Who would you rather face?

[C_C]

Who were these 90+ mph guys? I would've thought there aren't too many in the world that can do that considering we have less than 10 in international cricket who can pull it off.

I think i faced one dude in the whole time who was 90mph or close. But often times we played cricket with 20-25 year olds and the pitch-length used to vary. Sometimes i could've sworn that the pitch was 3-4 feet short...coz all of a sudden someone 'decently fast' (my perception) would be whizzing around line nuts and i'd have to switch to pure 'instinct mode'.
I am pretty sure that even if some of those guys wern't 90mph, me and most people who played cricket along with us had several instances where reaction-times required would be similar. And many of us got hurt as well- which is why we didnt always use cricket balls.

And by the way, it is not uncommon to find 90mph bowlers at club level. Most who play there play on a casual and 'fun basis' and some are there to bowl for sheer speed, some fling, etc etc. And i am sure you realise that given that club batsmen arnt that proficient, a lot of the time bowling blindingly fast (if you can) would be better than trying to be accurate- so long as you dont bowl a wide, you can get away with some fairly mediocre fast bowling simply because it intimidates many.

I know many times i bowled, i'd have more success just hurling the ball at top speed than trying to cultivate line-n-length. It was a bit of a trade-off : Line and length troubles the occasional decent batsmen at club level but most average club batsmen can play it decently. Bowling as fast as you can (provided you do go into atleast fast-medium zone) usually troubles the decent batsmen less but absolutely flummoxes most average club batsmen.
Its a different game there really and all i can visualise from in these hypothetical scenarios is based on my experiences.
Typically, for me, fast men were less troublesome- i used to play tennis seriously in my teens and was used to 'much faster reaction time and instinctive play' mode- i'd switch to that and whack the fast ones around. Doesnt mean that i didnt cop a few bruises along the way either. But in general i preferred facing them than line and length sticklers- they made me think that extra second and i dont do so hot in sports when i have to think on the go. Which is why i either do well on turn-based sports (like chess) or fast-paced ones like most racquet sports and i suck in team sports like soccer or football.

 

[andmark]

Aktar for more of a challenge.But Bond and Lee would good challenge too.

 

[_Ed_]

Thats cold.

But very, very funny.

 

[Nishant]

I myself would pick Bond, because I know he's not injured NOW, but by the time he completes his run-up he will be.

 

[PhoenixFire]

Think about, tail enders at international level can handle 90+(look at Simon Jones in the ashes) and most first team batsmen are better than Simon Jones so why wouldn't they be able to handle it?

Acutually I think that internation tail enders (bar some), are usually very good batters, that would eclipse most club players. They are made to look crap by good spin and pace, but looking at the shots that Harmison and Jones have played, they are far from useless.

 

[tooextracool]

As a right hander one would think Bond would be the most dangerous for a non-professional to play, because he bowls primarily inswingers and a yorker right on the toe at 90 mph is going to be quite deadly at his pace.
Certainly id rather face Lee over anyone else given that hes more inaccurate, bowls with a flatter trajectory(and therefore easier to play when he bowls it short) and gets the new ball to swing away.

 

[PhoenixFire]

And by the way, it is not uncommon to find 90mph bowlers at club level. Most who play there play on a casual and 'fun basis' and some are there to bowl for sheer speed, some fling, etc etc. And i am sure you realise that given that club batsmen arnt that proficient, a lot of the time bowling blindingly fast (if you can) would be better than trying to be accurate- so long as you dont bowl a wide, you can get away with some fairly mediocre fast bowling simply because it intimidates many. .

I'm not saying that I think you're lying, but I find that very hard to believe. 90mph is incredibly fast for a club player. I can accept that there are a few, but not 'uncommon'. There is a big difference between 84/5 mph and 90mph. Have you got accurate speed guns at your club level?

 

[C_C]

I'm not saying that I think you're lying, but I find that very hard to believe. 90mph is incredibly fast for a club player. I can accept that there are a few, but not 'uncommon'. There is a big difference between 84/5 mph and 90mph. Have you got accurate speed guns at your club level?

Not very.
We sometimes had americans playing baseball in the field next to us and they had those cheap speed guns.
And no-90mph club bowlers arnt very common- i've seen/faced only one. But given that we wernt too hot in enforcing the pitch length ( hmm shall we play on a shorter pitch or not play at all ? easy decision!) sometimes facing 80-something bowlers was like facing a 90mph speed demon.

 

[Xuhaib]

Acutually I think that internation tail enders (bar some), are usually very good batters, that would eclipse most club players. They are made to look crap by good spin and pace, but looking at the shots that Harmison and Jones have played, they are far from useless.

Good point, just the other day saw Kaneria make 70 odd in a club game batting at one-down.

 

[FRAZ]

The worst tail that I have ever witnessed was the one which Windies used to have ,composing of Walsh , Ambrose and company .
The best tail was the one which Cronje used to have followed by the mid 90's Pakistani and the millenium Australian tails .

