Choose the two opening bowlers for Post Packer World XI

[Days of Grace]

Makes sense really. Kiwis are rubbish at everything.

To say nothing of the English.

 

[Evermind]

Good job, andyc!

 

[The Sean]

To say nothing of the English.

No arguments there.

 

[nightprowler10]

Going Ambrose and Marshall, Wasim for the old ball and Imran will be my AR.

 

[bagapath]

love it how Lillee is being chosen over Hadlee,despite his average being some 8 points higher.

Oh, I forgot: Lillee is Australian and it would be unheard of for a New Zealand bowler to be considered better than him.

I always thought that if roles were reversed and Lillee was a New Zealander, and Hadlee and Australian, and they ended up with the same career stats, people would consider Hadlee to be much better. Think about it.

not sure of that D.O.G. martin crowe's stats are inferior to doug walters'. but he is likely to be considered the better batsman, and he was.

national bias doesnt have much to do with lillee's popularity. even hadlee used to imagine lillee's bowling action at the top of his run up to inspire himself. their strike rates are similar. they both took 5 wickets/ test on average. the difference in their overall bowling average is about 1 run. and it is attributed to hadlee's marginally better economy rate. lillee being faster than hadlee was also a little more expensive. lillee was an out and out fast bowler. he was a lee/akhthar/waqar bowling with the accuracy of an ambrose/mcgrath/pollock. i am not surprised he is respected and loved so much around the world.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Good job, andyc!

He doesn't actually distort the poll though. Think of it of the multi-poll alternative to the irrelevant third option.

 

[Matt79]

love it how Lillee is being chosen over Hadlee,despite his average being some 8 points higher.

Oh, I forgot: Lillee is Australian and it would be unheard of for a New Zealand bowler to be considered better than him.

I always thought that if roles were reversed and Lillee was a New Zealander, and Hadlee and Australian, and they ended up with the same career stats, people would consider Hadlee to be much better. Think about it.

So bitter.

Hadlee might have got some lbws in Australia that would have further improved his record however, it has to be said.

 

[zaremba]

love it how Lillee is being chosen over Hadlee,despite his average being some 8 points higher.

Oh, I forgot: Lillee is Australian and it would be unheard of for a New Zealand bowler to be considered better than him.

I always thought that if roles were reversed and Lillee was a New Zealander, and Hadlee and Australian, and they ended up with the same career stats, people would consider Hadlee to be much better. Think about it.

Point well made. Given his good-but-not-completely-outstanding career record I find it odd that so many people rate Lillee as the best of all time.

On point of pure pedantry, Lillee's average is 1.7 points higher than Hadlee's (23.92 v 22.29).

 

[bagapath]

going for marshall and hadlee. the best of the 80s. never failed in any country. or in any phase of their careers.

 

[stephen]

I voted Marshall and McGrath.

McGrath probably the greatest line and length bowler of all time and is vastly underrated by many I think.

Marshall probably the most dangerous bowler in the most dangerous pace bowling lineup ever.

 

[NUFAN]

I kind of wish the poll was 2 opening bowlers plus 1 first change bowler.

I voted for Imran, but feel that I should have probably left him out and voted for him narrowly ahead of Sir Richard for the number 8 spot.

Marshall was a given for the other opening bowling option.

 

[Fusion]

Went for Marshall and Hadlee.

I think Imran is certain for the all-rounder slot, though perhaps that poll should be running simultaneously to help us better determine the balance of the side.

 

[The Sean]

Marshall out on his own here but a ding-dong battle between Lillee, Hadlee and McGrath for the second slot. Ambrose not out of the running either.

 

[Ikki]

Lillee and McGrath - 1st and 2nd greatest ever pace bowlers, respectively, for mine. I was thinking Maybe Marshall as a lot of Lillee's legacy also rests pre/during Packer, but in the end I couldn't leave him behind. He is THE prototypical fast bowler and incomparable.

 

[bagapath]

I kind of wish the poll was 2 opening bowlers plus 1 first change bowler.

I voted for Imran, but feel that I should have probably left him out and voted for him narrowly ahead of Sir Richard for the number 8 spot.

Marshall was a given for the other opening bowling option.

there is no compulsion that the third bowler should also be a fast bowler. we might end up choosing two spinners. so we have to wait for this poll and the spinner's poll to get over before the fourth bowling option is opened up.

 

[NUFAN]

there is no compulsion that the third bowler should also be a fast bowler. we might end up choosing two spinners. so we have to wait for this poll and the spinner's poll to get over before the fourth bowling option is opened up.

I guess if someone like Kallis made the team I could easily live with Shane and Muttiah. If no one in the top 6 can bowl pace, I would not be picking 2 spinners.

 

[subshakerz]

Yes, this is quite tough. In the end, though, I went for Marshall and Hadlee. Malcolm Marshall is the most complete fast bowler of all time, so his choice was easy. Choosing between Hadlee and McGrath was tough given their similar career records/method's but I reckon Hadlee had a bit more pace and nip and was quite reasonable with the bat as well. Marshall and Hadlee would make for a pretty decent tail when you think about it.

Imran is a lock for the all-rounders spot. Botham, to be honest, wasn't the major force he was before when the Packer players came back.

As for Lillee, did he play or achieve that much post-Packer? He certainly was not as fast as he used to be. I see him more as a 70s player than an 80s one. Also, in terms of fast bowlers, I really cannot fully assess a pacer until he has achieved something in the subcontinent, and Lillee lacks in this category, for lack of opportunity if nothing else.

 

[Uppercut]

Point well made. Given his good-but-not-completely-outstanding career record I find it odd that so many people rate Lillee as the best of all time.

On point of pure pedantry, Lillee's average is 1.7 points higher than Hadlee's (23.92 v 22.29).

Aye, and Allan Donald's record is better than both yet he has no votes.

I find it hard to look past McGrath though. Everyone's quick to point out how flat the pitches from 2000 onwards have been when trying to devalue Matthew Hayden or Virender Sehwag's career, but when Glenn McGrath completes a career on those same pitches with one of the greatest records of all time it's not even mentioned.

 

[bagapath]

Aye, and Allan Donald's record is better than both yet he has no votes.

I find it hard to look past McGrath though. Everyone's quick to point out how flat the pitches from 2000 onwards have been when trying to devalue Matthew Hayden or Virender Sehwag's career, but when Glenn McGrath completes a career on those same pitches with one of the greatest records of all time it's not even mentioned.

donald is favorite of mine but his record against the best team of his time, australia, is nothing remotely great. that kind of takes a bit of the sheen off his achievements.

 

[funnygirl]

Michael Holding and RJ Hadlee. Combination of pace and accuracy .