Your five greatest cricketers of all time?

[Last Monetarist]

The rules were never changed for Murali. Medical exemptions were allowed because there is nothing Murali could do with regards to his arms appearing to be bent. Have you ever seen him trying to straighten his arms at the elbow? He can't.

Warne's situation was far worse, he did something that considered to be cheating across all sports. IN fact, we have no idea how long he could have been doping for, so to include him and to exclude Murali makes no sense. If one has an asterix next to his name, so must the other.

As for Wasim, I have no idea what you're talking about.

Warne took a diuretic according to all sources, it won't have helped him rip a leg-break. The rest is just conspiratorial nonsense for which I have no time. Murali chucked throughout his whole career, there is no comparison. A little bit of googling would show you the rules were changed if your memory is playing tricks on you. https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/bending-the-rules-on-chucking-20041112-gdk3k3.html
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2008/nov/04/srilankacricketteam-australiacricketteam

As for Wasim, I am not surprised you're choosing to ignore the elephant in the room. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2000/may/24/cricket8

Again, I won't be derailing this thread further.

 

[barah_admi]

Warne took a diuretic according to all sources, it won't have helped him rip a leg-break. The rest is just conspiratorial nonsense for which I have no time. Murali chucked throughout his whole career, there is no comparison. A little bit of googling would show you the rules were changed if your memory is playing tricks on you. https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/bending-the-rules-on-chucking-20041112-gdk3k3.html
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2008/nov/04/srilankacricketteam-australiacricketteam

As for Wasim, I am not surprised you're choosing to ignore the elephant in the room. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2000/may/24/cricket8

Again, I won't be derailing this thread further.

You are brushing Warne's misdemeanor under the rug. A diuretic can be used for numerous things, especially to make the use of other PEDs, which is why certain diuretics are banned, if not all. You're going of of personal opinion rather than facts. Sticking to the facts, Murali was allowed to bowl as he did, sticking to the facts, Warne was a drugs cheat, who happened to be only caught once.

And I knew you would bring that up with regards to Akram, but at no point was he found guilty of match fixing, as you owuld know if you read the exact article you decided to quote.

Edit: In fact, talking of fixing, you might wana look up Warne's own possible misdemeanour in that field.

This simply proves the point I was making, if you go down the route of so and so in cheating and I'll never have him in any list, then there is no stopping the slide.

 

[Madplayer]

I believe the greatest cricketers should have a combination of two factors :

1) they should be great cricketers in terms of skills, records amd cricketing achievements.

2) they should have made a lasting impact on the game and their team. They should have created a lasting culture in the team which shaped its future for many years that followed.

It is practically impossible to pick 5 greatest players ever but according to these criterias my attempt at top 5 picks would be :

1) Don Bradman - was far ahead of his peers, set high benchmarks which nobody could achieve. The gap between him and the next best batsman (statistically) is so huge that you simply have to select him among the top 5 greatest of all time.

2) Viv Richards - Again, far ahead of peers in terms of dominating the bowlers. Could be called the father of modern day aggressive batsmen. After him, every batsman aspired to score quicker runs.

3) Imran Khan - incredible achievements as an allrounder, world cup winner, perfected reverse swing which changed the game, mentored some of the greatest fast bowlers of all time and contributed to their rise, created a team which would be highly competitive for the next 10-15 years after his retirement.

4) Sachin Tendulkar - arguably the best batsman of modern era, records galore to his name, created a batting culture in India. Even today almost every good batsman of India names him as his inspiration. World cup winner as well.

5) Shane warne - a wizard with the ball, revolutionised and gave new life to Leg spin bowling. Incredible contributions to Australia's success everywhere in both formats of the game. His performance is 1999 world cup finals is one to remember. Many have called him the greatest player of all time and he is generally rated above Murli because of a non-controversial action.

Honorable mentions (in no particular order) :

1) Glenn Mcgrath - the bowler who conquered all batsmen he faced. He used to find a batsman's weakness and then bowl the same line and length to him for the rest of his career.

