Harsh Thakor
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- Oct 1, 2012
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In an earlier post there was a debate about who was the better between Gary Sobers and Imran Khan.I feel another appropriate argument would be who was better between Imran Khan and Jacques Kallis.Atleast as an all-rounder it is a very close call.
To me if it came to match-wining flair and charisma Imran would win.Imran could turn games with the ball making an impact of a hurricane and also show great composure with the bat.Being a fast-bowing all-rounder Imran could turn games more than Kallis.However if criteria of longevity,consistency and all-round figures is applied Kallis would win the battle against Imran purely as an all-rounder.No all-rounder ever has had as staggering statistics as Kallis,including Sobers.Infact statistically Kallis is the champion all-rounder of all time.Never forget his performances in O.D.I's.Statistically Kallis was the best batsman after Bradman nad Tendulkar.At his bset Kallis could even be devastating with the ball.He also gave some great all-round performances in tests and series like against West Indies in 1998.Even if Kallis lacked the x factor of Imran he was the ultimate utilitarian.Hi sbatting was not debonair but as effective as any great player.Kallis also had the disadvantage of playing in an era with so many O.D.I's and T-20 games.In Imran's ear half as much international cricket was played and wickets favoured the bowlers considerably more.Kalli's weakness was that often he would not step the gas to a sufficient extent to win games.
Where Imran would win overall is his great prowess as a skipper and his greater overall flamboyance as a cricketer.No all-rounder ever made the impact of a captain as Imran who led his team like a great military marshal.However to replace Sobers in the 1st all-time xi my first choice would be Kallis.Arguably I would place a draw for second between Botham,Miller and Kallis.To join Sobers,Imran would be my 1st choice being a fast-bowling all-rounder but still I would prefer including the left-arm prowess of Wasim Akram.Imran was almost a certainty for the 2nd xi like Kallis but more than Sobesr may replace Wasim Akram in the 1st xi.Botham at his best would have ben Sober's best replacement but he l;acked the longevity and consistency of Miller,Imran and Kallis.Arguably he could have been the best cricketer of his era.
To me sadly Kallis is one of the most under-rated cricketers and all-rounders.Several cricket experts do not class him as a genuine all-rounder as he did not excel with the bat and ball in similar periods.I would partly refute this highlighting the fcat that Kallis took 5 wickets and scored a century in a single test match twice.He also gave an outstanding all-round performance in a home series in 1998 against the West Indies.Kallis at his peak also won matches with the ball like in England in 1998.Incredibly,he even took the new ball at times and opened his team's bowling attack.Kallis also played in an era when much more cricket is played and wickets are hardly conducive to seam bowling.He also played in aside with a lethal bowling attack so rarely got an opportunity in the later part of his career.Neverthless remember the crucial breakthroughs he made with the ball in hard times. Remember that even the great Imran Khan was basically a great fast bowler who became a very good batsmen late in his career.As a batsman statistically he was 2nd to the mighty Sachin Tendulkar and was arguably the best batsman of his era to bat for your life.In a crisis he was in the Javed Miandad or Rahul Dravid class.
In the experts analysis of 100 best cricketers of all time James Armstrong ranks Kallis at 72 nd place while Cristopher Martin Jenkins places him at 52nd place.True he may not have been as entertaining as Kapil and Botham or as much as a match-winner as Imran or Botham but remember his phenomenal consistency and the era in which Kallis played.I would have backed Kallis to overshadow Imran,Hadlee,Botham and Kapil had he played in the 1980's when wickets were more conducive to bowling.He did not bat in the dynamic style of Gary Sobers or posess his bowling variety but was almost in the class of the giant with his utilitarianism.No batsmen statistically ever ran Sachin Tendulkar so close in test cricket.Arguably Kalllis could have been the best cricketer of his era.
True Kallis at times did not force the pace enough to win games.However he played crucial roles in many of South Africa's great victories,be it in West Indies,England or Australia.He has a staggering agregate in games won and saved and was one of the most unselfish of batsmen.No cricketer may ever equal Kalli's staggering haul of runs and wickets combined.I would have loved seeing Kallis playing aside Gary Sobers.It would have been a spectacle like seeing Bradman batting with Viv or Sachin.Kalli's lacking of the 'x ' factor to me places him below W.G.Grace,Gary Sobers,Don Bradman,Shane Warne,Jack Hobbs,Sachin Tendulkar,Viv Richards,Imran Khan ,Wally Hammond and Adam Gilchrist.
At his best Kallis could have well made it an an 11 as a bowler.
