Best performing cricket nations per capita & other factors considered...

[KiWiNiNjA]

Haha I still definitely think it's fair to say that taking the last wicket is harder than scoring one run. Even Chris Martin averages above 1.

Yeah, just pointing out that this

"100s of runs are scored for the loss of single digit wickets"

is a bit of a simplistic view.

But yes, you are correct.

 

[Burgey]

Would have liked to see the Windies keep Edwards, Taylor and Rosch fit and firing for an extended period but we will never see it unfortunately

 

[Redbacks]

Are the Windies getting better or the general standard dropping away at the moment?

 

[Flem274*]

Getting better imo. They don't have bad players when they can field a fit side, and their youngsters are amongst the best prospects in the world.

They just need to deliver now.

 

[Howe_zat]

Yorkshire and Lancashire possibly the strongest because they're too soft to bowl quickly in the south. Reckon Surrey might have the strongest batting though.

Strength of a Yorks side is actually the top order, I'd say, and there's also two of the country's top four spinners. Probably something along the lines of:

Hutton
Sutcliffe
Boycott
Jackson
Leyland
Rhodes
Hirst
Verity
Trueman
Binks
Bowes

 

[Zinzan]

Strength of a Yorks side is actually the top order, I'd say, and there's also two of the country's top four spinners. Probably something along the lines of:

Hutton
Sutcliffe
Boycott
Jackson
Leyland
Rhodes
Hirst
Verity
Trueman
Binks
Bowes

Vs a Notts all time XI would be interesting

 

[Cruxdude]

Are the Windies getting better or the general standard dropping away at the moment?

They are getting better with some good prospects. They will not be a world beater but should be competent like India of the 90s. With some of the talents around, assuring Sammy a place seems to be quite absurd.

 

[kyear2]

Lol, so vote then Jono

They are getting better with some good prospects. They will not be a world beater but should be competent like India of the 90s. With some of the talents around, assuring Sammy a place seems to be quite absurd.

There are some good prospects, but we are one attacking opening bat (consistent Lendl Simmons) and one Great fast bowler away from being very good.

 

[kyear2]

Most talent per capita. Barbados.
Greenidge
Hunte
Worrell
Weekes
Walcott
Sobers
Murray
Marshall
Garner
Hall
Clarke
Beat that

 

[honestbharani]

Damn.. that middle order has serious talent.

 

[ret]

It doesn't necessarily work that way. People's abilities are on a bell curve, and there is an upper limit. The more people you have, the better chance you have obviously, but you get diminishing returns quite quickly, in terms of added ability per extra individual.

So the top 1% of the population in a country of 10 million, may not be all that different to the top 1% of people in a country of 1 billion. The latter has more people with that ability, but that doesn't equate to a lot better ability. They can pick the top 1% of the 1%, so they should produce superior teams, but the difference in ability, in absolute terms, of 1% vs. 1% of 1% isn't overwhelming. It can be significant at the elite level, but its being outclassed hopelessly.

I would say that the population of people who play cricket, with real cricket balls and bats, and on real pitches, in India, is not much more than in England. I know I had never held a real cricket ball in my hand growing up, we couldn't afford it and there wasn't a cricket pitch anywhere around. It was tennis balls all the way.

nicely put there^

to add, my 2 c: a better way to go abt this would be to see what percent of the population has access to the facilities that would actually develop them into quality cricketers .... Also how sports oriented the culture of a country is, plays a role too. For e.g. (something from the top of my head so pardon if there are irregularities), brazil with its culture with kids playing football everywhere can spring up talent too