The unathletic Eleven

Cricket traditionally has been one game in the days gone by where athleticism has not been a must. The advent of the shorter version has made it a little more difficult for some but many still seem to get by.

This is a eleven of the least athletic cricketers going around in the international scene. Let me start with two from India.

Ravichandran Ashwin - This guy is not a rolly polly or anything like that. In fact he is 6'2' and probably the right weight for his height. But boy is he so unathletic. Not sure if it is his lower half which may not be proportional to the rest of the body. He moves so clumsily and it shows in all aspects of his game, not just in fielding or running between the wickets. In the recently concluded series WI series when he attempted to stop a speeding ball and kind of threw himself on the ground, Shastri described it as a dive. Dujon who was the co-commentator chipped in with something in the lines of "Would you call it a dive or a lie down ? looked like he kind of flopped on to the bed to me". In fact I cannot think of any other current international cricketer who even comes close to this guy. Good enough to be nominated Captain IMO. Quite likely to get the the special attention of the Australian "boo crowd".

VVS - The quintessential Indian Middle class boy who could not be bothered about anything other than his specialty Craft, which is batting in this case. Quick single, dives etc. are not part of his vocabulary. The kind of happy guy who lives the good life and starts getting thick around the waist even in his twenties. I suspect that unlike Ashwin VVS if had been put through the drills and an attitude change could have been better on the athletic scales.

So you mean unathletic in fielding only?

VVS isn't too bad at running singles.


You are going to include Aloo, aren't you?


There is a difference too between "slow" and "clumsy". Tufnell wasn't the slowest, but he frequently buggered up in the fielding department.



Are you going to do a "Most Athletic/Best/Quickest/Most Agile Fielders" thread too - for balance?

Monty is slow, not necessarily unfit - just not built for agility or great speed.

'Olly' Milburn was dropped from the England side in 1966 for poor fielding despite the fact that he headed the Test batting averages at the time (as well as being an outstanding backward short leg). Percy Perrin was never given Test recognition reportedly because of his poor fielding skills although that didn't prevent him from becoming Chairman of the Selectors (although the start of his term in office coincided with the outbreak of WWII).

Morne Morkel would have to be in a current XI. Unless drunk baby giraffes are considered to be athletic.

Phil Tufnell.

Devon Malcolm.

Tim May (who famously spiked himself while fielding and had to miss several games.

Graeme Smith looks like a hippopotamus in the outfield.

Dwayne Leverock. Although there are still aftershocks occurring around the Caribbean after this catch-

PeterCS wrote:So you mean unathletic in fielding only?

VVS isn't too bad at running singles.


You are going to include Aloo, aren't you?


There is a difference too between "slow" and "clumsy". Tufnell wasn't the slowest, but he frequently buggered up in the fielding department.



Are you going to do a "Most Athletic/Best/Quickest/Most Agile Fielders" thread too - for balance?

Not using unathletic as a euphemism for poor fielding or for overweight cricketers. Some guys are light on their feet can turn quickly, change directions and don't look laborious with their movements. This is about cricketers who are not that way. For example Phil Tuffnell was a poor fielder due to lack of basics in that discipline, I would not put him in this list. In some ways it is hard to describe but very easily understood if one watched Ashwin over a period. - Cheers

Owais Shah would probably make an unathletic XI.

He's not overweight. He's quite tall, dexterous, fit. But he's a shirehorse in the field. About as agile as a pensioner in a morgue. Slow between the wickets - he can't even bat for more than an hour on a warm day as his body starts to cramp up.

I think he's a good example of just a bloke playing a sport rather than a natural athlete becoming a professional sportsman.

skully wrote:
Graeme Smith looks like a hippopotamus in the outfield.

NTR

Have you noticed that however much Red slates Smith, Taips has equally as much gushy, unflinching admiration for him?

The bloke has always been a liablilty in the field, unless his good hands have been used at slip. OK, he moves like a greyhound... but this greyhound has been run over and then backed over. Especially now he's sporting implants. Luckily for him, SA have nigh on always had a reason to have a slip.

Brass Monkey wrote:Have you noticed that however much Red slates Smith, Taips has equally as much gushy, unflinching admiration for him?

The bloke has always been a liablilty in the field, unless his good hands have been used at slip. OK, he moves like a greyhound... but this greyhound has been run over and then backed over. Especially now he's sporting implants. Luckily for him, SA have nigh on always had a reason to have a slip.

No, I know he's slow in the field, Doesn't make him unathletic. Some are quicker than others. It's genetic.

OK. He's not unathletic, he just doesn't compete in a running event. I'd suggest a field event, but he's got a bit of a custard arm. Swimming? He does look like he's moving through water sometimes.

taipan wrote:

skully wrote:
Graeme Smith looks like a hippopotamus in the outfield.

NTR

What Dan said. Shirley you don't rate him "althetic" in the outfield? Good slipper, yes - draughhorse in the outer, and worse, he really makes it look obvious he doesn't want to be out there. It's almost like Amla is taking the piss out of him.

skully wrote:

taipan wrote:

skully wrote:
Graeme Smith looks like a hippopotamus in the outfield.

NTR

What Dan said. Shirley you don't rate him "althetic" in the outfield? Good slipper, yes - draughhorse in the outer, and worse, he really makes it look obvious he doesn't want to be out there. It's almost like Amla is taking the piss out of him.

He's runs the fastest he can. It's not as though he isn't trying.

Amla was a dick.

What did Amla do?

Amla is captain of the JAMODI side and placed Smiffy in the outfield. It was amusing.

Well in jamodis everyone has to field in the outfield at some stage. You don't often have a slip in the 47th over.

taipan wrote:

skully wrote:

taipan wrote:

skully wrote:
Graeme Smith looks like a hippopotamus in the outfield.

NTR

What Dan said. Shirley you don't rate him "althetic" in the outfield? Good slipper, yes - draughhorse in the outer, and worse, he really makes it look obvious he doesn't want to be out there. It's almost like Amla is taking the piss out of him.

He's runs the fastest he can. It's not as though he isn't trying.

Amla was a dick.

The question wasn't whether he was trying, it's whether he is "unathletic". In my opinion, he is the latter.

Henry wrote:Well in jamodis everyone has to field in the outfield at some stage. You don't often have a slip in the 47th over.

Indeed, but deep cover point seemed an odd choice for Smiffy. His galumping along the boundary and leaving deep potholes with his knees was a sight to behold.

He's more than useful at mid on or off. Would rather have him than most bannies.

He seems to have gotten slower in the last year or so. And his fielding in the closing moments at Joburg was terrible.

For a comparison, there's probably Ali Cook, although I reckon Cook works harder on his fielding than Smith does. No proof, just a guess based on what i've seen.

taipan wrote:He's more than useful at mid on or off. Would rather have him than most bannies.

Agree on both points, which is why is struck me as odd what Amla did.

Cook's pretty shite, but at least he's not got the weight on him which helps with diving etc.

skully wrote:

taipan wrote:He's more than useful at mid on or off. Would rather have him than most bannies.

Agree on both points, which is why is struck me as odd what Amla did.

That's why I said Amla was a dick. Not that Amla is much use on the boundary either.