Blenkinsop
U19 Vice-Captain
You could argue Shane Warne was a wasted talent in that his off-field antics meant he was never given the chance to captain Aus.
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What qualifies as a Wasted Talent?
- Thread starter subshakerz
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CodeOfWisden
U19 Cricketer
Yuvraj Singh
TheJediBrah
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Fixed
Special mention to the Marsh brothers, Mitch and Shaun, who never got the opportunities they deserved
Line and Length
Cricketer Of The Year
Johnny Wardle
He only played 28 Tests but took over 100 wickets @ 20.39
He was frequently overlooked because of Laker and Lock and even Bob Appleyard. In FC games he took 1846 wickets @ 18.97 but, because of friction with the Yorkshire administration he was regarded as hard to handle.
In any other era he would have been regarded as an ATG. A prodigious talent who could have been anything.
He only played 28 Tests but took over 100 wickets @ 20.39
He was frequently overlooked because of Laker and Lock and even Bob Appleyard. In FC games he took 1846 wickets @ 18.97 but, because of friction with the Yorkshire administration he was regarded as hard to handle.
In any other era he would have been regarded as an ATG. A prodigious talent who could have been anything.
Coronis
International Coach
Shoulda tried chucking it.
DJellett
International Debutant
So,,, "talent" can be "wasted" by an unstable childhood, criminal stitch ups, poor health, self consciousness/fear/doubt, a lack of application to a given discipline, other distractions, or injuries...and what qualifies as a "waste of talent" is not fulfilling the subjective assessment and expectations of others in their definition of what would entail success to you...which is weird because it both perpetuates the things which "waste talent", and may not have any actual relevance to the "talented person's" being, goals, expectations, or sense of essential fulfillment...so I guess, nothing can really qualify as a waste of talent - unless you're an overly opinionated pos who limits your own scope of achievement to the critique of others and your own non actualisation - save an unfulfilled life...and therefore, in some sense, every money cricketer equals a tremendous waste of human talent going far beyond themselves alone, unless you're really into cricket, in which case, you can just enjoy it; and so this conversation and almost the whole of international and broadcast cricket qualifies as a waste of talent, up to and including this board, to this very comment...
Tldr: Michael Vaughan
Tldr: Michael Vaughan
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Fuller Pilch
Hall of Fame Member
Na. Should've taken a maximum of about 50 wickets.
Coronis
International Coach
Ah if only Cowie moved to Australia too.
Line and Length
Cricketer Of The Year
Cec Pepper
During his early years as a professional cricketer in the Lancashire leagues, Pepper was the highest-paid cricketer in England.
Pepper became embroiled in a row that is widely believed to have cost him Test selection. Teammates Keith Miller and Dick Whitington regarded him as one of the best all rounders in the world and a certainty for Australian Test selection. Pepper appealed for leg before wicket against Australian captain Don Bradman in a match against South Australia. The appeal was turned down and Pepper complained to the umpire, prompting Bradman, who was also a member of the Australian Board, to lodge a complaint about Pepper. Pepper was subsequently never selected for Australia. Cricket historian Gideon Haigh said that "[team manager Keith] Johnson was clearly upset by the affair, and also by the failure of the [national] selection panel [Bradman among them] ... to send Pepper, second only to Miller as a cricketer in the Services XI, to New Zealand" in 1945–46.
Garry Sobers, who played against him in league cricket, said of Pepper that "the reason why he never played county cricket was probably because of his overripe language. He was certainly good enough as a cricketer but no one wanted to take the chance ... It is said that Sir Don Bradman once remarked that had Cec's mouth and his attitude been different, he would have been one of the greatest all-rounders the world has ever seen."
en.wikipedia.org
During his early years as a professional cricketer in the Lancashire leagues, Pepper was the highest-paid cricketer in England.
Pepper became embroiled in a row that is widely believed to have cost him Test selection. Teammates Keith Miller and Dick Whitington regarded him as one of the best all rounders in the world and a certainty for Australian Test selection. Pepper appealed for leg before wicket against Australian captain Don Bradman in a match against South Australia. The appeal was turned down and Pepper complained to the umpire, prompting Bradman, who was also a member of the Australian Board, to lodge a complaint about Pepper. Pepper was subsequently never selected for Australia. Cricket historian Gideon Haigh said that "[team manager Keith] Johnson was clearly upset by the affair, and also by the failure of the [national] selection panel [Bradman among them] ... to send Pepper, second only to Miller as a cricketer in the Services XI, to New Zealand" in 1945–46.
Garry Sobers, who played against him in league cricket, said of Pepper that "the reason why he never played county cricket was probably because of his overripe language. He was certainly good enough as a cricketer but no one wanted to take the chance ... It is said that Sir Don Bradman once remarked that had Cec's mouth and his attitude been different, he would have been one of the greatest all-rounders the world has ever seen."
Cec Pepper - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Christ on a bike, an Aussie who wasn't selected because he swore too much - I wish they still had that policyCec Pepper
During his early years as a professional cricketer in the Lancashire leagues, Pepper was the highest-paid cricketer in England.
