Heaven XI v Earth XI

"Fiery" (Boycott) and Fiery Fred (Trueman)?

*Qualifies on his first names alone*

doremi wrote:But Richards did play too few tests to be considered IMHO.

Only if you need to rely on stats to assess the worth of a player.

Richards played in 339 First-Class matches. A large of chunk of those matches saw him come up against top quality bowling attacks. He dominated against top-class attacks and impressed all those who saw him.

Don Bradman included him in the best XI of players he'd seen.

What about the time he scored 325 in a day at the WACA playing for South Australia? He did it against an attack that included Dennis Lillee, Graham McKenzie and Tony Lock.

He averaged over 100 for South Australia that season.

Test Match cricket has become the ONLY form of cricket for elite players these days. It wasn't always so. In days gone by the best players used to play each other in both First Class and Test Matches. The sheer amount of international cricket these days has made that impossible. But we reject the value of First Class records throughout cricket's history at our peril.

For the Hell XI:

Nic Pothas (~ one for Dello)

Hass wrote:

doremi wrote:But Richards did play too few tests to be considered IMHO.

Only if you need to rely on stats to assess the worth of a player.

Richards played in 339 First-Class matches. A large of chunk of those matches saw him come up against top quality bowling attacks. He dominated against top-class attacks and impressed all those who saw him.

Don Bradman included him in the best XI of players he'd seen.

What about the time he scored 325 in a day at the WACA playing for South Australia? He did it against an attack that included Dennis Lillee, Graham McKenzie and Tony Lock.

He averaged over 100 for South Australia that season.

Test Match cricket has become the ONLY form of cricket for elite players these days. It wasn't always so. In days gone by the best players used to play each other in both First Class and Test Matches. The sheer amount of international cricket these days has made that impossible. But we reject the value of First Class records throughout cricket's history at our peril.

Sehwag has hammered some of the finest bowlers of the recent years

Triple ton vs Shoaib at Multan
254* of 247 vs Shoaib at Lahore
Fastest triple century ever vs Steyn, Morkel and Ntini at Chennai
RAPID double ton vs M &Ms in a low scoring game
190+ at MCG in 2003
155 vs Mcgrath and Warne in 2004

and some more which i have forgotten.

p.s did Richards play in any of those "unofficial" test matches against the rebels?

Paul Keating wrote:Barry Richards
Gavaskar
Lara
G Chappell
G Pollock
Border
Imran
Healy
Warne
Ambrose
McGrath/Hadlee

NO SRT.....You just invited a million effigies of yours, set to be burned. You will be staked alive...

Hass wrote:

doremi wrote:But Richards did play too few tests to be considered IMHO.

Only if you need to rely on stats to assess the worth of a player.

Richards played in 339 First-Class matches. A large of chunk of those matches saw him come up against top quality bowling attacks. He dominated against top-class attacks and impressed all those who saw him.

Yeah, he made John Snow and Derek Underwood look rubbish.

I still ove that Ian Brayshaw (I think) story about dropping Richards in that 325 knock on 180 odd and consoling himself that he couldn't score too many more.

I think the 300 was reached at 5.50pm and ten minutes later (stumps) he was 325.

i think its fair to assume to that international bowlers dont bowl with the same intensity in 1st class matches though.

Maybe these days - that wasn't the case when you would go whole season without playing a test.

Trevor "Hohns" for the Hell XI.

JGK wrote:OK, I'm trying to procrastinate having to do my last 2 years tax returns but here is one we haven't done for a while:

Heaven XI (for a Test match)

Hobbs
Hutton
Bradman
Headley
Hammond
Trumper/ Ranji (I wanted to include a Golden Age batsman)
Oldfield
Marshall
Lindwall/ Trueman/ Larwood/ Turner/ Richardson etc (there's probably no obvious choice for the second quick)
Barnes
O'Reilly

Not really sure what to do with WG, Miller and a few others.



Anyone want to have a crack at the Earth XI?

My shot at the Earth XI:

Sunny
B Richards
Lara
SRT
G Pollock
Sobers
Imran
Healy
Warne
Lillee
McGrath

OK, making it country specific:

Australiam Heaven XI:

Trumper
Ponsford
Bradman
McCabe
Hill/Macartney
Miller
Oldfield
Lindwall
Trumble
O'Reilly
Turner

Is/was Imran one of the best 4 bowlers alive?

He's probably the best all rounder from the 80's (shading Kapil Botham and Hadlee)

but

in that team he's playing as the 4th bowler and I think that Hadlee , Ambrose and Wasim Akram at least were better bowlers (at their best , compared to Imran's best)

Sehwag
Hayden
Ponting
G Chappell
V Richards
Border
Gilchrist
Hadlee
Wasim Akram
Ambrose
Murali

Yeah, I originally had Hadlee but I didn't want any pea hearts in my team. Could have easily gone with Wasim or Amby but it's not as if Immy wasn't a great bowler in his own right and him playing means I could pick Healy without thinking what might have been with Gilly.

McGrath, Warne, Lillee and Immy give you 4 bowlers of immense courage, competitiveness and of course quality.

Your team is superb too. I'd take mine though.

embee's could be Earth 2nd XI.

embee wrote:Is/was Imran one of the best 4 bowlers alive?

He's probably the best all rounder from the 80's (shading Kapil Botham and Hadlee)

but

in that team he's playing as the 4th bowler and I think that Hadlee , Ambrose and Wasim Akram at least were better bowlers (at their best , compared to Imran's best)

Imran's best was 62 wickets in a calendar year, average 13, s/r 38.

His career numbers are better than Wasim's. Hadlee could be a bottle-job when the batters went after him. Ambrose was excellent but didn't strike as often as Imran.

In the live fast bowlers category the only guy I would put ahead of Imran is Donald.