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[VIDEOS] Wasim Akram, the best cricketer of the 1990s?

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Harsh Thakor

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It just dawned my mind that Ravi Shastri had ranked Wasim Akram as the cricketer of the 1990's .At first I thought it was highly unlikely but when I investigated I think it is a strong probability.When you relatively compare Wasim's wicket aggregate in tests and O.D.I.with run sof Tendulkar and Lara or wickets of other great bowlers he has strong claims of being at the top.Wasim captured 383 test wickets and 392 O.D.I.scalps in the 1990's.Wasim also took bowling artistry and innovation to it's ultimate pinnacle and also was often a more than useful batsmen.

It was Wasim who played a major role in Pakistan wining the world cup in 1992 and being runners-up in 1999.Wasim also never lost a test series as a captain.Wasim registered one of the best all-round performances of the decade at Sydney in 1990 when scoring 123 and taking 5-100.Akram played a greater role in shaping wins than Tendulkar and Lara ,though Curtly Ambrose was a better match-winner in tests.Overall I feel Wasim defined his age or era more than any other cricketer in terms of impact,artistry and statistics..Pakistan retained their status amongst the top 3 test teams in the world largely because of Wasim.

My best in order of merit of the 1990's.

1.Wasim Akram
2.Sachin Tendulkar
3.Curtly Ambrose
4.Brian Lara
5.Shane Warne
6 Steve Waugh
7.Waqar Younus
8.Alan Donald
9.Inzamam Ul Haq
10.Aravind De'Silva


STATISTICS

WASIM AKRAM FIGURES
From 1990-99 with bat in tests
91 130 16 2424 257* 21.26 2 5 15

with ball in test cricket
91 160 3389.3 769 8849 383 7/119 11/160 23.10 2.61 53.0 22 4

With ball in O.D.I.cricket.

281 277 2407.3 180 9232 396 5/15 23.31 3.83 36.4 16 5 v Sri Lanka


CURTLY AMBROSE in test cricket as a bowler
88 161 3307.1 860 7865 369 8/45 11/84 21.31 2.37 53.7 22 3


SACHIN TENDULKAR AS BATSMEN IN TESTS
73 115 12 5841 217 56.70 22 23 7

TENDULKAR IN ODIS
229 222 22 8571 186* 42.85 9875 86.79 24 44 12 854 111

BRIAN LARA AS BATSMEN IN TESTS
65 112 4 5573 375 51.60 8982 62.04 13 29 4 773 29


SHANE WARNE AS A BOWLER IN TESTS

80 146 3762.4 1157 9009 351 8/71 12/128 25.66 2.39 64.3 16 4

During that eight-year period from 1990 to 1997, Akram had the best figures in Test cricket, barring none. There were several legendary bowlers who were at the height of their craft during an era which we now look back on as a golden one for bowlers, especially the fast ones - Curtly Ambrose, Allan Donald, Waqar Younis and Glenn McGrath were all around, but Akram's stats stood out even among them. His average of 20.05 was better than anyone else's during this period (with a cut-off of 150 wickets); in terms of strike rate, only Waqar was ahead.

During these eight years, Akram was Man of the Match in 12 of the 48 Tests he played, an incredible average of one every four games. Eight of these were in overseas Tests, including the game in Melbourne and the next one in Adelaide, when he turned in an outstanding all-round performance, taking six wickets and scoring 52 and 123. At the time it was only the 12th instance of a player scoring 150 or more and taking six or more wickets in a Test.

Best Test bowlers between Jan 1990 and Dec 1997 (Qual: 150 wickets) Bowler Tests Wickets Average Strike rate 5WI/ 10WM
Wasim Akram 48 240 20.05 46.4 16/ 3
Curtly Ambrose 57 247 20.50 52.8 17/ 3
Waqar Younis 46 232 21.23 40.1 19/ 4
Allan Donald 36 171 23.27 48.8 9/ 2
Glenn McGrath 36 164 23.42 53.0 9/ 0
Shane Warne 62 289 24.08 62.9 12/ 3

Overall, he won 17 Man-of-the-Match and seven Man-of-the-Series awards, both of which are among the highest. Even better, his rate of winning these awards, one every six Tests, is the best among those who've won at least ten such prizes.

Highest frequency of MoM awards in Tests (Qual: 10 awards) Player Tests MoM awards Tests per award
Wasim Akram 104 17 6.12
Jacques Kallis 137 20 6.85
Muttiah Muralitharan 132 19 6.95
Curtly Ambrose 98 14 7.00
 
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"Wasim also never lost a test series as a captain."

