Best ODI XI You Have Seen

[Furball]

Mate, it's ****ing true. Go and add up all the threads and posts that have been made on here in recent times about how every component of those Australian sides is bettered by at least one, and usually more, of their opponents, and so help me, it's a miracle they won the lucky door prize at the post-match function.

It's a backhanded compliment in a way, you look back at the Pakistan and South Africa sides in 1999 and think "how did neither of them win the World Cup?"

 

[Streetwise]

What do you guys think of Pakistan 1999

Saeed Anwar
Afridi
Ijaz
Yousuf Youhana
Inzamam
Abdul Razzaq
Moin Khan
Wasim Akram
Saqlain Mushtaq
Waqar Younis
Shoaib Akhtar

Australia beat this team a bit more easily than they beat the SA team of 99 so it would have to be the SA team that was the best in 99.

 

[Simon]

A good side imo, very good in fact.

Probably the second best team imo.

 

[Burgey]

Probably the second best team imo.

Indeed.

 

[mohammad16]

Australia beat this team a bit more easily than they beat the SA team of 99 so it would have to be the SA team that was the best in 99.

Pakistan beat Australia in the same tournament actually, they just did a Pakistan in the final.

 

[Furball]

Probably the second best team imo.

After the unbeatable South Africans of course...

Seriously, I think there was a statistical analysis done on cricinfo a couple of years ago where it was concluded that Australia's ODI batting lineup from c.2004 was the best there's ever been.

 

[mohammad16]

I think based on performance Australian ODI side was certainly the best, and South Africa would be second. I just think that 1999 Pakistan lineup on paper is extremely explosive on both the batting and bowling front, probably the most entertaining too but yeah perhaps not the best due do the given nature of Pakistani teams.

 

[Simon]

Stats are good and fun and all but the only thing that matters is winning matches, and thats what the Australian's do best. You can have awesome players that score a bucket load of runs in meaningless matches but it's what happens in the big games that really counts.

 

[Streetwise]

Pakistan beat Australia in the same tournament actually, they just did a Pakistan in the final.

But Richard said and I quote "Impossible to go past South Africa of the 1999 World Cup and a few other games around that time:" so that blows you arguement out of the water.

 

[mohammad16]

Saeed Anwar- form of his life

Afridi - Dangerous but far too unpredictable

Ijaz

Yousuf Youhana - Excellent form, was a newcomer but played some really aggressive knocks in the world cup

Inzamam - not much to be said

Abdul Razzaq - I think he was consistently clocking close to 90 mph with considerable swing during these days, was sent up the order against Australia and did well too, took on Shane Warne

Moin Khan
Wasim Akram
Saqlain Mushtaq
Waqar Younis
Shoaib Akhtar

Saqlain was in his prime too.

I think that was the best chance Pakistan had to really challenge Australia as the best in the world, too bad that Australians were just far better organized and managed and were well on their way to dominate cricket for the decades to come.

 

[Burgey]

Pakistan beat Australia in the same tournament actually, they just had done to them in the final what Australia have done to every team in the matches that matter most.

Fix'd.

 

[andyc]

**** I love all this. Been watching this develop for months, and now's as good a time as any to vent.

Really, it's a wonder Australia won anything this past decade and a half, isn't it? In fact, it's the single longest fluking of sporting success in history.

It must be, because there are so many threads on here which clearly establish the following:

