Shane
Warne's greatest cricketers: Nos 50-41 | Nos
40-31 | Nos
30-21 Nos
20 - 11
10
Ian Healy (Australia)
Test matches 119 Runs 4,356 at 27.39 Catches 366 Stumpings
29
He was the best wicketkeeper I saw. I can’t remember him making a mistake
during the 1993 Ashes series either standing up to the spinners or back to
the quicks. What people did not see was the practice he put in to reach that
level. He was a dangerous lower-order batsman, but these days the
requirement seems to be for keeper-batsmen, not batsmen-keepers.
9
Mark Taylor (Australia) Test matches 104 Runs 7,525
at 43.49
I played under four Australia captains but “Tubby” was the pick. He seemed to
have an instinct for what was right and was never afraid to break
conventions if he thought it was right. His sharp brain has now made him a
good commentator. I owe him for holding some incredible slip catches, but
his first role was as a very, very solid player.
8
Ricky Ponting (Australia) Test matches 110 Runs 9,368
at 59.29
By the time he finishes I think Ricky will have smashed all Test batting
records. He can play for at least another two Ashes series. People say that
he was gifted with natural talent, which is true, but he has built on that
and has improved beyond recognition against the short ball and spin. He is a
really athletic fielder and the 2005 experience helped to turn him into an
excellent captain.
7
Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) Test matches 113 Wickets
700 at 21.33
No matter what anybody thinks about his action, he is wonderful to bat against
for the experience of facing a ball that turns so much. He has helped to
turn Sri Lanka into a formidable side at home. It is also worth remembering
the work he did in the aftermath of the tsunami when he gave so much hope to
people in despair. And we all love that smile.
6
Wasim Akram (Pakistan) Test matches 104 Wickets 414
at 23.62 Runs 2,898 at 22.64
Being a left-armer gave an advantage but the ability to swing the ball from
over or round the wicket, reverse or conventional, puts him among the great
bowlers of my time. His whippy action made him harder to face and there was
a spell at Rawalpindi in 1994 that was as fast as anything I have seen. Good
enough with the bat to score a Test double-hundred.
5
Glenn McGrath (Australia) Test matches 124 Wickets
563 at 21.64
He kept everything simple but effective. Although batsmen knew exactly what
McGrath was about, he still beat them almost every time. He had that ability
to take the big wicket and his longevity was incredible. By keeping things
so tight he helped me to get a lot of wickets at the other end. Don’t let
him fool you over his batting: it really was terrible.
4
Allan Border (Australia) Test matches 156 Runs 11,174
at 50.56
AB is the top Australian in my list. I probably learnt more from him than
anybody bar Ian Chappell. The toughest cricketer I have played with, he was
also an outstanding batsman and had been for more than a decade by the time
I came into the side. People remember his determination but he also had
plenty of shots. He led from the front and remains a great example to
youngsters.
3
Curtly Ambrose (West Indies) Test matches 98 Wickets
405 at 20.99
It was very difficult to split Curtly and Glenn McGrath, but I think Curtly
had that extra half-gear as well as being just as accurate and clinical. He
could take your head off if he wanted, and he did have that nasty streak. I
don’t remember him ever giving me a half-volley – or anybody else for that
matter. He turned a game – and the series – in Perth in 1992-93 with a spell
of seven wickets for one run. Early in my career, I watched in amazement at
his brilliance.
2
Brian Lara (West Indies) Test matches 131 Runs 11,953
at 52.88
Whether you played with him or against him, you were in awe of Brian Charles
Lara. I loved his strut, his swagger and his ability to hit four after four
with his high backlift and incredible placement. He had an amazing knack of
playing match-winning innings all through his career and has constructed two
of the three highest scores in Test history. He reserved some of his best
batting for Australia. At times I felt as though we could bowl 100mph or
spin it 14 feet and he still would not get out.
1
Sachin Tendulkar (India) Test matches 140 Runs 11,150
at 54.92
You have to watch India in India truly to appreciate the pressure that Sachin
Tendulkar is under every time he bats. Outside grounds, people wait until he
goes in before paying to enter. They seem to want a wicket to fall even
though it is their own side that will suffer. This is cricket as Sachin has
known it since the age of 16. He grew up under incredible weight of
expectation and never buckled once – not under poor umpiring decisions or
anything else. I place him very slightly ahead of Lara because I found him
slightly tougher mentally. It is such a close call, but here is an example
of what I mean: in Australia in 2003-04 he was worried about getting out
cover driving so he decided to cut out the shot. I saw the wagon wheel for
his next innings: he scored 248 without a single cover drive. Like Lara, he
has scored runs all over the world. I have seen him run down the pitch and
hit Glenn McGrath over the top for six, and I have seen him hit me for six
against the spin going around the wicket. I have been lucky to get to know
him off the field as well. He is quiet and humble. A great player and a
great man.
The list in full
50 Jamie Siddons
49 Darren Berry
48 Brian McMillan
47 Chris Cairns
46 Dilip Vengsarkar
45 Waqar Younis
44 Alec Stewart
43 Michael Atherton
42 Ravi Shastri
41 Justin Langer
40 Kapil Dev
39 Stuart MacGill
38 Sanath Jayasuriya
37 Stephen Harmison
36 Andy Flower
35 Michael Vaughan
34 Bruce Reid
33 Allan Donald
32 Robin Smith
31 Tim May
30 Kevin Pietersen
29 Shoaib Akhtar / Craig McDermott
28 Saeed Anwar / Mohammad Yousuf
27 Jacques Kallis / Shaun Pollock
26 Steve Waugh
25 Darren Lehmann
24 Brett Lee
23 Stephen Fleming
22 Martin Crowe
21 David Boon
20 Adam Gilchrist
19 Aravinda de Silva
18 Merv Hughes
17 Matthew Hayden
16 Andrew Flintoff
15 Graham Gooch
14 Rahul Dravid
13 Anil Kumble
12 Mark Waugh
11 Courtney Walsh
10 Ian Healy
9 Mark Taylor
8 Ricky Ponting
7 Muttiah Muralitharan
6 Wasim Akram
5 Glenn McGrath
4 Allan Border
3 Curtly Ambrose
2 Brian Lara
1 Sachin Tendulkar
Winning numbers
20 Australians in Warne’s favourite 50 (53 as it turned out). There are
eight Englishmen, six Indians, five Pakistanis, four South Africans, three
New Zealanders, three Sri Lankans, three West Indians and a Zimbabwean.
4,615 Test caps won by Warne’s elite, making an average of 87 each
18 Ashes winners for Australia
5 Ashes winners for England (Harmison, Vaughan, Pietersen, Flintoff and
Gooch)
20 Members of a World Cup-winning squad. Three for India in 1983
(Vengsarkar, Shastri, Dev); six for Australia in 1987 (Reid, May, McDermott,
S Waugh, Boon, Border); one for Pakistan in 1992 (Wasim Akram); three for
Sri Lanka in 1996 (Jayasuriya, De Silva, Muralitharan) and seven for
Australia in 1999, 2003 and/or 2007 (Lehmann, Lee, Gilchrist, McGrath,
Hayden, Ponting and M Waugh).
