DRAFT! Ashes history...

[cricket_icon]

I'm in!! If there's still time to include me

 

[sifter132]

I officially have zero nominations for Bradman which means I'll take him and get draft started. Will add some pics, numbers and a flowery description shortly

Here is the order for round 1:
1 Sifter132 - Sir Donald Bradman
2 War
3 Fenil
4 cricket_icon
5 Aalay
6 KrishnamurthiN
7 User2010
8 The_Author
9 Umair2000
10 Samuels
11 Sulaiman7

I've got the first 4 rounds listed in the first post of the thread.

----------

Sir Donald Bradman

Ashes record
Tests: 37
Runs: 5028
Average: 89.78
100s: 19
Best series: 1930 in England - 974 runs @ 139.14 average, 4 100s. 3 of them double centuries, including the then world record score of 334 at Headingley. The 254 he made at Lord's in this series was rated by Bradman as his career best innings. "Practically without exception every ball went where it was intended to go", he later said.

Where to begin in a description of Bradman? How about records?
Bradman has the vast majority of the batting records in Ashes history:
*The most Ashes runs (5028), almost 1500 runs ahead of second place;
*The highest batting average (89.78), 23 runs clear of the next guy (10 Ashes Tests or more);
*The most Ashes centuries (19), clear of second place by 7;
*The most 500+ run Ashes series (5), 2 more than anyone else.
There's probably more records than that, but that's a good start!

I could go on for a while here, but I'll try and control myself...
Bradman wasn't some dull run scoring robot. He scored quickly, yet without risk, almost always keeping the ball on the ground. He loved the late cut, the pull, and the cover drive, all played with quick feet. The feet complemented his incredible eye, honed at home against the water tank with his golf ball and stump. The only thing that slowed him down was Bodyline - and all that did was bring his average down to a merely human level (he averaged 56.57 in that series). Truly the greatest batsman there was.


EDIT: if you're jumping on, and thinking geez Sifter getting Bradman isn't fair, then say so, and I'll be happy to swap draft positions with you! But say so now, or forever hold your peace!

 

[War]

John Snow

When people speak of great English fast bowlers inevitably Harold Larwood for his feats in bodyline 1932 series & Fred Trueman are correctly elevated to the top.

Also if you think the interesting character of Sydney Barnes in all his mysterious varieties of bowling which unfortunately is not on film - that involved pace - he would be up their too.

During the ongoing Ashes series i heard quite startlingly Sir Ian Botham rate James Anderson on par with the likes of Marshall, McGrath, Ambrose, Lillee etc. While Anderson is highly likely to become England leading wicket-taker once he maintains form & fitness fairly soon, but to rate him in such manner was a gross exaggeration.. It should not be forgotten that the current Anderson only evolved from a "helpful wicket bowler" to a "all conditions bowler" during the 2010/11 Ashes. Since that Ashes he has figures of 32 tests, 132 wickets @ 26.99.

The fact that Botham was allowed to get away with that comment not just by fans but long standing England cricket historians makes me think how John Snow is truly under-appreciated as time has passed.

As cricinfo aptly describes he was a difficult character: "For eight years from the mid-1960s John Snow was, by some margin, England's best fast bowler. If he'd been Australian he would have been an automatic pick for every Test when fit. But he was strong-willed and difficult, and, being subject to the whims of English panels of selectors, he won only 49 Test caps. Even more absurdly, he went on only three tours. He was dropped twice in unusual circumstances: by Sussex for "not trying", and by England for barging India's Sunil Gavaskar off his feet at Lord's in 1971".

In those years mentioned he had two superb away series in west indies 1968 & AUS 70/71. His 7/49 vs a powerful Sobers led windies batting line-up in Kingston 68 & 7/40 vs Australia in SCG 1971 is the stuff of legends.

Snow's 71 Ashes efforts is particularly notable because England winning in AUS was always a rare feat in Ashes history since 1900 & after WW1 when AUS pitches move away from being sticky wickets & developed characteristics of pace & bounce. 1903/04, 1911/12, 1928/29, 32/33, 54/55, 86/87 & 2010/11 are the only ENG Ashes wins down under.

Snow's feats in 71 were equally lethal as Larwood in 32 & Tyson in 54/55. These 3 are big because they faced very strong AUS batting line-ups.

Ian Chappell for years on commentary i've heard him say the two most deadly bowlers he ever faced at their peaks was Snow & Andy Roberts. And from a personal perspective my grandfather in trinidad who went to every test match & Queens Park Oval from 1954-2000 always used to say the most impressive overseas bowler he ever saw was Snow.

John Snow at his extreme best :: The largest library of cricket videos

 

[Cricketman]

First draft where Bradman has been fair game! It is totally crazy... it is hard to even wrap your head around his stats. Unreal, unbelievable! Wonder if including him in the current Aus setup would change things tho

 

[Fenil]

Herbert Sutcliffe

Ashes Record

Span | M | I | NO | Runs | HS | Avg | 100 | 50 |

1924-1934 | 27 | 46 | 5 | 2741 | 194 | 66.85 | 8 | 16 | 1

Best Series

The most important thing while building a team is to have solid openers who can give you a good start more often than not and how easy is it to raise the name of Jack Hobbs when it comes to selecting one of the best openers ever? 9 out of 10 times Hobbs would overshadow his equally good partner Sutcliffe but not in the Ashes. Sutcliffe not only has an astonishing record, his figures show thet he scored 50+ scores on a consistent basis and you can't just overlook a man who was by far the best Ashes batsman before Don Bradman came into the picture.​

 

[sifter132]

Nice start Choosing between Sutcliffe and his partner was always going to be an interesting dilemma.