In terms of statistical figures Kallis is a giant. Let alone all-rounder or batsman his figures make him a strong contender for the greatest cricketer ever.No all-round cricketer has equalled Kallis statistically.However one has to weigh the figures in the correct light with a balanced criteria.Today far many more test matches are played than in yesteryears and many more One day Internationals.Test pitches are also loaded in favour of the batsman and strokemaking is far more easy.In the game toady there are more minnow teams like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
As a bowler Kallis has better figures but Sobers was better in his peak period.Sobers was far more versatile than Kallis bowling chinaman,spin and fast-medium like 3 bowlers combined into one.It must be stated that Kallis has hardly bowled much or taken many wickets for the latter half of his career.However we have to consider that Kallis has been at a disadvantage of being a part of a great bowling attack and in an era where the bowling load was far greater than that of Sir Gary's era.The pitches were also more favourable to seam bowlers in Sir Gary's time as compared to the docile tracks of today.At his best Kallis could bowl some lethal bouncers and swing the ball dangerously.One must complement Kallis sharing an attack with compatriots like Alan Donald,Shaun Pollock etc.
In test matches Kallis and Sobers have both scored a century and taken 5 wickets in a test match twice.However in a single test series Sobers has on 3 occassion scored over 300 runs and taken 20 wickets.Adding the games for Rest of the World the tally would have been 4.In comparison. Kallis has never had such staggering figures with both bat and ball.
As a pure all-rounder I think Kallis challenges Sobers more than Imran while as a cricketer it is vice-versa.A more artistic and charismatic Kallis could have joined the likes of Bradman,Hobbs,Tendulkar , Viv Richards or even Imran.In terms of pure all-round skill Kallis would just marginally edge Imran .Remember he has taken 5 wickets and scored a century in the same match twice.
Kallis's figures in test matches
Batting
Career averages Span Mat Inns NO Runs HS Ave BF SR 100 50 0 4s 6s
overall 1995-2013 166 280 40 13289 224 55.37 28903 45.97 45 58 16 1488 97
won match 1996-2013 82 124 22 6379 224 62.53 13368 47.71 22 28 4 712 56
Bowling
Career averages Span Mat Inns Overs Mdns Runs Wkts BBI BBM Ave Econ SR 5 10
overall 1995-2013 166 272 3372.0 848 9535 292 6/54 9/92 32.65 2.82 69.2 5 0
won match 1996-2013 82 145 1636.5 440 4461 182 6/54 9/92 24.51 2.72 53.9 4
O.D.I.record of Kallis
Batting
Career averages Span Mat Inns NO Runs HS Ave BF SR 100 50 0 4s 6s
overall 1996-2014 328 314 53 11579 139 44.36 15885 72.89 17 86 17 911 137
Bowling
Span Mat Inns Overs Mdns Runs Wkts BBI Ave Econ SR 4 5
overall 1996-2014 328 283 1791.4 79 8680 273 5/30 31.79 4.84 39.3 2 2
To me if it came to match-wining flair and charisma Imran would win.Imran could turn games with the ball making an impact of a hurricane and also show great composure with the bat.Being a fast-bowing all-rounder Imran could turn games more than Kallis.However if criteria of longevity,consistency and all-round figures is applied Kallis would win the battle against Imran purely as an all-rounder.No all-rounder ever has had as staggering statistics as Kallis,including Sobers.Infact statistically Kallis is the champion all-rounder of all time.Never forget his performances in O.D.I's.Statistically Kallis was the best batsman after Bradman nad Tendulkar.At his bset Kallis could even be devastating with the ball.He also gave some great all-round performances in tests and series like against West Indies in 1998.Even if Kallis lacked the x factor of Imran he was the ultimate utilitarian.Hi sbatting was not debonair but as effective as any great player.Kallis also had the disadvantage of playing in an era with so many O.D.I's and T-20 games.In Imran's ear half as much international cricket was played and wickets favoured the bowlers considerably more.Kalli's weakness was that often he would not step the gas to a sufficient extent to win games.
Where Imran would win overall is his great prowess as a skipper and his greater overall flamboyance as a cricketer.No all-rounder ever made the impact of a captain as Imran who led his team like a great military marshal.However to replace Sobers in the 1st all-time xi my first choice would be Kallis.Arguably I would place a draw for second between Botham,Miller and Kallis.To join Sobers,Imran would be my 1st choice being a fast-bowling all-rounder but still I would prefer including the left-arm prowess of Wasim Akram.Imran was almost a certainty for the 2nd xi like Kallis but more than Sobesr may replace Wasim Akram in the 1st xi.Botham at his best would have ben Sober's best replacement but he l;acked the longevity and consistency of Miller,Imran and Kallis.Arguably he could have been the best cricketer of his era.
To me sadly Kallis is one of the most under-rated cricketers and all-rounders.Several cricket experts do not class him as a genuine all-rounder as he did not excel with the bat and ball in similar periods.I would partly refute this highlighting the fcat that Kallis took 5 wickets and scored a century in a single test match twice.He also gave an outstanding all-round performance in a home series in 1998 against the West Indies.Kallis at his peak also won matches with the ball like in England in 1998.Incredibly,he even took the new ball at times and opened his team's bowling attack.Kallis also played in an era when much more cricket is played and wickets are hardly conducive to seam bowling.He also played in aside with a lethal bowling attack so rarely got an opportunity in the later part of his career.Neverthless remember the crucial breakthroughs he made with the ball in hard times. Remember that even the great Imran Khan was basically a great fast bowler who became a very good batsmen late in his career.As a batsman statistically he was 2nd to the mighty Sachin Tendulkar and was arguably the best batsman of his era to bat for your life.In a crisis he was in the Javed Miandad or Rahul Dravid class.
