Harsh Thakor
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Curtly Ambrose may not have posessed the speed of Jeff Thomson or Shoaib Akhtar,the action of Michael Holding or the versatality of Wasim Akram or Denis Lillee.However at his best he could me more lethal ,particularly on broken wickets or in a 4th innings.I have not seen a pace bowler generate such steep bounce from a good length or one as relentless or accurate as Curtly.He brilliantly blended bounce with seam movement and could be unplayable at his best.If I wished to have a bowler to defend a small target in the 1st innings then Ambrose would be my 1st choice.He could rattle through a line up like making it look like nine pins rolling or a cowboy mowing down his rivals in a shootout.There could be few more menacing sights in cricket than Curtly running in reminiscent of an assault by a military tank,creating the impact of a thunderstorm..I have not seen a paceman who could create such a sensational twist or turn in game in a single spell or turn a lost cause into a winning one like Curtly,reminiscent of total reversal of plot in a Hollywood epic.In his career Ambrose did not receive the support the great Malcolm Marshal did and though aided by Walsh for long had to defend a relatively weaker test team.At his best Ambrose took competitivity and agression in sport to it's supreme depth and no paceman more resembled a steam roller.In many ways he was a connoction of the speed of Holding, guile of Andy Roberts and acuracy of Garner.No paceman blended genuine speed with accuracy as Curtly.
Curtly Ambrose’s herculean efforts thwarted opponent’s hopes of conquering the world champions on 3 occasions. In 1990 in the 3rd test at Barbados v England (who were one –up in the series), he captured 8-45,including 5 wickets in one spell to rip through the English batting on the final evening. It was menacing exhibition of pace combined with control.The English batsmen were simply forced back on the stumps.. In 1992 at Barbados chasing a target of 201 for victory South Africa were comfortably coasting home at 129-2 .Then Ambrose exploiting the conditions of a bad wicket brilliantly ripped through the South African batting line up and 8 wickets fell for a mere 27 runs. Ambrose had made the impact of an unexpected thunderstorm. In 1992-93 in the final test match of the 5 test series at Perth Ambrose unleashed arguably one of test cricket’s 2-3 best pace bowling spells ever when capturing 7 wickets for one run. The Australian batting line up literally fell apart like nine pins. Ambrose destroyed his opponents like a bomber destroying an airbase. His bowling displayed the ruthless efficiency of a programmed machine and contained every aspect of pace bowling be it pace, control, accuracy or movement. Arguably it was the best spell of pace bowling ever witnessed in Australia. Earlier Ambrose’s bowling played a major role in his team’s comeback in the 3rd test at Adelaide where they won by the margin of a mere 2 runs.In the 1992-93 Frank Worrel trophy Ambrose captured 33 wickets-a record haul by any West Indian paceman in a series in Australia.Arguably it overshadowed the efforts of Andy Roberts in 1975-76.Michael Holding in 1981-82 and Malcolm Marshall in 1984-85.In 1994 chasing a mere target of 194 runs at Trindad Ambrose bowled another awesome spell of 6-22 to bowl out England for 46 runs.It gave vibrations of all the flesh being ripped of a body.
When ranking he best pace bowler of all time the 1st names that conjure up are Malcolm Marshal,Glen Mcgrath,Wasim Akram and Dennis Lillee amongst cricket experts while in pakpassion Marshall,Mcgrath and Wasim and Imran.Arguably Ambrose is not given the recognition he deserves.In 100 best cricketers of Cristopher Martin Jenkins Ambrose is ranked 15 places behind Waqar Younus and below Kapil Dev.Skysports 11 ranks Ambrose at 80th place which is ridiculuos.
Above all Ambrose has been at his best when it mattered most.No paceman ever has blended agression and accuracy as well.Wasim Akram had more skill and was more innovative which is why batsmen like Viv Richards,Gooch, Lara,Laxman ,Kallis ,Alec Stewart or Azharuddin found him the hardest pace bowler they ever faced.However Shane Warne in his list placed Ambrose only behind Tendulkar and Lara amongts great cricketers and Mark Taylor,Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh found Ambrose as daunting to face as Wasim.Ambrose may well morally rank as the best match-winner amongts fast bowlers but ofcourse this is very subjective.In my view no paceman surpassed the best single in -spells of Curtly,not even Marshall.At his best no paceman ever was more volatile resmbling a grass mower on a cricket field.
