Greatest Test Series Victory

[TheJediBrah]

Umm no. Wrong again.

England & Ben Stokes' chase at Headingley is the best of all time.

Lmao Stokes at Headingly was the luckiest innings I've ever seen. Honestly worst 100 in history of Test cricket IMO. Even disregarding the plumb lbw given not out at the end thay should have decided the match and the Ashes, half his runs came from mistimed skied balls that landed in outfield gaps. Trash knock that people retroactively pretend was good because of the series context.

His knock in the 2023 chase where bairstow was stumped was a great innings. He was middling everything and hardly looked like getting out. 2019 he nearly got out half the time he played a shot.

 

[centurymaker]

Bangladesh winning in Pakistan is a huge achievement and upset make no mistake but unless my geography is off were they not the same country once upon a time? Therefore, the conditions in Pakistan were not as alien (imo) than what they were for Sri Lanka in RSA. Steyn was on his last legs and Philander yes was injured but RSA still had Rabada, Olivier and Kesh.

And outside of an atg Australia team, zero teams have swept South Africa away; Sri lanka did. Pakistan by comparison has lost to England, Australia, should've lost to NZ in their most recent home series. In the home series before losing to SL, South Africa destroyed Pakistan and beat two formidable teams in Australia and India. The first two tests vs Australia were also played at the same venues that SL played fwiw.

And ofcourse South Africa would want Australia to play on those venues as those venues are less conducive to Australia compared to venues in highveld or capetown.

 

[Slifer]

Conditions in this series were not similar to conditions you find in Bangladesh. There was assistance for seamers.

You are quite mistaken that you seem to think no team has dominated in South Africa besides Australia. And how is a clean sweep over just 2 Tests (and not on main venues) any better than England's 3-1 series win in SA in 2019?

England's unbeaten record in South Africa since 2000

2004 England won 2-1
2009 England drew 1-1
2015 England won 2-1
2019 England won 3-1

3-1 win from 4 tests is arguably better than a 2-0 win from 2 tests. 2 nil sweeps are much easier to achieve than winning 3-1 from 4 tests away from home.

The fact remains, no sub continent team to that point had been given much of a chance to win in RSA, least of all SL. That they did and the way they did it was unexpected. I don't know of too many teams chasing down 300 in RSA.

Notice i haven't commented about India winning in Aus because for me, given all the hits India took during that series, they had no business winning down under. It was nearly asunexpected as what SL did. I only edge SL because India did come close to winning in Australia b4 in 2003-04 and they did actually beat Australia in Australia in the series prior to 2021. Yes Smith and Warner were out but a win is as win.

 

[centurymaker]

Context matters. England were almost 2 down and out and whole cricketing world is watching, full stadium, high expectations...
vs empty stadium, no expectations, 1st match of series. Both innings are hit over the top get lucky kind of innings but thats to be expected when you are 9 wickets down.

 

[centurymaker]

Australia had a 2-0 series sweep in the Ashes last year (if it was a 2 Test series).

 

[PaulLennon]

Bangladesh winning in Pakistan is a huge achievement and upset make no mistake but unless my geography is off were they not the same country once upon a time? Therefore, the conditions in Pakistan were not as alien (imo) than what they were for Sri Lanka in RSA. Steyn was on his last legs and Philander yes was injured but RSA still had Rabada, Olivier and Kesh.

And outside of an atg Australia team, zero teams have swept South Africa away; Sri lanka did. Pakistan by comparison has lost to England, Australia, should've lost to NZ in their most recent home series. In the home series before losing to SL, South Africa destroyed Pakistan and beat two formidable teams in Australia and India. The first two tests vs Australia were also played at the same venues that SL played fwiw.

One thing though. SA defeated Aus and Ind cause of ABDV who retired at the end of the Aus series.

 

[Burgey]

that full strength Australian side at home over a 5 match series

It was a 3 or 4 test series wasn't it?

 

[Shri]

Sri Lankan chase is probably the greatest in history, as is Perera's 153*

this is just dumb

can name multiple better chases off the top of my head

 

[Burgey]

As for Stokes, the close call was right at the end

lolwut?> If that decision was given against an Indian bowler you'd be screaming blue murder

 

[Shri]

lolwut?> If that decision was given against an Indian bowler you'd be screaming blue murder

tbh everyone knows their place these days and wouldn't do something like that

 

[Burgey]

Your place remains in Chennai

 

[Burgey]

As does your face.

