Stuart Clark - World's Best BOWLER

[Prince EWS]

The improvement has been that he's gone from a thoroughly typical mediocre-Indian-seamer to something a bit better than that. IMO, people have gone totally OTT and started hailing him as a World-class strike force who's somehow now one of the best seamers going around - witness the ridiculous ascertations he's better than Vaas.

Zaheer has bowled no better than those match-figures suggest - he had one brilliant game (Trent Bridge), has had several semi-decent ones, and a few bad ones to boot. And people talk as if he'd taken 10-fors every match.

The suggestion that he's better than Vaas also takes into account Vaas's obvious decline of late, though. At the moment, Zaheer is a better bowler than Vaas. That doesn't mean he'll go down as a better bowler when they finish their careers - not at all. But IMO, it's true as of now. Given quite a few people on this site seem to think so as well, I don't think it's quite fair to call it ridiculous, much less use the rolleyes, even if you don't agree with it.

Vaas was better a few years ago than Zaheer has ever been and probably ever will be, but that doesn't change what is true as of now. I also think you're doing Zaheer's improvement a dis-service by just going on his stats in the time since it occured - it's a small sample size which includes in a test series on an absolute road and more than one test where he was quite obviously less than fully fit.

 

[Prince EWS]

at this point of time you'd have Vaas in your team ahead of Clark?

He was talking about Zaheer Khan; not Clark.

 

[Laurrz]

He was talking about Zaheer Khan; not Clark.

true, my mistake

well, just my opinion.. if asked if i wanted Zaheer or Vaas... it would be very hard

 

[Richard]

The suggestion that he's better than Vaas also takes into account Vaas's obvious decline of late, though. At the moment, Zaheer is a better bowler than Vaas. That doesn't mean he'll go down as a better bowler when they finish their careers - not at all. But IMO, it's true as of now. Given quite a few people on this site seem to think so as well, I don't think it's quite fair to call it ridiculous, much less use the rolleyes, even if you don't agree with it.

Vaas was better a few years ago than Zaheer has ever been and probably ever will be, but that doesn't change what is true as of now. I also think you're doing Zaheer's improvement a dis-service by just going on his stats in the time since it occured - it's a small sample size which includes in a test series on an absolute road and more than one test where he was quite obviously less than fully fit.

Don't agree that Vaas has declined. He's simply bowling about 4 or 5 mph slower now than he was 4 years ago. He's still more than capable of producing the performances now as he ever was.

Hopefully Vaas might have one of his sustained purple-patches sometime soon, just to put this nonsense to bed. There's been no time at all of late where they've bowled in comparable circumstances - nearest it came was Galle 2007\08 from Vaas and Trent Bridge 2007 from Zaheer. It's a completely unfair comparison, Zaheer's had it far easier of late than Vaas has.

 

[eglezdzdiyd]

i think clark should be very happy with the mcgrath comparisons because imo, he isn't half of what mcgrath was. He just bowls around 130kph and is accurate. Having said that, being half of mcgrath is still pretty good. Labelling him amongst, if not, the world's best bowler is more a sad depiction of the quality of test match bowlers internationally, currently.

 

[Laurrz]

i think clark should be very happy with the mcgrath comparisons because imo, he isn't half of what mcgrath was. He just bowls around 130kph and is accurate. Having said that, being half of mcgrath is still pretty good. Labelling him amongst, if not, the world's best bowler is more a sad depiction of the quality of test match bowlers internationally, currently.

true to an extent..his ranking is 822... mayb a few years ago he'd be #5 at best

disagree with the 'he just bowls around 130kph and is accurate' comment though.. oh how many bowlers wish that and claim 59 wickets at under 20 on flat wickets against very good batsmen

 

[Matt79]

The improvement has been that he's gone from a thoroughly typical mediocre-Indian-seamer to something a bit better than that. IMO, people have gone totally OTT and started hailing him as a World-class strike force who's somehow now one of the best seamers going around - witness the ridiculous ascertations he's better than Vaas.

Zaheer has bowled no better than those match-figures suggest - he had one brilliant game (Trent Bridge), has had several semi-decent ones, and a few bad ones to boot. And people talk as if he'd taken 10-fors every match.

Richard, you're bitching about me in one thread while debating me in another!!!

PEWS has already set you straight on the Vaas-Khan account in this thread (I've always admired his ability to, y'know, read), while I've done so in the other...