Are you forgetting the series losses against WI in WI in 1993, against Australia in Australia both in 1995 and 1999?
 
shariqnoor said:
"Wasim also never lost a test series as a captain."

Are you forgetting the series losses against WI in WI in 1993, against Australia in Australia both in 1995 and 1999?
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sorry for error,but other records to me support his claim for best of 1990's.thanks anyway for correction.
 
Its debateable

Akram
Tendulkar
Lara
Warne
Ambrose
S Waugh

The likes of warne, akram and lara certainly catch the imagination more than the likes of waugh and ambrose
 
"The best" as in "the cricketer of the 90s who caused more wins"?

By this criteria, Steve Waugh and McGrath I think.
 
Zaz said:
Its debateable

Akram
Tendulkar
Lara
Warne
Ambrose
S Waugh

The likes of warne, akram and lara certainly catch the imagination more than the likes of waugh and ambrose
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Good choice .Rated Ambrose as he was a great match winner.turned lost causes into winning my ones more than anyone.Steve was the master in a crisis.
 
TestMatch said:
"The best" as in "the cricketer of the 90s who caused more wins"?

By this criteria, Steve Waugh and McGrath I think.
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To me not wins but impact combined with artistic skill and statistical record.Infact as pure match winner curtly Ambrose morally was the best match winner if you consider the games he turned against England.South Africa and Australia.
 
Harsh can you compare Akram with Waqar in this same period in terms of stats - wickets - bowl average - man of match
 
ToeCrusher2 said:
Sachin Tendulkar was the best cricketer of the 1990s, not even close
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Akram was man of the match in the final of a world cup in the 90s along with multiple test match wins away from home .
Sachin acheived nothing apart from some personal records and several chokes.
Its not even close.
 
ethan hunt said:
Akram was man of the match in the final of a world cup in the 90s along with multiple test match wins away from home .
Sachin acheived nothing apart from some personal records and several chokes.
Its not even close.
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That's why Sachin Tendulkar is ranked in the top 3-5 cricketers of ALL time (way way above akram) in every credible list, try again junior
 
Harsh Thakor said:
sorry for error,but other records to me support his claim for best of 1990's.thanks anyway for correction.
Click to expand...

Also incorrect is the Test and ODI Stats for Akram in the 90s

ODI:
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/en...0;spanval1=span;template=results;type=bowling

Tests:
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/en...0;spanval1=span;template=results;type=bowling


But the biggest problem with your threads is that they are all highly subjective ... but you throw stats in there anyhow ... and when people point out mistakes or critique you either walk away or go silent. What is the point of these threads if you don't like to discuss and only engage in back slapping with like minded people ?
 
First things first, how many top order batsmen did Akram take? Its pretty low. And also, please check his records with Waqar and without Waqar as his bowling partner. You will find a dip in the stats.
Just the fact that Akram gorged on tailenders and not top order batsmen, concludes the argument if he had any impact on the match. Tc!
 
Easily.

There's been no one yet who can match these 3 cricketers:

1) Wasim
2) Warne
3) Lara

This is not about scoring runs or winning matches but the pure skill these three players had. Sachin would've been on the list had Kohli not had such an enormous rise that he'd threaten to become India's best cricketer ever.
 
Close between Wasim and Lara.
No way you can put a batsman over Lara in the 90's.
 
Wasim won a world cup in the 90s and averaged in low 20s as a bowler who mostly bowled in Asia with a very weak fielding side. He was the greatest cricketer of the 90s.
 
Lara averaged 50 (Tests) and 42 (ODIs) in the 1990s.

Tendulkar averaged 58 (Tests) and 43 (ODIs).

And Sachin played more matches than Lara in the same period making it harder to maintain such a high average.
 
kingusama92 said:
Lara averaged 50 (Tests) and 42 (ODIs) in the 1990s.

Tendulkar averaged 58 (Tests) and 43 (ODIs).

And Sachin played more matches than Lara in the same period making it harder to maintain such a high average.
Click to expand...

To add, SRT faced WI bowlers and Lara faced Indian bowlers.
 
kingusama92 said:
Lara averaged 50 (Tests) and 42 (ODIs) in the 1990s.

Tendulkar averaged 58 (Tests) and 43 (ODIs).

And Sachin played more matches than Lara in the same period making it harder to maintain such a high average.
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Lara averaged almost 52 in tests in the 90s.
 
Wasim was fun to watch, but calling some one the best cricketer when the said cricketer was not ranked number one in the test format for even a day?

