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Players who were indisputably the best of their time

WindieWeathers

International Regular
Not even Lara tbh. Tendulkar was pretty comfortably the best in that period. He was averaging mid-high 60s with everyone else, including Lara and Waugh a good 10-15 runs behind.
But Lara was breaking records left, right and centre!!..something of which Tendy never even got close to doing. So to suggest he was "comfortably the best" I simply cannot agree with. Also a hell of a lot of people believe Lara was better too so that adds further weight to my notion.
 
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Zinzan

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Yeah the Murali one is weird given he and Warne cancelled one another out in this respect.
 

Victor Ian

International Coach
Doesn't all the discussion on the merits of Tendulkar vs Lara vs Waugh render the argument invalid. Indisputable! Aside from Bradman, and pretty much Sobers, I don't think there are any more.

So how about who was indisputably the best among their team?

Australia: Bradman, Lillee, then maybe Border???
England: Grace?? (maybe not when he played tests) , Hobbs? Hammond?
New Zealand: Hadlee
Sri Lanka: Murali - period up to Sangakarra
India: Gavaskar (Does Dravid make Tendulkar invalid?)
South Africa: Kallis??? Was Pollock his bowling allrounder equivalent. He was practically McGrath but averaging 30+
Pakistan: Imran
West Indies: Sobers, Headley

I'm surprised Lillee is judged so well for the 70's. I started watching cricket just after he retired so I missed what he was and only hear about it in story. Are there really no other superstar players in this era? What about Richards?
 
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Burgey

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There were lots of others but Lillee had a mystique about him which is sort of hard to quantify. If you look at the 709s, he was a standout as far as fast bowlers were concerned, back injury notwithstanding.
 

honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
Doesn't all the discussion on the merits of Tendulkar vs Lara vs Waugh render the argument invalid. Indisputable! Aside from Bradman, and pretty much Sobers, I don't think there are any more.

So how about who was indisputably the best among their team?

Australia: Bradman, Lillee, then maybe Border???
England: Grace?? (maybe not when he played tests) , Hobbs? Hammond?
New Zealand: Hadlee
Sri Lanka: Murali - period up to Sangakarra
India: Gavaskar (Does Dravid make Tendulkar invalid?)
South Africa: Kallis??? Was Pollock his bowling allrounder equivalent. He was practically McGrath but averaging 30+
Pakistan: Imran
West Indies: Sobers, Headley

I'm surprised Lillee is judged so well for the 70's. I started watching cricket just after he retired so I missed what he was and only hear about it in story. Are there really no other superstar players in this era? What about Richards?

Why no Lara? :)
 

smash84

The Tiger King
There were lots of others but Lillee had a mystique about him which is sort of hard to quantify. If you look at the 709s, he was a standout as far as fast bowlers were concerned, back injury notwithstanding.
1300+ years and counting, you've seen a lot Burgey :p
 

Shady Slim

International Coach
johnson for that brief six month period and steyn across the board for pacers lately

mark craig also head and shoulders above the competition
 

wpdavid

Hall of Fame Member
So there a semi-consensus on Bradman, Sobers, Grace, Gilchrist, Steyn & Lillee this far.
Viv Richards in the 2nd half of the 1970s and early 1980s.

And surely Warne and Murali were out on their own in their respective fields.

Maybe Alan Knott for a while - late 1960's / early 1970s.
 

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