Tag: cricket

All Time XIs – Match Ups 42

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another, ushering the Ks into the spotlight.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how my teams fare against one another. Today the Ks enter the spotlight, with 37 of a possible 50 points banked from the matches against teams who precede them alphabetically.

THE Ks V THE Ls

The Ls have the better opening pair, though their advantage there is lessened by the fact that one of their openers is batting out of position. The Ls also have the better number three. However, Kallis outranks Lloyd with the bat, and offers an extra bowling option not available to the Ls. Both sides have excellent captains. The Ks win the wicket keeping battle. Lindwall, Lillee and Lohmann are a match for I Khan, King and Kortright, while Laker and Langridge are a better balanced spin combo than R Khan and Kumble. This is a proper battle, but I think Kallis just tips the scales the Ks way: Ks 3, Ls 2.

THE Ks V THE Ms

The Ms have much the stronger opening pair. The Ks win the number 3-5 slots, though number four only on sample size. Each side has one recognized bowler in their top five, and for my money Macartney outranks Kallis in that department. Miller against I Khan is just about the ultimate in match ups between fast bowling all rounders. The Keepers battle is also a clash of titans. Marshall outranks King as a bowler, but King is clear with the bat (King’s record in his era translates to averaging 30 with the bat and 23 with the ball on covered pitches). At the moment, though this is subject to change as the Afghan develops Mahmood outranks R Khan as a bowler. Murali outranks Kumble as a bowler. McGrath comfortably wins his match up against Kortright. The Ks, with their super powerful engine room at nos 3-5, and King at eight outranking Marshall in that department may just win the batting, but the Ms comfortably win the bowling. I make this a slightly more comfortable than regulation win for the Ms: Ks 1.5, Ms 3.5.

THE Ks V THE Ns

The Ks boss the top batting, with only Dudley Nourse close to his opposite number in that department among their top five. The Ks also have the better keeper, far the better pace bowling unit and the better spinners. Only in captaincy, where Noble is a worthy rival to I Khan to the Ns even come close, and that will not save them: K5 , Ns 0.

THE Ks V THE Os

The KO clash is indeed a KO – in the Ks favour. Oldfield, O’Reilly and Olivier win their match ups for the Os, but the other eight all go very comfortably in favour of the Ks. This has to be scored as Ks 5, Os 0.

THE Ks V THE Ps

The Ps have the better opening pair, although not by much, especially given that the one person who could claim to have sorted Ponsford out was an express paced bowler, Larwood. The Ks have two such, Kortright and I Khan, plus King who was also pretty sharp. Ponting and G Pollock win the number three and four slots more conclusively, Kallis winning the number five slot, and offering an extra bowling option into the bargain. Pant outbats Kirmani, but the older Indian was probably the better keeper of the two. Procter against I Khan is another titanic clash of fast bowling all rounders on the same lines as Miller against I Khan. King and S Pollock are hard to pick apart, as are P Pollock and Kortright. Parker and Prasanna are a better balanced spin pairing than R Khan and Kumble, and probably just about outrank them anyway. I just give this to the Ps: Ks 2, Ps 3.

THE Ks PROGRESS REPORT

The Ks have scored 16.5 out of 25 today, moving them up to 53.5 out of 75, 71.33% so far.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 41

Continuing my in depth analysis of how my all time XIs fare against one another, with some comments about Ireland’s great win over England in the T20 World Cup and a photo gallery.

Welcome to the latest installment in my extended analysis of how my all time XIs fare against one another. Today sees the Js occupy the spotlight for the final time, with 50 points out of 100 currently on the board. Before getting into the main meat meat of this post I congratulate Ireland wholeheartedly on their defeat of England. The rain, which washed the second match (Afghanistan vs New Zealand) out completely did play a walk on role – officially Ireland won by 5 runs on the DLS method. However, England deserve no sympathy and will receive none from me – they were behind the asking rate the entire way through the chase, even after Ireland failed to capitalize on being 92-1 after 10 overs, slipping to 157 all out in 19.4. Dawid Malan (35 off 37) and Harry Brook (17 off 18) were chiefly responsible for putting England in a hole they couldn’t dig their way out of – their scoring, with rain an obvious threat, was absurdly slow. England had a very deep batting order, but the approach of Malan and Brook meant that by the time the rain came the biggest hitter in the side, Livingstone, who would have been on a high having taking 3-17 with the ball, faced only two balls. Ireland skipper Balbirnie was named player of the match for his 62, but crucial early momentum was also provided by Ireland number three and keeper Lorcan Tucker.