2) Adam Gilchrist - Revolutionised the role of wicket keeper batsman. Absolutely murdered the bowlers in both formats of the game.

3) Malcolm Marshall - he is the best fast bowler of all time for me but unfortunately considering the two criterias above, i didnt mention him among top 5. But you wont be wrong if you mention him.

4) Sunil Gavasker - Father of modern day openers. Faced the most dangerous bowlers with ease. Arguable India's best ever test batsman. However he wasnt amazing in the shorter version of the game.

5) Wasim Akram - the greatest left arm pacer of all time. A wizard who could bowl 6 different kind of deliveries in 6 balls.

6) Dale steyn - a bowler who delivered in an era where batsmen rule the roost. He boasts of the stats that rival the best bowlers of all time in an era which is at odds with him.

7) Allan Border - helped the revival of ruthless aussie character and created a good team. A great bastman himself.

8) MS dhoni - the best India skipper ever. Great batsman with contributions in all formats of the game.

9) Jacques kallis - South africa's greatest all rounder ever. Among top 3 ever.

10) Gary sobers - hailed as the best all rounder of all time. Achieved more as a batsman alone than most batsmen would dream of.

 

[Cuts_and_cuts_hard]

Bradman is number 1, Sobers and IK 2 and 3. Rest up for debate

 

[Dulex9]

Bradman
Tendulkar
Wasim Akram
Warne
Viv Richards

 

[Last Monetarist]

You are brushing Warne's misdemeanor under the rug. A diuretic can be used for numerous things, especially to make the use of other PEDs, which is why certain diuretics are banned, if not all. You're going of of personal opinion rather than facts. Sticking to the facts, Murali was allowed to bowl as he did, sticking to the facts, Warne was a drugs cheat, who happened to be only caught once.

And I knew you would bring that up with regards to Akram, but at no point was he found guilty of match fixing, as you owuld know if you read the exact article you decided to quote.

Edit: In fact, talking of fixing, you might wana look up Warne's own possible misdemeanour in that field.

This simply proves the point I was making, if you go down the route of so and so in cheating and I'll never have him in any list, then there is no stopping the slide.

Yes, but these lists are personal opinon at the end of the day. You view doping as a bigger problem than chucking, that's your prerogative. I think chuckers don't play cricket, they throw the ball, and as such the records of chuckers should be erased from the records. Neither of us are totally privy to the facts unless we were working at the ICC during the years the Murali debate was raging. The facts have always been muddied depending on who it was you were listening to.

I also knew you were going to throw that 'unproven' response with regards to Wasim's involvement in match-fixing, see we can play this 'I know what you were going to say game in advance' all day. The good justice's opinion was heavily compromised as you well know: (http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakvind/content/story/232548.html)

We are aligned as far as your last point is concerned, which was what I was trying to allude to when you brought up Warne's doping in retaliation.

 

[Chrish]

Bradman is number 1, Sobers and IK 2 and 3. Rest up for debate

Kallis right up there at the top.. Brahman might be no 1 but it’s debatable. Few others aren’t any less impressive.

 

[Madplayer]

Kallis right up there at the top.. Brahman might be no 1 but it’s debatable. Few others aren’t any less impressive.

Sorry but Kallis is not among top 5 at all. Maybe in top 15-20. He had little impact on the game and never looked like a person who the opposition would fear. In ODIs and T20Is he was rather innocuous. Top 5 greatest players should at least be undisputed greats of the game in at least 2 formats. Except Bradman because his 99 average makes him a top 5 by default.

 

[Chrish]

Sorry but Kallis is not among top 5 at all. Maybe in top 15-20. He had little impact on the game and never looked like a person who the opposition would fear. In ODIs and T20Is he was rather innocuous. Top 5 greatest players should at least be undisputed greats of the game in at least 2 formats. Except Bradman because his 99 average makes him a top 5 by default.

It’s a pity how Kallis is rated based on the way he batted. I remember somewhere in late 90s or 2000s SA toured India and reckon it was a two test series; don’t exactly remember. Kallis batted at the strike rate of 25 and scored 93 or 100 and SA won the game and the series. He scored 2 or 3 50s in a hat series which were crucial toward the result.

