Australia vs West Indies

[GVGjr]

How do you think the all conquering team that Australia has produced over the last few years would have gone against that dominant West Indian team?

McGrath and Warne vs Richards would have been a great contest.

Garner, Holding and Marshall pitted against Langer, Hayden and Ponting would have been brilliant as well.

I'm not 100% sure why but I would probably back the WI team in a close series against the Australian's.

Thoughts?

[Chops]

Wasn't cricket was a much better spectacle when the WI were are force. Its a bit boring now.

Did the WI struggled against spin? I recall great spinners ;) like Allan Bordder and Murray Bennett bowling them out on a spin friendly SCG. How did they go in the India and did they have good spinners at the time?

The Australia's bats may have struggled too against the full out pace as I seem to recall Deveon Malcolm giving them a hard time once or twice when he hit the spot 1 out of 100 times.

[Twodogs]

Warne would run through them. They struggled with Bob Holland for crying out loud.



Who was/is the better batsman, Ponting or Richards? Ponting for mine, gutsier, better footwark and dominates against all types of attacks.

[Twodogs]

Wasn't cricket was a much better spectacle when the WI were are force. Its a bit boring now.





Frankly no. Pace bowler after pace bowler taking forever to bowl overs. 75 overs in a days play was ridiculous.


Cricket is a much better game now with improved fielding standards, better pitches and more variety in bowling.

[Chops]

Frankly no. Pace bowler after pace bowler taking forever to bowl overs. 75 overs in a days play was ridiculous.


Cricket is a much better game now with improved fielding standards, better pitches and more variety in bowling.
Maybe i'm talking about the WI, they don't have the charisma anymore.
It was a struggle to beat them and these days its 5 nil drumbings. They were cool man!
Now without Warne things have changed too.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Maybe i'm talking about the WI, they don't have the charisma anymore.
It was a struggle to beat them and these days its 5 nil drumbings. They were cool man!
Now without Warne things have changed too.

The West Indies were cool in 1975. Roy Fredericks, Clive Lloyd, Vivi (before he got too arrogant), Lawrence Rowe, Alvin Kallicharan, Derek Murray, Andy Roberts and Michael Holding. Lance Gibbs played but unfortunately Garry Sobers didn't.

Cricket was boring as hell in the 80's. 75 overs and 180 runs a day (and none of them in front of the wicket).

These days everyone plays their shots and if you don't score 300 in a day you'll get slow hand-clapped.

[Twodogs]

The West Indies were cool in 1975. Roy Fredericks, Clive Lloyd, Vivi (before he got too arrogant), Lawrence Rowe, Alvin Kallicharan, Derek Murray, Andy Roberts and Michael Holding. Lance Gibbs played but unfortunately Garry Sobers didn't.

Cricket was boring as hell in the 80's. 75 overs and 180 runs a day (and none of them in front of the wicket).

These days everyone plays their shots and if you don't score 300 in a day you'll get slow hand-clapped.



Lawrence Rowe was allergic to grass. It kind of killed his cricket career.

[The Coon Dog]

Lawrence Rowe was allergic to grass. It kind of killed his cricket career.

Can't keep away from Drugs In Sport, can you?

[Dry Rot]

Lawrence Rowe was allergic to grass. It kind of killed his cricket career.

I once smoked some of the old SCG pitch FWIW.

[Chops]

I once smoked some of the old SCG pitch FWIW.

:D
Sounds like a very good story.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Lawrence Rowe was allergic to grass. It kind of killed his cricket career.

So is Steve Elkington.

Lawrence Rowe was a dead set gun.

302 and 100 in his first test!

Rowe and Kallicharran put on 200 (both got 100's) against us in Brisbane that series (Greg Chappell topped them by scoring 100 in each innings in that game and Australia won)

[Chops]

The West Indies were cool in 1975. Roy Fredericks, Clive Lloyd, Vivi (before he got too arrogant), Lawrence Rowe, Alvin Kallicharan, Derek Murray, Andy Roberts and Michael Holding. Lance Gibbs played but unfortunately Garry Sobers didn't.
Cricket was boring as hell in the 80's. 75 overs and 180 runs a day (and none of them in front of the wicket).

