• Welcome to the Cricket Web forums, one of the biggest forums in the world dedicated to cricket.

    You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join the Cricket Web community today!

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.

Search results

  1. P

    Most overrated cricketer

    Some slow batsmen received more praise than others. Hanif Mohammad, the original "Little Master", generally had a good press, as did Boycott. There was a certain fascination with their defensive techniques. Lawry and Barrington were less popular, although it was accepted that Lawry was harder...
  2. P

    Most overrated cricketer

    e Class was still a factor in the 1960s and contributed to certain critics rating Barrington below the likes of May, Cowdrey and Dexter, who all batted slowly themselves at times and were pretty negative captains. Barrington was a worrier who always feared being dropped, which contributed...
  3. P

    Most overrated cricketer

    There is a good definition of ATG in one of the other threads about the player being considered in his own time among the top two or three in the world. That reputation was sometimes at odds with what Statsguru analysis might suggest decades later. Pollock v Barrington is a good example. They...
  4. P

    ATGs and WWII

    Don Tallon?
  5. P

    ATGs and WWII

    There were no fast bowlers in England in 1946, it is true, although Merchant did well enough against Keith Miller in India a few months before. There were a few around during the two series Merchant played against England in the 1930s. He took a hundred off Gover and Allen at Manchester in...
  6. P

    ATGs and WWII

    Merchant and Modi missed the 1947-48 tour to Australia through illness. They had averaged 61 and 86 respectively in the unofficial 3-Test series against the Australian Services team in India in 1945. India won that series 1-0, with Modi scoring 203 in the decisive match and Banerjee and Sarwate...
  7. P

    ATGs and WWII

    Sheffield Shield and Plunket Shield were completed for 1939-40, then suspended. England tour to India was scheduled for the same time and cancelled. Domestic cricket in India continued much as normal throughout the war. In the West Indies they played friendlies (first-class) when they could.
  8. P

    Most overrated cricketer

    Judging by the number of county batsmen developing mysterious injuries or illnesses before being due to play against him, Larwood seems to have been the most feared English fast bowler. Ian Peebles watched cricket for over half a century and said that Larwood was the greatest fast bowler he...
  9. P

    ATGs and WWII

    Leading bowlers in first-class cricket during WWII. Indian Bowlers (100 wickets) CS Nayudu 226 @ 22.32 Amir Elahi 175 @ 23.14 Sarwate 142 @ 23.50 Hazare 165 @ 23.65. See also batting in previous post. Banerjee 106 @ 23.74 Australian Bowlers (50 wickets) O'Reilly 119 @ 13.78 Grimmett 98 @...
  10. P

    ATGs and WWII

    Leading batsmen in first-class cricket during WWII. October 1939 to September 1945. Indian Batsmen (2000 runs) Merchant 3829 runs, average 141.81. 16 centuries. Hazare 5286 runs, average 99.73. 19 centuries. See also bowling in next post. Modi 2097 runs, average 95.31. 9 centuries. Adhikari...
  11. P

    ATGs and WWII

    A few old players who enjoyed high reputations in their own/adopted countries, with restricted or no Test career. Probably less well-known elsewhere. WWII was a factor in some cases. Figures below show first-class record against English and Australian teams. Opponents also include Commonwealth...
  12. P

    ATGs and WWII

    An ATG anyway, no question. First-class career average in England (62) is higher than any English batsman, and both his visits were during wet summers. This is a more impressive achievement than many in Test cricket. Cashed in at the Brabourne regularly and could be slow, especially when...
  13. P

    What is your definition of ATG?

    2000 Test runs, average 50, both home and away: England: Hammond, Hutton, Barrington Australia: Bradman, Greg Chappell, Steve Smith India: Gavaskar, Tendulkar, Dravid South Africa: Kallis West Indies: Sobers Sri Lanka: Sangakkara Zimbabwe: Flower 100 Test wickets, average under 25, both home...
  14. P

    Who is the greatest English bowler of all time?

    In Barbados two drunk England players pushed a food trolley up and down a hotel corridor then into a lift where the wife of an MCC member was standing. She claimed that when she told them off they jostled her and swore at her. She identified the players as Trueman and Lock, who were sharing the...
  15. P

    Most overrated cricketer

    Compton had a very high peak, in terms of batting quality as well as runs. But due to the war and a knee injury picked up playing football for Arsenal, it only lasted around five years. During the first of those he was stationed in India, playing ten first-class matches and scoring 1306 runs...
  16. P

    Cricket Books

    A good guy who has been around a while and knows his stuff. Worth hearing.
  17. P

    Has anyone heard this one before?

    The author was RE Foster and the original full-length article appeared in Wisden 1908. It confirmed that the South Africans were referring to the googly as the “wrong 'un” in 1907. Sixty years later Richie Benaud wrote a postscript to CS Marriott's The Complete Leg-break Bowler. He too confirmed...
  18. P

    The legacy of Steve Smith

    An alternative view from Simon Wilde, cricket correspondent of The Sunday Times. Taken from his book Number One, published in 1998. Number One Batsmen 1768-87: John Small 1787-1805: William Beldham 1805-25: Lord Frederick Beauclerk 1825-33: William Ward 1834-49: Fuller Pilch 1849-60: George...
  19. P

    The legacy of Steve Smith

    Same for bowlers: 6 – Briggs (1889, 1892-95, 1897), Grimmett (1930-35) 5 – Spofforth (1879-80, 1882-83, 1886), Trumble (1899, 1901-04), Tate (1925-29), Lance Gibbs (1964-68), Underwood (1969-72, 1974), McGrath (1996-97, 2001-02, 2004), Steyn (2009-12, 2014) 4 – Barnes (1911-14), Jack Gregory...
  20. P

    The legacy of Steve Smith

    The ICC rankings go back retrospectively to 1882. A previous version by Coopers & Lybrand started in 1877 when Tests began, so can fill in the early years. Top ranked batsman at the end of each calendar year since 1877 below. Years when no completed Test match occurred are excluded (1878, 1881...

Top