While I personally prefer attacking players, test cricket is more about patience and endurence. Batting at the SR of 70s and scoring a quick 100 isn’t always way to go. And regarding having a impact, Kallis regularly bowled those 10-15 overs which helped their strike bowlers get enough rest and prevented them from breaking down. It’s not a coincidence that bowlers rarely faced
Injuries when Kallis was there.

His impact while not directly measurable is enormous.

 

[Madplayer]

It’s a pity how Kallis is rated based on the way he batted. I remember somewhere in late 90s or 2000s SA toured India and reckon it was a two test series; don’t exactly remember. Kallis batted at the strike rate of 25 and scored 93 or 100 and SA won the game and the series. He scored 2 or 3 50s in a hat series which were crucial toward the result.

While I personally prefer attacking players, test cricket is more about patience and endurence. Batting at the SR of 70s and scoring a quick 100 isn’t always way to go. And regarding having a impact, Kallis regularly bowled those 10-15 overs which helped their strike bowlers get enough rest and prevented them from breaking down. It’s not a coincidence that bowlers rarely faced
Injuries when Kallis was there.

His impact while not directly measurable is enormous.

Thats all fine and he is an undisputed ATG of the game. But tests arent the only format like i mentioned. Here we are talking about the top 5 greatest cricketers which means the criticism of all contenders will be ridiculously acute. Imo Kallis has not done enough to be included among the top 5 greatest cricketers. Surely top 20. Perhaps top 10. But not top 5.

The greatness of Imran, for instance, isnt only about him being among the top 3 all rounders of all time but also about how he changed the cricketing culture of the team and nation. How he contributed to the game by perfecting the art of reverse swing. How he mentored some ATG fast bowlers. How he created a team that competed for the next 15 years.

Kallis, as great as he is, falls short on a lot of fronts. Like i said, to be in top 5, you will be put under a microscope and all aspects will be minutely looked at.

 

[Chrish]

Thats all fine and he is an undisputed ATG of the game. But tests arent the only format like i mentioned. Here we are talking about the top 5 greatest cricketers which means the criticism of all contenders will be ridiculously acute. Imo Kallis has not done enough to be included among the top 5 greatest cricketers. Surely top 20. Perhaps top 10. But not top 5.

The greatness of Imran, for instance, isnt only about him being among the top 3 all rounders of all time but also about how he changed the cricketing culture of the team and nation. How he contributed to the game by perfecting the art of reverse swing. How he mentored some ATG fast bowlers. How he created a team that competed for the next 15 years.

Kallis, as great as he is, falls short on a lot of fronts. Like i said, to be in top 5, you will be put under a microscope and all aspects will be minutely looked at.

First of all, ODIs only started after 70s, so when we are talking about greatest of all time, it's pretty useless to talk about anything but tests. And even then, someone like Imran doesn't have a better ODI record than Kallis.

Secondly, I think you are selling Kallis short here. You are saying how Imran created team that could compete well without realizing SA team didn't loose an away series for a decade where Kallis played a crucial role; it's more impressive than anything Imran or other SC greats acheived. And, if you wanna count Imran's captaincy as a positive that's fine, but by all account he was a very mediocre fielder; while Kallis is one of the greatest ever known in the slips. So it pretty much evens out.

 

[Mamoon]

1) Tendulkar
2) Viv
3) Warne
4) McGrath
5) Gilchrist

 

[ayemgilani86]

Shane Warne
Imran Khan
Alan Knott
Viv Richards
Brian Lara

 

[Realromeo]

1. Sachin
2. Murali
3. Bradman
4. Lara
5. Wasim

 

[Ozymandiasza]

9) Jacques kallis - South africa's greatest all rounder ever. Among top 3 ever.

Excellent post. This sentence alone means a lot considering the number of all-rounders SA produce.

