Ugly but effective

[sqwerty]

There are plenty of stylish looking batsmen around (Mark Waugh, Martyn, Attapattu, Dravid, Vaughan, Kallis, Astle, Gibbs, Tendulkar, Laxman....etc etc). Even Ian Bell is stylish.

But there are also plenty of ugly looking batsmen that perform.

For me the ugliest but effective batsmen are:

Chris Gayle
Marcus Trescothick
Abdul Razzaq
Shivnarine Chanderpaul

 

[chalky]

Darren Lehman was pretty ugly in more ways than one.

 

[SquidAU]

Darren Lehman was pretty ugly in more ways than one.

OI! Don't diss the Boof.....it was his tremendous body weight that allowed him to biff attacks!

 

[parttimer]

Steve Waugh

 

[southern man]

If he was still play Mark Richardson would have to top the ''ugly but affective'' list.He had about three shots, but with determination and patience he managed to do well in test cricket.

 

[Josh]

Brett Lee

 

[Adamc]

Gary Kirsten would probably qualify - not a lot of flair, but very effective.

 

[Beleg]

Inzamam.

 

[Zinzan]

If he was still play Mark Richardson would have to top the ''ugly but affective'' list.He had about three shots, but with determination and patience he managed to do well in test cricket.

Agree 100% with Mark Richardson - Not a great deal of natural talent but knew his game (limited as it may have been) inside out !!!...also agree with Gary Kirsten.

Thinking about it Justin Langer isn't so pretty to watch

 

[Zinzan]

Also.....I started a similar thread to this a while ago that may be of interest.

http://forum.cricketweb.net/showthread.php?t=11403

 

[marc71178]

Rob Key, Rikki Clarke.

No there's ugly...

 

[honestbharani]

Who was the worst looking Indian batsman? There have not been that many good ones coming through, but most Indian batsmen seem to be pleasing to watch when in flow.

 

[thierry henry]

Adam Gilchrist. Never looks in control. Gayle is similar, but more spectacular/innovative imo.

I certainly don't agree with the selection of Mark Richardson. He was extremely compact, tidy, and in control imo. In many ways he was the exact opposite of the batsman I had in mind when I saw this thread.

 

[thierry henry]

"Those gritty players over the years that don't often look elegant or look like natural strokeplayers who have made up for this due to their great concentration and guts.

They are usually so effective because they learn to play within their limitations."

It's interesting the way different people construe "ugly" batting. imo gritty players with concentration usually look quite good at the crease, because they are always battling for technical correctness and to get everything into the right position, so to speak.

Also, I usually think that batsman who "play within their limitations" are less likely to play appallingly loose, ugly attacking shots.

 

[Xuhaib]

Matthew Bell he was the ugliest to watch.

 

[James90]

Who was the worst looking Indian batsman? There have not been that many good ones coming through, but most Indian batsmen seem to be pleasing to watch when in flow.

Ajit Agarkar

 

[GotSpin]

Ajit Agarkar

Affective...?

 

[Jono]

Ajit Agarkar

Batsman?

Nah how dare I denigrate the great AA

Mark Richardson wasn't ugly, he was limited. There is a difference. I think Justin Langer is pretty ugly when playing, but Lehmann is probably the first one that came to my mind when I read the title. Gayle's obviously one too, but Lehmann the main one for me.

 

[Dasa]

Batsman?

Nah how dare I denigrate the great AA

Mark Richardson wasn't ugly, he was limited. There is a difference. I think Justin Langer is pretty ugly when playing, but Lehmann is probably the first one that came to my mind when I read the title. Gayle's obviously one too, but Lehmann the main one for me.

I never thought of Lehmann as an 'ugly' batsman...he wasn't elegant but not ugly for me...then again, this is all subjective. I find Hayden to be a very 'ugly' batsman to watch.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

I can't call Langer an ugly batsman. He plays some very very good shots for mine.