THE Js V THE Vs

The Js are stronger in batting and have the better keeper, both sides have similar strength in front line pace bowling, though the Js have Jessop as an extra option. The Vs are stronger in spin bowling, with Verity, Vogler and Vine all front line options, while the Js have Jupp, Johnston in his slower style and the part timer Jayasuriya. I think the Js have got this one, but not by a huge margin: Js 3, Vs 2.

THE Js V THE Ws

The Js have the better opening pair though not by much, the Ws dominate in positions 3-6 batting wise, though the Js have the better keeper. Warne, Wardle and Woolley are a better spin combo than the Js have (Wardle’s ability to bowl wrist spin means that the Ws effectively have off spin covered even without having a designated off spinner). There is little to choose between the front line pace trios, though Jessop outranks Worrell as a support seamer. The Ws have a clear advantage but not enough to put them in whitewash territory: Js 1, Ws 4

THE Js V THE Xs

The Js are ahead on batting (only DeXter wins his match up among the Xs top eight), massively ahead in pace bowling, a little behind in spin bowling and BoX is one of the few keepers in this series to definitely at least match A Jones in that department. I don’t think the Xs spinners will help them enough to make any difference to the result: Js 5, Xs 0.

THE Js V THE Ys

The Js have the better opening pair by some way, the Ys the better nos 3 and 4. Jackson outranks Yallop at five and probably outranks fellow Yorkie Yardley as a skipper. The Js are way ahead in pace bowling and about even in spin bowling. This is a comfortable but not whitewash win for the Js: Js 4, Ys 1.

THE Js V THE Zs

The Js have the better batting by some way, the better skipper, the better keeper, a far stronger pace attack and a spin attack that probably matches that of the Zs if it doesn’t better it. There can be only one scoreline: Js 5, Zs 0.

THE Js FINAL SCORE

The Js have scored 18 out of 25 today, giving them a final tally of 68 out of 125, 54.4%.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 40

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. Today the Js are in the spotlight, starting with 38 of a possible 75 points.

THE Js V THE Qs

The Js are massively stronger in batting and in pace bowling, and the only way the Qs are doing anything at all against them is if Qais Ahmad lives up to his potential and the Qs spinners have a field day. Even acknowledging this long shot as a possibility, I still score this one Js 5, Qs 0.

THE Js V THE Rs

The Rs have the stronger batting line up, both sides are ably captained, and the keeping match up is a clash of titans. Johnson and Johnston being left armers gives the Js pace attack more variation than the Rs, but the Rs are definitely ahead on spin bowling. Rs are well clear but not quite in whitewash territory: Js 1, Rs 4.

THE Js V THE Ss

The Ss have a super powerful batting line up, the better pace attack, and courtesy of Sobers cover virtually all angles known to spin bowlers (Sobers bowled wrist spin as well as orthodox, and left arm wrist spin is similar to orthodox off spin in angle of attack). Even with that ultimate x-factor guy, Gilbert Jessop, I cannot see the Js making a dent in this one: Js 0, Ss 5.

THE LETTER T

The Ts have the stronger batting line up, though Jupp and Johnson at eight and nine somewhat redress the imbalance there. Trumble outranks Jupp as an off spinner, and Tarrant outranks Jayasuriya and the slower version of Johnston as a bowler. The pace bowling is a tricky one: the Ts theoretically outrank the Js, but 1)the Js have extra variation through possessing left arm pace, 2)Johnson for all his middling overall record had a higher ceiling than any of the other pacers and 3)S Jones was also better than his average suggests. I think the Js actually therefore shade the fast bowling contest, but I don’t think that is enough to make up for losing in batting and spin bowling. Js 2, Ts 3.

THE Js V THE Us

The Js are ahead on batting, keeping, captaincy and pace bowling. The Us have an advantage in the slow bowling department. I see this is a clear win for the Js but will allow Underwood and Ur Rahman one field day: Js 4, Us 1.