1. Kallis
2. Shaun Pollock (very underrated)
3. Klusener (Player of the tournament in 1999 WC, 'nuff said)
4. Procter (can't really comment)
5. Clive Rice (930 FC wickets @ 22.49 and a batting avg of 40. Crazy!)
6. Hansie Cronje (underrated and a cheat. Worth mentioning though)
7. Brian McMillan
8. Philander
9. Duminy

 

[Bhaijaan]

It’s a pity how Kallis is rated based on the way he batted. I remember somewhere in late 90s or 2000s SA toured India and reckon it was a two test series; don’t exactly remember. Kallis batted at the strike rate of 25 and scored 93 or 100 and SA won the game and the series. He scored 2 or 3 50s in a hat series which were crucial toward the result.

While I personally prefer attacking players, test cricket is more about patience and endurence. Batting at the SR of 70s and scoring a quick 100 isn’t always way to go. And regarding having a impact, Kallis regularly bowled those 10-15 overs which helped their strike bowlers get enough rest and prevented them from breaking down. It’s not a coincidence that bowlers rarely faced
Injuries when Kallis was there.

His impact while not directly measurable is enormous.

At some point in their career every great of the game has to stamp his authority in a convincing way. Despite the amazing statistics Kallis, Sangakkara, Dravid all belong in the tier 2 category of greats simply because they never truly were at any point in their career the very best and the most feared in the world across all formats.

Tendulkar, Lara, Ponting, Kohli and to a lesser extent ABD and Kevin Pieterson have been the guys who took the game by storm and proved their authority as the very best in the world in their peak.

Kallis is a great guy. Everyone has nothing but respect for him but he is just not 'IT. He is like the great guy a woman won't be with romantically but keep as her best manfriend.

When you close your eyes and try to imagine anything from Kallis and Sangakkara's bat that gave goosebumps to fans you find nothing and this is why they will never be hailed like Tendulkar, Lara type players

 

[Chrish]

At some point in their career every great of the game has to stamp his authority in a convincing way. Despite the amazing statistics Kallis, Sangakkara, Dravid all belong in the tier 2 category of greats simply because they never truly were at any point in their career the very best and the most feared in the world across all formats.

Tendulkar, Lara, Ponting, Kohli and to a lesser extent ABD and Kevin Pieterson have been the guys who took the game by storm and proved their authority as the very best in the world in their peak.

Kallis is a great guy. Everyone has nothing but respect for him but he is just not 'IT. He is like the great guy a woman won't be with romantically but keep as her best manfriend.

When you close your eyes and try to imagine anything from Kallis and Sangakkara's bat that gave goosebumps to fans you find nothing and this is why they will never be hailed like Tendulkar, Lara type players

People who understand the game are convinced about Kallis or for that matter any other great Cricketer...

 

[sjahmed23]

From the ones I've watched:

Lara
Kohli
Akram
De villers
Warne

Put them in any team and they will have the biggest impact on which way the game goes.

 

[todfod 11]

Sachin
Kohli
Viv richards
Wasim Akram
shane warne

 

[Robert]

First of all, ODIs only started after 70s, so when we are talking about greatest of all time, it's pretty useless to talk about anything but tests. And even then, someone like Imran doesn't have a better ODI record than Kallis.

Secondly, I think you are selling Kallis short here. You are saying how Imran created team that could compete well without realizing SA team didn't loose an away series for a decade where Kallis played a crucial role; it's more impressive than anything Imran or other SC greats acheived. And, if you wanna count Imran's captaincy as a positive that's fine, but by all account he was a very mediocre fielder; while Kallis is one of the greatest ever known in the slips. So it pretty much evens out.

We had World Cups in 1975 and 1979 (60 overs).

Imran was a decent fielder, if lacking Bothan’s catching surety, and spectacular dives and jumps at slip and off his own bowling.

 

[Dr_Bassim]

1) Tendulkar
2) Viv
3) Warne
4) McGrath
5) Gilchrist

You forgot Imran Khan or at least Wasim.

