John Woodcock's 100 Greatest Cricketers

[sayon basak]

I don't think John Woodcock's 100 Greatest Cricketers list was reviewed in cricketweb.As this list was made in 1997, there are a lot of ancient players in this list. Some of the picks were a surprise for me, was Alfred Mynn regarded that high at that time?


Here's the list:-

100 JR Reid 99 PA De Silva 98 SJ McCabe 97 AA Donald 96 HW Taylor 95 SR Waugh 94 JM Gregory 93 H Larwood 92 MH Mankad 91 WW Hall 90 L Gibbs 89 ST Rahmadin 88 DL Underwood 87 WW Armstrong 86 RGD Willis 85 FS Jackson 84 Hanif Mohammed 83 WH Ponsford 82 Fazal Mahmood 81 CEL Ambrose 80 RB Simpson 79 CG Macartney 78 VAP Van der Bijl 77 JB Statham 76 A Shaw 75 GL Jessop 74 AC Maclaren 73 CTB Turner 72 D Gower 71 Waqar Younis 70 JC Laker 69 MD Marshall 68 CV Grimmett 67 CH Lloyd 66 L Constantine 65 MA Holding 64 TG Evans 63 AG Steel 62 G Boycott 61 J Small 60 Wasim Akram 59 I Chappell 58 Javed Miandad 57 KF Barrington 56 AK Davidson 55 APE Knott 54 CB Fry 53 GA Gooch 52 RB Kanhai 51 RH Harvey 50 BS Bedi 49 Kapil Dev 48 MC Cowdrey 47 T Richardson 46 HJ Tayfield 45 FS Trueman 44 GS Chappell 43 MJ Procter 42 H Sutcliffe 41 GH Hirst 40 G Lohmann 39 W Beldham 38 CL Walcott 37 AR Border 36 FW Worrell 35 KS Ranjitsinhji 34 W Rhodes 33 PBH May 32 FR Spofforth 31 A Shrewsbury 30 RG Pollock 29 RJ Hadlee 28 BC Lara 27 E de C Weekes 26 WJ O'Reilly 25 SR Tendulkar 24 ER Dexter 23 SM Gavaskar 22 RR Lindwall 21 GA Headley 20 A Bedser 19 DK Lillee 18 R Benaud 17 K Miller 16 Imran Khan 15 BA Richards 14 V Trumper 13 S Warne 12 F Woolley 11 LHutton 10 D Compton 9 IT Botham 8 IVA Richards 7 W Hammond 6 SF Barnes 5 JB Hobbs 4 A Mynn 3 G Sobers 2 DG Bradman 1 WG Grace

 

[ma1978]

It’s about as white as the members room at the Royal Automobile Club, but John Woodcock is a delightful writer so I will give him a pass.

 

[capt_Luffy]

When Alfred Mynn retired he was the 3rd highest run getter AND 5th highest wicket taker of all time. Won't personally place him nearly as high, but it's at least justifiable and there are many more which aren't so much.

 

[Brook's side]

69 MD Marshall
53 GA Gooch

 

[smash84]

69 MD Marshall
53 GA Gooch

Marshall's ranking sounds just about right.

 

[kyear2]

Barry Richards at 15 was interesting, but the list as a whole is absolutely horrible.

 

[BazBall21]

I'm sure he was a good writer overall but the list is terrible. One of the things that gives English cricket a bad name stuff like this.

 

[kyear2]

I'm sure he was a good writer overall but the list is terrible. One of the things that gives English cricket a bad name stuff like this.

Yeah, there's no justification for 90% of those rankings.

 

[sayon basak]

It’s about as white as the members room at the Royal Automobile Club

7 out of top 10 players are English. Pretty white I would say

 

[BazBall21]

Yeah, there's no justification for 90% of those rankings.

Dexter being that high is probably the best one. Gooch at 53 has been mentioned but at least he scored 8900 test runs and was a beast against the greatest ever attack. Dexter had a less accomplished career.

 

[BazBall21]

Compton and Bedser were top tier darlings with the old English cricket writers. Understandable sentiments because they were key figures in carrying the team after the War but to implement that in projects that should be objective is unfair.

Personally think May was one of the best 1950s batsmen and his high peer rating extends beyond English people but he got a bit overcooked by Woodcock and CMJ etc too.

 

[kyear2]

Compton and Bedser were top tier darlings with the old English cricket writers. Understandable sentiments because they were key figures in carrying the team after the War but to implement that in projects that should be objective is unfair.

Personally think May was one of the best 1950s batsmen and his high peer rating extends beyond English people but he got a bit overcooked by Woodcock and CMJ etc too.

Compton was one of the first that caught my eye. Immediately discredited the entire list.

 

[Yeoman]

He was considering the whole period of time back to the 18th century (hence Small and Bedlam getting a mention) and mostly watched cricket in England and Australia. Further, until at least the 1960s, performances in first class cricket and the county championship in particular (where the greatest volume of first class cricket was played) was regarded, if never on a par with test cricket, at a much closer level to it than it is nowadays, not least because test series were less frequent.

Compton and Woolley usually get an uplift in the eyes of old cricket writers because of the attractiveness of their style.

 

[peterhrt]

The list was part of a series of Top 100s published by The Times at the time. Their editing had a nationalistic flavour. The 100 greatest footballers appearing under Brian Glanville's name included 34 from the British Isles.

Woodcock had watched more live cricket than anyone and knew a lot about the English game. His relative ranking of English players reflects first-hand experience and the views of writers who preceded him. For example, he was adamant that he never saw better batting by an Englishman than Compton at his best. Several Indians reckoned Compton's 249 not out for Holkar against Bombay at the Brabourne in 1945 was the greatest innings played in India, and relayed their impressions to Woodcock.

Nicknamed The Sage of Longparish (in Hampshire) he saw plenty of Barry Richards.

 

[ma1978]

It was a long time (if even if its happened now) that the English cricketing establishment started taking non-Ashes international cricket seriously, even when they were being thrashed to the point of gorvelling by the Windies

 

[ma1978]

The list was part of a series of Top 100s published by The Times at the time. Their editing had a nationalistic flavour. The 100 greatest footballers appearing under Brian Glanville's name included 34 from the British Isles.

Woodcock had watched more live cricket than anyone and knew a lot about the English game. His relative ranking of English players reflects first-hand experience and the views of writers who preceded him. For example, he was adamant that he never saw better batting by an Englishman than Compton at his best. Several Indians reckoned Compton's 249 not out for Holkar against Bombay at the Brabourne in 1945 was the greatest innings played in India, and relayed their impressions to Woodcock.

Nicknamed The Sage of Longparish (in Hampshire) he saw plenty of Barry Richards.

No offense but nothing Compton did matched what Richards or Greenidge did to England, but white people gotta white

great writer though

 

[peterhrt]

No offense but nothing Compton did matched what Richards or Greenidge did to England, but white people gotta white

great writer though

Even though Compton was a Woodcock favourite, the writer never thought he was better than Viv Richards.

English cricket writers of the 1950s and 1960s didn't tend to mind West Indies beating England as they played the kind of cricket that drew crowds, and crowds were dwindling.

Woodcock received some criticism for his continuing support of sporting links with South Africa. John Arlott, on the other hand, believed they should have been severed after Sharpeville in 1960, if not before.

 

[shortpitched713]

Who the **** is Johnson Woodcock, and why is his name so damn phallic?

 

[kyear2]

Who the **** is Johnson Woodcock, and why is his name so damn phallic?

 

[TheJediBrah]

but white people gotta white