*Congratulations* Anil Kumble, highest Indian Test wicket-taker!

[Richard]

Top bowler, and an ever better person.

I have to say, I've always wondered what might have happened had he been given the captaincy.

 

[Sudeep]

I have to say, I've always wondered what might have happened had he been given the captaincy.

Too nice a fellow to be a captain.

 

[Richard]

But still, a better bet than Tendulkar.
And from everything I've seen, more tactically astute than Ganguly, too.

 

[Sudeep]

But still, a better bet than Tendulkar.
And from everything I've seen, more tactically astute than Ganguly, too.

I don't think he possesses man management skills of the level Ganguly does. Still, if Ganguly hadn't come along, I think he might have been the one at the helm of affairs.

 

[Deja moo]

Yes, a well deserved acknowledgement of the whole hearted effort he has put into his game throughout his career.

 

[Pratters]

IMO it's not anyone's "mistake" - it's the mistake of whoever failed to give you the ability to use the bat to protect you.
Believe it or not, there are people who are unable to react to a ball bowled at 90mph at their chest.
Harbhajan Singh, meanwhile, could IMO be a much better batsman if he didn't throw away his ability with the bat. IMO he doesn't take his batting seriously enough - if he did, he could average in the 20s. He's certainly got some talent, and that's what enables him to counter quick bowling.

So its okay to bowl a barrage of bouncers to X batsman and not to Y batsman? How does a bowler recognise thie batsman Harbhajan Singh has the reflexes while Raju or Malcolm doesnt?

If the bowler bowls the bouncers with any intention except to soften the batsman, he i wasting the time of his own team more than any thing.

 

[Spetsnatz]

I don't think he possesses man management skills of the level Ganguly does. Still, if Ganguly hadn't come along, I think he might have been the one at the helm of affairs.

I personally think he would have made an excellent captain of India.

But anyway, hats off to him for his achievement !!

Nice guy off the field as well according to my cousin who met him when he was at Northants.

 

[Anil]

congrats kumble!!! as one of your major detractors in the past, it has been wonderful how you have made me eat my words...!!!

 

[Waughney]

Well done to Kumble. He has proven time and again to be a world class bowler.

 

[Richard]

So its okay to bowl a barrage of bouncers to X batsman and not to Y batsman? How does a bowler recognise thie batsman Harbhajan Singh has the reflexes while Raju or Malcolm doesnt?

Come on - any fool can tell who can bat a bit and who can't!

If the bowler bowls the bouncers with any intention except to soften the batsman, he i wasting the time of his own team more than any thing.

He's wasting his effort.

 

[Arjun]

Well done, Anil! May there be more to come! Milestones such as 550 and 600 are not really that important, as long as he wins matches for the team. Definitely India's best strike bowler in either form of the game, which makes his repeated exclusion from ODI's surprising, even shocking. He's proven everyone wrong in Tests away from home, now it's time for him to convince everyone that he's still India's best ODI bowler by a long way.

On a side note,

Harbhajan Singh, meanwhile, could IMO be a much better batsman if he didn't throw away his ability with the bat. IMO he doesn't take his batting seriously enough - if he did, he could average in the 20s. He's certainly got some talent, and that's what enables him to counter quick bowling.

He plays too many reckless shots, which he has no business playing. They get him out more often than they get runs. If he stuck to simple cricket shots, although with more power, he would have been a much better batsman than he is now. He's also too carefree with the bat- he has to want to score runs. Definitely one of many bowlers who has under-achieved with the bat.

 

[Richard]

I don't think he possesses man management skills of the level Ganguly does. Still, if Ganguly hadn't come along, I think he might have been the one at the helm of affairs.

Oh, no, not at all - Ganguly has had the success he's had for a reason.
What some - especially here in Britain - perceive as petulance is IMO beyond question a massive contribution (in tandem with the down-to-Earth-ness of John Wright) to the turnaround in India's away fortunes.
Ganguly - even if only indirectly - is a brilliant motivator and especially for India that's so vital.

 

[Pratters]

Come on - any fool can tell who can bat a bit and who can't!

There cant be two ways a bowler bowls. One for those who apparently cant hold the bat like McGrath and those who can though they are not specialist like Harbhajan.

As you agreed he would be wasting time and effort if he just bowls bouncers without the purpose of softening the batsmen with the ultimate goal of taking the wicket. So it shouldnt be of concern how the bowler is bowling when a batsman has a bat in his hand.

Cricket is professional Richard. And its much safer than any time in the history of the game. I wonder what you would have said in the times when there were no helmets and bowlers bowled short ones and the bravery of batsmen was tested much more..

 

[Arjun]

Another interesting aspect about Kumble's bowling is the number of wickets per match- at over 4.6, it's very good.

 

[anzac]

congrats on a top effort - esp to defeat a total that was once the world record...........I think

 

[marc71178]

There cant be two ways a bowler bowls. One for those who apparently cant hold the bat like McGrath and those who can though they are not specialist like Harbhajan.

I think most bowlers have more than one delivery, so it's just a case of picking the delivery according to who they're bowling to.

 

[Tom Halsey]

In essence a bowler can reach Test level with 1 good delivery - as long as it is a really good seamer or spinner, depending obviously on what they bowl. Variations are merely a bonus in that sense.

But yes, most good Test bowlers have multiple numbers of deliveries.

 

[Richard]

There cant be two ways a bowler bowls. One for those who apparently cant hold the bat like McGrath and those who can though they are not specialist like Harbhajan.

Why not?
Why is it too much to ask for someone to make some effort not to injure a fellow human-being?

As you agreed he would be wasting time and effort if he just bowls bouncers without the purpose of softening the batsmen with the ultimate goal of taking the wicket. So it shouldnt be of concern how the bowler is bowling when a batsman has a bat in his hand.

Cricket is professional Richard. And its much safer than any time in the history of the game. I wonder what you would have said in the times when there were no helmets and bowlers bowled short ones and the bravery of batsmen was tested much more..

I would have said I wouldn't blame anyone who didn't want to face stuff they knew could kill them.
Seriously, how would you feel if Bert Oldfield had come up to you and said he didn't want to go out and bat at Adelaide in '32\33 (I know he never said that - as far as we know, anyway - but I wouldn't personally blame him if he had), then he has to be carted off to hospital to examine his fractured skull?

 

[Richard]

In essence a bowler can reach Test level with 1 good delivery - as long as it is a really good seamer or spinner, depending obviously on what they bowl. Variations are merely a bonus in that sense.

But yes, most good Test bowlers have multiple numbers of deliveries.

Yeah, yeah - we weren't talking about that!
Take a closer look at the Richard-Pratyush stuff.

 

[Pratters]

Why not?
Why is it too much to ask for someone to make some effort not to injure a fellow human-being?

I would have said I wouldn't blame anyone who didn't want to face stuff they knew could kill them.
Seriously, how would you feel if Bert Oldfield had come up to you and said he didn't want to go out and bat at Adelaide in '32\33 (I know he never said that - as far as we know, anyway - but I wouldn't personally blame him if he had), then he has to be carted off to hospital to examine his fractured skull?

There is protective gear now. If a bowler is bent on injuring some one he is obviously unsportsman like and should be penalised. But to bowl a few bouncers to soften up an oppositon batsmen, no matter what is skill is is not inhuman.

I am glad you did not see the Windies in the 70s and 80s. Batsmen got seriously hurt during their dominance.