1. I think McGrath is a better bowler than Lillee. IMO, McGrath is a Top 5 bowler while Lillee is a Top 15 bowler.I'm a massive fan of Lillee, but I think McGrath was the better and more rounded bowler. Marginally, but definitely. 10 miles quicker means nothing.
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2. 10 miles is a lot in terms of fast bowling.
Among bowlers with over 300 wickets; Dale Steyn, Waqar Younis, Allan Donald, Dennis Lillee and Malcolm Marshall have the best Strike Rate. The common thing among them is all of them are 90Mph+ bowlers.
Speed is always an advantage for a fast bowler.
Steyn is lauded as a subcontinent hero and it is correct to praise him for that.FWIW, his record in Asia is pretty much comparable to Steyn's (4.1wickets) per test with McGrath having a slightly better average. Yet Steyn is often lauded a subcontinent hero.
While McGrath was remarkably consistent in Asia, he never won matches on his own. Marshall and Steyn have some extraordinary displays where they won matches single handedly with their spells.
I will probably give an example of something similar. Joe Root has been remarkably consistent in ODIs. His batting average is almost on par with ABD. But ABD has the ability to win matches single handedly. That’s the difference.
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