How about intimidating, mean and scary?
With players like Garner, Croft, Marshall, Roberts and Ambrose running in at you trying to knock your head off, surely it was bad to be wearing white pants.
I remember when Colin Croft in NZ tried to elbow the umpire in his run up after the umpire turned down a decision, luckily the umpire saw it coming and moved to miss it.

Two of the best bowling actions of all time must be Holding and Lillee.
Holding actions were graceful and aply named whispering death. Lillee with his moustache was just poetic and macho at the same time.

[Dry Rot]

:D
Sounds like a very good story.

Years ago, they dug up the old pitch. At the end of the season they let the crowd onto the sacred ground so I took a bit of the pitch home. :)

[GVGjr]

Two of the best bowling actions of all time must be Holding and Lillee.
Holding actions were graceful and aply named whispering death. Lillee with his moustache was just poetic and macho at the same time.

Holdings action wasn't the greatest in my opinion but his run up was so graceful and fluid. In his last game in Australia the commentators were hoping like crazy that he would go off the long run one more time but he just teased them. Whispering death was a brilliant name.

Hadlee and Lille had impeccable actions.

[Dry Rot]

How about intimidating, mean and scary?
With players like Garner, Croft, Marshall, Roberts and Ambrose running in at you trying to knock your head off, surely it was bad to be wearing white pants.


They certainly had a production line of them - where did it all go wrong? Basketball?

[Twodogs]

How about intimidating, mean and scary?
With players like Garner, Croft, Marshall, Roberts and Ambrose running in at you trying to knock your head off, surely it was bad to be wearing white pants.
I remember when Colin Croft in NZ tried to elbow the umpire in his run up after the umpire turned down a decision, luckily the umpire saw it coming and moved to miss it.




Dean Jones almost got killed once because he asked Ambrose to take his white sweat band of his wrist. Sylvester Clarke once picked up half a brick that had been thrown on the field at him and threw it back into the crowd, Sylvester Clarke could throw a cricket ball about 800 metres, could you imagine that half brick flying at you?


Old film of Larwood and Lindwall bowling is beautiful to watch and that run up of Warnies was amazingly balanced and fluid for a fat bastard.

[GVGjr]

Sylvester Clarke should have been one of the WI greats however, his decision to tour SA worked against him. He was bloody quick off a shortish run up.

[Twodogs]

Imran and Wasim (unusually for a left hander) also had classic actions.


Also loved Thommo's action. The foot shuffle instead of a delivery stride and then that sling shot action that propelled the ball like a rocket launcher was a joy to behold.

[The Coon Dog]

Smooth & graceful reminds me of Michael Holding. I once read that he was only ever called once in his first class career for overstepping.

[GVGjr]

I was going to save this for another thread but my dream bowling team would be to have Lillee, Garner and Akram as the quicks.

Lillee had the best mechanics of any bowler but if he had a weakness he wasn't great at running throw the tail and his yorkers were average.
Garner was a most menacing bowler. His height and the line and length that he could sustain made him one of the hardest bowlers to score runs off. Across all pitches including the sub-continent he was a real force. He was also brilliant at bowling to the tail so would compliment Lillee as tandem.
Akram was a magician who could swing the ball both ways at pace. He was also a force when he moved around the wicket and changed up the angles. Very few other good quicks could do that to his effect. Once again he was lethal on all tracks but he wasn't a bounce em' out bowler. Being a left armer and his ability to make an old ball torque gives the attack a bit more guile.

I know there is heaps of other pacemen with the credentials to be in the best ever team but I haven't been convinced yet I that I would replace any of this the trio of bowlers with someone else.

[Twodogs]

Hard to think who you'd leave out but you wouldnt have McGrath?

[Twodogs]

Wasim was discovered as a nets bowler at Pakastani team training. Imran was so impressed he made his test debut a week later. Apparantly he said something along the lines of "I've went to school with a guy called Waqir. If you think I'm good..."

[GVGjr]

Hard to think who you'd leave out but you wouldnt have McGrath?

Not even close to be honest. I rated Marshall, Hadlee, Holding, Khan, Donald, Younis and a heap of others and even there is a couple of guys that played for England years ago with fantastic records but I cannot split that trio. Perfectly balanced for all tracks.