You could make a case of most talented, fun to watch and all that, but not the best cricketer. The best cricketers in any period occupy top spots for long period. This is coming from some one who used to watch Pakistani matches mainly to watch Wasim bowl.
 
Buffet said:
Wasim was fun to watch, but calling some one the best cricketer when the said cricketer was not ranked number one in the test format for even a day?

You could make a case of most talented, fun to watch and all that, but not the best cricketer. The best cricketers in any period occupy top spots for long period. This is coming from some one who used to watch Pakistani matches mainly to watch Wasim bowl.
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In the 90s, only Ambrose took wickets at a better average in tests, 20.14 compared to Wasim's 21.45. In ODIs, Wasim was hands-down the best bowler in the 90s.

Considering the fact that Wasim played most of his games in Asia with a very weak fielding site and was a bowling all-rounder who was the MOT in the 1992 WC final due to his all-round performance, he has a very very strong case to be called the best cricketer of the 90s.
 
Wasim was good but how many leg spinners have done what Warne did in recent times in both formats.
 
kingusama92 said:
Still, Sachin's prime was far greater statistically.
Click to expand...

Gap was too huge between them as soon as they stepped out of home. See below. It's not even close.

The_Odd_One said:
One must check the quality of innings both played in the 90s.
Click to expand...

You can find equal or more gun knocks by SRT, but all this comes in play when they are in the same range in major factors like performance away from home in 90s. At home, both averages 59, but away there is a huge gap in 90s.



Lara away from home in 90s: avg below 45 with 6 tons -- 45+ avg marked in red



Lara.jpg

-----------


SRT away from home in 90s: avg above 55 with 13 tons -- 45+ avg marked in red

srt.jpg

With such a huge difference in away performance, there is no need to look for anything else.
 
The_Odd_One said:
Considering the fact that Wasim played most of his games in Asia ....
Click to expand...

Ratings points and subsequent ranking will be high if you are performing above others in the same match. It also takes account of opposition strength. If scores are high in Asia then your get more rating points for avg 25 as compared to averaging 25 in SA. Wasim was never the top dog in the test format. Surely, the best in ODI. Talented for sure, just like AB, and fun to watch even in the test format. I do think that poor fielding by Pakistan didn't help his cause, but that's too vague to measure.

Ambrose, McGrath, Donald and even Pollock and Waqar occupied rank 1 due to standing out in the some period. Simply because they were good enough to perform better than others in 90s in some period. Wasim never did that in entire 90s. I see some parallel with Ab here. AB is more talented than anyone else, but I will take some other names over him. Same was the case for Wasim in the test format.
 
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DRsohail said:
hard times for indian fans...how many world cups sachin won in 90s....lolz.
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This is silly.

In 1992 WC: 47.16 AVG
In 1996 WC: 87.16 AVG
In 1999 WC: 42.16 AVG

At no point was he the reason for their downfall.

The only WC Semi-final they made in that time span, he scored 65.
 
Buffet said:
Ratings points and subsequent ranking will be high if you are performing above others in the same match. It also takes account of opposition strength. If scores are high in Asia then your get more rating points for avg 25 as compared to averaging 25 in SA. Wasim was never the top dog in the test format. Surely, the best in ODI. Talented for sure, just like AB, and fun to watch even in the test format. I do think that poor fielding by Pakistan didn't help his cause, but that's too vague to measure.

Ambrose, McGrath, Donald and even Pollock and Waqar occupied rank 1 due to standing out in the some period. Simply because they were good enough to perform better than others in 90s in some period. Wasim never did that in entire 90s. I see some parallel with Ab here. AB is more talented than anyone else, but I will take some other names over him. Same was the case for Wasim in the test format.
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The comparison with AB is not valid. AB is not a test ATG. Wasim is an undisputed test ATG. Wasim might not be the best test bowler for a single day but he was easily among the top 3 test bowlers consistently in the 90s. AB was never among the the top 3 test batsmen.

Waqar held #1 position in tests but he is way below Wasim overall. Even, James Anderson held the #1 ranking. Does that make him better than Wasim? The ranking alone does not tell the entire story.

To summarize:

Wasim was the #1 ODI bowler.
Wasim was consistently among the top 3 test bowlers.
Wasim was a bowling all-rounder who has a test double hundred.
Wasim was MOT in the 1992 WC final due to his all-round performance.
Wasim was the most complete bowler of his time, it is not just about stats.
Wasim was rated very high by all of his peers.
Wasim was a very good captain as well.