 

[AAli98]

Nizakat Khan
Anshuman Rath
Ab devilliers
Steve Waugh
Jaques Kallis

 

[Bhaijaan]

People who understand the game are convinced about Kallis or for that matter any other great Cricketer...

Convinced about Kallis being a great player. One of the greatest in fact.

Most experts and fans though comfortably put him well below Tendulkar.

 

[InziFans]

At some point in their career every great of the game has to stamp his authority in a convincing way. Despite the amazing statistics Kallis, Sangakkara, Dravid all belong in the tier 2 category of greats simply because they never truly were at any point in their career the very best and the most feared in the world across all formats.

Tendulkar, Lara, Ponting, Kohli and to a lesser extent ABD and Kevin Pieterson have been the guys who took the game by storm and proved their authority as the very best in the world in their peak.

Kallis is a great guy. Everyone has nothing but respect for him but he is just not 'IT. He is like the great guy a woman won't be with romantically but keep as her best manfriend.

When you close your eyes and try to imagine anything from Kallis and Sangakkara's bat that gave goosebumps to fans you find nothing and this is why they will never be hailed like Tendulkar, Lara type players

People confuse flair with impact. Kallis did not have flair but he had impact. Ultimately, it comes down to what your criteria for greatness is.

 

[Mamoon]

You forgot Imran Khan or at least Wasim.

Many, many great cricketers will miss out on a top five list. I could not justify leaving out any of these five names (for different reasons) for other players. Ultimately, their is very little between the top 10-15 players of all time.

 

[Bhaijaan]

People confuse flair with impact. Kallis did not have flair but he had impact. Ultimately, it comes down to what your criteria for greatness is.

Its not about flair but the determination to dominate. Ponting didnt have flair but his passion to dominate the opposition showed in his batting. Despite inferior stats he was the big dawg compared to Kallis.

In ODIs it is in fact even worse. Kallus wouod put the head down and play a meaningless 50 in big matches with no impact.

 

[Bhaijaan]

Many, many great cricketers will miss out on a top five list. I could not justify leaving out any of these five names (for different reasons) for other players. Ultimately, their is very little between the top 10-15 players of all time.

Greatness is subjective indeed Dear Mamoon.

Gavaskar for example remains a stand out and unanimous choice for opening slot in tests for most people. The way hs dominates in his field of work one could say he has a greater claim to greatness than someone who despite big numbers is not the first choice of many in their field.

 

[Chrish]

Convinced about Kallis being a great player. One of the greatest in fact.

Most experts and fans though comfortably put him well below Tendulkar.

It’s irrelevant. As I mentioned before, had Kallis played for SC team he too would appear in top 5 cricketer lists. He is underrated because he doesn’t have thousands of cheerleaders online worshiping him cause he played for SA

 

[Bhaijaan]

It’s irrelevant. As I mentioned before, had Kallis played for SC team he too would appear in top 5 cricketer lists. He is underrated because he doesn’t have thousands of cheerleaders online worshiping him cause he played for SA

Why is Lara rated so highly then being from the small Carribean Islands?

Even most experts outside of SC rate Kallis well below Tendulkar/Lara.

 

[Chrish]

Why is Lara rated so highly then being from the small Carribean Islands?

Even most experts outside of SC rate Kallis well below Tendulkar/Lara.

Because WI was a major superpower well before Lara came around. They had earned the attention and respect of cricket fans all around the world so it continued till Lara left.

SA were never in a picture because of isolation and stuff.

Also there experts are obligated to include Tenulkar bwucause of commercial reasons. I still remember the pathetic reaction from Indian fans and ex-cricketers when Dickie Bird didnt include SRT into his all time Xi. It was embarrassing tbh

 

[Hitman]

Because WI was a major superpower well before Lara came around. They had earned the attention and respect of cricket fans all around the world so it continued till Lara left.

SA were never in a picture because of isolation and stuff.

Also there experts are obligated to include Tenulkar bwucause of commercial reasons. I still remember the pathetic reaction from Indian fans and ex-cricketers when Dickie Bird didnt include SRT into his all time Xi. It was embarrassing tbh

Except that you cannot prove your allegation.

