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What are the best moments in the world of cricket history?

Line and Length

Cricketer Of The Year
This wasn't one of the best moments in cricket history but, as bad as it was, it certainly is one of the more memorable.

 

cnerd123

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Today was the day that WI chased 418 to win in the 4th innings vs Aus too it seems

Add that to the list
 

Daemon

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It's pretty commendable how that's one of the more 'violent' things to happen on a cricket pitch considering what happens in other team sports
 

h_hurricane

International Vice-Captain
When South Africa was banned from international cricket because of the country's apartheid policy, the team's two lucrative tours to England in 1970 and to Australia in 1971–72 were cancelled. The cricket authorities responded by forming Rest of the World teams to play unofficial Test series in lieu and these teams included some leading South African players. Garfield Sobers was invited to captain the Rest of the World in both series. It was in these series that two great moments in cricket history occurred - and both were due to Sobers.

In the First Unofficial Test at Lords Sobers took 6 for 21 swinging and seaming the ball at good pace. He then scored a magnificent 183 and then helped bowl England out a second time using his left-arm wrist spin. Truly a great all-rounder and an historic moment.

Then, in 1972, in the Third Unofficial Test against Australia in Melbourne Sobers played an innings of 254 which was described by Dom Bradman as "probably the greatest exhibition of batting ever seen in Australia".
Sobers' domination of 1966 series and the 1970 super series was so complete. Scored 722 runs at 103 in the first and 588 at 73.5 in the second. Also took 20 wickets in 1966 and something close to that in 1970. He was a bit down on form leading to that Melbourne test but then went on to play a majestic innings. Incredible player.
 

h_hurricane

International Vice-Captain
Significant achievements in each team's history.

Australia - win in England 1882 (birth of ashes)

England - reclaiming of ashes down under in 1882-83

SA - win in England 1935

WI - win in England 1950, in Australia 1979-80

India - 1971 twin series victories in WI and Eng

NZ - win in Australia 1985-86, the Hadlee match

Pakistan - 1987 twin series victories in India and Eng

SL - Oval test victory in 1998, win in SA 2018-19

Can't recollect much about Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland, hence wouldn't go there.
 

RossTaylorsBox

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
In 1812 a group of boys were playing football when one of them, James "Jiminy" Cricket, went to a bookie and bet a shilling that there would be a goal scored within the next two minutes. Thus, the game of cricket was invented.
 

weetabixharry

Cricket Spectator
I'm only 34 (and I only really follow England games live), so I really can't talk about much of cricket history, but I can think of 4 stand-out moments that I have personally witnessed live (on the radio):

  • Panesar and Anderson blocking out at Cardiff, Ashes 2009.
  • Prior's match-saving century vs New Zealand, Eden Park 2013. (I stayed up all night listening to this one).
  • Stokes 258 vs South Africa, Cape Town 2016.
  • Stokes and Leach at Headingley, Ashes 2019.
I also listened to the WC final last year, but I personally don't get so excited about limited overs formats.

For me, a moment of magic up there with Warne's balls to Gatting and Strauss are Chris Cairns' slower balls to Thorpe and Read during New Zealand's 1999 tour in England. I went to the 4th Test at the Oval as England lost to become the worst Test nation. After the match, a furious Ian Botham gave only one autograph - to me - and then Adam Parore scribbled over the top of it.
 
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Tom Flint

International Regular
Significant achievements in each team's history.

Australia - win in England 1882 (birth of ashes)

England - reclaiming of ashes down under in 1882-83

SA - win in England 1935

WI - win in England 1950, in Australia 1979-80

India - 1971 twin series victories in WI and Eng

NZ - win in Australia 1985-86, the Hadlee match

Pakistan - 1987 twin series victories in India and Eng

SL - Oval test victory in 1998, win in SA 2018-19

Can't recollect much about Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland, hence wouldn't go there.
Ireland - beating England in the wc, also running through England at lords in the test match ( even though they went on to lose the match it was still a memorable day for them and tim murtagh especially)
Bangladesh - beating England at home to draw the test series, Shakib winning player of the tournament at the world cup
Zimbabwe - beating very strong India at home and Pakistan away in tests
Scotland- beating England in that run chase in an odi
Afganistan - I think just achieving test status was memorable enough considering where the country was at in 2001.
 

Engle

State Vice-Captain
When South Africa was banned from international cricket because of the country's apartheid policy, the team's two lucrative tours to England in 1970 and to Australia in 1971–72 were cancelled. The cricket authorities responded by forming Rest of the World teams to play unofficial Test series in lieu and these teams included some leading South African players. Garfield Sobers was invited to captain the Rest of the World in both series. It was in these series that two great moments in cricket history occurred - and both were due to Sobers.

In the First Unofficial Test at Lords Sobers took 6 for 21 swinging and seaming the ball at good pace. He then scored a magnificent 183 and then helped bowl England out a second time using his left-arm wrist spin. Truly a great all-rounder and an historic moment.

Then, in 1972, in the Third Unofficial Test against Australia in Melbourne Sobers played an innings of 254 which was described by Dom Bradman as "probably the greatest exhibition of batting ever seen in Australia".
Sobers led the 1970 ROW series in batting and bowling aggregates for both teams, a rare feat (Giffen, IIRC being the only other one to have done so in the 1880's)

The question of which team was better between W.Indies and S.Africa remained unanswered as the W.Indies (Sobers, Lloyd, Kanhai, Murray, Gibbs) had a marginal batting edge over the S.Africans (Barlow, B.Richards, G&P Pollock, Procter) who had a marginal edge in bowling.
 

Dan

Hall of Fame Member
Today was the day that WI chased 418 to win in the 4th innings vs Aus too it seems

Add that to the list
That was the same series as Shiv randomly deciding he’d had enough of the grinding away in a bubble thing and slapped a 60-odd ball ton, right?Truly the greatest moment in the history of our sport.

If I’m not mistaken, it also gave us Hogg and Drakes recalls on the basis of ODI form, Australia doing what they never did and picking five bowlers, the arrival of a Mind the Windows Tino and, most importantly, David Bernard Jr.

Cricket peaked in that series tbh.
 

AndrewB

International Vice-Captain
Sobers led the 1970 ROW series in batting and bowling aggregates for both teams, a rare feat (Giffen, IIRC being the only other one to have done so in the 1880's)
.
I thought that was quite a surprising stat so I checked it; it's correct* for series of 4+ matches. Botham was top scorer and joint top wicket-taker (with Chris Old) in the 1978 England v Pakistan series (3 Tests); Wasim Akram was top scorer and wicket-taker in the 1996-7 Pakistan v Zimbabwe series (2 Tests).

Botham also had a near miss in England's previous series in NZ in 1977-8, when he was the leading wicket taker and was only out-scored by Geoff Howarth.

(*Except that Giffen's great series was in the 1890s (1894-5)).
 

Bahnz

Hall of Fame Member
`Yeah, no problems with the OP focussing on his favourite team and format. Cairns' match turning 80 to win the 99 series against England is probably my all time favourite cricket moment.

More broadly SL's underdog WC win in '96 and the middle 3 tests of the 05 Ashes would have to be up there.
 

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