In the experts analysis of 100 best cricketers of all time James Armstrong ranks Kallis at 72 nd place while Cristopher Martin Jenkins places him at 52nd place.True he may not have been as entertaining as Kapil and Botham or as much as a match-winner as Imran or Botham but remember his phenomenal consistency and the era in which Kallis played.I would have backed Kallis to overshadow Imran,Hadlee,Botham and Kapil had he played in the 1980's when wickets were more conducive to bowling.He did not bat in the dynamic style of Gary Sobers or posess his bowling variety but was almost in the class of the giant with his utilitarianism.No batsmen statistically ever ran Sachin Tendulkar so close in test cricket.Arguably Kalllis could have been the best cricketer of his era.
True Kallis at times did not force the pace enough to win games.However he played crucial roles in many of South Africa's great victories,be it in West Indies,England or Australia.He has a staggering agregate in games won and saved and was one of the most unselfish of batsmen.No cricketer may ever equal Kalli's staggering haul of runs and wickets combined.I would have loved seeing Kallis playing aside Gary Sobers.It would have been a spectacle like seeing Bradman batting with Viv or Sachin.Kalli's lacking of the 'x ' factor to me places him below W.G.Grace,Gary Sobers,Don Bradman,Shane Warne,Jack Hobbs,Sachin Tendulkar,Viv Richards,Imran Khan ,Wally Hammond and Adam Gilchrist.
At his best Kallis could have well made it an an 11 as a bowler.
In terms of statistical figures Kallis is a giant. Let alone all-rounder or batsman his figures make him a strong contender for the greatest cricketer ever.No all-round cricketer has equalled Kallis statistically.However one has to weigh the figures in the correct light with a balanced criteria.Today far many more test matches are played than in yesteryears and many more One day Internationals.Test pitches are also loaded in favour of the batsman and strokemaking is far more easy.In the game toady there are more minnow teams like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
As a bowler Kallis has better figures but Sobers was better in his peak period.Sobers was far more versatile than Kallis bowling chinaman,spin and fast-medium like 3 bowlers combined into one.It must be stated that Kallis has hardly bowled much or taken many wickets for the latter half of his career.However we have to consider that Kallis has been at a disadvantage of being a part of a great bowling attack and in an era where the bowling load was far greater than that of Sir Gary's era.The pitches were also more favourable to seam bowlers in Sir Gary's time as compared to the docile tracks of today.At his best Kallis could bowl some lethal bouncers and swing the ball dangerously.One must complement Kallis sharing an attack with compatriots like Alan Donald,Shaun Pollock etc.
In test matches Kallis and Sobers have both scored a century and taken 5 wickets in a test match twice.However in a single test series Sobers has on 3 occassion scored over 300 runs and taken 20 wickets.Adding the games for Rest of the World the tally would have been 4.In comparison. Kallis has never had such staggering figures with both bat and ball.
As a pure all-rounder I think Kallis challenges Sobers more than Imran while as a cricketer it is vice-versa.A more artistic and charismatic Kallis could have joined the likes of Bradman,Hobbs,Tendulkar , Viv Richards or even Imran.In terms of pure all-round skill Kallis would just marginally edge Imran .Remember he has taken 5 wickets and scored a century in the same match twice.
Kallis's figures in test matches
Batting
Career averages Span Mat Inns NO Runs HS Ave BF SR 100 50 0 4s 6s
overall 1995-2013 166 280 40 13289 224 55.37 28903 45.97 45 58 16 1488 97
won match 1996-2013 82 124 22 6379 224 62.53 13368 47.71 22 28 4 712 56
Bowling
Career averages Span Mat Inns Overs Mdns Runs Wkts BBI BBM Ave Econ SR 5 10
overall 1995-2013 166 272 3372.0 848 9535 292 6/54 9/92 32.65 2.82 69.2 5 0
won match 1996-2013 82 145 1636.5 440 4461 182 6/54 9/92 24.51 2.72 53.9 4
O.D.I.record of Kallis
Batting
Career averages Span Mat Inns NO Runs HS Ave BF SR 100 50 0 4s 6s
overall 1996-2014 328 314 53 11579 139 44.36 15885 72.89 17 86 17 911 137
Bowling
Span Mat Inns Overs Mdns Runs Wkts BBI Ave Econ SR 4 5
overall 1996-2014 328 283 1791.4 79 8680 273 5/30 31.79 4.84 39.3 2 2
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