 

[Chrish]

Except that you cannot prove your allegation.

Neither can you prove that Tendulkar being ranked higher than Kallis or McGrath on experts list automatically means he was a greater cricketer..

 

[Hitman]

Neither can you prove that Tendulkar being ranked higher than Kallis or McGrath on experts list automatically means he was a greater cricketer..

Of course not. But it does give us a fair idea of what former greats of the game and cricket pundits think of them as cricketers.

 

[Chrish]

Of course not. But it does give us a fair idea of what former greats of the game and cricket pundits think of them as cricketers.

That's all I am saying. So bringing that up in every argument is rather silly. It's like saying Oscar winner movie is automatically better than non-winner.

 

[Hitman]

That's all I am saying. So bringing that up in every argument is rather silly. It's like saying Oscar winner movie is automatically better than non-winner.

That's what is generally assumed, provided the movies you are comparing were released in the same year.

 

[Chrish]

That's what is generally assumed, provided the movies you are comparing were released in the same year.

It's assumed doesn't make it truth.. Several non-Oscar winners are now considered classics while the winners are forgotten..

 

[Hitman]

It's assumed doesn't make it truth.. Several non-Oscar winners are now considered classics while the winners are forgotten..

That's you opinion, not necessarily the truth/fact. I mentioned specifically about movies released in the same year. A non Oscar winning movie might be better than an Oscar winning movie of another year.

 

[Chrish]

That's you opinion, not necessarily the truth/fact. I mentioned specifically about movies released in the same year. A non Oscar winning movie might be better than an Oscar winning movie of another year.

You aren't making any sense. What difference does it make if the reputation of either a player or movie changes over the course of the years based on re-evaluation??

 

[gani999]

1. Don Bradman
2. S.M.Gavaskar
3. Viv Richards
4. Wasim Akram
5. Malcolm Marshall

 

[Hitman]

You aren't making any sense. What difference does it make if the reputation of either a player or movie changes over the course of the years based on re-evaluation??

It doesn't change in cricket. Once a highly regarded player, always a highly regarded player. Look back at players from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. Viv is still the man, Lillee is still the behemoth, Marshall is still a top contender for any All Time XI.

 

[saadsahabjee]

Imran Khan
M.Marshall
Viv Richards
Sachin Tendulkar
Mc .Grath

 

[Chrish]

It doesn't change in cricket. Once a highly regarded player, always a highly regarded player. Look back at players from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. Viv is still the man, Lillee is still the behemoth, Marshall is still a top contender for any All Time XI.

Not really. Overall opinion of players can definitely change over the course of the years. I didn't rate Kallis highly up until couple of years back when I did more reading on him.

 

[Hitman]

Not really. Overall opinion of players can definitely change over the course of the years. I didn't rate Kallis highly up until couple of years back when I did more reading on him.

Really? So which batsman from the 70's and 80's is now considered better than Viv? Which all rounder from the same time frame is now considered better than Imran? Which bowler from the same time frame is now considered better than Lillee and Marshall? Which cricketer now has surpassed Sober's legacy as the greatest cricketer of all time?

 

[Chrish]

Really? So which batsman from the 70's and 80's is now considered better than Viv? Which all rounder from the same time frame is now considered better than Imran? Which bowler from the same time frame is now considered better than Lillee and Marshall? Which cricketer now has surpassed Sober's legacy as the greatest cricketer of all time?

We aren't talking about Tendulkar being the best batsman of his time.. But there is a very good argument that he wasn't the best overall Cricketer like many of his fans would like to believe. Viv was easily the best batsman of his era, but was he the best Cricketer?

Choosing the best Cricketer is a whole another kettle of fish

 

[Hitman]

We aren't talking about Tendulkar being the best batsman of his time.. But there is a very good argument that he wasn't the best overall Cricketer like many of his fans would like to believe. Viv was easily the best batsman of his era, but was he the best Cricketer?