- Hayden was crap
- Langer was a misfit opener
- Slater and Taylor weren't as good as openers from other teams, especially Atherton, who was just unlucky he kept nicking to 1st slip for toffee
- Ponting's over-rated, always has been, can't play spin or seam
- the middle order was dross compared with other teams, because blokes like Martyn, M Waugh, Boon, Hussey etc weren't that good, while apparently Cronje, Ganguly, Thorpe et al were ****ing Bradman incarnate - always got the job done much better than their Aussie counterparts, never **** themselves over a bouncer and always relished the really hard going.
- Steve Waugh's captaincy wasn't that great, he only won because he had Warne and McGrath, likewise Taylor for that matter.
- Gilchrist only peaked for 18 months - and anyway, there are 3 or 4 other contemporary keeper-batsmen who are better than him, especially Andy Flower (ffs!); and because Healy's a **** commentator, he couldn't keep or bat either
- Warne wasn't great when he really needed to be - he couldn't bowl out India in India, so apparently he's ******** too, despite being one of the reasons Taylor and Waugh's captaincy didn't have to be that good..
- McGrath and Gillespie wasn't as good a combo as any of Ambrose-Walsh, Wasim-Waqar, Donald-Pollock (most laughably) or anyone else for that matter. Hell, Heath Streak and David Brain had more to offer you'd think, let alone the might of Gough and Caddick and Dominic Cork; or Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan. Funny how McGrath-Gillespie as a combo kept winning though - hope they've each bought lottery tickets, there can be no other explanation.
- The support bowling was just terrible - MacGill, Lee, Kaspa, Bichel and whoever else was picked - a complete bunch of 'tards really. Didn't move it, couldn't bowl blokes out at all. Lucky to be on the same field as their international counterparts from the other much better (though always mightily unlucky) teams.
- The ODi outfit that hasn't lost a match at a WC for more than a decade (a deacde FFS!!) really isn't that flash either. Just don't compare to the great sides like SA in 99 that won **** all.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the Australian ODI side that's won the past 3 WCs, 2 CTs (and was also in the 96 WC final btw) was lucky to beat time with a stick. Pathetic. Can't believe how lucky they were. Bieased umpiring also clearly played a part.

Next up, the proof that Australia was rightfully 7th in the test rankings for the past 15 years. It's all there, when you really analyse things.

Dire.

 

[AaronK]

The best Australian ODI side I ever saw wasn't half bad either:
M Waugh
Gilchrist
Ponting
Bevan
S Waugh
Lehmann
Martyn
Warne
B Lee
Gillespie
McGrath

(I'm fairly sure that appeared together once or twice in 2000/01)

This..

Although this team seems very strong too in paper .. but they didn't play like a team..

Anwar
Afridi
Razzaq
Inzamam
yousuf
younis
Moin Khan
Wasim
Saqalin
Waqar
Akhtar

 

[Noble One]

**** I love all this. Been watching this develop for months, and now's as good a time as any to vent.

Really, it's a wonder Australia won anything this past decade and a half, isn't it? In fact, it's the single longest fluking of sporting success in history.

It must be, because there are so many threads on here which clearly establish the following:

- Hayden was crap
- Langer was a misfit opener
- Slater and Taylor weren't as good as openers from other teams, especially Atherton, who was just unlucky he kept nicking to 1st slip for toffee
- Ponting's over-rated, always has been, can't play spin or seam
- the middle order was dross compared with other teams, because blokes like Martyn, M Waugh, Boon, Hussey etc weren't that good, while apparently Cronje, Ganguly, Thorpe et al were ****ing Bradman incarnate - always got the job done much better than their Aussie counterparts, never **** themselves over a bouncer and always relished the really hard going.
- Steve Waugh's captaincy wasn't that great, he only won because he had Warne and McGrath, likewise Taylor for that matter.
- Gilchrist only peaked for 18 months - and anyway, there are 3 or 4 other contemporary keeper-batsmen who are better than him, especially Andy Flower (ffs!); and because Healy's a **** commentator, he couldn't keep or bat either
- Warne wasn't great when he really needed to be - he couldn't bowl out India in India, so apparently he's ******** too, despite being one of the reasons Taylor and Waugh's captaincy didn't have to be that good..
- McGrath and Gillespie wasn't as good a combo as any of Ambrose-Walsh, Wasim-Waqar, Donald-Pollock (most laughably) or anyone else for that matter. Hell, Heath Streak and David Brain had more to offer you'd think, let alone the might of Gough and Caddick and Dominic Cork; or Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan. Funny how McGrath-Gillespie as a combo kept winning though - hope they've each bought lottery tickets, there can be no other explanation.
- The support bowling was just terrible - MacGill, Lee, Kaspa, Bichel and whoever else was picked - a complete bunch of 'tards really. Didn't move it, couldn't bowl blokes out at all. Lucky to be on the same field as their international counterparts from the other much better (though always mightily unlucky) teams.
- The ODi outfit that hasn't lost a match at a WC for more than a decade (a deacde FFS!!) really isn't that flash either. Just don't compare to the great sides like SA in 99 that won **** all.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the Australian ODI side that's won the past 3 WCs, 2 CTs (and was also in the 96 WC final btw) was lucky to beat time with a stick. Pathetic. Can't believe how lucky they were. Bieased umpiring also clearly played a part.

