Greatest All-Rounder Since Sobers

[sifter132]

Watching the South Africa / England game now. Ian Botham (commentating) has just said something along the lines that, in his opinion, Kallis is one of the greatest all rounders ever and he doesn't understand why Kallis is often forgotten or ignored when all-rounders are discussed. This is a huge compliment coming from another nominee on this list!

I must say at the time I thought he was talking about current all-rounders and I began chuntering at the screen, wondering how Botham could be so stupid...All-time makes more sense.

I love watching Kallis bat too Especially when compared to Trott and Dravid as mentioned in the post above.

I won't say Kallis is the greatest all-rounder ever - I don't think I could go that far, but I do think:
Kallis is generally underrated
Sobers is generally overrated - Sobers batting is actually a bit underrated - he was a terrific batsman, but his bowling is definitely overrated. Yes I've heard all the justifications for his high bowling average and strike rate, and it does explain a bit. So for pure all-round ability I don't see how Sobers beats an early career Botham or an early 80s Imran.

Also with Sobers, I just hate when guys get lauded for being able to bowl in multiple styles. Unless you are switching from pace to spin in the same over, it's no different to anyone else - you are just saving the captain making a bowling change. I'm seen in with Colin Miller and Andrew Symonds - both got pumped up by commentators and media because they bowled pace and spin. Yet if you can't bowl either that well, then it's really a pointless thing to applaud.

 

[pcfan123]

the reasons kallis isn't thought of in the same way as sober is because watching him is akin to watching paint dry.

.

Rahul Dravid syndrome. Brilliant career and stats but no credit cause the majority don't want the textbook, they want a porno mag

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

sobers is the cricketing equivalent of a porno mag?

er ok.

 

[pcfan123]

lol no

I just meant flashy players in general get more credit and attention than text book cricketers. Nothing to do with Sobers or Kallis. Just a general comment

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

yeah, I probably like the porno mag.

I think kallis is brilliant, i would include him in a list of greatest all-rounders, probably in the top 5, have him bat for my life and all that sort of spiel.

sobers is better, and so is imran.


also I think kallis' bowling seems to escape a lot of scrutiny, he owes about 2 or 3 runs on his average to minnow bashing.

 

[offdriven4]

Rahul Dravid syndrome. Brilliant career and stats but no credit cause the majority don't want the textbook, they want a porno mag

that is one hell of a metaphor!!!

 

[Burnsy1]

Kallis doesn't even come into contention for me. He is a fine batsman but as a bowler certainly not. For me it's Botham all the way. Always turned the game whether with bat or ball, fastest player to 1000 runs and 100 wickets and don't forget the summer of 81 including that brilliant 149* at Leeds and the 5-1 spell at Edgebaston. A destructive batsman who also bowled at a decent pace and generated a lot of swing, for me without a doubt the greatest All-rounder in terms of impact and importance to his side.

 

[cricket_icon]

Good to see Flintoff on the list. He deserves a mention.
Imran Khan for me. He was a titan with bat and especially the ball add to that the added responsibility of captaining a factitious side filed with egos the likes of which cricket may never see again. He not only lead them to a WC win but also led the only team in the 80s which even had a modicum of success against the Windies of that era. Factor in his ability to bowl 90+ mph and bat with an average of over 50 in his last decade.
Even with that we may never have seen him at his best, just like we never really saw Muhammad Ali at his best, Khan too missed 3 years of his peak, this time due to injury.
Khan was as iconic to cricket in the 80s as Tendulkar is to cricket now. As one West Indian once recounted, their team was on a trip to the US, when an American lady asked them, "Are you basketball players?"
The Windian replied "No, we are cricketers."
The woman then asked, "Is Imran Khan here?"
If I was rating players based on greatness AND iconic status I would have Imran Khan level peggings with The Don, Tendulkar and Sobers.

I can understand those who have voted for Kallis but in the last 6 years or so he has been adequate with the bowl and exceptional with the bat. That is not as good as Khan who was exceptional with both bat and ball and he played, in my opinion, in a tougher era of test cricket, in a team which required far more managing. Kallis would be my second choice, above Botham most likely.

 

[Dr. Pepper]

Imran Khan was the complete cricketer. A brilliant bowler, batsman, leader, figurehead and icon. He was a posterboy of cricket. His stats back him up all the way - brilliant averages with the ball and bat, and got better as time progressed. It's not just about stats though. He's the kind of player that makes you want to love cricket. His leadership ability was probably the best there has been. He did everything with charisma. Not only was his contribution brilliant, it was pivotal to the success of Pakistan. He made them what they were.

 

[cricket_icon]

^^^Spot on. It is not always about stats, it is also about playing cricket which inspires generations to come. Imran Khan did that, Tendulkar is doing that now, Sobers and Bradman have done that in the past. I'm not sure any cricket fan wakes up thinking, "I want to bowl like Kallis today."

 

[sami ullah khan]

A bit off topic but a recent survey showed that 65% Pakistanis see him as their most favorite leader. This is a testament to his charisma.

 

[ksduded]

Imran Khan is the best thing that has happened to Pakistan in the last 3 decades. Not just on the cricketing field, but generally as an icon.

I think that far outdoes any statistics.

 

[Fenil]

Botham or Kallis. Both are great allrounders and could turn around a game both with bat and ball. Kallis have become more a batsman though of late.