What may go against Curtly is that he could not take West Indian cricket to the top of the pedestal like Marshall or Holding .He also did not bowl sufficiently in the sub-continent like partner Courtney Walsh or Glen Mcgrtah or Marshall and lacked the variety of Wasim Akram.Statistically his strike rate was considerably below Marshall and Mcgrath.However as a pure cricketing machine Curtly could have been as good as anyone if not better.Glen Mcgrath or Wasim Akram or even Malcolm Marshall did not run through an innings in the manner of Curtly.In my eyes no paceman was as explosive at his best as Ambrose.Glen Mcgrath had more control and was also a more intelligent bowler but could not equal Ambrose in delivering the knockout punch.Above all Ambrose has an average of 20.99 better than nay great paceman apart from Marshall.Richie Richardson selected Ambrose in his alltime xi stating that he was the ultimate bowler to go to war with.
Really hard where Ambrose ranked amongst the great fast bowlers but without doubt he was right up there.Merging O.D.I's and test matches Mcgrath,Wasim or even Lillee would edge Curtly.In only test cricket arguably Ambrose could dead heat if not better the likes of Wasim or Mcgrath and maybe challenge Marshall.On a fast,bouncy Australian wicket Ambrose may well have been the best of them all!
STATISTICS FROM S.RAJESH AT CRICINFO
Best bowling averages in Test wins (Qual: 200 wickets) Bowler Tests Wickets Average Strike rate 5WI/ 10WM
Muttiah Muralitharan 53 430 16.03 42.6 40/ 18
Malcolm Marshall 43 254 16.78 38.1 17/ 4
Curtly Ambrose 44 229 16.86 44.4 13/ 3
Waqar Younis 39 222 18.20 35.0 14/ 4
Dennis Lillee 31 203 18.27 39.0 17/ 6
Shaun Pollock 49 223 18.30 47.5 9/ 1
Wasim Akram 41 211 18.48 42.3 13/ 2
Merging O.D.I's Mcgrath,Wasim or even Lillee would edge Curtly.In only test cricket arguably Ambrose could dead heat the likes of Wasim or Mcgrath and maybe challenge Marshall.On a fast,bouncy Australian wicket Ambrose may well have been the best of them all!
Quoting writer Chirag Naik Navare in an article on his 3greatest fast bowlers.
'Big Curtly Ambrose was the most potent fast bowler I have ever seen. He could rip out the heart of your batting line up with a range of arsenal that is unparalleled in the history of cricket. The initial impression anyone got while watching Ambrose for the first time was that this guy means bounce. On the green tops of Kingston, he would be at your chin all the time. But that was not always the case with Ambrose. See the videos of his golden years and you can see a clever bowler changing his length, controlling the amount of bounce to get the ball to swing in and out to fox the batsman. This doesn't mean that he could not get the bounce. Rest assured that when required, he could bend his back and chin music could be heard loud and clear. That unbelievable spell at WACA against Australia when he took 7 wickets for 1 run just showcases the man's talent in full glow. The yorkers, in swinging deliveries, the steep bouncing leg cutters; was all there to see. He is 6 feet 6 inches tall which naturally forced the batsman's thinking into moving on the back foot. He would cleverly see this and changed the way he delivered the ball to a slightly slower in swinging delivery not bouncing over the top of the stumps and getting the batsman trapped LBW. However, he was lucky to find a patient and a clever partner at the other end in Courtney Walsh who could keep plugging away day in day out and was a mean customer in his own right. Accurate, unplayable and just unstoppable when in the form that was Sir Curtly Ambrose! A bowler every captain dreams of and the sheer capability to run through the opposition while defending a small score was a nightmare for the opposition. It seemed as if he specialized in bowling out oppositions in low scoring affairs."
"Now about my opinion of who is the greatest fast bowler of them all? In ODIs, I think Wasim Akram is the clear numero uno with no competition. In tests, I will go with Curtly Ambrose and Dennis Lille as combined number 1. I really cannot say which one was better and who I will pick in my team. They bowled during different times and were great bowlers in all respects. One talked a great deal and the other not much, that was probably the only clear difference. But frightening bowlers all the same! Wasim Akram will be a close third in tests in my opinion."
