Brendon McCullum to retire after upcoming Australia series

[NZTailender]

It's one thing to be famous for a sport in a country where it's almost a national religion, it's another to be known for that sport in a country who have never even seen or really heard of the sport at all.

 

[kiwiviktor81]

I'd say that with 1,200,000,000 people in India, anyone who has recently played either for or against the Indian national side or played IPL at any point would be better known than any rugby player ever.

 

[NZTailender]

I'd say that with 1,200,000,000 people in India, anyone who has recently played either for or against the Indian national side or played IPL at any point would be better known than any rugby player ever.

Quantitative not qualitative etc.

 

[Jord]

Baz also holds more meaningful records than Lomu. Lomu was a beast, sure, but he played as part of a killer team unit that was the world champs.

I'm sure had Baz batted 5 his entire career, never wicket kept and come in behind a batting line up that rated as highly as the forward pack that Lomu got to play with, he'd have been sensational.

 

[Senile Sentry]

Well played McCullum.

Going to miss one of the greatest modern 'original's of the game.

Averaged close to 45 since 2010 from over 50 test matches while captaining a bulk of them, instrumental in inducing the ***eh back into NZ cricket.

 

[hendrix]

Probably more people know who Matt Henry is than either Dan Carter or Richie McCaw.

I'd say that with 1,200,000,000 people in India, anyone who has recently played either for or against the Indian national side or played IPL at any point would be better known than any rugby player ever.

It's one of the weird western quirks that this feels intuitively wrong.

Like reading about any of the Chinese-Asian-Indian involvement in world war 2. Absolutely mindblowing.

 

[YorksLanka]

Well done Baz, will miss your attacking cricket at international level. One of the best cricketers for your country in a very long time..good luck for the future

 

[NZTailender]

Got some heat on Facebook for suggesting BMac is not top 10 NZ ATG Bats in Tests. Apparently he's about #2 because "he revolutionised the way batsmen batted."

I mean, really? L/O maybe, but in Tests? Seems like an amplified version of Michael Slater and Adam Gilchrist.

Genuine question tho: did he?

 

[Athlai]

Got some heat on Facebook for suggesting BMac is not top 10 NZ ATG Bats in Tests. Apparently he's about #2 because "he revolutionised the way batsmen batted."

I mean, really? L/O maybe, but in Tests? Seems like an amplified version of Michael Slater and Adam Gilchrist.

Genuine question tho: did he?

Nah no way. He barely even had a consistent "style" in Tests. It's hardly like he had great success guns blazing every time.

The top 10 question is a little more difficult for me.

Definitely better = Crowe, Turner, Taylor, Williamson
Arguably better = Wright, Fleming, Astle, Sutcliffe, Jones, Richardson, Coney

Reid, Howarth, Congdon probably have arguments too. If we were only looking at his career from 2010 when he really (do we say matured when referring to Baz?) "matured" as a batsman then I think he was certainly prolific enough to be considered top 10.

His 2014 was also probably one of the best we've ever seen from a Kiwi.

 

[NZTailender]

my ten tbh

1. Crowe
2. Williamson
3. Taylor
4. Turner
5. Dempster
6. Sutcliffe
7. Donnelly
8. Jones
9. Reid
10. Fleming

 

[Athlai]

Have always found it hard to place Dempster and Donnelly with how little Tests we played back in the 30s/40s.

 

[Burgey]

CMJ had Martin Donnelly in his top 100 cricketers of all time

 

[Bahnz]

Have always found it hard to place Dempster and Donnelly with how little Tests we played back in the 30s/40s.

Dempster is especially difficult to place as a lot of his test appearances were against what was effectively an England A side. Having said that, on the 3 occasions that he went up against Jardine's England side he still did pretty well, scoring a 100 and 2 50's (though he never had to face up to Larwood).

 

[NZTailender]

Have always found it hard to place Dempster and Donnelly with how little Tests we played back in the 30s/40s.

Indeed but if you look at their professional/FC record and the accounts from their contemporaries, they are rated incredibly highly.