If all these accomplishments/skills do not make a strong case for him to be the best cricketer in the 90s, I am not sure what else will.
 
The_Odd_One said:
The comparison with AB is not valid. AB is not a test ATG. Wasim is an undisputed test ATG. Wasim might not be the best test bowler for a single day but he was easily among the top 3 test bowlers consistently in the 90s. AB was never among the the top 3 test batsmen.
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I was not drawing parallel with AB for being an ATG. I was simply saying that I will take few other names over AB in the test format just like I will take some other names over Wasim in 90s in the test format.

You are way off target on bold part here. AB gets lots of stick from me, but was top performer for 6 years( 2008-2013). He averaged 65+. His away avg was 67+ in the same period. And to add, he was ranked number one at the end of 2013 and 2014. Aprt from Amla, no other name came near his performance.
 
I would say Warne. What he did being a leg spinner is unheard of. He also won Australia the 99 world cup with splendid spells of bowling both in the semis and final on non subcontinental wickets. Wasim is close but I always felt McGrath was more of a threat to top order batsman than Wasim.

I would say it is
Warne
Lara
Wasim
and Tendulkar.
 
ethan hunt said:
Akram was man of the match in the final of a world cup in the 90s along with multiple test match wins away from home .
Sachin acheived nothing apart from some personal records and several chokes.
Its not even close.
Click to expand...

We all saw what he did before all important quarter finals against India in 96 wc. Also wasim was a shaddy cricketer. There is a reason why Sachin was in everyones first ATG eleven but only a few picked Wasim. Its an insult to sachin. It happens in this forum. Understandable.
 
kingusama92 said:
This is silly.

In 1992 WC: 47.16 AVG
In 1996 WC: 87.16 AVG
In 1999 WC: 42.16 AVG

At no point was he the reason for their downfall.

The only WC Semi-final they made in that time span, he scored 65.
Click to expand...

so what??/ actually most of us underestimate bowlig performances because they dont appear on ststs actually...like when wasim bowls a wondeful spel but goes wicketless or just take one wicket but when a bastman scores a century everybody remembers it,,just like for me mohammad amir was the man of the match in ct final... [MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] will ex[lain this that how peopel underrate or underestimate bowling because stats are always misleading...
 
thehub said:
We all saw what he did before all important quarter finals against India in 96 wc. Also wasim was a shaddy cricketer. There is a reason why Sachin was in everyones first ATG eleven but only a few picked Wasim. Its an insult to sachin. It happens in this forum. Understandable.
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this is not insult actually he is being compared with on of the all time great fast bowler so it is an insult??
 
DRsohail said:
this is not insult actually he is being compared with on of the all time great fast bowler so it is an insult??
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Lol there is a big gap. Again let me put it here again. Wisden called Sachin the 2nd best batsmen ever right after 90s. He was in everyone ATG top 10. He was only half way through his career. Wasim was almost done with his career that time, hardly anyone put him in top 10. So those analysts, historians are dumb? Didn't know what they were writing about?
 
thehub said:
We all saw what he did before all important quarter finals against India in 96 wc. Also wasim was a shaddy cricketer. There is a reason why Sachin was in everyones first ATG eleven but only a few picked Wasim. Its an insult to sachin. It happens in this forum. Understandable.
Click to expand...

Wasim played with Salim malik and Sachin played with Azhar and Jadeja . Dont know who was shadier .
Lol on the contrary i have been having a look at all these world 11s that have cropped up recently and Wasim akram is almost always there Sachin less so . Just have a look at some of these lists . Dravid makes the cut a lot of times over Sachin but Wasim is irreplaceable.
 
thehub said:
Lol at questioning sachin's quality of innings in 90s. Are you sure you watched him in 90s?
Click to expand...
Have a look at India's record in the 90s .
They won absolutely nothing away from home for a whole decade while Wasim and waqar were ripping England apart in their own backyard . The weak team excuse is overrated because even Lara pulled of some unbelievable run chases through sheer genius . Sachin had his chance in Chennai 99 but he failed . He was a great batsman with excellent personal stats but thats about it . No world tournaments for India in the 90s and almost 0 away test wins . I am sure the genius could have fashioned a win or two.
 
DRsohail said:
so what??/ actually most of us underestimate bowlig performances because they dont appear on ststs actually...like when wasim bowls a wondeful spel but goes wicketless or just take one wicket but when a bastman scores a century everybody remembers it,,just like for me mohammad amir was the man of the match in ct final... [MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] will ex[lain this that how peopel underrate or underestimate bowling because stats are always misleading...
Click to expand...