Quoting Wisden overview by Simon Briggs
"A giant of the game in every sense, Curtly Ambrose was the most lethal pace bowler of his generation. Like his predecessor Andy Roberts, Ambrose didn't say much, refusing countless interview requests with the motto "Curtly talk to no man". Yet his silence seemed only to magnify his achievements - and his menace. Among Ambrose's 405 Test wickets at 20.99, two spells stand out: the 6 for 24 that hustled England out for 46 in Trinidad in 1993-94, and his series-clinching burst of 7 for 1 against Australia at the WACA the previous season. Perth's springboard of a pitch was ideal for a man who stood 6ft 7ins and released the ball from almost 10ft high, but there was more to Ambrose's game than bounce. When his extreme pace deserted him, he fell back on subtle seam movement and an immaculately grooved action. English batsmen saw a great deal of Ambrose's hand-jiving wicket celebration, which set his white wristbands flashing like doves taking to the sky."
Curtly Ambrose’s herculean efforts thwarted opponent’s hopes of conquering the world champions on 3 occasions. In 1990 in the 3rd test at Barbados v England (who were one –up in the series), he captured 8-45,including 5 wickets in one spell to rip through the English batting on the final evening. It was menacing exhibition of pace combined with control.The English batsmen were simply forced back on the stumps.. In 1992 at Barbados chasing a target of 201 for victory South Africa were comfortably coasting home at 129-2 .Then Ambrose exploiting the conditions of a bad wicket brilliantly ripped through the South African batting line up and 8 wickets fell for a mere 27 runs. Ambrose had made the impact of an unexpected thunderstorm. In 1992-93 in the final test match of the 5 test series at Perth Ambrose unleashed arguably one of test cricket’s 2-3 best pace bowling spells ever when capturing 7 wickets for one run. The Australian batting line up literally fell apart like nine pins. Ambrose destroyed his opponents like a bomber destroying an airbase. His bowling displayed the ruthless efficiency of a programmed machine and contained every aspect of pace bowling be it pace, control, accuracy or movement. Arguably it was the best spell of pace bowling ever witnessed in Australia. Earlier Ambrose’s bowling played a major role in his team’s comeback in the 3rd test at Adelaide where they won by the margin of a mere 2 runs.In the 1992-93 Frank Worrel trophy Ambrose captured 33 wickets-a record haul by any West Indian paceman in a series in Australia.Arguably it overshadowed the efforts of Andy Roberts in 1975-76.Michael Holding in 1981-82 and Malcolm Marshall in 1984-85.In 1994 chasing a mere target of 194 runs at Trindad Ambrose bowled another awesome spell of 6-22 to bowl out England for 46 runs.It gave vibrations of all the flesh being ripped of a body.
When ranking he best pace bowler of all time the 1st names that conjure up are Malcolm Marshal,Glen Mcgrath,Wasim Akram and Dennis Lillee amongst cricket experts while in pakpassion Marshall,Mcgrath and Wasim and Imran.Arguably Ambrose is not given the recognition he deserves.In 100 best cricketers of Cristopher Martin Jenkins Ambrose is ranked 15 places behind Waqar Younus and below Kapil Dev.Skysports 11 ranks Ambrose at 80th place which is ridiculuos.
Above all Ambrose has been at his best when it mattered most.No paceman ever has blended agression and accuracy as well.Wasim Akram had more skill and was more innovative which is why batsmen like Viv Richards,Gooch, Lara,Laxman ,Kallis ,Alec Stewart or Azharuddin found him the hardest pace bowler they ever faced.However Shane Warne in his list placed Ambrose only behind Tendulkar and Lara amongts great cricketers and Mark Taylor,Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh found Ambrose as daunting to face as Wasim.Ambrose may well morally rank as the best match-winner amongts fast bowlers but ofcourse this is very subjective.In my view no paceman surpassed the best single in -spells of Curtly,not even Marshall.At his best no paceman ever was more volatile resmbling a grass mower on a cricket field.
What may go against Curtly is that he could not take West Indian cricket to the top of the pedestal like Marshall or Holding .He also did not bowl sufficiently in the sub-continent like partner Courtney Walsh or Glen Mcgrtah or Marshall and lacked the variety of Wasim Akram.Statistically his strike rate was considerably below Marshall and Mcgrath.However as a pure cricketing machine Curtly could have been as good as anyone if not better.Glen Mcgrath or Wasim Akram or even Malcolm Marshall did not run through an innings in the manner of Curtly.In my eyes no paceman was as explosive at his best as Ambrose.Glen Mcgrath had more control and was also a more intelligent bowler but could not equal Ambrose in delivering the knockout punch.Above all Ambrose has an average of 20.99 better than nay great paceman apart from Marshall.Richie Richardson selected Ambrose in his alltime xi stating that he was the ultimate bowler to go to war with.