 

[Richard]

Happened that the same sort of thing came up with you and Rob in 2 different threads, and I'm certainly not bitching about you BTW, there's any number of people who've recently expressed that (Zaheer > Chaminda) notion.

 

[Matt79]

it's all good.

 

[eglezdzdiyd]

true to an extent..his ranking is 822... mayb a few years ago he'd be #5 at best

disagree with the 'he just bowls around 130kph and is accurate' comment though.. oh how many bowlers wish that and claim 59 wickets at under 20 on flat wickets against very good batsmen

i meant that as in a comparison to mcgrath also doing that.

 

[Nate]

No doubting Zaheer has radically improved lately. Wouldn't know it by reading stats of the computer mind, you'd actually have to watch the cricket.

Shocking, I know.

 

[Richard]

 

[Nate]

 

[pup11]

On Clark, I just think it's amazing how a bloke with a pretty average FC record, nothing too special can just come onto the Test scene and own world class batsmen from his very first Test (He's got some big scalps). He's certainly an interesting case like that.

One of the commentators said something of the sort during the match against India...like he was hiding something just for Test cricket and when he was finally selected he unleashed everything.

I hope a FC spinner too unleashes himself on the test scene and starts owning world class batsmen that would really be great , anyways jokes apart really hats off to Stuey for having done so well in such a short span of time he is late bloomer but he is surely making up for the lost time ala Mike Hussey, in my book he is probably the best fast bowler in the world in test cricket on current form.

 

[Son Of Coco]

i think clark should be very happy with the mcgrath comparisons because imo, he isn't half of what mcgrath was. He just bowls around 130kph and is accurate. Having said that, being half of mcgrath is still pretty good. Labelling him amongst, if not, the world's best bowler is more a sad depiction of the quality of test match bowlers internationally, currently.

You left out the bit where he moves it around a bit...and 'just bowling around 130kph and being accurate' is achievable by nearly every international bowler, so why don't they all just throttle back and take the rewards? I think the answer is because Clark is pretty bloody good.

 

[Perm]

The improvement has been that he's gone from a thoroughly typical mediocre-Indian-seamer to something a bit better than that. IMO, people have gone totally OTT and started hailing him as a World-class strike force who's somehow now one of the best seamers going around - witness the ridiculous ascertations he's better than Vaas.

Zaheer has bowled no better than those match-figures suggest - he had one brilliant game (Trent Bridge), has had several semi-decent ones, and a few bad ones to boot. And people talk as if he'd taken 10-fors every match.

It is very obvious that Chaminda Vaas is a better Test bowler than Zaheer Khan and has a better career record, but unless I'm missing something then I don't think ANYBODY has tried to dispute this, so stop trying to make it appear as though we (Prince EWS, Matt79, myself and a number of others) are claiming this. Your insufferable use of the roll-eyes and bandying about of words such as 'nonsense, rubbish and crap' in regards to our opinion is pretty pathetic TSTL. Even if you disagree with us, which you quite clearly do, then a common level of decency and respect would go a long way towards making yourself appear less like an obnoxious and ignorant know-it-all. The fact of the matter is, Zaheer Khan's performances since his return to Test cricket as of this Test have been better than performances exhibited by Chaminda Vaas over the same time period. Complain all you like about the conditions and pitches being different, but Zaheer hasn't had the easiest of circumstances either.

 

[Richard]

'just bowling around 130kph and being accurate' is achievable by nearly every international bowler

Haha noooo. Otherwise they'd all do it!

 

[Richard]

The fact of the matter is, Zaheer Khan's performances since his return to Test cricket as of this Test have been better than performances exhibited by Chaminda Vaas over the same time period. Complain all you like about the conditions and pitches being different, but Zaheer hasn't had the easiest of circumstances either.

He's had far, far easier circumstances than Vaas and the two are not remotely comparable. There is absolutely no way he can - accurately - be said with any conviction to have been notably better than Vaas.

 

[TT Boy]

'Stuart Clark - World's Best BOWLER'

But wasn't it only last week that Clark was beginning to show signs of mediocrity?

 

[Migara]

Congrats to Stuart Clark on becoming the World's Best BOWLER in the latest ratings.

Only last year Shane Warne referred to him as the Best Pace Bowler in the World and now he's the best legal bowler going around in the official rankings.

Justifies his selection in the Australian side and performs the little basics that makes him such an asset to the Australian side.

Fishng with a rancid bait. No one is going to be lured in to that bait.