I'm not underestimating Wasim's bowling performances.

But putting down Sachin's prime isn't appropriate either. He was never the reason for their WC demise because that team was trash without him.

The 90s version of Sachin was as dominant as they get home and away.
 
ethan hunt said:
Have a look at India's record in the 90s .
They won absolutely nothing away from home for a whole decade while Wasim and waqar were ripping England apart in their own backyard . The weak team excuse is overrated because even Lara pulled of some unbelievable run chases through sheer genius . Sachin had his chance in Chennai 99 but he failed . He was a great batsman with excellent personal stats but thats about it . No world tournaments for India in the 90s and almost 0 away test wins . I am sure the genius could have fashioned a win or two.
Click to expand...

When did lara win away from home in 90s? Didn't sachin win games at home? sachin scored so many runs away from home and also in all worldcups which helped India to draw several games and also took the team to semis in 96. What do you mean by no title? You guys talk about importance of kitply cup. Didnt sachin win tournament s like hero cup, titan cup and tournaments in Sharjah?


BTW Didn't lara have bowlers like Ambrose, Walsh,etc playing in his side. To win in places like England, aus, sa,etc you need good fast bowlers. Windies had and lara couldn't capitalize due to his lack of discipline, infighting and inconsistency whereas India had bowlers like venky, kuruvilla, doda ganesh, etc to support srinath. Overall bowling lineup was as poor as minnows bowling away from home.

looks like you have either not seen Sachin in 90s or trying to troll. If the later, don't waste my time.
 
ethan hunt said:
Wasim played with Salim malik and Sachin played with Azhar and Jadeja . Dont know who was shadier .
Lol on the contrary i have been having a look at all these world 11s that have cropped up recently and Wasim akram is almost always there Sachin less so . Just have a look at some of these lists . Dravid makes the cut a lot of times over Sachin but Wasim is irreplaceable.
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You are funny dude. Which atg 11 had wasim name but not sachin. Prepared by your friends in Pak?:))
 
ethan hunt said:
Have a look at India's record in the 90s .
They won absolutely nothing away from home for a whole decade while Wasim and waqar were ripping England apart in their own backyard . The weak team excuse is overrated because even Lara pulled of some unbelievable run chases through sheer genius . Sachin had his chance in Chennai 99 but he failed . He was a great batsman with excellent personal stats but thats about it . No world tournaments for India in the 90s and almost 0 away test wins . I am sure the genius could have fashioned a win or two.
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Bowlers win matches and batsmen can set it up. If you have seen enough cricket, you should have known about it.
 
Sachin produced generations of cricketers following him. Akram was electric. But if you break down his wickets large portion were tailenders. Also he had great partners like Waqar, Saqlain. Definitely a magical bowler. It is hard to rank these guys. If we are talking about talent, stage presense, inspirational Sachin, Akram are on par. You cannot quantify their impact with win/loss ratio.
 
thehub said:
Lol there is a big gap. Again let me put it here again. Wisden called Sachin the 2nd best batsmen ever right after 90s. He was in everyone ATG top 10. He was only half way through his career. Wasim was almost done with his career that time, hardly anyone put him in top 10. So those analysts, historians are dumb? Didn't know what they were writing about?
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so wahat..wasim was a bow;er.u know the dynamics of being a bowler or bats??/
 
jnaveen1980 said:
Sachin produced generations of cricketers following him. Akram was electric. But if you break down his wickets large portion were tailenders. Also he had great partners like Waqar, Saqlain. Definitely a magical bowler. It is hard to rank these guys. If we are talking about talent, stage presense, inspirational Sachin, Akram are on par. You cannot quantify their impact with win/loss ratio.
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Wasim has given rise to a new generation of quality left arm bowlers. All of them cite Wasim as their role model growing up.

Starc
Amir
Boult

Let's not put down his impact as an ATG.
 
DRsohail said:
so wahat..wasim was a bow;er.u know the dynamics of being a bowler or bats??/
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I said ATG top 10 not just world eleven. BTW the question is, was he the best cricketer during 90s? Answer from me is no. Answer would be same from most of analyst and historians if not all.
 
DRsohail said:
so what??/ actually most of us underestimate bowlig performances because they dont appear on ststs actually...like when wasim bowls a wondeful spel but goes wicketless or just take one wicket but when a bastman scores a century everybody remembers it,,just like for me mohammad amir was the man of the match in ct final... [MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] will ex[lain this that how peopel underrate or underestimate bowling because stats are always misleading...
Click to expand...

