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smalishah84's favorite XI
- Thread starter smash84
- Start date
Agent Nationaux
International Coach
Do Imran last, so we all know what's coming.
bagapath
International Captain
Deeply offended by the insulting language.The haters can GAGF
In retalation i want to let loose Marshall and Garner on Junior with the new cherry and watch them fry his ass with nasty bouncers.
Wasim Akram is everyone's favourite, isn't he? I loved his hearty toothy grin after trapping a batsman.
bagapath
International Captain
Dude. Lara scored that 153* from no.5. Junior averaged 9 as opener (and fell to Shayne O'Connor). Am trying to save smali's team from losing a wicket within the first hour.Did nobody have a go at you for Lara at 5? despicable
Holding and Wasim opening the bowling would be ***ier than that famous scene in Mullholland Dr.
smash84
The Tiger King
Dude, you are forgetting that Holding was quicker than both of them. Don't you dare bounce the **** out of the younger Waugh
smash84
The Tiger King
a lovely piece in the Guardian on the WI pace bowlers and Michael Holding in particular
Never in my life had I faced a bowler as swift as Michael Holding | Mike Selvey | Sport | The Guardian
Never in my life had I faced a bowler as swift as Michael Holding | Mike Selvey | Sport | The Guardian
OverratedSanity
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Ah, Akram, what a bowler he was to watch. I think you nailed it when you said he was the most skilled bowler you'd ever seen, I'm sure most of us here would agree that on pure ability with a ball no one was as good as him. He could swing it both ways at will, often in the same delivery and probably didn't quite get as many wickets as he should have. Don't get me wrong, he has great stats but I always felt he didn't quite achieve as much as he could have, such was his amazing level of talent, kind of like a bowling version of Lara.
But the thing I always associate with Akram is that distinctive Pakistani scream after the fall of a wicket... Don't know how to describe it but it sounded so awesome to me that as a kid I'd try to bowl yorkers and on the rare occasion I did get a batsman out I'd do that scream
Plus, he bowled the fast bowler's ball of the century... I could watch the setup and dismissal all day
Wasim Akram vs Rahul Dravid Ball of Century CRICKET - YouTube
Finally, I genuinely believe he had the ability to become one of the great all rounders ala Imran if he'd just put a bit more thought and effort into his batting. Tis a shame. An ATG who could have been THE ATG
But the thing I always associate with Akram is that distinctive Pakistani scream after the fall of a wicket... Don't know how to describe it but it sounded so awesome to me that as a kid I'd try to bowl yorkers and on the rare occasion I did get a batsman out I'd do that scream
Plus, he bowled the fast bowler's ball of the century... I could watch the setup and dismissal all day
Wasim Akram vs Rahul Dravid Ball of Century CRICKET - YouTube
Finally, I genuinely believe he had the ability to become one of the great all rounders ala Imran if he'd just put a bit more thought and effort into his batting. Tis a shame. An ATG who could have been THE ATG
The Battlers Prince
International Vice-Captain
a great over from Akram, something he did so consistently
kyear2
Cricketer Of The Year
Both of them were such amazing bowlers, but both of them under achieved considering how good they could have become. Me personally, I rate Holding even above the likes of Hadlee and on par with or just below Lillee, Ambrose and Trueman ect. In the '70's and early '80's he was truly terrifying and if not for consistent injuries would have accomplished so much more than he did.
Agent Nationaux
International Coach
Akram was both a swing and a seam bowler.
hendrix
Hall of Fame Member
Well, technically so was McGrath, but he's remembered more as a seamer isn't he?
Red
The normal awards that everyone else has
Seems underrated in general. Some people take issue with Akram having been selected in cricinfo's all time team. I never saw the problem. Only Davidson really rivals him as a left arm quick. Akram was also a decent bat and pretty handy fielder.
When everything else's equal, having a left arm quick to complement two right armers makes sense to me.
And fast bowling stats are really irrelevant when we're talking about the difference between one or two runs in average. Will not matter in most test matches.
NUFAN
Y no Afghanistan flag
Great minds etc. Who's your wicket keeper? Mine would have to be Mike Garnham
Now on to Wasim Akram and him being underrated. I just think he has this aura about him which fans of the game were drawn to so much that he makes a helluva lot of favourite XI's but those people sort of just think of him as there guy and don't necessarily think he deserves a spot in a best XI. I'm just thinking out aloud here..
hendrix
Hall of Fame Member
yeah, personally I don't see it as a massive issue, especially taking into account the value of having a left armer, but it seems lots of people plump for the more extremely miserly bowlers.
Subjectively, I see Akram as possibly the most dangerous fast bowler ever. And that can't really even be quantified by strike rate.
In the 4th innings, with the opposition needing say 25 runs with 3 wickets in hand, it would be Akram I'd want bowling to win the test.
smash84
The Tiger King
Not really. I would say that a lot of people do place a lot of value on skill and what you can actually do with the ball. As Hendrix says that with 25 runs needed and 3 wickets remaining it would be Akram I would want to throw the ball to. You always felt (and quite often saw) one of those ridiculously swinging deliveries that would beat everything, sometimes even the umpire (Exhibit A Wasim Akram magic ball to Croft - Incredible - YouTube) and you knew you were watching something special.
smash84
The Tiger King
Holding was special. He could be terrifyingly quick. And unlike most express bowlers he could keep the pace there longer than most. He really is quite under rated and doesn't come up in these discussions anywhere near as much as he should.
It would be jizzworthy tbh when the captain of my team (no marks for guessing who that is
) throws the ball to Michael Holding and says in his inimitable style "I don't care about the wides or the no-balls, just go in there and bowl quick"..........
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