Greatest ever innings played at Headingley

[_Ed_]

Butcher's 173* was superb too.

That'll always be one of my favourite Ashes hundreds. I'd always been a fan of Butcher, and staying up all night and watching him play a career-defining innings was pretty special.

But right now I'd go for Stokes in this poll. Not sure how much of that is recency bias.

 

[Victor Ian]

Stokes is made better because he was exhausted but just refused to give in. He really waited out Australia's attack until they had nothing left.

 

[cnerd123]

Ladbrokes’ odds for the result: 1-4 Australia; 5-2 draw; 500-1 England. After failing to persuade his team-mates to put £50 of the players’ pool on England given the odds were so ludicrous, Lillee went ahead with a £10 wager placed by the tourists’ coach driver, Peter Tribe, and Marsh staked a fiver.

Raises some question marks about the 1981 result tbh.

 

[Adders]

Raises some question marks about the 1981 result tbh.

Yeah, truly strange this has never been asked before.

 

[cnerd123]

Yeah, truly strange this has never been asked before.

I raise it up all the time tbh

 

[Howe_zat]

Adders was being sarky, in case you missed it. It's a very famous story.

'It was A Different Time' is probably the long and short of it.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Surely ***** is kidding as well?

 

[wpdavid]

Gooch 154/250odd in 1991 against the WI is a better contender than Botham and might be better than Stokes. I obviously haven’t seen it in its enterity.

Vengsarkar’s 102* (and 61) in Headingly in a game that no other player on either side scored more than 40 was probably excellent too. The scorecard at least is nuts: https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...-vs-india-2nd-test-india-tour-of-england-1986)

I'm surprised this is the only mention of Gooch's innings. Marshall, Ambrose and any two others is at the very least up there with this Australian attack, and the pitch was reckoned to be tough. For those of us who saw the match, it's an article of faith that it's the greatest test innings ever.

Vengsarkar's record in England was awesome. My only caveat against the innings you mentioned would be the quality of the England attack and the demoralised state of the England side in the summer of 1986.

Butcher's innings was fabulous; it was as if he'd been hypnotised and someone told him he was Graeme Pollock. But it was a dead rubber, which counts against it in this sort of poll.

I actually missed Botham's innings, having headed off interrailing for a month on the rest day of that test. I suspect it's slightly under-valued in some quarters. I know it was a bit hit and giggle, but it was still an extraordinary knock against a very good attack on a seriously tricky wicket. Maybe not quite the pressure that Stokes was under.


In other words, I wouldn't care to separate Botham, Gooch and Stokes. Obviously disappointed that Leach doesn't get a mention.

 

[Teja.]

This innings is simultaneously arguably both (i) the greatest innings of all time and (ii) not even the best innings of the calendar year so far, at the same time.

 

[morgieb]

Yeah I'd still probably say Gooch as the #1. Look at how cheaply that English attack knocked off the WIndies!

Stokes ahead of Botham though. All three are Top 20-ish of all-time efforts however.

 

[Slifer]

Great knocks of my time in no particular order:

Hughes 100* vs WI
Lara 213 and 153* vs Australia
Perera vs RSA
Laxman 281 vs Oz
Dravid same match
Stokes vs oz
Gooch 154* vs wi
Etc

 

[Daemon]

Perera, Mendis and Chandimal have all played absolute blinders in this decade. All 3 ATG material.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

One of the best hundreds at Headingley was Ricky Ponting in 1997. England had made squat and Australia were 50/4 when he came in. He'd played a handful of Tests but wasn't established in the team. Completely different circumstances to Botham or Stokes, but a great innings.

 

[OverratedSanity]

Among foreign players at headingley, some of the best I've seen would be:

Mathews 160 where he and fatty took the series away from England. Glorious counterattack.

Shai Hope twin tons

Dravid 148. Not an amazing attack but stupidly difficult conditions on day 1 and set the platform for sachin and ganguly to do some flat track bullying the next day.

Watling's ton a few years back was great too.

 

[wpdavid]

Among foreign players at headingley, some of the best I've seen would be:

Mathews 160 where he and fatty took the series away from England. Glorious counterattack.

Shai Hope twin tons

Dravid 148. Not an amazing attack but stupidly difficult conditions on day 1 and set the platform for sachin and ganguly to do some flat track bullying the next day.

Watling's ton a few years back was great too.

Good calls. I would add Gary Kirsten's 130 in 2003 after SA had been 21 for 4. They had lost the previous test, so some sort of momentum was with the hosts, but GK completely turned it around.

 

[trundler]

Great discussion, guys. I know what I'll do on YouTube tonight.

 

[Burgey]

Waugh in 89 was a terrific knock. But not in the league of Stokes. I rate Stokes’ knock ahead of Botham’s by a fair margin given he went batted so long and was so patient at the get go. Both terrific knocks.

Haven’t seen Gooch’s one so can’t really comment.

 

[Burgey]

Great knocks of my time in no particular order:

Hughes 100* vs WI
Lara 213 and 153* vs Australia
Perera vs RSA
Laxman 281 vs Oz
Dravid same match
Stokes vs oz
Gooch 154* vs wi
Etc

Ponting 156 vs england. Batted on a different pitch to everyone else. Ridiculous knock

 

[Daemon]

Perera

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...africa-vs-sri-lanka-1st-test-sl-in-sa-2018-19


Mendis

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...lia-1st-test-australia-tour-of-sri-lanka-2016


Chandimal

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...s-india-1st-test-india-tour-of-sri-lanka-2015


Mathews

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...st-sri-lanka-tour-of-england-and-ireland-2014


Quite ridiculous how many SL players have played atg innings in just 5 years

 

[morgieb]

Perera

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...africa-vs-sri-lanka-1st-test-sl-in-sa-2018-19


Mendis

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...lia-1st-test-australia-tour-of-sri-lanka-2016


Chandimal

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...s-india-1st-test-india-tour-of-sri-lanka-2015


Mathews

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...st-sri-lanka-tour-of-england-and-ireland-2014


Quite ridiculous how many SL players have played atg innings in just 5 years

Karunaratne against South Africa last year is on a similar level too. That's 5 that could easily make the Top 30 of all-time. WTF.

Link: https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...-lanka-vs-south-africa-1st-test-sa-in-sl-2018