[Twodogs]

Not even close to be honest. I rated Marshall, Hadlee, Holding, Khan, Donald, Younis and a heap of others and even there is a couple of guys that played for England years ago with fantastic records but I cannot split that trio. Perfectly balanced for all tracks.


Really?



Personally have trouble splitting Lillee and McGrath. I loved Lillee but McGrath was dangerous in the way that a conered animal was. The first time I saw him bowl he hit the batman and the batsman collapsed on the pitch. McGrath showed no concern at all for him and just picked the ball up and was on his way back to his mark. His face was completly devoid of any emotion-he'd already got it out of his mind and was working on the next ball.

That was cold and I was an instant convert.

[GVGjr]

Really?



Personally have trouble splitting Lillee and McGrath. I loved Lillee but McGrath was dangerous in the way that a conered animal was. The first time I saw him bowl he hit the batman and the batsman collapsed on the pitch. McGrath showed no concern at all for him and just picked the ball up and was on his way back to his mark. His face was completly devoid of any emotion-he'd already got it out of his mind and was working on the next ball.

That was cold and I was an instant convert.

McGrath is terrific and his record stands on it's merit but Lillee could just dig deeper in my opinion.
Ian Chappell often tells the story that Lillee was having a particular bad day health wise and I think his back was playing up and mentioned to Chappell that he needed a rest. Chappell niggled him up with a comment along the lines that he lacked some ticker which got a swift response from Lillee and had him demanding the ball for a few more overs just to teach Chappell a lesson.

McGrath had the same sort of white line fever as well but I cannot pass over Lillee

[Sockeye Salmon]

McGrath was a machine. His accuracy was exceptional and I think working with Warne (who was also incredibly accurate) the batsman had to take a risk or they would never score.

To have McGrath in a side that also had any two of Lillee, Garner, Akram, Holding, Ambrose or Marshall and your captain may as well declare, you ain't gunna score anyway.

[GVGjr]

McGrath was a machine. His accuracy was exceptional and I think working with Warne (who was also incredibly accurate) the batsman had to take a risk or they would never score.

To have McGrath in a side that also had any two of Lillee, Garner, Akram, Holding, Ambrose or Marshall and your captain may as well declare, you ain't gunna score anyway.

If you had to go with just three who would you go with?

[Twodogs]

If you had to go with just three who would you go with?



McGrath, Lillee and Akram. For variety, pace and spite you couldnt beat that line up. If I had to make a change maybe Garner for either McGrath or Lillee but I'd want Wasim because I'm really keen on left arm quicks.

[Sockeye Salmon]

If you had to go with just three who would you go with?

I have this thing about graceful cricketers. I loved Greg Chappell, I love Sachin Tendulkar.

I'd love to have Michael Holding purely because he was so graceful, but I'd go with Lillee (simply the best ever), Akram (not that he was a better bowler than the others but just because he's a leftie) and McGrath (or Garner/Ambrose) for accuracy.

It's a ridiculous discussion, really. There's so little between them you could make an arguement for any of them.

I didn't even include Thommo, Imran or Hadlee the Wanker

[southerncross]

I have this thing about graceful cricketers. I loved Greg Chappell, I love Sachin Tendulkar.



I'm the opposite. I enjoyed the fighting qualites of Border, SWaugh, Langer and Jones. Something to be said for guys with a bit less grace and a bit more grunt.
The Indians would have to be the most graceful set of batsman I have seen when Tendulkar and Dravid are in full flight.

[Sunshine]

How about intimidating, mean and scary?
With players like Garner, Croft, Marshall, Roberts and Ambrose running in at you trying to knock your head off, surely it was bad to be wearing white pants.
I remember when Colin Croft in NZ tried to elbow the umpire in his run up after the umpire turned down a decision, luckily the umpire saw it coming and moved to miss it.



Croft and Roberts must have been the two scariest West Indian Bowlers to face. Didn't Croft actually connect with the NZ umpire?

[Twodogs]

Croft and Roberts must have been the two scariest West Indian Bowlers to face. Didn't Croft actually connect with the NZ umpire?



I thought he did.