​
14​	IR Bishop	1989​	1995​	19.46​	2.53​	44.56​	40​
15​	DL Underwood	1967​	1972​	19.43​	2.70​	53.84​	43​
16​	PJ Cummins	2011​	2019​	19.87​	2.66​	48.12​	41​
17​	WJ O'Reilly	1932​	1946​	20.47​	3.05​	58.50​	44​
18​	GD McGrath	1999​	2005​	18.92​	2.36​	51.44​	109​
19​	DK Lillee	1976​	1981​	22.28​	3.17​	46.36​	60​
20​	AK Davidson	1957​	1963​	20.49​	2.81​	51.04​	58​
21​	SK Warne	2001​	2006​	21.78​	3.06​	49.55​	93​
22​	CV Grimmett	1930​	1936​	22.05​	3.33​	58.08​	42​
23​	MA Holding	1976​	1982​	20.80​	2.60​	44.93​	40​
24​	FS Trueman	1959​	1965​	22.10​	2.74​	43.76​	66​
25​	RR Lindwall	1947​	1953​	20.35​	2.32​	46.01​	63​

Imran's peak is just incredible.

And Murali's WPI . He is the only one (along with Barnes) to have a 4 WPI

 

[subshakerz]

Imran's peak is just incredible.

And Murali's WPI . He is the only one (along with Barnes) to have a 4 WPI

Imran's average is so clearly ahead of the pack which makes it most impressive.

 

[subshakerz]

I have adjusted the averages of the peaks of test batsmen. I rank peaks on three criteria: average, runs per innings, and strike-rate, with a 4:2:1 weighting. So a batsman's peak period may not necessarily be when they attained their highest average, or though in most cases it is. Below are the top 25 test batsmen ranked peaks (minimum 5 years AND 40 innings).

Special thanks to srbhkshk for making this process a hell of a lot quicker.

				Adj. Ave.	Adj. RPI	Adj. S/R	Inns
1​	DG Bradman	1930​	1946​	103.56​	95.27​	67.64​	50​
2​	IVA Richards	1976​	1981​	72.94​	69.84​	65.39​	47​
3​	GS Sobers	1958​	1963​	74.94​	64.95​	61.99​	45​
4​	CL Walcott	1952​	1958​	73.24​	64.31​	62.44​	41​
5​	JB Hobbs	1910​	1921​	72.46​	65.39​	58.59​	41​
6​	SPD Smith	2014​	2019​	72.00​	61.11​	50.63​	86​
7​	L Hutton	1949​	1954​	70.91​	59.09​	46.74​	60​
8​	SR Tendulkar	1997​	2002​	66.97​	60.18​	56.31​	69​
9​	ED Weekes	1948​	1954​	63.97​	60.77​	61.50​	40​
10​	C Hill	1897​	1904​	63.34​	60.18​	58.67​	40​
11​	RT Ponting	2001​	2006​	65.56​	54.53​	54.37​	101​
12​	WR Hammond	1935​	1946​	64.38​	54.96​	53.70​	41​
13​	KF Barrington	1963​	1968​	64.21​	57.29​	48.89​	65​
14​	BC Lara	2001​	2006​	61.05​	59.55​	54.90​	81​
15​	GA Headley	1931​	1935​	63.76​	57.38​	47.80​	40​
16​	KS Williamson	2014​	2021​	63.15​	55.05​	51.51​	78​
17​	RB Kanhai	1959​	1965​	58.78​	58.78​	61.46​	40​
18​	AD Nourse	1935​	1951​	63.65​	55.16​	48.69​	45​
19​	JH Kallis	2001​	2007​	64.87​	52.02​	43.12​	106​
20​	V Kohli	2015​	2020​	60.45​	55.62​	52.73​	75​
21​	RB Simpson	1964​	1977​	59.27​	56.57​	51.45​	44​
22​	AB de Villiers	2010​	2015​	61.11​	53.35​	49.81​	63​
23​	S Chanderpaul	2007​	2014​	66.54​	47.43​	38.85​	94​
24​	G Boycott	1971​	1978​	63.23​	51.73​	42.05​	44​
25​	SR Waugh	1991​	1996​	64.39​	46.44​	47.14​	61​

This again shows how Viv's peak was so special.

 

[AndrewB]

Imran's average is so clearly ahead of the pack which makes it most impressive.

His lead is mainly due to his home figures... here are the unadjusted figures for 1981-7:
Home Tests:
Imran 102@12.89
Marshall 99@20.17
Hadlee 95@20.35
Garner 85@21.94
Holding 67@24.85

Away Tests:
Hadlee 133@18.37
Marshall 110@19.70
Holding 84@20.21
Garner 72@22.02
Imran 81@22.45

 

[Days of Grace]

Why was it that the Pakistan-West Indies series in 1986/87 and 1990/91 were so low scoring compared to other series in Pakistan in the 1980s?