Really hard where Ambrose ranked amongst the great fast bowlers but without doubt he was right up there.Merging O.D.I's and test matches Mcgrath,Wasim or even Lillee would edge Curtly.In only test cricket arguably Ambrose could dead heat if not better the likes of Wasim or Mcgrath and maybe challenge Marshall.On a fast,bouncy Australian wicket Ambrose may well have been the best of them all!
STATISTICS FROM S.RAJESH AT CRICINFO
Best bowling averages in Test wins (Qual: 200 wickets) Bowler Tests Wickets Average Strike rate 5WI/ 10WM
Muttiah Muralitharan 53 430 16.03 42.6 40/ 18
Malcolm Marshall 43 254 16.78 38.1 17/ 4
Curtly Ambrose 44 229 16.86 44.4 13/ 3
Waqar Younis 39 222 18.20 35.0 14/ 4
Dennis Lillee 31 203 18.27 39.0 17/ 6
Shaun Pollock 49 223 18.30 47.5 9/ 1
Wasim Akram 41 211 18.48 42.3 13/ 2
Merging O.D.I's Mcgrath,Wasim or even Lillee would edge Curtly.In only test cricket arguably Ambrose could dead heat the likes of Wasim or Mcgrath and maybe challenge Marshall.On a fast,bouncy Australian wicket Ambrose may well have been the best of them all!
Quoting writer Chirag Naik Navare in an article on his 3greatest fast bowlers.
'Big Curtly Ambrose was the most potent fast bowler I have ever seen. He could rip out the heart of your batting line up with a range of arsenal that is unparalleled in the history of cricket. The initial impression anyone got while watching Ambrose for the first time was that this guy means bounce. On the green tops of Kingston, he would be at your chin all the time. But that was not always the case with Ambrose. See the videos of his golden years and you can see a clever bowler changing his length, controlling the amount of bounce to get the ball to swing in and out to fox the batsman. This doesn't mean that he could not get the bounce. Rest assured that when required, he could bend his back and chin music could be heard loud and clear. That unbelievable spell at WACA against Australia when he took 7 wickets for 1 run just showcases the man's talent in full glow. The yorkers, in swinging deliveries, the steep bouncing leg cutters; was all there to see. He is 6 feet 6 inches tall which naturally forced the batsman's thinking into moving on the back foot. He would cleverly see this and changed the way he delivered the ball to a slightly slower in swinging delivery not bouncing over the top of the stumps and getting the batsman trapped LBW. However, he was lucky to find a patient and a clever partner at the other end in Courtney Walsh who could keep plugging away day in day out and was a mean customer in his own right. Accurate, unplayable and just unstoppable when in the form that was Sir Curtly Ambrose! A bowler every captain dreams of and the sheer capability to run through the opposition while defending a small score was a nightmare for the opposition. It seemed as if he specialized in bowling out oppositions in low scoring affairs."
"Now about my opinion of who is the greatest fast bowler of them all? In ODIs, I think Wasim Akram is the clear numero uno with no competition. In tests, I will go with Curtly Ambrose and Dennis Lille as combined number 1. I really cannot say which one was better and who I will pick in my team. They bowled during different times and were great bowlers in all respects. One talked a great deal and the other not much, that was probably the only clear difference. But frightening bowlers all the same! Wasim Akram will be a close third in tests in my opinion."
Quoting Wisden overview by Simon Briggs
"A giant of the game in every sense, Curtly Ambrose was the most lethal pace bowler of his generation. Like his predecessor Andy Roberts, Ambrose didn't say much, refusing countless interview requests with the motto "Curtly talk to no man". Yet his silence seemed only to magnify his achievements - and his menace. Among Ambrose's 405 Test wickets at 20.99, two spells stand out: the 6 for 24 that hustled England out for 46 in Trinidad in 1993-94, and his series-clinching burst of 7 for 1 against Australia at the WACA the previous season. Perth's springboard of a pitch was ideal for a man who stood 6ft 7ins and released the ball from almost 10ft high, but there was more to Ambrose's game than bounce. When his extreme pace deserted him, he fell back on subtle seam movement and an immaculately grooved action. English batsmen saw a great deal of Ambrose's hand-jiving wicket celebration, which set his white wristbands flashing like doves taking to the sky."
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