For 90s, my top 2 cricketers were Wasim & Warne; for 80s, Imran & Marshall, for 70s Viv & Lillee, for 60s Sobers & Truman, 50s Benaud, Miller - so, yes I am a bit bias for the bowling all-rounders. Players that can make the team on bowling merit & then can contribute with bat. Number is immaterial here, because no one will be able to conclude if average of 25 with ball is better than 50 with bat or other way.

Bowling contribution is the most neglected aspect in the game, because most people can't follow the game strategically - what couple of good balls can do, they do it on Statguru. One classic example I can give is 1999 WC SF between PAK & NZL. A lot of cricket pundits from obvious corner (including some for BD) made jokes of Imran, after he had said that Shoaib's opening spell won PAK that match. At first, I couldn't realize - Khan can't be stupid, but these pundits brought lots of data & sense in their laugh; for a bowler going for 10-0-55-3

I watched PAK bowling in that game several times to understand what it was - Shoaib, bowled couple of extra fast bouncers at the start (both went for 5 I believe), which put Kiwis on back foot & they never recovered from that scar through out the match - result, 5 of the 7 wickets were bowled. Interestingly, it's Bowled, not LBW - which indicates, they never came on front foot & didn't cover the line on back foot to pitched up balls in between, hence 5 Bowleds & no LBW.

Now, this'll take years of studying the game & understanding how the bowling plan works - which Imran did see not being even in the ground, but obviously he doesn't have the Harsha Bhogle English to present it. Quality of bowing is difficult to watch in eyes or measure by stats.
 
Wasim masterd the art of bowling and then added some more which other bowlers can only dream of.

He is the GOAT amongst ATG bowlers.
 
[MENTION=79064]MMHS[/MENTION] well explained,i believe the same that it was shoaib who won us that particular match..even this ct final was won by aamir as i said,his 3 for 16 was like 150 runs in a final..
 
and it is pretty obvious that teams with good bowling always comes out to be the better team,
 
MMHS said:
For 90s, my top 2 cricketers were Wasim & Warne; for 80s, Imran & Marshall, for 70s Viv & Lillee, for 60s Sobers & Truman, 50s Benaud, Miller - so, yes I am a bit bias for the bowling all-rounders. Players that can make the team on bowling merit & then can contribute with bat. Number is immaterial here, because no one will be able to conclude if average of 25 with ball is better than 50 with bat or other way.

Bowling contribution is the most neglected aspect in the game, because most people can't follow the game strategically - what couple of good balls can do, they do it on Statguru. One classic example I can give is 1999 WC SF between PAK & NZL. A lot of cricket pundits from obvious corner (including some for BD) made jokes of Imran, after he had said that Shoaib's opening spell won PAK that match. At first, I couldn't realize - Khan can't be stupid, but these pundits brought lots of data & sense in their laugh; for a bowler going for 10-0-55-3

I watched PAK bowling in that game several times to understand what it was - Shoaib, bowled couple of extra fast bouncers at the start (both went for 5 I believe), which put Kiwis on back foot & they never recovered from that scar through out the match - result, 5 of the 7 wickets were bowled. Interestingly, it's Bowled, not LBW - which indicates, they never came on front foot & didn't cover the line on back foot to pitched up balls in between, hence 5 Bowleds & no LBW.

Now, this'll take years of studying the game & understanding how the bowling plan works - which Imran did see not being even in the ground, but obviously he doesn't have the Harsha Bhogle English to present it. Quality of bowing is difficult to watch in eyes or measure by stats.
Click to expand...

That yorker to Fleming was probably the ball of that WC.
 
Buffet said:
I was not drawing parallel with AB for being an ATG. I was simply saying that I will take few other names over AB in the test format just like I will take some other names over Wasim in 90s in the test format.

You are way off target on bold part here. AB gets lots of stick from me, but was top performer for 6 years( 2008-2013). He averaged 65+. His away avg was 67+ in the same period. And to add, he was ranked number one at the end of 2013 and 2014. Aprt from Amla, no other name came near his performance.
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Let me put it in a simple way. Do you consider AB a test ATG? Will you pick him in your test XI?
 
90s Sachin was an animal no doubt, as good as batsmen could ever become to be honest compared to the boring accumulator he became post 00s.

There were a lot of shouts for best in 90s, Warne, Lara, Ambrose, Sach, Wasim- a toss up.
 