And on John Snow, yeah I remember Ian Chappell often singing his praises. Last thing I remember him talking about Snow, he was reporting the joy in the Aussie squad when they heard he wasn't going to tour in 1974/75. He'd just had 2 really good series vs Australia, and they didn't take him! Conflicts with the selectors/team definitely isn't a modern phenomenon.

Next pick belongs to cricket_icon, we await with baited breath...

 

[cricket_icon]

Jack Hobbs

Could it be anyone else? with Bradman taken, Hobbs is the next giant, here are a few stats:

Jack Hobbs​

Time active V Australia: 1908-1930
Matches: 41
Runs: 3636
Highest Score: 187
Avg: 54.26
Centuries: 12

England's greatest batsman? Maybe. Ashes behemoth? Oh, most definitely!

9 of those 12 Ashes centuries came in Australia, with an average of 57. Now that's some going away from home. Add to that the fact that more than half his centuries came when he was 40+, it's simply astonishing. They say he would get himself out after a 100 just to let the rest have a better go. Imagine what more he could have done had he carried on playing. The Master indeed.

This is a video compilation of some great players, including Hobbs.

So my eleven as it looks now (bare):

1. J Hobbs
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

 

[Aalay]

Shane Warne

Firstly I would like to thank cricket_icon for snatching Jack Hobbs from my team. Anyways moving on, my first pick is Shane Warne

Ashes statistics - Matches: 36. Wickets: 195. Average: 23.25. Economy: 2.52. Best Ashes figures: 8-71

The best spinner in the history of cricket? Debatable. The best leg spinner in the history of cricket? Yes , he is. After producing brilliant fast bowlers for so many years, Australia produced an absolute magician. He is the highest wicket taker in the history of Ashes series. He played his first ashes series in 1993 in England and he was immediately in the headlines. No, not for his controversial behaviour but for bowling the famous ?ball of the century? to Mike Gatting. He absolutely bamboozled Mike Gatting with his very first delivery in the Ashes. He straightaway made his impact on the team by taking highest wickets in that series and getting his first ashes man of the series award. Shane floored many batsmen with his humongous leg spin throughout his career. His most successful series however came in 2005 in England where he took 40 wickets. He tried his best to win that series for Australia but even after taking 40 wickets, he ended up on the losing side. I can go on and on about this man but we have to keep it short.

Ball of the century:

The ball to Andrew Strauss:

Shane Warne - 'He absolutely transformed cricket in the late 20th century' | Legends of Cricket | Video | ESPN Cricinfo

The Ashes 2013: Australia legend Shane Warne takes place in the International Cricket Council Hall of Fame - Telegraph

 

[sifter132]

That ball to Gatting never gets old, fantastic!

I like the descriptions and write ups thus far, we're making a nice thread Picks pretty good too

KrishnamurthiN has the pick of the board.

 

[Umair7]

Oh God when will my turn come

 

[Samuels]

Oh God when will my turn come

You still get to pick above two people including me. In case you are not aware of the Order list. Here it is:

Here is the order for round 1:
1 Sifter132 - Sir Donald Bradman
2 War - John Snow
3 Fenil - Herbert Sutcliffe
4 cricket_icon - Jack Hobbs
5 Aalay - Shane Warne
6 KrishnamurthiN
7 User2010
8 The_Author
9 Umair2000
10 Samuels
11 Sulaiman7

 

[KrishnamurthiN]

Arthur Mailey

Yes the legendary Leg Break Bowler, Arthur Alfred Mailey who was instrumental for Australia Sealing their First White-Wash against the Imperial Brits i.e England is my first pick Here are his stats in a gist:

The Time he was active against the Brits : Dec 17th, 1920 - Aug 18, 1926
No. Of Matches he Played :21
Total No. Of Wickets he took:99
His best Figures in an Innings- 9/121
His Best Figures in a match- 13/236

Sir Arthur Mailey is a Legendary Leg Break Googly bowler who broke Records and Posed the Imperial Brits with many questions on the field for which even the likes of Jack Hobbs had no answers. The man who bowled like a millionaire despite coming from the slums was a cartoonist, writer and an artiste of endearing ability when he wasn't making the ball from his hands do the talking.

Here are some of his sketches as a cartoonist..

Arthur Mailey is undoubtedly one of the first Legends in the lineage of Autralian Leg Spinners.

So Here is how my eleven looks as of now:
1. Arthur Mailey.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

 

[Samuels]

I love the fact that you have put some of his cartoons. Unique way indeed.

 

[Samuels]

The following table should make things easier for everyone. The ball is in User2010's court now.

Manager​

|

Player​

|

PWWII​

Sifter132​

|

Sir Donald Bradman​

|

​

War​

|

John Snow​

|

​

Fenil​

|

Herbert Sutcliffe​

|

​

cricket_icon​

|

Jack Hobbs​

|

​

Aalay​

|

Shane Warne​

|

​

KrishnamurthiN​

|

Arthur Mailey​

|

​

User2010​

|

TBA​

|

TBA​

The_Author​

|

TBA​

|

TBA​

Umair2000​

|

TBA​

|

TBA​

Samuels​

|

TBA​

|

TBA​

Sulaiman7​

|

TBA​

|

TBA​

PWWII = Pre-world war II era player.

 

[Fenil]

Nice start Choosing between Sutcliffe and his partner was always going to be an interesting dilemma.

Yes, it was like choosing between Rahul Dravid & Sachin Tendulkar of early 2000s for test matches. Sachin Tendulkar (here, Jack Hobbs) was the proven better of his other (here Sutcliffe) but Dravid (here Sutcliffe again) was miles ahead when it came to the record of consistency.