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

The worst tail that I have ever witnessed was the one which Windies used to have ,composing of Walsh , Ambrose and company.

Ambrose was certainly not a bunny.

 

[adharcric]

Not very.
We sometimes had americans playing baseball in the field next to us and they had those cheap speed guns.
And no-90mph club bowlers arnt very common- i've seen/faced only one. But given that we wernt too hot in enforcing the pitch length ( hmm shall we play on a shorter pitch or not play at all ? easy decision!) sometimes facing 80-something bowlers was like facing a 90mph speed demon.

By that standard, I've probably faced spin that looks like 65+ mph when playing in the long aisle in my apartment with my roommate simply because he only stood a few meters away. I was talking about genuine 90-mph bowlers on a genuine pitch.

 

[silentstriker]

...

90mph

....

If you know any club bowlers that can go at 90mph, Greg Chappell and Rahul Dravid are eagerly awaiting your call.

 

[tooextracool]

Not very.
We sometimes had americans playing baseball in the field next to us and they had those cheap speed guns.
And no-90mph club bowlers arnt very common- i've seen/faced only one. But given that we wernt too hot in enforcing the pitch length ( hmm shall we play on a shorter pitch or not play at all ? easy decision!) sometimes facing 80-something bowlers was like facing a 90mph speed demon.

Cant say ive ever heard of a more ridiculous post on CW since ive been on here. Keep it up,maybe people might believe you one day.

 

[C_C]

If you know any club bowlers that can go at 90mph, Greg Chappell and Rahul Dravid are eagerly awaiting your call.

Err. I've timed myself ( and pretty accurately at that) at over 87mph consistently when i just care about speed and i am a short thin guy.
Seriously,bowling fast is not that hard if you dont give a toss about line and length.
Ie, if you'r 'target area' is as wide as two pitchlengths, practically every Tom, Dick and Harry could bowl at 90mph as long as they have rythm.
It becomes exponentially hard to bowl fast AND make it land where you want it to.
At higher levels, there isnt any inherent advantage of bowling fast really. i think like many Indians, you are getting caught up in the 'fast = good' bug.

 

[C_C]

Cant say ive ever heard of a more ridiculous post on CW since ive been on here. Keep it up,maybe people might believe you one day.

And cant say i've seen many other luridly obnoxious post from a wannabe teen. Oh wait- nevermind- i've read many of your other stuff.

 

[Turbinator]

Err. I've timed myself ( and pretty accurately at that) at over 87mph consistently when i just care about speed and i am a short thin guy.
Seriously,bowling fast is not that hard if you dont give a toss about line and length.
Ie, if you'r 'target area' is as wide as two pitchlengths, practically every Tom, Dick and Harry could bowl at 90mph as long as they have rythm.
It becomes exponentially hard to bowl fast AND make it land where you want it to.
At higher levels, there isnt any inherent advantage of bowling fast really. i think like many Indians, you are getting caught up in the 'fast = good' bug.

Hahahahaha, no! I am sorry to break your bubble but you can probably bowl at 70-80 mph without accuracy if you're some average joe shmoe but thats it, even without accuracy it is really hard to bowl 90 mph unless you are pitching or chucking it, even then I doubt it. A small test to determine this, THROW a ball as hard as you can anywhere in an open field, I doubt it'll go up to 90 mph. And if you can't expect to throw at that speed, how can you expect to bowl at it.

 

[C_C]

Hahahahaha, no! I am sorry to break your bubble but you can probably bowl at 70-80 mph without accuracy if you're some average joe shmoe but thats it, even without accuracy it is really hard to bowl 90 mph unless you are pitching or chucking it, even then I doubt it. A small test to determine this, THROW a ball as hard as you can anywhere in an open field, I doubt it'll go up to 90 mph. And if you can't expect to throw at that speed, how can you expect to bowl at it.

I am pretty sure i could crank it above 85mph if all i cared about is hurling it.
Damn sure - though i dont think any two balls would land within a metre of each other. Dunno about chuck or not- i am too busy thinking about the ball and my follow-through than what my elbow is doing. I pretty much sling it though ( used to play tennis throughout my teens and had a pretty good serve for a scrawny kid- its the same action pretty much with my arm slinging over my shoulder and nearly grazing the turf) though i've never been too hot for stamina while bowling.

And i dont doubt that my throw would be a lot slower than my bowling- while i am throwing i dont run 10 yards and wrentch my entire torso and hips.

 

[marc71178]

Err. I've timed myself ( and pretty accurately at that) at over 87mph consistently when i just care about speed and i am a short thin guy.

I'm sure you have - you were obvioulsy holding the speed gun at the same time as bowling then were you?

 

[simmy]

Lee for me. He seems the most likely to pitch it up. Plus he is the skiddiest so if he bowls it short, it has to be very short and hence you can duck in time (if you are lucky)