The_Odd_One said:
In the 90s, only Ambrose took wickets at a better average in tests, 20.14 compared to Wasim's 21.45. In ODIs, Wasim was hands-down the best bowler in the 90s.

Considering the fact that Wasim played most of his games in Asia with a very weak fielding site and was a bowling all-rounder who was the MOT in the 1992 WC final due to his all-round performance, he has a very very strong case to be called the best cricketer of the 90s.
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Very ggod point.good analysis.
 
Bonafide Hustler said:
I would say Warne. What he did being a leg spinner is unheard of. He also won Australia the 99 world cup with splendid spells of bowling both in the semis and final on non subcontinental wickets. Wasim is close but I always felt McGrath was more of a threat to top order batsman than Wasim.

I would say it is
Warne
Lara
Wasim
and Tendulkar.
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Very close but adding ODIS Wasim has the edge.I have given consideration to his contribution inthe 92 world cup his batting and the fielding standard of his team.
 
ethan hunt said:
Akram was man of the match in the final of a world cup in the 90s along with multiple test match wins away from home .
Sachin acheived nothing apart from some personal records and several chokes.
Its not even close.
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Unfair.It was neck to neck.Sachin was also a true great who made an immortal contribution.
 
I don't think anyone has mentioned this but the man did all that whilst fighting with diabetes.

He is?
Wasim Akram, born 3 June 1966, Lahore, Pakistan.

Famous for?
Being one of the finest fast bowlers ever seen in the world of cricket. He is a former Pakistani Captain and also had a very successful career in England, playing for Lancashire.

So he was pretty good then?
Well, that's an understatement! Wasim holds numerous world records for his cricketing superpowers.

He holds world records for the most wickets taken in both One Day Internationals (502) and List A cricket (881). He has the joint-highest number of Man of the Match awards in Test cricket and, if that's not enough, Wasim also managed the highest score by a number eight batsman in Test cricket – 257 not out against Zimbabwe.

How did he find out he had diabetes?
Diagnosed in 1997 in the middle of a Test cricket series, after his father dragged him to the doctor – Akram had begun losing weight and experiencing considerable thirst and fatigue. He lost loads of weight, was drinking a lot of water and was sleeping the whole time.

Battling through
He played the whole series against the West Indies in the same condition, and just put the changes down to the fact that he was training. It was not until his dad dragged him (at the age of 31!) to the doctor that his blood glucose levels were found to be very high.

When he was first told that he had Type 1 diabetes, he got quite depressed, especially after all his friends were telling him that he would have to give up his cricket.

Proving his doubters wrong
But, determined to prove them wrong, he brought his diabetes under control by carefully controlling his diet and exercise levels.

Legend
He continued to play world class cricket, and went on to become a legend in his own lifetime, being the first bowler to take more than 400 wickets both in Test and one-day internationals. All this despite having to inject with insulin three times a day.

What now?
Wasim retired from cricket in 2003 and has since become a cricket commentator for TV.
Click to expand...
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Guide-to-diabetes/Teens/Fun-stuff/Celebrities/Wasim-Akram/
 
Zaz said:
Its debateable

Akram
Tendulkar
Lara
Warne
Ambrose
S Waugh

The likes of warne, akram and lara certainly catch the imagination more than the likes of waugh and ambrose
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Good list,appreciate.Akram and Lara better match-winners than Tendulkar with unequaled natural talent.Are you ranking in order of merit?Amborse was close to top as pure match-winner but not at his best on flat,docile tracks or with the old ball.
 
sshakir411 said:
Easily.

There's been no one yet who can match these 3 cricketers:

1) Wasim
2) Warne
3) Lara

This is not about scoring runs or winning matches but the pure skill these three players had. Sachin would've been on the list had Kohli not had such an enormous rise that he'd threaten to become India's best cricketer ever.
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You have to have Tendulkar here,otherwise unfair.Otherwise good list.
 
Former New Zealand first-class cricketer James Pamment did not get a chance to play any international match but then he surely has got the taste of what it is like to face a world-class international bowler like Wasim Akram.

The former Auckland batsman has revealed an incident when he was left worried even after smashing Wasim Akram for a 1st-ball boundary. The incident he recalled is from 1995-96 according to him, the time when his good performance in Shell Trophy had earned him a place in the squad which was to play against Pakistan in a tour match.

His team won the toss at Sedan Park and opted to bat. Wasim Akram served a juicy half-volley and Pamment pounced on it to hit a cracking boundary towards the side screen. The batsman recalled that he started regretting even before going through his shot completely.

