Who was the better bowler ?

[SJS]

We have many people who believe one or the other of thse fabulous Pakistani bowlers was the greatest of all time. Some in fact seem to elevate their hero to near divinity.

Without going into the 'divine staure' or even comparing them with those from other lands and other eras, lets see how these two Pakistani's fare against each other.

PS : THIS IS ONLY TO COMPARE THEM IN THE LONGER VERSION OF THE GAME - TEST MATCHES.

Please also confirm if you have seen either of them in action - live in person or live on TV.

 

[Ikki]

This is truly one poll I don't think I am sure either way. Although, I am leaning more towards Imran.

 

[Goughy]

If we generally consider Imran as one of the top quicks then it is clearly him.

Wasim isnt close to the pantheon. One of the better 2nd tier bowlers.

 

[Fusion]

Imran for me. I don't think he gets his proper due in the discussion for the "best pace bowlers of all time". I personally only rank Marshal and Hadlee above him. His record against the WI, the most dominating team of the era, is excellent. He averages 21.18 with an economy of 2.91. Compare that to some other greats like Lillee (ave 27.74, eco 3.42) or Hadlee (ave 22.03, eco 2.69) and Imran fares well. Imran also has a great record against India, with their traditionally strong batting lineup (while bowling to them on the flat pitches of the subcontinent). His devastating spell of 40 wickets in a series has to be one of the greatest bowling performances ever. Wasim is probably the most talented bowler I've ever seen, but his overall record is inferior to Imran. Imran definitely achieved more.

 

[Goughy]

Wasim is probably the most talented bowler I've ever seen, but his overall record is inferior to Imran. Imran definitely achieved more.

Fair points.

I think a lot depends on whether ODIs are factored into the equation. For myself, unless specified, I only look at Test cricket. In ODIs Wasim has a legitimate claim to being one the best ever but in Tests he isn't in that group.

 

[SJS]

This Is Only Taking Test Matches Into Account.

 

[funnygirl]

Wasim Akram .he surpassed Imran's wicket tally in less than 4 tests.

 

[Goughy]

Wasim Akram .he surpassed Imran's wicket tally in less than 4 tests.

Wow, thats like 120 wickets a Test match

 

[funnygirl]

Wow, thats like 120 wickets a Test match

Since u guys are so much anti Wasim ....and pro statistics ,i have to say ....that what Imran achieved 362 wickets ,Wasim took 4 tests less than to the total tests of Imran to achiev that tally.

 

[Fusion]

Since u guys are so much anti Wasim ....and pro statistics ,i have to say ....that what Imran achieved 362 wickets ,Wasim took 4 tests less than to the total tests of Imran to achiev that tally.

With a higher average, economy, and strike rate. I'm not the type who goes by stats alone. I make my judgment after watching someone play, reading about them from those I respect (including their peers), factoring in any number of intangibles, and finally comparing stats.

 

[SJS]

Will all those who have voted/will vote, please also tell whether you have seen Imran bowl. I am assuming thateveryone has seen Wasim bowl.

 

[silentstriker]

Well I've seen Wasim bowl, but that was when he was way way past his best. So in reality, if you mean watched live, it's neither.

Imran was the best fast bowler and player to ever come out of the subcontinent IMO. Wasim was a great player, but as someone said earlier, a step below the very top tier.

 

[Fusion]

Will all those who have voted/will vote, please also tell whether you have seen Imran bowl. I am assuming thateveryone has seen Wasim bowl.

I was 15 when Imran retired, so yeah I saw him bowl. I probably didn't fully understand/appreciate cricket back then the way I do now, but I knew enough to appreciate Imran's performances.

 

[funnygirl]

I saw Imran playing . And i would say Wasim was more craftier and difficult to face than Imran .

 

[Richard]

Imran. As Fus said, his achievements are astonishing, really. I'd say he can quite easily be called the best seamer ever to come from the subcontinent if you look properly.

In Tests (saw him in the 1999 WC and he was awesome of course) I only ever saw Wasim when he was past his best (2000\01) and obviously only saw 1 Imran game live (1992 WC final, when I was 6 so couldn't really appreciate much other than that he bowled in the right areas). Have seen the both of them bowl loads in highlights packages, tributes, etc. and they're both awesome.

Wasim, though, underachieved for mine. Imran, on the other hand, wrung pretty well every last drop from his bowling talents, and that's before you even get onto his batting and captaincy.

 

[Richard]

Just to take a slightly deeper look: this is the part of Imran's career that matters. Not the 1971 and 1974 tours of England, nor the few Tests at the end where he was first doing not much then playing almost exclusively as a batsman. In this time he conquered pretty well every batting-line-up, pretty well everywhere. Above all, he averaged 17 in Pakistan, and 19 in the subcontinent as a whole. On just 2 occasions out of 20 series did somone really get on top of him: Australia in 1978\79 (and this was during the Packer Schism), and India in 1986\87. The only team who even approached getting the better of him was New Zealand, against whom his overall average was 28.

By contrast, Wasim had 2 teams who, while they certainly didn't get on top of him, came closer than anyone did to Imran: India and South Africa raised his average to 29 and 30 respectively. And what's more, he had 5 bad series out of 33, which is still hugely impressive, but not quite so as Imran. Wasim's average in Pakistan was 21, in the subcontinent at large a tick under 22.

Now, of course we don't judge solely by stats but these present a compelling case, and as I say - I imagine most would call Imran the superior bowler.

 

[Matt79]

I went for Wasim - best Pakistani bowler ever IMO. I saw Imran, but only in his autumn years, so maybe that's hurt him slightly in my eyes. I don't care to look too much at their stats beyond what's necessary to confirm - they both have OUTSTANDING statistical records. After that, I go by expert testimony and what I saw. I have Wasim in the very top bracket of pace bowlers - he could do everything with the ball, could be blisteringly quick, and had that left arm angle. Imran was also a truly great quick, but I just have Wasim shading him.

 

[funnygirl]

Richard, statistically Imran is better ,no doubt abt that .But he did have the advantage of bowling in era of ''More tests less ODIs, no neutral umpires'' .Or wickets were more batsman friendly because of the ODI s in the 90's era .

Not only that ,I saw Wasim troubling the best like Viv ,Greenidge ,Haynes ,border ,Amarnath.......etc infact even before his prime has started , like as a beginner during 1986 -88.

 

[BhupinderSingh]

I saw Imran live on TV only once(in the 1992 WC) when I was just about 5 years old.Other than that,I have recordings/highlights of many of his matches & thanks to PTV archives for those matches that I didn't have recordings of.And its his performances which made me come to conclusion that He's not only the greatest allrounder ever but also the greatest bowler & captain.And,I got the honour of meeting Imran when he was on collection campaign for his charity Cancer hospital in 1994.

I watched Wasim from 1996 till retirement but he could never impress me as much as Imran did.

 

[Richard]

I went for Wasim - best Pakistani bowler ever IMO. I saw Imran, but only in his autumn years, so maybe that's hurt him slightly in my eyes. I don't care to look too much at their stats beyond what's necessary to confirm - they both have OUTSTANDING statistical records. After that, I go by expert testimony and what I saw. I have Wasim in the very top bracket of pace bowlers - he could do everything with the ball, could be blisteringly quick

But so could Imran...

Imran's stats are better, if only slightly. As most testimony I've heard doesn't really split them (and if it does it tends to come down on the Imran side) I find it strange the idea that Wasim was better TBH.