Choosing the best Cricketer is a whole another kettle of fish

And that is because he almost always tops every list that is made among cricketers from his time. And those lists aren't made by Indian fans. I can understand that those lists aren't universal facts, but it does give us an idea of how highly he is rated compared to his contemporaries.

You are free to disagree with those lists, you have the liberty to.

 

[Chrish]

And that is because he almost always tops every list that is made among cricketers from his time. And those lists aren't made by Indian fans. I can understand that those lists aren't universal facts, but it does give us an idea of how highly he is rated compared to his contemporaries.

You are free to disagree with those lists, you have the liberty to.

But those are the same list that rank Wasim Akram far above someone like Mcgrath when there isn't any logical justification to do so

 

[Hitman]

But those are the same list that rank Wasim Akram far above someone like Mcgrath when there isn't any logical justification to do so

There are some lists where Akram is ahead, and some lists where McGrath is ahead. There is no unanimous greatest cricketer of any era. It's all about opinions. We all have our different opinions. Those lists too are opinions, not facts. Except those are the opinions of very highly regarded people.

 

[Chrish]

There are some lists where Akram is ahead, and some lists where McGrath is ahead. There is no unanimous greatest cricketer of any era. It's all about opinions. We all have our different opinions. Those lists too are opinions, not facts. Except those are the opinions of very highly regarded people.

Akram beats Mcg in almost all such lists that I have seen. In fact if there is a top 10 Cricketer of post-90 expert polls, I doubt Mcg would and Kallis would make even top 5.

It's because they were "boring" to watch. Hence I find these lists entirely useless.

 

[Cuts_and_cuts_hard]

Kallis right up there at the top.. Brahman might be no 1 but it’s debatable. Few others aren’t any less impressive.

I rate Kallis very slightly behind Sobers and Imran, not by much. Keith Miller is also up there.

In a hypothetical scenario where Botham had maintained his 1978-1982 form for another 5 years he would be the GOAT.

 

[Buffet]

Akram beats Mcg in almost all such lists that I have seen. In fact if there is a top 10 Cricketer of post-90 expert polls, I doubt Mcg would and Kallis would make even top 5.

It's because they were "boring" to watch. Hence I find these lists entirely useless.

2013 Poll was voted by

Kumar Sangakkara , Younis Khan, Russel Arnold , Habibul Bashar , Ian Bell ,Lawrence Booth Editor, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, Geoffrey Boycott , Daniel Brettig Assistant editor, ESPNcricinfo, Mark Butcher , Ian Chappell , Aakash Chopra , Ed Cowan Australia batsman, Tony Cozier Commentator and writer, Martin Crowe Former New Zealand captain, Daryll Cullinan Former South Africa batsman, George Dobell Senior correspondent, ESPNcricinfo, Rahul Dravid Former India captain, Jeffrey Dujon Former West Indies wicketkeeper, Ramachandra Guha Historian and cricket writer, Gideon Haigh Cricket historian and writer, Michael Holding Former West Indies bowler, David Hopps UK editor, ESPNcricinfo, Tamim Iqbal Bangladesh batsman, Mahela Jayawardene Former Sri Lanka captain, Gaurav Kalra Senior editor, ESPNcricinfo, Akram Khan Former Bangladesh batsman, Athar Ali Khan Former Bangladesh batsman, Younis Khan Pakistan batsman and former captain, VVS Laxman Former India batsman, Ranjan Madugalle , Sanjay Manjrekar , Suresh Menon Editor, Wisden India Almanack, Andrew Miller Editor, the Cricketer, Mark Nicholas Commentator, writer and presenter, Iain O'Brien , Mike Procter, Ramiz Raja , Barry Richards , Mark Richardson , Osman Samiuddin Sportswriter, the National, Mike Selvey , Ed Smith ,Heath Streak, Mark Taylor, John Wright


Tendulkar, Warne, Kallis in line to be voted cricketer of the generation Elite 50-member jury to pick player of the last two decades


These 3 were the top 3 picks to make the final. Kallis was there.


http://www.espncricinfo.com/awards2013/content/story/727349.html