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[ganavk]

The times UK is serializing Warne's top 100 cricketers. Some very interesting comments. I liked this story about Sehwag,who is 35th in Warne's list.

Off the field, I find him to be a really funny guy. Jeremy Snape told me a great story about him while we were working together in the Indian Premier League. Sehwag and Snape were batting for Leicestershire against Middlesex when Abdul Razzaq started reverse swinging the ball in the way that the Pakistan bowlers do.

Sehwag came up to Snape and said: “We must lose this ball. I have a plan.” Next over, he whacked that ball clean out of the ground, forcing the umpires to pick another from the box that would obviously not reverse straight away. To which Sehwag said: “We are all right for one hour.” Smart, I say.

Incidentally here is complete 100!
The top 100

100 Jamie Siddons

99 Andrew Caddick

98 Graham Thorpe

97 Shahid Afridi

96 Sourav Ganguly

95 Moin Khan

94 Devon Malcolm

93 Arjuna Ranatunga

92 Monty Panesar

91 Graeme Hick

90 Inzamam-ul-Haq

89 Jack Russell

88 Mushtaq Ahmed

87 Gary Kirsten

86 Ian Bishop

85 Chris Gayle

84 Simon Jones

83 Paul Reiffel

82 Craig McMillan

81 Greg Matthews

80 Darren Berry

79 Mark Boucher

78 Stuart Clark

77 V. V. S. Laxman

76 Shane Watson

75 Mahela Jayawardene

74 Shane Bond

73 Mike Gatting

72 John Wright

71 Darren Gough

70 Richie Richardson

69 Alec Stewart

68 Jonty Rhodes

67 Harbhajan Singh

66 Hansie Cronje

65 Carl Hooper

64 Shivnarine Chanderpaul

63 Daniel Vettori

62 Mike Atherton

61 Desmond Haynes

60 Mike Hussey

59 Craig McDermott

58 Andrew Symonds

57 Tim May

56 Damien Martyn

55 Mohammad Azharuddin

54 Michael Vaughan

53 Mohammad Yousuf

52 Brian McMillan

51 Chris Cairns

50 Stephen Harmison

49 Dilip Vengsarkar

48 Dean Jones

47 Robin Smith

46 Justin Langer

45 Ravi Shastri

44 Graeme Smith

43 Kapil Dev

42 Stuart MacGill

41 Sanath Jayasuriya

40 Stephen Fleming

39 Michael Slater

38 Michael Clarke

37 Bruce Reid

36 Allan Donald

35 Virender Sehwag

34 Shoaib Akhtar

33 Kevin Pietersen

32 Darren Lehmann

31 Waqar Younis

30 Andrew Flintoff

29 Saeed Anwar

28 Shaun Pollock

27 Jason Gillespie

26 Steve Waugh

25 Andy Flower

24 Brett Lee

23 Kumar Sangakkara

22 Martin Crowe

21 David Boon

20 Rahul Dravid

19 Aravinda de Silva

18 Merv Hughes

17 Jacques Kallis

16 Adam Gilchrist

15 Matthew Hayden

14 Graham Gooch

13 Anil Kumble

12 Mark Taylor

11 Courtney Walsh

10 Ian Healy

9 Mark Waugh

8 Ricky Ponting

7 Muttiah Muralitharan

6 Wasim Akram

5 Glenn McGrath

4 Allan Border

3 Curtly Ambrose

2 Brian Lara

1 Sachin Tendulkar

[justforkix]

HEHE - Veeru is really a PHUNNY GUY 

[poondu]

McGrath and Richards hail ‘Tendulkar the great’

New Delhi: The air of invincibility that gave nightmares to bowlers is all but gone but Sachin Tendulkar’s greatness can never be doubted and the least that the batting maestro deserves is a retirement day of his choice.

Australian pace legend Glenn McGrath, West Indian great Sir Vivian Richards and the man who has been called a ‘Tendulkar clone’ — Virender Sehwag — are unanimous in their opinion that Tendulkar does not need anybody other than himself to decide when the time is right to call it a day.

For all his vulnerabilities that have been exposed over the years, McGrath says Tendulkar remains as enchanting as he was when he first burst into the international scene as a 16-year-old.

In fact, he says it hurts when critics scrutinise a career as glorious as Tendulkar’s through statistics.

“It’s sad to note that people try to find faults in Sachin’s mental strength by pointing to a poorer second innings average and a below-par record in the finals. I find such readings of Sachin’s career to be a bit harsh,” McGrath wrote in a column published in the latest issue of The Week magazine.

“I know he is coming towards the end of his career but I think he has earned the right to decide when he runs out of the urge to play. He has enough financially and now it’s up to him to seek motivation and if he finds it, he must continue to play,” he added.

Richards goes a step further and says that Tendulkar’s refusal to leave the international stage even after playing for 19 years is based on his love for the game and instead of being critical, critics and fans should enjoy whatever is left of his career.

“He is at a stage in his career where financial gain and the need to prove himself are no longer motivators. He is playing because he loves the game and feels that he can continue for a couple of seasons more.

“Instead of waiting for the announcement, let’s enjoy the remaining innings of this great player and immensely likeable individual,” he said.

Sehwag puts it rather bluntly and says Tendulkar is “god of cricket” and should continue as long as he wants.

“I once asked him ‘you have made so many runs and played for so many years, don’t you get bored?’ He said ‘no I am enjoying my cricket. The day I feel I am not enjoying playing, I will quit,”’ the Indian opener said recalling a conversation with Tendulkar. The trio feels Tendulkar’s greatness lies not just in his batting prowess, but in the way he has influenced the sport, setting an example for one and all with his conduct both on and off the field.

One in a billion


“The joy he brings to the millions of his countrymen, the grace with which he handles all the adulation and the expectations and his innate humility — all make for a one in a billion individual,” said McGrath.

“It’s often said that Sachin does well when his teammates do well. But, to turn that around a little, perhaps his teammates do well because he instils confidence in them by his own performance. He has had a long career spanning two decades, yet he has the ability to raise his game to a different level and inspire his teammates by example,” added Richards.

Born for cricket


“He insists that one must enjoy the journey and not think of the result. I think he is born for cricket. Nobody talks about cricket while waiting at airports or during a flight, but he always talks about the game,” observed Sehwag of his inspiration.

“I want his consistency, his technique, his focus — I want all that from him. He always tells me to enjoy my batting and to keep taking on new challenges,” he added. — PTI

http://www.hindu.com/2008/10/06/stories/2008100660481900.htm

[flute]

I agree with SG at 96   , not sure of Inzy at 90.

[Blwe_torch]

Darren Berry?....who?.......must be his first cousin....
Tim May...too ahead of Ganguly?!!


Stupid listing...

[OldPal]

HEHE - Veeru is really a PHUNNY GUY 

Is it Veeru or is it Warnie ? 
While I realise that most of the discussion here is about SG being low in order. Veeru has been one batsman who has intimidated bowlers. Like Imran admitted about Richards as the only guy who intimidated him.
There is Monty also in list  .
From a personal view point, I think most bowlers do prize the wickets of SRT,RD,VVSL more as compared to SG in test cricket.

[keep-it-cool]

I read this book finally. While some of the choices are wierd and the ranking of a few players may be debateable, it is a rather interesting read. He does not mince words -- says it as he sees it.