• Welcome to the Cricket Web forums, one of the biggest forums in the world dedicated to cricket.

    You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join the Cricket Web community today!

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.

Best Fast Bowler 1992-2007

Who is the best fast bowler according to you?

  • Total voters
    47
I

iamdavid

International Debutant
Manee said:
Shoaib Akhtar, I believe is a fifth place. Although his Test average is 25.30, his strike rate of 44.71 is second to very few bowlers who have played more than 20 Tests. In ODIs, the effect is similar with a strike rate of 30.17, going for under 5 runs per over, he is hardly expensive either. A very up and down bowler, many people in the world would pay to see the ups and the poor spells still come at an excess of 145kmph.
Click to expand...
He's certainly been one of it not the most exciting bowlers in that period, but I dont think he deserves to be rated above Pollock, Waqar, Walsh or even Gillespie. His contributions at times have been top notch but as you say he's very up and down plus he just cant stay on the park long enough to string a few consecutive series together and when he's bad he can be very bad. Its still not too late, but atm he's a bit of an enigma as a test bowler and I wouldnt put him near fifth.
However in ODI's I fancy he'd be top 5 performers over that 15 year period.
 
Perm

Perm

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Glenn McGrath is the best fast bowler I have had the privilege to watch.
 
Sanz

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Wasim Akram, He was an artist, an entertainer and a top fast bowler, that's why gets my vote. I cant seem to think of anyone as good and complete as a fast bowler.
 
open365

open365

International Vice-Captain
My personal favourite out of the lot is Curtly Ambrose, followed by AD and McGrath, but i think overall the best is McGrath, the complete package.
 
Beleg

Beleg

International Regular
Alan Donald deserves more than one vote. He was everything McGrath is (apart from his last year) and more. A strike-rate of 47 and an average of 22 speaks for itself.


Also, Shoaib Akhtar definitely did not have a 'up-and-down' career, unless you are talking about his injurees. On field, he has been as good as anybody.

He has played a total of 42 tests, and during his last 30 tests, his average is 21.48 with a strike-rate of 37.9. (strike-rate is under 50 for all countries except India). Yup, that's right, he take a wicket in every seventh over - in a test match.

And these stats showcase his performance against all teams (with the exception of India, he boasts an examplary record against all other teams, even Australia) all over the world. He has dominated all the teams he has played, even India - even though the stats might tell a different story.

And putting aside stats, he has bowled some of the most sensational spells of bowling I have ever seen. He has been fast, furious, accurate, cunning and aggressive. He has adapted his bowling style to suit the conditions of the pitch and made use of all traditional fast balling weapons (apart, perhaps, from new ball out-swing) as well as slow-balls.

He's not the best bowler of the aforemention era because other people have similar to slightly worse records for longer periods of time, but he sure as hell has been one of the most devestating.
 
Fiery

Fiery

Banned
Beleg said:
Alan Donald deserves more than one vote. He was everything McGrath is (apart from his last year) and more. A strike-rate of 47 and an average of 22 speaks for itself.


Also, Shoaib Akhtar definitely did not have a 'up-and-down' career, unless you are talking about his injurees. On field, he has been as good as anybody.

He has played a total of 42 tests, and during his last 30 tests, his average is 21.48 with a strike-rate of 37.9. (strike-rate is under 50 for all countries except India). Yup, that's right, he take a wicket in every seventh over - in a test match.

And these stats showcase his performance against all teams (with the exception of India, he boasts an examplary record against all other teams, even Australia) all over the world. He has dominated all the teams he has played, even India - even though the stats might tell a different story.

And putting aside stats, he has bowled some of the most sensational spells of bowling I have ever seen. He has been fast, furious, accurate, cunning and aggressive. He has adapted his bowling style to suit the conditions of the pitch and made use of all traditional fast balling weapons (apart, perhaps, from new ball out-swing) as well as slow-balls.

He's not the best bowler of the aforemention era because other people have similar to slightly worse records for longer periods of time, but he sure as hell has been one of the most devestating.
Click to expand...
He's also a ****
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
Wasim Akram the most skilled, Ambrose the best overall, McGrath made the most of his talent, Donald my fave by a mile.

Wasim could do stuff with a ball most can only dream of. What he might have achieved with more attention-to-detail almost begats thinking about.

Oh yeah - Angus Fraser > one or two of the bowlers on the list too, IMO. And not sure Waqar really deserves too much of a mention as from 1995 onwards he wasn't that much of a bowler.

I can't really think of anything Donald might have done differently to become better, TBH, but I'm sure there must be something. :) He had the complete package more than anyone except Akram. And was quite possibly a better bowler than McGrath IMO.
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
Pratyush said:
Ian Bishop was amazing and could have been one of the greatest Windies fast bowlers ever had he not been injured. Jason Gillespie was pretty good - just look at his record.
Click to expand...
Oh, yeah, to this: Ian Bishop was a magnificent bowler, and I can't believe anyone would seriously consider him otherwise. Quite patently superior to Courtney Walsh and very possibly superior to everyone of the '70s, '80s and '90s except Malcolm Marshall and Ambrose.

Gillespie was (is?) a superb bowler in everything bar that final (proper) two series'. Too many people, in my experience, tend to judge things by that Ashes 2005. Me, I pretty well totally ignore it when assessing him.
 
Fiery

Fiery

Banned
nightprowler10 said:
Yeah he is, which is exactly why people don't like to admit how good he really is. Take away his injuries and other scandals and he hasn't done much wrong as far as his cricket goes.
Click to expand...
True. His action, his personality and the drugs thing don't help
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
Why'd people not like his action? :huh: No-one held a slingy action against most other bowlers.
 
Beleg

Beleg

International Regular
When you take wickets at the rate he does, there really is no need for bowling 10 over spells.
 
silentstriker

silentstriker

The Wheel is Forever
His action has been getting progessively worse.

Here is a piece by Holding. With that said, his isn't the worst on view, and I am not convinced it violates the 15-degree rule. If it doesn't, his action is fine.

That aside, he is certainly a very very fine bowler. He is as fast as Lee, but overall a much better bowler.
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
Beleg said:
When you take wickets at the rate he does, there really is no need for bowling 10 over spells.
Click to expand...
There's certainly something in that. Shoaib should be used as a strike-bowler (ie, in short spells) - the fact that there's often been a threadbare attack around him has possibly damaged his chances of being perceived as top-drawer. He's not a stock-bowler and he was never, ever going to be one.

Just imagine if his career had coincided with both Wasim's long heyday and Waqar's shorter one. :blink: Or even with Saqlain and\or Mushtaq's.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Top