Next up, the proof that Australia was rightfully 7th in the test rankings for the past 15 years. It's all there, when you really analyse things.

Dire.

Thumbs up

 

[thierry henry]

Find Burgey's comment on Pollock/Donald v McGrath/Gillespie pretty silly tbh

I would definitely rate Pollock/Donald higher, and to say it's "laughable" to do so, is, well, laughable.

 

[L Trumper]

**** I love all this. Been watching this develop for months, and now's as good a time as any to vent.

Really, it's a wonder Australia won anything this past decade and a half, isn't it? In fact, it's the single longest fluking of sporting success in history.

It must be, because there are so many threads on here which clearly establish the following:

- Hayden was crap
- Langer was a misfit opener
- Slater and Taylor weren't as good as openers from other teams, especially Atherton, who was just unlucky he kept nicking to 1st slip for toffee
- Ponting's over-rated, always has been, can't play spin or seam
- the middle order was dross compared with other teams, because blokes like Martyn, M Waugh, Boon, Hussey etc weren't that good, while apparently Cronje, Ganguly, Thorpe et al were ****ing Bradman incarnate - always got the job done much better than their Aussie counterparts, never **** themselves over a bouncer and always relished the really hard going.
- Steve Waugh's captaincy wasn't that great, he only won because he had Warne and McGrath, likewise Taylor for that matter.
- Gilchrist only peaked for 18 months - and anyway, there are 3 or 4 other contemporary keeper-batsmen who are better than him, especially Andy Flower (ffs!); and because Healy's a **** commentator, he couldn't keep or bat either
- Warne wasn't great when he really needed to be - he couldn't bowl out India in India, so apparently he's ******** too, despite being one of the reasons Taylor and Waugh's captaincy didn't have to be that good..
- McGrath and Gillespie wasn't as good a combo as any of Ambrose-Walsh, Wasim-Waqar, Donald-Pollock (most laughably) or anyone else for that matter. Hell, Heath Streak and David Brain had more to offer you'd think, let alone the might of Gough and Caddick and Dominic Cork; or Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan. Funny how McGrath-Gillespie as a combo kept winning though - hope they've each bought lottery tickets, there can be no other explanation.
- The support bowling was just terrible - MacGill, Lee, Kaspa, Bichel and whoever else was picked - a complete bunch of 'tards really. Didn't move it, couldn't bowl blokes out at all. Lucky to be on the same field as their international counterparts from the other much better (though always mightily unlucky) teams.
- The ODi outfit that hasn't lost a match at a WC for more than a decade (a deacde FFS!!) really isn't that flash either. Just don't compare to the great sides like SA in 99 that won **** all.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the Australian ODI side that's won the past 3 WCs, 2 CTs (and was also in the 96 WC final btw) was lucky to beat time with a stick. Pathetic. Can't believe how lucky they were. Biased umpiring also clearly played a part.

Next up, the proof that Australia was rightfully 7th in the test rankings for the past 15 years. It's all there, when you really analyse things.

Dire.

