Victor Ian
International Coach
Curious on the ODI front. I can only judge who I've seen - Border onwards - and I still rate Border for taking a pile of turd and winning a world cup back when I didn't even know what the world cup was. Perhaps it was easier then, but I think Waugh, Ponting and Clarke had things too easy to rate them too highly.
At test level, Taylor took what Border passed on and was there as Australia turned from pretty ok to really good. He seemed to manage his men well, whatever that means. Waugh led by example and was known for putting his faith in players and having them come through, but that could have been moreso because it is easy to come through and perform when you have no pressure because you have solid batting and McGrath and Warne to cover over any failings. Ponting may have been good, but really, with the team he had, an ice cream could have done well. Clarke had it tough. He was very entertaining on the captaincy front, but I think he was talked up a hell of a lot. It is easy to take chances and be innovative when you don't have to much talent to use a trusted formula.
At test level, Taylor took what Border passed on and was there as Australia turned from pretty ok to really good. He seemed to manage his men well, whatever that means. Waugh led by example and was known for putting his faith in players and having them come through, but that could have been moreso because it is easy to come through and perform when you have no pressure because you have solid batting and McGrath and Warne to cover over any failings. Ponting may have been good, but really, with the team he had, an ice cream could have done well. Clarke had it tough. He was very entertaining on the captaincy front, but I think he was talked up a hell of a lot. It is easy to take chances and be innovative when you don't have to much talent to use a trusted formula.