Fuller Pilch
Hall of Fame Member
Should we call them AB positive and AB negative?
Tbf, you could replace Miandad with Younis in that quote and it'd still be true.Thought this comment by someone under the article was good.
I have seen all of these players live! And even though, each one has his own place in history. But when Miandad came to the crease, whatever the odds were at that given time, there was always hope! Pakistan had always a chance to turn the tables on the opposition when Miandad was batting. And he let the opposition know that he was there to beat them. He was never afraid to take the fight to the competition! And in that era, more often than not, he prevailed! So my choice as Pakistan's greatest is none other than the inimitable Javed Miandad.
Yep, In fact you can put any great Batsmen here and it will be true, you don't come in the conversation for greats if you are the sort who backs down from a fight.Tbf, you could replace Miandad with Younis in that quote and it'd still be true.
Miandad faced better bowling attacks and played in an era where it was tougher to play as many tests so those numbers need to be taken with a grain of salt imo (not that I'm saying Miandad is clearly better than Younis - I think it's a toss-up).Younis' figures are the best by miles. 34 tons v Miandad's 23 despite playing fewer tests. Unexpected
And the rest for Miandad...... Marshall, Ambrose, Garner, Holding, Thomson, Willis, to name a few.Yes, an analyse of their dismissals tells you the bowling they faced,
Miandad: Dev, Lillee, Hadlee, Croft
Younis: Herath, Steyn, Broad, McGrath
Nah, I think Crowe still ranks ahead of most, possibly even Williamson to be honest when it's all said and done. He faced the hardest bowlers of the era as a youth batsman which destroyed his overall average and the end of his career was blighted by knee and back problems, but if you take the meat of his career between 1985 and 1994, his stats were unbelievable considering the era.Definitely seems to be a case in which most folks who have seen a decent amount of both Miandad & Younus seem to rate the former, but those slightly younger folks who didn't see much of Miandad and are instead mostly looking at their records think Younus.
I'm sure something like a Jayawardene vs, Crowe debate would see a similar pattern.
Yeah, look at the list that Crowe faced, remove the Pakistanis, add Hadlee into the mix instead and you've got the murderers row that Miandad faced.And the rest for Miandad...... Marshall, Ambrose, Garner, Holding, Thomson, Willis, to name a few.
That was kind of the point I was making. People don't seem to have an appreciation that hardly any batsmen averaged in the 50s in the 70s, 80s & early 90s. To compare Mo Yo's record with Miandad thinking it's a fair thing to compare shows a lack of understanding about the different eras, & the bowlers they faced.Nah, I think Crowe still ranks ahead of most, possibly even Williamson to be honest when it's all said and done. He faced the hardest bowlers of the era as a youth batsman which destroyed his overall average and the end of his career was blighted by knee and back problems, but if you take the meat of his career between 1985 and 1994, his stats were unbelievable considering the era.
51 tests, 4333 runs @ 54.84, 16 tons, 13 half tons.
The only people who would rank Jayawardene ahead of him are those that never saw Crowe play and don't understand what a murderers row of bowling cricket in the 1980s and 1990s were.
Crowe not only had to face the likes of Garner, Holding, Marshall, Thomson, Lillee, Imran Khan, Botham, Willis, Qadir in their pomp at the start of his career, he also had to deal with the rising of Waqar, Wasim, Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Ian Bishop, Warne, Donald
Yes, I was just reeling off the guys who got his wicket the most times. (I suspect he had a lot of success against those others which puts Miandad's calibre in perspective!!). They are both strong bowling eras really. McGrath could be on the first list. The 'Lillee era' (for lack of a better term) edges it though.And the rest for Miandad...... Marshall, Ambrose, Garner, Holding, Thomson, Willis, to name a few.