THE Js PROGRESS

The Js have scored 12 out of 25 points today putting them on 50 out of 100, exactly 50%.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 39

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I picked for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I created for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. The Js currently occupy the spotlight and they have so far scored 26.5 points out of 50 (there was a mistake near the end of yesterday’s post).

THE Js V THE Ls

The Ls are stronger in all departments, though their advantage in batting is not huge. The Js have too many X-factor players for me to forecast a whitewash, so I score this Js 1.5, Ls 3.5.

THE Js V THE Ms

This is close in batting, but the Ms are well ahead on bowling. I score this one Js 1, Ms 4.

THE Js V THE Ns

The Js are well ahead in this one: Js 4, Ns 1.

THE Js V THE Os

The Js comfortably outbat the Os, and also have the better pace/ seam attack, though O’Reilly ranks highest among the spinners on either side. Jackson outranks O’ Reilly as skipper. I score this one Js 4, Os 1.

THE Js V THE Ps

The Ps have the stronger batting and the better pace attack. The spin honours are split in my view, and I expect the Ps to win this quite easily: Js 1, Ps 4.

THE Js PROGRESS REPORT

The Js have scored 11.5 out of 25 today, moving them up to 38 out of 75, 50.67% overall.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 38

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome to the latest installment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. Today sees the Is last four match ups, with that team currently on 11 out of 105 and then the Js take to the spotlight, of which more later. The T20 World Cup saw two cracking matches today – Sri Lanka won convincingly in the first match, and the India-Pakistan match was one of the most extraordinary matches ever seen. Pakistan scored 159-8 batting first, and India lost four early wickets in the reply before Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya shared an excellent partnership. In the closing stages Pakistan had a problem – they had one of their minor bowlers, Mohammad Nawaz with one over still to bowl, and gambled on bowling the fast bowlers through first and leaving him with the 20th over. When India needed 28 with eight balls remaining it looked to have worked, but Kohli hit sixes off the last two balls of the 19th and Nawaz had ‘only’ 16 to defend rather than 20+. Things went well for Nawaz initially and India needed 13 off the last three balls, and then calamity struck for Nawaz – he bowled a no-ball which was clouted for six, and then his next delivery was called wide and suddenly it was five needed off three balls. By the time the last ball was due to be bowled scores were level, and Ashwin, on strike, kept a cool head and took India across the line. Kohli, who had recovered from an awful start (12* off 21 balls) to finish on 82* was the only candidate for Player of the Match.

THE Is V THE Ws

The Ws win the batting match ups all the way down to number six, have the better skipper, absolutely dominate on the fast bowling front, and even outdo the Is in spin bowling, the latter’s strongest suit. There can be only one score: Is 0, Ws 5.

THE Is V THE Xs

The Is are for once ahead on batting, neither side has much pace bowling, though MaX Walker is the best single practitioner on either side, and the Is are a bit ahead on spin bowling. As against that BoX claims the keeping honours and less far below Imtiaz Ahmed in batting than the figures suggest – the best batter of BoX’s era, Fuller Pilch, averaged less than 20 in FC cricket. This is a tough one to call, but I think the presence of MaX Walker just swings it the way of the Xs – Is 2, Xs 3.

THE Is V THE Ys

The Is have the better opening pair, with T Iqbal the class act of the four players concerned. The Ys win the 3,4 and 5 slots. Iremonger at six outranks Yardley in both departments, S Yousuf wins the keeping honours by more than Imtiaz Ahmed wins the batting order. The Ys dominate the bowling, with even their pace attack outranking that of the Is and the spin attack being of similar standards. I think the Ys are winning this quite comfortably: Is 1, Ys 4.

THE Is V THE Zs

The Zs have marginally the stronger top six, but none of their front line bowlers can do anything significant with the bat. The Zs have the better new ball bowlers, the Is the better spinners. Illingworth rates higher as a skipper than Zaman. I think the all round skills of Iremonger and the higher standard of the Is spinners plus Illingworth’s captaincy swing it their way: Is 3, Zs 2.

THE Is FINAL RESULTS

The Is have scored 6 points out of 20 today and finish with 17 out of 125, 13.6% overall.

THE Js V THE Ks

The Js have 24.5 of a possible 45 points in the bank as they take the spotlight.