 

[Zinzan]

**** I love all this. Been watching this develop for months, and now's as good a time as any to vent.

Really, it's a wonder Australia won anything this past decade and a half, isn't it? In fact, it's the single longest fluking of sporting success in history.

It must be, because there are so many threads on here which clearly establish the following:

- Hayden was crap
- Langer was a misfit opener
- Slater and Taylor weren't as good as openers from other teams, especially Atherton, who was just unlucky he kept nicking to 1st slip for toffee
- Ponting's over-rated, always has been, can't play spin or seam
- the middle order was dross compared with other teams, because blokes like Martyn, M Waugh, Boon, Hussey etc weren't that good, while apparently Cronje, Ganguly, Thorpe et al were ****ing Bradman incarnate - always got the job done much better than their Aussie counterparts, never **** themselves over a bouncer and always relished the really hard going.
- Steve Waugh's captaincy wasn't that great, he only won because he had Warne and McGrath, likewise Taylor for that matter.
- Gilchrist only peaked for 18 months - and anyway, there are 3 or 4 other contemporary keeper-batsmen who are better than him, especially Andy Flower (ffs!); and because Healy's a **** commentator, he couldn't keep or bat either
- Warne wasn't great when he really needed to be - he couldn't bowl out India in India, so apparently he's ******** too, despite being one of the reasons Taylor and Waugh's captaincy didn't have to be that good..
- McGrath and Gillespie wasn't as good a combo as any of Ambrose-Walsh, Wasim-Waqar, Donald-Pollock (most laughably) or anyone else for that matter. Hell, Heath Streak and David Brain had more to offer you'd think, let alone the might of Gough and Caddick and Dominic Cork; or Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan. Funny how McGrath-Gillespie as a combo kept winning though - hope they've each bought lottery tickets, there can be no other explanation.
- The support bowling was just terrible - MacGill, Lee, Kaspa, Bichel and whoever else was picked - a complete bunch of 'tards really. Didn't move it, couldn't bowl blokes out at all. Lucky to be on the same field as their international counterparts from the other much better (though always mightily unlucky) teams.
- The ODi outfit that hasn't lost a match at a WC for more than a decade (a deacde FFS!!) really isn't that flash either. Just don't compare to the great sides like SA in 99 that won **** all.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the Australian ODI side that's won the past 3 WCs, 2 CTs (and was also in the 96 WC final btw) was lucky to beat time with a stick. Pathetic. Can't believe how lucky they were. Biased umpiring also clearly played a part.

Next up, the proof that Australia was rightfully 7th in the test rankings for the past 15 years. It's all there, when you really analyse things.

Dire.

Good on you for saying it. Overall, agree with your main point around the way in which the forum's developed in recent times, hardly worth even expressing a contrary view these days unless you want 15 posters jumping all over you as opposed to the 1-1 debates that used to take place. Thought I was the only one to notice this tbh.

 

[stephen]

I reckon that these two sides from these two eras were pretty strong. Probably the most invincible teams I've seen come to think of it.

2003:

Gilchrist
Hayden
Ponting
Martyn
Lehmann
Bevan
Symonds
Hogg
Bichel
Lee
McGrath

2007:

Gilchrist
Hayden
Ponting
Symonds
Watson
Clarke
Hussey
Hogg
Bracken
Tait
McGrath

None of the top 4 2007 bowlers have averages over 30 and none of the top 7 batsmen average under 35, with all bar two averaging over 40.

 

[G.I.Joe]

Burgey and Turbinator frontrunners for Post of the Year imo.

 

[Ikki]

Good on you for saying it. Overall, agree with your main point around the way in which the forum's developed in recent times, hardly worth even expressing a contrary view these days unless you want 15 posters jumping all over you as opposed to the 1-1 debates that used to take place. Thought I was the only one to notice this tbh.

I did too but if I say anything it's just passed off automatically as biased. Because there is only 1 biased member on these forums yanno.