Battle of the Test Innings

[silentstriker]

I vote Laxman on the choice of the 2 innings presented and primarily because I cannot vote for an innings in a draw as the best ever.

I regret a little voting for Bradman in the previous round and looking back I think a far better final would be Lara vs Gooch.

Based on the option of Bradman or Laxman, I vote Laxman but in reality, as great as it was, there is no way that was the best inning ever.

Agreed. Bradmans' 270 for mine as the best. Gooch I would rate below Laxman's, but not by much. I could go either way on that.

 

[benchmark00]

But it is widely agreed that it wasn't even his best knock. It just a nice novelty that he scored 300 in one day. It wasn't faster or better than the others...it just happened to fall in the same day. THATS IT. Nothing much else was special.

*sigh*

 

[GIMH]

Agreed, but we are not talking about simply good or great performances. These are legendary, the knocks that should trancend time and would be an advertisement of how great cricket can be. The only way that a draw could qualify would be if that knock was in the 2nd innings trying to save a test (i.e Hanif). The others should be in victories, no exceptions. Thats why I am still upset that Bradmans' 270 didn't make it this far.

But why should they only be in victories?

Again, if Kumble hadn't been in good form, would Laxman's innings not be special?

Would Botham's 149 V thoses damn Aussies be less of a good performance if Willis hadn't been on one?

Simple fact is, what happened in the 4th innings does not make the batman's contribution in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd less good. It means it has more impact, but it doesn't make it a less special innings. If one of our bowlers could have gotten Brett Lee out at OT, Ponting would still have deserved MOTM over Vaughan - Vaughan scored more runs, but Ponting's innings had real balls - it ended up being a matchsaving innings because Lee and McGrath held on, if they hadn't, it would have been a gritty knock, where only he had the intestinal fortitude to stick it to England, and an innings that did not deserve to be on the losing side of the scorecard. But it wasn't. Either way, marvellous innings, 9/10.

 

[SJS]

Wisden ranked the top 100 test innings of all time. Bradman dominated the list.

In the top TEN were two of his innings, at number 1 and number 5.

Laxman's innings was below both of them at number six..

But Bradman's top two innings above Laxman did not include this one. They were his 270 at Melbourne, i refered to in the earlier post and his 299 not out, which too I just mentioned.

BTW, Lara's 153 not out at Bridgetown in 1989, Gooch's 154 not out at Headingley in 1991 and Botham's 149 at Headingly in 1981 were at two, three and four repectively.

Bradman's 334 comes in at number 47 !!

Of Bradman's innings, this one is fourth. Besides the 270 and 2999 not out, his 103 not out against bodyline bowling is also ranked above this one.

This argument is not about an Indian and an Aussie, believe me. Its about the genuine merits of an innings to be ranked the greatest of all time. I can look up and I am sure, Bradman may have mentioned somewhere that even he did not rate this his best innings.

To say that Laxman's innings was better is not to disparage the one and only Don but to state the obvious.

 

[SJS]

I vote Laxman on the choice of the 2 innings presented and primarily because I cannot vote for an innings in a draw as the best ever.

I regret a little voting for Bradman in the previous round and looking back I think a far better final would be Lara vs Gooch.

Based on the option of Bradman or Laxman, I vote Laxman but in reality, as great as it was, there is no way that was the best inning ever.

I agree in entirety.

Of the four semi fainalists, this innings by Bradman is the least fitting to occupy the top spot.

 

[Slifer]

Bradman

 

[silentstriker]

Wisden ranked the top 100 test innings of all time. Bradman dominated the list.

In the top TEN were two of his innings, at number 1 and number 5.

Laxman's innings was below both of them at number six..

But Bradman's top two innings above Laxman did not include this one. They were his 270 at Melbourne, i refered to in the earlier post and his 299 not out, which too I just mentioned.

BTW, Lara's 153 not out at Bridgetown in 1989, Gooch's 154 not out at Headingley in 1991 and Botham's 149 at Headingly in 1981 were at two, three and four repectively.

Bradman's 334 comes in at number 47 !!