The Js have the better top three, the Ks are stronger batting wise in positions three through seven, but Jupp and Johnson partly compensate for that. The Ks have the better fast bowling, although the left arms of Johnson and Johnston give the Js extra variation. The Js with Jupp’s off spin, Jayasuriya and Johnston in his slower style have a better balance spin combo than the Ks. I think the Ks have this, but the Js are far from negligible: Js 2, Ks 3.

THE Js PROGRESS REPORT

The Js have 26.5 of a possible 55 points, 48.18%.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 37

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another, plus a rather different picture gallery from usual.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I created for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. Today the Is occupy the spotlight and they start with a mere 10 out of a possible 80 points so far. The Super 12s stage of the men’s World T20 started today. The first game saw New Zealand thump hosts Australia by 89 runs (a monster margin in aT20), while in the second England won by five wickets over Afghanistan, with 11 balls to spare – a rather disappointing chase after a magnificent effort in the field restricted Afghanistan to 112 all out, headlined by Sam Curran taking 5-10.

THE Is V THE Rs

The Rs dominate the top batting positions – only Asif Iqbal at number five comes close to his opposite number, and ‘Ranji’ played on more difficult batting surfaces than Iqbal. The Is do have small batting advantages at six and seven, though Russell is the better keeper and Robins was a better skipper than Illingworth. The Rs powerful pace bowling unit absolutely obliterates such competition as the Is can offer in that department. The spin department is close – Illingworth outranks Robins, but as against that Rhodes, one of the all time legends of the game definitely outranks Ironmonger. There is simply no way the Is can put a dent in the Rs: Is 0, Rs 5.

THE Is V THE Ss

The Ss powerful batting line up absolutely dominates, arguably winning all 11 slots in that department. Imtiaz outranks Sangakkara as a keeper, the Ss utterly dominate in pace bowling, though the Is to win the spin bowling that can make no difference to the final result: Is 0, Ss 5.

THE Is V THE Ts

The Ts are way ahead on batting – only Imtiaz Ahmed and Illingworth at seven and eight can be said to win their match ups in this department. They also have by far the better keeper, and as usual dominate the pace bowling. Trumble and Tarrant are a decent match for Illingworth and Ironmonger spin wise. There is once again only one possible score: Is 0, Ts 5.

THE Is V THE Us

The opening pairs are closely matched – Ulyett’s runs, made in the very early days of test cricket would equate to only just less than Tamim Iqbal’s average today. The Us win the number four and five slots and the batting elements of no six and seven, though Imtiaz Ahmed wins the keeping laurels, and Iremonger offers more bowling than Umrigar, though not quite so much as Ulyett. The Us have the better new ball pairing, and Underwood outranks Ironmonger, though Ur Rahman hasn’t yet done enough to outrank Illingworth, though he probably will in the end. Neither of these sides are great with the bat, but the Us outgun the Is with the ball: Is 1, Us 4.

THE Is V THE Vs

The opening pairs are closely matched, the Vs own positions three through six, Imtiaz Ahmed outbats Vaas, but Vaas outbowls Iremonger as third seamer. Voce and Van der Bijl are by far the better new ball pairing, Verity outranks Ironmonger, and I would personally rate Vogler ahead of Illingworth, meaning that the Vs utterly dominate the bowling in all departments. Since they are also clearly ahead on batting, and captaincy and keeping skills are about even there can be only one scoreline: Is o, Vs 5.

THE Is PROGRESS REPORT

The Is managed one point of a possible 25 today and are now on 11 out of 105, 9.55% overall.

PICTURE GALLERY

Today’s picture gallery is something different from usual, and necessitates a disclaimer notice. In James and Sons’ October sale I got two lots very cheaply, a set of stamps celebrating the opening of the Moscow Metro and a set of Stamps marking the 250th anniversary of The Academy of Sciences. Both these sets of stamps, and the set of Moscow Metro I already owned were issued by regimes that I must stress I regard as absolutely appalling. Stalinist Russia was one of the nastiest of all dictatorships, and the laughably misnamed German Democratic Republic was also appalling. I purchased these stamps for their subject matter and in spite of my hatred for the regimes that produced them. For each of the two new lots I show the official auction images and some that I have produced now that the items are in my possession.

We start with the Scientists:

Now the Moscow Metro stuff…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 36

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. The Is occupy the spotlight, with 2.5 of a possible 55 points. Before getting to the main body of this post I pause to congratulate Ireland on a thumping nine-wicket win over the West Indies, a result which qualifies Ireland for the Super 12 stage of the T20 world cup and eliminates the West Indies.