"Sort of halfway through executing that shot, I thought why did you do that? What a silly ting to do"

"I knew what was coming. Next ball he ran in exactly the same but it was 35 kmph faster, hit me flush on front of my helmet, the badge exploded and landed on the floor right next to me, so I casually picked it up and put it in my pocket and set myself for the next ball," James Pamment said.

Pamment missed the next ball by metres and on the delivery after that 'he managed' to get a knick which was caught by Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was standing in the slip cordon.

James Pamment, started walking back to the pavilion, may be even thanking God for ending his on-crease torture, but sadly the day had saved more embarrassment for him.

On his way back, the Kiwi cricketer had started feeling the effects of Wasim Akram's venomous bouncer and found himself walking towards the opposite end of the pavilion.

"I put my bat under the arm and set off walking, must be walking for about 30 seconds, pretty closed to the boundary edge and I get this noise 'Hey you are walking the wrong F*****g way. Instead of turning around and going towards the pavilion, I walked straight into the groundsmen shed. I thought what should I do? turn around and walk all the way back again? So I casually walked into the groundsmen shed," Pattinson said, adding he was having concussion.

Legendary Pakistan pacer Wasim Akram has reacted to the anecdote shared by Pamment and apologised for the concussion. Wasim also asked Pamment what made him think that it was a 'good idea' to hit him for a first-ball boundary.

"Haha don’t remember it but it sounds like me! What was going through your head to think it was a good idea to drive me on the first ball anyway haha?? Sorry about the concussion mate," Wasim Akram tweeted cheekily.

https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/cr...undary-concussion-pavilion-1673898-2020-05-03
 
We love Wasim bhai but I would humbly say no because even if a bowler is to be declared best of the 1990s it has to Shane Warne. Why? Because he's just better at every scale as a bowler in both formats.


This is my honest ranking of him :-

-Greatest Pakistani cricketer ever
- 2nd greatest fast bowler of the 1990s after The White Lightening Allan Donald and just ahead of Curtly Talk To No Man Ambrose
-2nd greatest superstar of the 1990s after Sachin Tendulkar
-5th greatest cricketer of the 1990s after Tendulkar, Warne, Lara, Donald (in that order)
-Greatest left hand bowler ever
 
Lara and Wasim were the most enjoyable to watch but I think overall it's close between Tendulkar, Lara, Wasim and Warne.

In ODIs, Wasim for me as he has an edge with 1992 World Cup finals performance but as a test cricketer only, it's between either Tendulkar or Lara.

I would go with Tendulkar because he averaged far better 58 compared to Lara's 51 and add in the fact that SRT had to face Windies bowlers compared to Lara facing Indian attack.
 
Ab Fan said:
Lara and Wasim were the most enjoyable to watch but I think overall it's close between Tendulkar, Lara, Wasim and Warne.

In ODIs, Wasim for me as he has an edge with 1992 World Cup finals performance but as a test cricketer only, it's between either Tendulkar or Lara.

I would go with Tendulkar because he averaged far better 58 compared to Lara's 51 and add in the fact that SRT had to face Windies bowlers compared to Lara facing Indian attack.
Click to expand...

Steve Waugh says hi.
 
Wasim Akram was the best bowler in ODIs in 90s but in test cricket McGrath & Warne wud be ahead. Wasim was great in test matches but cannot think of any iconic performances in any test series from the top of my mind. McGrath had that 8-38 in Lords & also played pivotal role in that 1995 Frank Worrel series. Warne had so many as well

Lara & Tendulkar best in batting. Lara marginally ahead in tests & Tendulkar ahead in ODIs
 
1990-94:-

Best batsmen- Lara, Gooch
Best bowler- Waqar

1995-1999:-

Best batsmen- Tendulkar
Best bowler- Warne
 
Tendulkar was actually a lot ahead of the pack in the 1990s as opposed to a lot of the posts here.

By the end of 1990s, Tendulkar had the world at his feat.

Wisden had already rated him ahead of Imran Khan by then (14 years before his retirement)

Sir Don Bradman included him as the only active player in his ATG team before dying.

Tony Greig on live commentary declared him the greatest thing since Bradman during one of the Sharjah desert storms

He had single handedly transformed the cricket economy forever.

Every cricketer who earns well today must thank Sachin for raising the stakes. Before Tendulkar mania, cricketers earning big wasn't a thing. He was the first cricketer to make that level of money.
 
Warne and Tendulkar the top two, but Warne was more dynamic and match winning so he was the greatest cricketer of the 90's
 
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