The Sean
Cricketer Of The Year
Apologies for the delay all, I was a little busy over the weekend - I'm hoping that with a little luck and good management I'll be able to keep counting these down at a rate of one per day from now on. Tonight, it is the turn of our all time no.9.
9.
Malcolm Marshall | Cricket Players and Officials | Cricinfo.com
Nominated by 90% of voters - highest ranking no.1
From the mid-70s through to Ambrose and Walsh, who continued to the turn of this century, the West Indies produced a conveyor belt of brilliant fast bowlers the likes of which had never been seen before in international cricket. To stand out at all amidst such a galaxy of stars required a truly great bowler. To be almost universally acknowledged as the finest of all of them took Malcolm Marshall. A comparatively short man alongside some of the Caribbean man mountains of that quarter century, Marshall nevertheless found his own way - through sheer force of talent and achievement - to tower above those around him. He was for much of his career express paced and spent several years as the fastest bowler in the world, as a bowler he was also so much more than that - Macko had seemingly endless courage and stamina, tremendous technical skill, subtle variations and great cricketing intelligence. He was the man you could rely on against anyone, anywhere, under all conditions - if you were a skipper and you threw the ball to Malcolm Marshall then you knew he'd get the job done.
Marshall's career lasted well over a decade, but it was a six year period between 1983-1989 - bookended by series' against India - that assured him of his position at the top of the all time fast bowling pantheon. In that period, he played 49 Tests, taking 271 wickets at an average of 18.89 and with a strike rate of 42.8. To pick one, even several, highlights out of that extraordinary sustained run is virtually impossible, but his 7/53 with a broken thumb against England in 1984 must rank close to the top of the pile. England were regular victims - he took 35 wickets at 12 against them on his next tour to that country in 1988 - but in truth Macko dined out against just about everyone, including against India and Pakistan in the subcontinent, something that proved beyond so many other great fast men. After retirement, Marshall put his unrivalled expertise toward coaching, and when he died of colon cancer at the age of just 41, the outpouring of grief from across the cricketing world was immediate, heartfelt and utterly reflective of the esteem with which he was held both professionally and personally. It is no surprise at all that the members of CricketWeb have voted Malcolm Denzil Marshall the greatest pure fast bowler of them all.
Your all time number 8 to follow in the next 24 hours...
9.
Malcolm Marshall | Cricket Players and Officials | Cricinfo.com
Nominated by 90% of voters - highest ranking no.1
From the mid-70s through to Ambrose and Walsh, who continued to the turn of this century, the West Indies produced a conveyor belt of brilliant fast bowlers the likes of which had never been seen before in international cricket. To stand out at all amidst such a galaxy of stars required a truly great bowler. To be almost universally acknowledged as the finest of all of them took Malcolm Marshall. A comparatively short man alongside some of the Caribbean man mountains of that quarter century, Marshall nevertheless found his own way - through sheer force of talent and achievement - to tower above those around him. He was for much of his career express paced and spent several years as the fastest bowler in the world, as a bowler he was also so much more than that - Macko had seemingly endless courage and stamina, tremendous technical skill, subtle variations and great cricketing intelligence. He was the man you could rely on against anyone, anywhere, under all conditions - if you were a skipper and you threw the ball to Malcolm Marshall then you knew he'd get the job done.
Marshall's career lasted well over a decade, but it was a six year period between 1983-1989 - bookended by series' against India - that assured him of his position at the top of the all time fast bowling pantheon. In that period, he played 49 Tests, taking 271 wickets at an average of 18.89 and with a strike rate of 42.8. To pick one, even several, highlights out of that extraordinary sustained run is virtually impossible, but his 7/53 with a broken thumb against England in 1984 must rank close to the top of the pile. England were regular victims - he took 35 wickets at 12 against them on his next tour to that country in 1988 - but in truth Macko dined out against just about everyone, including against India and Pakistan in the subcontinent, something that proved beyond so many other great fast men. After retirement, Marshall put his unrivalled expertise toward coaching, and when he died of colon cancer at the age of just 41, the outpouring of grief from across the cricketing world was immediate, heartfelt and utterly reflective of the esteem with which he was held both professionally and personally. It is no surprise at all that the members of CricketWeb have voted Malcolm Denzil Marshall the greatest pure fast bowler of them all.
Your all time number 8 to follow in the next 24 hours...