THE Is V THE Ms

The Is have a small advantage in spin bowling, but the Ms are absolutely dominant everywhere else and there can be only one outcome: Is 0, Ms 5.

THE Is V THE Ns

The Is have a somewhat better batting line up than the Ns overall, the Ns have a much better pace attack, the Is have the better spinners. Nixon outranks Imtiaz in both departments, and I rate Noble a better captain than Illingworth. I think the Ns advantages in fast bowling and captaincy are the telling factors and score this Is 1.5, Ns 3.5.

THE Is V THE Os

Neither side is especially strong in batting, the Os have much the better pace bowling unit, a somewhat inferior spin attack, but much greater variation in their attack than the Is. The Os also have far the better keeper. I think the Os pace bowling settles the issue, but not by an emphatic margin: Is 2, Os 3.

THE Is V THE Ps

The Ps absolutely dominate in batting and pace bowling, have the better keeper and the better captain, and arguably win the spin bowling match ups as well – Prasanna definitely outranks Illingworth as an off spinner, while for all that the England selectors of the day treated him scurvily I would rate Parker ahead of Ironmonger as a left arm spinner. Thus I score this Is 0, Ps 5.

THE Is V THE Qs

The Is a stronger in batting than the Qs, and they do actually have a seam attack, albeit a modest one, whereas the Qs have one accredited seamer. The Qs have the better spin attack, but I expect the Is to win this one comfortably: Is 4, Qs 1.

THE Is PROGRESS REPORT

The Is have scored 7.5 of a possible 25 points today, putting them on 10 out of 80 so far, 12.5%.

PHOTOGRAPHS

This is a somewhat different photo gallery. Yesterday I had to attend Sawston Health Centre in deepest Cambridgeshire for a CT scan. This entailed a 15-20 minute walk to King’s Lynn station, train to Ely, second train to Whittlesford Parkway, 25-30 mins walk from Whittlesford to Sawston, and similar in reverse save that I changed trains at Cambridge North on the homeward journey as the service I boarded at Whittlesford terminated there. Most of the photographs were taken at various stages of that journey…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 35

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I picked for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. Today sees the last two match ups involving the Hs, who come into today with 70 of a possible 115 points, and also the first three match ups of the Is period in the spotlight, which they come into with 2.5 of a possible 40 points banked.

THE Hs V THE Ys

The Hs dominate the batting, have the better new ball pairing, the better keeper and the better spin combination. Norman Yardley perhaps rates as a somewhat better third seamer than Hammond but even that is debatable. The Ys have no chance here: Hs 5 Ys 0.

THE Hs V THE Zs

The Hs have the Zs beaten in all departments. Hs 5, Zs 0.

THE Hs FINAL SCORE

The Hs finish with 80 of a possible 125 points, a score of 64%.

THE Is V THE Js

The Js have a strong superiority in batting, an overwhelming advantage in pace bowling, and they lose only tiny amount of ground in spin bowling, and also have the better keeper. The Is are miles adrift and I score this Is 0, Js 5.

THE Is V THE Ks

This is even more conclusive in the Ks favour. My scoring system limits margins of victory to 5-0, so I score this Is 0, Ks 5 and note that the Is are lucky to get 0.

THE Is V THE Ls

The Ls have an overwhelming advantage in both batting and pace/ seam bowling, the better keeper, the better captain, and while James Langridge rates below Ironmonger as a left arm spinner, Jim Laker comfortably outranks Illingworth as an off spinner. Only one scoreline is possible: Is 0, Ls 5.

THE Is PROGRESS REPORT

The Is have not added a single point to their tally and are now on 2.5 points out of a possible 55, 4.55%.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 34

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I created for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome to the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter fare against each other. The Hs occupy the spotlight and have so far accrued 55 out of a possible 90 points. The Men’s T20 World Cup is just underway, and we have already seen two major upsets – yesterday Namibia beat current Asia Cup holders Sri Lanka by 55 runs, while early this morning UK time Scotland beat twice former winners the West Indies by 42 runs.