Pepper became embroiled in a row that is widely believed to have cost him Test selection. Teammates Keith Miller and Dick Whitington regarded him as one of the best all rounders in the world and a certainty for Australian Test selection. Pepper appealed for leg before wicket against Australian captain Don Bradman in a match against South Australia. The appeal was turned down and Pepper complained to the umpire, prompting Bradman, who was also a member of the Australian Board, to lodge a complaint about Pepper. Pepper was subsequently never selected for Australia. Cricket historian Gideon Haigh said that "[team manager Keith] Johnson was clearly upset by the affair, and also by the failure of the [national] selection panel [Bradman among them] ... to send Pepper, second only to Miller as a cricketer in the Services XI, to New Zealand" in 1945–46.
Garry Sobers, who played against him in league cricket, said of Pepper that "the reason why he never played county cricket was probably because of his overripe language. He was certainly good enough as a cricketer but no one wanted to take the chance ... It is said that Sir Don Bradman once remarked that had Cec's mouth and his attitude been different, he would have been one of the greatest all-rounders the world has ever seen."
Cec Pepper - Wikipedia
Line and Length
Cricketer Of The Year
In an interview on "Julia Zemiro's Home Delivery" Ian Chappell described Bradman as "vindictive". He believes he (Bradman) was behind the non-selection of Grimmett in the 36/37 Ashes series despite Grimmett having taken 44 wickets @14.59 in the Test series in South Africa a year earlier.
Coronis
International Coach
He was, for sure. O’Reilly definitely thought so.
Bill O’Reilly maintained that when Bradman took over the Australian captaincy after the South Africa tour, he ensured that Grimmett was not selected.
Apparently, the normally affable and self-effacing Grimmett had made some frivolous comments about Bradman ensuring his own dismissal in a match against Victoria to avoid facing the express pace of Ernie McCormick.
Bradman was also heard repeatedly mentioning that Grimmett had forgotten how to bowl leg breaks because so many of his deliveries were flippers.
It all came to head in Vic Richardson and Grimmett’s joint Testimonial match played at Adelaide starting on Boxing Day 1937.
The match also served as a trial (as was often the case with these Benefit matches) for the next series. Word on the street was that Grimmett was to be dropped from the team by Bradman.
When Bradman came in to bat, Grimmett had the ball. A few flippers and a couple of overs later, came the ball which The Argus reported thus:
“He went forward to pull a ball with that not-so-straight-bat shot he uses so often, but the ball, cleverly flighted, dropped shorter than expected, and Bradman missed, the ball just disturbing the bails. Had the wickets been missed, Oldfield must surely have stumped him.”
Grimmett, normally a taciturn man who watched his words, could not resist a clearly audible comment to Richardson, “That’ll teach him I can still bowl a leg break.”
Bradman was not a man who either easily forgot or forgave.
the big bambino
International Captain
The dropping of Grimmett was madness and Bradman deserves criticism for whatever part he may have played in it. Even so Grimmett shouldn’t have been dumb enough to embarrass Bradman with those comments. Bradman certainly suffered without Grimmett when touring England. Not playing him at home wasn’t a selection howler and was a decision that could be defended.
You have to consider the people who called him vindictive. Richardson, I Chappell, O’Reilly and Fingleton - all renowned ***** themselves. Fingleton being the worst. He comes off as a bitter psychopath full of the sectarian hatred of the era. I once read 4 pages where he got stuck into Bradman for declining a request to attend a function. After a hard tour which included fulfilling countless off field obligations he probably thought he had earned the right for the privacy he naturally favoured. I was used to previous Fingleton rants but that one made me realise he was just a miserable **** all told.
I’ve been watching interviews Craddock has done with Hoggy and Thomson. Both men thought Bradman treated them well. Thommo was amazed by his skill even as a 70 yo. Hoggy was bawled out by Bradman for his behaviour on field which Hoggy accepted as fair. Hoggy does a pretty good impersonation of Bradmans voice.
You have to consider the people who called him vindictive. Richardson, I Chappell, O’Reilly and Fingleton - all renowned ***** themselves. Fingleton being the worst. He comes off as a bitter psychopath full of the sectarian hatred of the era. I once read 4 pages where he got stuck into Bradman for declining a request to attend a function. After a hard tour which included fulfilling countless off field obligations he probably thought he had earned the right for the privacy he naturally favoured. I was used to previous Fingleton rants but that one made me realise he was just a miserable **** all told.
I’ve been watching interviews Craddock has done with Hoggy and Thomson. Both men thought Bradman treated them well. Thommo was amazed by his skill even as a 70 yo. Hoggy was bawled out by Bradman for his behaviour on field which Hoggy accepted as fair. Hoggy does a pretty good impersonation of Bradmans voice.
Line and Length
Cricketer Of The Year
The rift between the Freemasons and the Catholics is well documented and a two-way animosity. Opening the batting, Fingleton used a bat that had been sprinkled with holy water by a Catholic priest. Upon his dismissal, Bradman entered the arena and, as they crossed, he said to Fingleton, "Watch what a dry bat can do."
Grimmet may have been 'dumb enough to embarrass Bradman' but Bradman wasn't averse to having his own jibes.
Line and Length
Cricketer Of The Year
Perhaps the mods could take these latest posts regarding Bradman and open a new thread. "Bradman - Hero or Villain" might be a good title.
GoodAreasShane
Cricketer Of The Year
That would be an... interesting thread
My personal view is a little bit from column A and a little bit from column B
