Kumar Sangakkara and Adam Gilchrist

[shortpitched713]

Finallly, this thread has gotten to where it should be, i.e. comparing Sangakkara with other Middle order batsmen as he's not the current SL WK anyway.

In that case the convo should be about the stupidity of the SL selectors. Jayawardene brings next to nothing to the team.

 

[Slifer]

Some interesting stats of players keeping vs non-keeping:

Sangakkara: 81.31 vs 41.24 as keeper
Walcott: 64.67 vs 40.36 as keeper
Stewart: 46.70 vs 34.92 as keeper
Phillips: 40.31 vs 29.12 as keeper

So this definitely implies that keeping takes a bit away from the batting and therefore maybe Gilchrist would be averaging 60 if he was just playing as a batsman

Seems like a sound argument until Flower goes and messes it up by actually averaging more as a WK then as a batsman (35.45 vs 53.71 as keeper)

Thanks for this analysis, which just goes to show that although I too think Gilchrist is the best wicketkeeper/batsman of all time, he is not the undisputed best (like a Don Bradman).

 

[age_master]

Agree with Smith here.

Two of my favorite players as well.

yep, both brilliant players - but its difficult to compare them as they are playing 2 very different roles in 2 very different teams. Bothe play their roles exceptionally well.

 

[Jono]

In my books, in no particular order:

Ponting, Yousuf, Hussey, Pietersen, Sangakkara, Clarke, Dravid and Lara.

Fair enough Clarke's in form and batting really well, but I was more talking about who you'd choose in your test team.

Unless you're saying you'd choose Michael Clarke ahead of Dravid and Lara?

 

[Eclipse]

Gilchrist for mine but if you look at recent form Sanga..

I hate people suggesting Gilchrist has it easy with our top 6 ahead of him.. up untill the ashes last year he was always the guy most likely to dig us out of trouble and play a good innings in tough situations. Usualy in situations like last night where he had the licence to go for it from the first ball he would get out cheaply.

 

[JBH001]

Not even close.

If you just count Sangakkara's record when he played as a wicketkeeper, he only averages 41 (which is great, but Gilly's is around 49 and at a much faster rate)

That may be, but you would also have to factor in that Sanga bats at #3 and given the relative fragility of the Sri Lankan opening pair, it usually means that he is often out there pretty early. This would be doubly difficult if he had just spent a whole day or two behind the stumps to Malinga and Murali, probably one of the harder wk tasks in the world.

As for me I would choose Sanga, for his elegance, grace, and style.

 

[chaminda_00]

IMO if Gilly had to bat in the top 4 he would average 40 with the bat as a keeper. Its a bit unfair to just pull up stats and say cus he averages 40 when he keep Gilly is better.I think it is irrelevent(sp) what he averages as a keeper, cus he bats in the top 4 and Gilly bat at 7, therefore IMO Sangakkara is a better batsmen. But Gilly is a better keeper and by a fair distance, their gap between their keeping and batting in is greater. Sangakkara is a good keeper, but Gilchirst is just below the greats when it comes to glovework.

So overall Gilchirst is better.

 

[Salamuddin]

But Gilly is a better keeper and by a fair distance, their gap between their keeping and batting in is greater. Sangakkara is a good keeper, but Gilchirst is just below the greats when it comes to glovework.

.

What are you smoking ?? Gilly is a decent keeper but I've seen several guys who are better on pure glovework.......Sangakkara most certainly is better than Gilly in that respect.

If I had to have a batsman to bat on a wicket offereing some assistance to the bowlers, I'd much rather have Sanga.
I've said before that I think Gilchrist is overrated and personally his hundred yesterday on a flat pitch against a dispirited bowling attack doesn't change anything.

 

[chaminda_00]

What are you smoking ?? Gilly is a decent keeper but I've seen several guys who are better on pure glovework.......Sangakkara most certainly is better than Gilly in that respect.
.

If Sangakkara was so good with the gloves they would never consider playing him as specialist batsmen, He does a lot of mistakes, but has improved considerably in the last couple years since the 2003 WC.

Just watch Gilly keep, their no doubt that their are several infront of him, but he would be right up there just as a pure keeper. He hadly ever makes any mistakes and also gets a lot of chances your average keeper like Sangakkara wouldn't.

 

[Perm]

Personally I would take Gilchrist every day of the week for the versatility and balance he brings to the batting line up, with him at 7 you don't really need an all rounder because he adds so much aggression and his batting is explosive and solid. He has always been my favourite cricketer and I admire him so much, in saying that I think Andy Flower and Kumar Sangakkara are/were probably better batsman that Gilchrist but they went about making runs in an entirely different way.

 

[Jono]

How anyone can suggest Sanga is better than Gilly with the gloves is beyond me. Fair enough keeping to Malinga and Murali is tougher than Warne and McGrath, but I think its clear that Sanga often isn't the best gloveman in SL by a bit, let alone better than Gilly.

 

[JASON]

Sanga is much maligned with regard to his keeping but despite that is the Best Wicket Keeper in SL by far and there is very little between him and Gilly wrt their keeping, IMO.

With regard to the comparison with Gilchrist, Sangakkara is definitely the better batsman over the past 2 years. Besides, if Gilly batted at No 3 in Tests his average would plummet to 40s or less . So Gilly in Test bats like a wicket keeper/non specialist Batsman's position at 7, whereas Sang has always batted as a specialist batsman at 3 or 4.

 

[Perm]

Really it's a case of each player being asked to do a different job, both are very good with the gloves and their batting differs only because of the situation that the team is in.

 

[marc71178]

If Sangakkara was so good with the gloves they would never consider playing him as specialist batsmen,

Protection against burn out?

 

[marc71178]

How anyone can suggest Sanga is better than Gilly with the gloves is beyond me. Fair enough keeping to Malinga and Murali is tougher than Warne and McGrath, but I think its clear that Sanga often isn't the best gloveman in SL by a bit, let alone better than Gilly.

By the same token, is Gilchrist the best glovesman in Australia?

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

By the same token, is Gilchrist the best glovesman in Australia?

If he's not, he's damn close. Haddin isn't as good as him glove-wise. Hartley, from what I've seen, is better with the gloves, but not by a huge distance, and has never had to keep to a really good spinner.

The rest of the glovesman in the Pura Cup and Ford Ranger Cup have good basic glove-skills and good feet (most are pretty young) but lack the experience that the years of international keeping that Gilly has done to Warne, MacGill and even Hogg (his wrong'un is undeniably awesome), as well as keeping to the stumps for bowlers like Bracken.

 

[Beleg]

Andy Flower > Gilchrist > Sangakara

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Not with the gloves.

 

[Beleg]

With gloves,

Gilchrist >> Sangakara > Andy Flower.

 

[aussie]

Actually, I'm pretty sure it's harder to keep to Murali than Warne.

well from what i've seen i don't think thats true, for example in the 2004 series between AUS/SRI when both Murali & Warne had pitches that assisted them superbly, both Gilly & Sanga handled them extremely well.