Of Bradman's innings, this one is fourth. Besides the 270 and 2999 not out, his 103 not out against bodyline bowling is also ranked above this one.

This argument is not about an Indian and an Aussie, believe me. Its about the genuine merits of an innings to be ranked the greatest of all time. I can look up and I am sure, Bradman may have mentioned somewhere that even he did not rate this his best innings.

To say that Laxman's innings was better is not to disparage the one and only Don but to state the obvious.

Quoted for truth.

 

[silentstriker]

1 DG Bradman 270
2 BC Lara 153*
3 GA Gooch 154*
4 IT Botham 149*
5 DG Bradman 299*
6 VVS Laxman 281
7 C Hill 188
8 Azhar Mahmood 132
9 KJ Hughes 100*
10 BC Lara 375

Thats wisdens' list.

IMO this is a much better list than the one we came up with.

 

[marc71178]

You dont have to be in the zone to score 300 in a day. You just have to be Don Bradman and on the first day of a test match you should come in almost immediately after play started (Australia lost the first wicket before the spectators had settled down).

Bradman never got into this kiond of s situation ever again in his career, having the whole day of a fresh test wicket otherwise he would have done it again.

It was a big surprise then but after four more years of Bradman it was clear that this was just another innings by the run-machine.

Sorry, nothing in this innings that one cant find in his other triple century or the 299 not out except the timing of it at the start of the test.

Think about it. Its a fantastic record by a man who was capable of making more such had a situation arisen.

Nothing special. all in the days work

So by that definition, someone whose score completely comes as a shock is a better innings than anything from a batsman who is expected to do such things.

Therefore I declare Jason Gillespie's double hundred the greatest Test innings of all time.

 

[Sanz]

1 DG Bradman 270
2 BC Lara 153*
3 GA Gooch 154*
4 IT Botham 149*
5 DG Bradman 299*
6 VVS Laxman 281
7 C Hill 188
8 Azhar Mahmood 132
9 KJ Hughes 100*
10 BC Lara 375

Thats wisdens' list.

IMO this is a much better list than the one we came up with.

What a pity !! this whole thread was so unnecessary.

I find it funny that people are now bringing up Wisden to prove that Lax inning's was beter than Don's. Incase you failed to notice, Gooch's innings is @ 2, VVS is @ 6.

 

[silentstriker]

What a pity !! this whole thread was so unnecessary.

I find it funny that people are now bringing up Wisden to prove that Lax inning's was beter than Don's. Incase you failed to notice, Gooch's innings is @ 2, VVS is @ 6.

So? I don't have a problem with Gooch's innings being better, or Lara's or even Bothams.. I may disagree, but I completely understand why its rated higher (IMO Lara 153, and Bradman 270 should be higher, with VVS Laxman at #3 or #4, but I can completely understand why Botham and Gooch are higher than VVS). With Bradman 334, I can't understand why it would be rated higher than VVS, or anyone else in the top 10.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Laxman here.

 

[Jono]

I think the discussion with this battle has been pretty interesting actually.

I'll vote the Lax-Man anyway.

 

[benchmark00]

So by that definition, someone whose score completely comes as a shock is a better innings than anything from a batsman who is expected to do such things.

Therefore I declare Jason Gillespie's double hundred the greatest Test innings of all time.

Exactly.

Absolutely stupid and nonsensical.

 

[marc71178]

Especially as I'd forgotten the Agarkar Lords ton!

Agarkar vs Gilespie, now that would've been a true final.

 

[honestbharani]

Laxman

 

[silentstriker]

Laxman wins it 11-5.

Laxman's epic 281 has been voted as the greatest knock in test history!

 

[GIMH]

Surely not the best innings ever, but that's knockout competitions for you

A great innings, and now officially CW's favourite!

 

[andyc]

Meh. Would've gone Bradders

 

[silentstriker]

Meh. Would've gone Bradders

Which one? The 270, I agree. The 334, I can't. People seem to be voting Bradman just because he is Bradman. Does anyone here truly believe that this 334 was his best innings?