Ten players you are glad you saw in their prime

[bagapath]

spinning the idea from @silentstriker's thread

Ten players you wished you could have seen live in their prime?

A post in the other thread got me thinking, which players do you wish you had seen at their best? Limit to ten. Mine (not in a particular order) Viv Richards Donald Bradman Gary Sobers Jack Hobbs Dennis Lilllee Malcolm Marshall (I am sure I saw him but I was 7 when he played his last Test...

www.cricketweb.net

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Having started following the game in 1984-85, the ten players I am glad I saw in their prime are:
(in chronological order of when I caught them at their best)

Sir Richard Hadlee
Allan Border
Malcolm Marshall
Wasim Akram
Curtly Ambrose
Sachin Tendulkar
Brian Lara
Shane Warne
Adam Gilchrist
ABDV

(I believe I missed the absolute peaks of Richards, Gavaskar, Botham, Imran, Holding, Garner, Lloyd and Greenidge by a few seasons)

 

[Coronis]

In no particular order (began watching cricket when I was 5 I believe - vague memories of the 2000 Trans Tasman series)

Smith
McGrath
Murali
Steyn
Sangakkara
Gilchrist
Kallis
Ponting
Sachin (2nd peak)
Warne (i only saw him in the 00’s… but I find it hard to believe anything he did in the 90’s was better than 05)

Last two kinda have asterisks. Not sure who I’d replace them with.

 

[OverratedSanity]

Steyn
Lara
Smith
Wasim
Warne
Broad
Johnson
VVS
Sehwag
Bumrah

 

[Silver Silva]

Brian Lara
Saeed Anwar
Sachin Tendulkar
Mark Waugh
Kumar Sangakkara
Muttiah Muralitharan
Wasim Akram
Waqar Younis
Shane Warne
Glenn McGrath

 

[SeamUp]

Warne
Donald
Pietersen
Lara
Tendulkar
Kallis
Ponting
Sangakkara
Steyn
Gibbs

 

[CricAddict]

In order,

Sachin
Jadeja
Warne
Steyn
Lara
Akram
Gilchrist
Ambrose
Akhtar
AB De Villiers
Yuvraj and Jayasuriya with their fiery hitting in odis
Gayle in IPL
Geoff Allott and Zaheer with their yorkers in odis

These are the players who have given me goosebumps.

 

[capt_Luffy]

Smith
Steyn
ABD
Bumrah
Sangakkara
Kohli
Cummins
Ashwin
Anderson
Root

 

[ankitj]

Not going to reveal my age by answering this question.

 

[sledger]

@Pothas and I were at Lords to see McGrath on the first day of the Ashes in 2005. One of the very best at close to his absolute best. It was quite something.

 

[shortpitched713]

Vernon Philander

 

[Burgey]

Allan Border
Viv Richards
Greg Chappell
Dennis Lillee
Brian Lara
Sachin Tendulkar
Shane Warne
Andrew Flintoff
Steve Smith
Dale Steyn

 

[Burgey]

Smith
Steyn
ABD
Bumrah
Kohli
Cummins
Ashwin
Anderson
Root
Jadeja

Always a matter of opinion of course, but this list tails off quite noticeably after Cummins tbh

 

[capt_Luffy]

Always a matter of opinion of course, but this list tails off quite noticeably after Cummins tbh

I mean, most of the cricket I consider to have understood and remember, not just watch, is post 2015 Champions Trophy. Before that, I hardly understood cricket much, especially Test.

 

[Archer6K]

Kohli
Smith
Williamson
Root
De Villiers
Sharma
Ashwin
Cummins
Bumrah
Anderson

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Tendulkar
Lara
Ponting
Warne
Marshall
McGrath
Robin Smith
Williamson
Root
Ambrose

Left out Botham and Richards as their prime was over by 84 when I properly remember everything. Feel bad leaving out Steyn and Cummins but you can't pick everyone.

 

[Northerner]

Viv Richards
Gordon Greenidge
Barry Richards
Sachin Tendulkar
Richard Hadlee
Ian Botham
Mike Procter
Michael Holding
Denis Lillee
Shane Warne

 

[Coronis]

Kohli
Smith
Williamson
Root
De Villiers
Sharma
Ashwin
Cummins
Bumrah
Anderson

Boomer

 

[Jumno]

Tendulkar
Lara
Warne
McGrath
Donald
Pollock
Murali
Wasim
S Waugh
Ambrose

 

[Jumno]

Ponting
Boult
Steyn
Abdv
M Johnson
Cummins
Williamson
Stokes
Root
Buttler

 

[kingkallis]

Brian Lara
Dale Steyn
AB de Villiers
Shane Warne
Jacques Kallis
Sachin Tendulkar
Curtley Ambrose
Glenn McGrath
Muttiah Muralitharan
Wasim Akram