 

[peterhrt]

A thousand first-class wickets during a period of five consecutive calendar years, January to December. Most prolific period shown for each bowler.

Lohmann (1887-91): 1075 @ 13.02
JT Hearne (1894-98): 1024 @ 16.09
Tom Richardson (1894-98): 1288 @ 15.92
Rhodes (1900-04): 1114 @ 15.17
Charlie Parker (1922-26): 1061 @ 15.83
Maurice Tate (1923-27): 1139 @ 15.75
Tich Freeman (1928-32): 1425 @ 17.47
Verity (1935-39): 1079 @ 15.17

Non-English bowlers who took most of their wickets outside county cricket. Same criteria with qualification of 500 wickets.

CTB Turner (1886-90): 681 @ 12.76
Ferris (1888-92): 628 @ 16.20
Grimmett (1930-34): 621 @ 20.39
Muralitharan (1999-2003): 500 @ 17.28

 

[Coronis]

A thousand first-class wickets during a period of five consecutive calendar years, January to December. Most prolific period shown for each bowler.

Lohmann (1887-91): 1075 @ 13.02
JT Hearne (1894-98): 1024 @ 16.09
Tom Richardson (1894-98): 1288 @ 15.92
Rhodes (1900-04): 1114 @ 15.17
Charlie Parker (1922-26): 1061 @ 15.83
Maurice Tate (1923-27): 1139 @ 15.75
Tich Freeman (1928-32): 1425 @ 17.47
Verity (1935-39): 1079 @ 15.17

Non-English bowlers who took most of their wickets outside county cricket. Same criteria with qualification of 500 wickets.

CTB Turner (1886-90): 681 @ 12.76
Ferris (1888-92): 628 @ 16.20
Grimmett (1930-34): 621 @ 20.39
Muralitharan (1999-2003): 500 @ 17.28

Freeman almost certainly another example of wasted talent.

 

[ataraxia]

Freeman almost certainly another example of wasted talent.

Nah. Minnow-basher.

 

[Coronis]

Nah. Minnow-basher.

Nah. Only got 2 tests against Australia, both in Australia, you going to condemn him for that? Was consistently the best bowler in County Cricket.

 

[ataraxia]

Didn't he average mid-to-late 20s vs. competent CC sides? From what I know of him, he was an extremely good, prolific destroyer of technically weak batsmen, but simply middling at higher levels.

 

[Coronis]

Didn't he average mid-to-late 20s vs. competent CC sides? From what I know of him, he was an extremely good, prolific destroyer of technically weak batsmen, but simply middling at higher levels.

Not entirely sure of this. I do know he took 5/78 against the Aussies in a tour match in 1930. In his peak (28-33) he was taking 8 wickets a match in county cricket, and brought Kent to the top 3 in 4 of those 6 years, 10th and 5th in the others. iirc (can’t find actual stats rn, but he was averaging ~15 throughout these seasons), surely you’d think he should have gotten another run at tests.

 

[ataraxia]

I reckon he should have played more tests, but I do doubt his CC prolificness was due to major talent. It seems to me from the little I think I know of him, that he combined great wile with great accuracy (to great effect), and thus made excellent use of the talent he had for Kent by seemingly invariably destroying (386 five-fors!) by-and-large relatively inept CC batting lineups.

It's also important IMO to reflect that in the context of the time performances for county were more important than for country. Sure, he could've and probably should've played as a decent stock bowler in a few more Ashes tests, but that hardly meant his talent was wasted.

 

[peterhrt]

Arlott on Freeman: "At the highest level he was not an effective bowler. The quick-footed batsman who went down the pitch to him could punish him heavily: and he never worried the better Australians. But he was a destroyer of the rank and file of county batting."

 

[trundler]

Tich Freeman?

During the 20s some county sides were first class in name only - having being completely decimated by the great war. No one could rout these mediocre county sides like Freeman but he really was exposed as a liability when up against quality Test batsmen and he therefore struggled to even make the England side for most of his career.

Top county batsmen and nearly all international players had the ability to completely nullify his flight and spin with their quality footwork and straight bats, and Freeman never had enough skill or variety to deceive these players. For an example of how massively his fortunes changed when up against completely different standards of opponent, note that Freeman took 231 wickets at 11.59 against Leicestershire or 253 wickets at 11.71 against Northamptonshire, and yet managed just 142 wickets at 26.06 against Surrey and averaged a monstrous 57.37 in Tests against Australia.

Knew there had to be a post from Big Z setting the record straight on Freeman.