And your posts.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Your place remains in Chennai

Most extreme insult I've ever seen, should be a felony

 

[Fuller Pilch]

It was a 3 or 4 test series wasn't it?

Yeah 4.

2-1 & a draw

 

[Coronis]

Yeah 4.

2-1 & a draw

Pretty pathetic, couldn’t even clean sweep. Bangladesh looks down on them in shame.

 

[Silver Silva]

The fact remains, no sub continent team to that point had been given much of a chance to win in RSA, least of all SL. That they did and the way they did it was unexpected. I don't know of too many teams chasing down 300 in RSA.

Notice i haven't commented about India winning in Aus because for me, given all the hits India took during that series, they had no business winning down under. It was nearly asunexpected as what SL did. I only edge SL because India did come close to winning in Australia b4 in 2003-04 and they did actually beat Australia in Australia in the series prior to 2021. Yes Smith and Warner were out but a win is as win.

Plus the poster is not considering the strength of the SL side that toured SA :

1.Dimuth Karunaratne
2.Lahiru Thirimanne
3.Oshada Fernando
4.Kusal Mendis
5.Kusal Perera
6.Dhananjaya De Silva
7.Niroshan Dickwella (WK)
8.Suranga Lakmal
9.Lasith Embuldeniya
10.Vishwa Fernando
11.Kasun Rajitha

They had no right to win in South Africa no matter the condition, in fact I think most of the BD players who played in the Pakistan win would get into this team off the top of my head,
Shakib, Mushfiqur, Liton Das , Mehidy Miraz , Hasan Mahmud , Mominul Haque easily walk into this XI ..
And then that Indian "Miracle team" lmao Rohit Sharma , Shubman Gill , Pujara, Rahane, Pant ,Thakur and Siraj all get in that SL side at the minimum..

 

[capt_Luffy]

this is just dumb

can name multiple better chases off the top of my head

I can't. I don't think really there is any better one

 

[subshakerz]

India-Aus was insane. You should not be beating that full strength Australian side at home over a 5 match series fielding a side with 7-8 players missing at the end (with multiple players breaking down mid game), using 2 net bowlers and multiple debutants. It simply should not happen.

SL vs SA was pretty wild and they were bigger underdogs pre-series. Given how the series developed though I think India had it rougher and played the greater series.

India winning in Aus was not as unprecedented but I think recovering from the first test humiliation was historic.

 

[Molehill]

Lmao Stokes at Headingly was the luckiest innings I've ever seen. Honestly worst 100 in history of Test cricket IMO. Even disregarding the plumb lbw given not out at the end thay should have decided the match and the Ashes, half his runs came from mistimed skied balls that landed in outfield gaps. Trash knock that people retroactively pretend was good because of the series context.

His knock in the 2023 chase where bairstow was stumped was a great innings. He was middling everything and hardly looked like getting out. 2019 he nearly got out half the time he played a shot.

You might want to read through the ball by ball of his innings again to remind yourself what really happened. There was only one mistimed skied ball in his innings before the 9th wicket fell. He was on 61 when that wicket fell, between there and getting to his ton he gave not a semblance of a chance, despite most of the fielders being on the boundary (so your worst ton in Test Cricket is your usual unsubstantiated rubbish). He was on 116 when Harris dropped him, the only time a fielder got hands to a ball, despite it generally being in the air most of the time because you know, he had to take risks due to the nature of the situation.

Yes, he was lucky with the lbw, but you've only got your skipper and future one to blame for that!!

I hate the whole comparisons thing, it should be moved to a thread on that daft sub forum, but both his and Perera's were astonishing match winning knocks that largely defied the history of Test Cricket.

 

[Burgey]

but you've only got your skipper and future one to blame for that!!

Terrible to excuse rank officiating because of the advent of technology. A **** decision is a **** decision, whether it's reviewed or not. Players aren't excused for making **** decisions, officials shouldn't be either.