THE Hs V THE Ts

The Hs as usual dominate batting wise, though there are several factors that lessen that dominance. Taylor and Trumper are a right/ left opening combo whereas Hobbs and Hutton were both right handed, and in addition Trumper played on poorer pitches than any of the others. Second is that Tarrant offers a genuine top line bowling option, unlike any of the Hs top six. Tyson and Trueman are at least a match for Hadlee and Holding as a new ball pairing, while Thomson is miles clear of Hammond as third seamer. Trumble outranks Harmer, and for my money Tarrant outranks Herath as a bowler, though that contest is a close one. The Ts also have the better keeper. I don’t reckon that the Hs advantage in batting is enough to make up for their deficit in bowling and score this Hs 2, Ts 3.

THE Hs V THE Us

This one is not a contest at all – the Hs comfortably outrank the Us in all areas, leading to an inevitable scoreline of Hs 5, Us 0.

THE Hs V THE Vs

The Hs dominate the batting, and have the better keeper. Bowling wise is a very different story – Voce and Van der Bijl have to be considered at least the equal of Holding and Hadlee as a new ball pair, and Vaas far outranks Hammond as third seamer, especially given that he would be likely to fare even better as third seamer in a strong attack than he actually did as new ball bowler in a moderate one. Verity far outranks Herath, and for my money Vogler outranks Harmer. I think the Vs bowling advantage outweighs the Hs batting advantage: Hs 2, Vs 3

THE Hs V THE Ws

The gap between the opening pairs is reduced by the fact that the Ws have a left/ right opening combination as against two right handers. Nos 3-5 feature three titanic clashes, while Hendren wins the batting element of his match up at six and Healy wins the keeping element but loses the batting element of his match up to Woods (Woods played on the rough and ready pitches of England before WWI and would have averaged more playing today). Whitty and Willis would be at least as potent a new ball pair as Holding and Hadlee, and Woods comfortably outranks Hammond as third seamer. Warne far outranks Harmer, while Wardle is clear of Herath, and there is also Woolley to bowl left arm spin. The Hs have a small advantage in batting and a massive deficit in bowling: Hs 1, Ws 4.

THE Hs V THE Xs

The Hs are massively ahead overall, though the Xs do have decent spin bowling and they do have the better keeper. Still, the Hs superiority is so marked that there can only be one scoreline: Hs 5, Xs 0.

THE Hs PROGRESS REPORT

The Hs have scored 15 out of 25 today, putting them on 70 out of 115, 60.87% (yesterday’s percentage was incorrect – should have read 61.11%, not 55.56%).

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

All Time XIs – Match Ups 33

Continuing my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another.

Welcome the the latest instalment in my extended analysis of how the all time XIs I selected for each letter of the alphabet fare against one another. This post sees us move past halfway in the match ups element of the series. The Hs are in the spotlight today and they so far have 36 out of 65 points.

THE Hs V THE Os

The Hs have much the stronger batting, the better new ball pairing (although O’Riordan outranks Hammond as third seamer). The Os have the best individual spinner in this match up in the person of O’Reilly, and they also have a numerical superiority in that department, but Harmer and Herath both outrank Ojha. The Os have the better keeper, though Healy wins the batting element of that match up. The Os may have the better bowling attack and certainly have more options in both pace and spin departments, but the overwhelming superiority of the Hs batting renders that null: Hs 5, Os 0.

THE Hs V THE Ps

The Hs win five of the first six batting match ups, the Pant, Procter and S Pollock all their batting match ups. Healy outranks Pant as a keeper, Procter outranks Hutton as skipper. Hadlee and Holding v P and S Pollock is a close contest for which is the better new ball pairing, but Mike Procter massively outranks Hammond as a bowler. The Hs have the edge in spin bowling. I see this as about even in batting, the Ps ahead in pace bowling and the Hs a tiny bit better in the spin department, and I expect the Ps pace bowling to settle the issue: Hs 2, Ps 3.

THE Hs V THE Qs

This one is clear cut, with the Hs ahead in all departments. Hs 5, Qs 0.

THE Hs V THE Rs

The Hs have the better batting line up, the Rs have the better keeper and also the better bowling – even if Hadlee and Holding are the best available new ball pair, which is open to debate, whoever out of Rabada, Roberts and Richardson ends as third seamer is way ahead of Hammond as a bowler. The spin department is closer, but Rhodes was certainly the finest of the four front line spinners featured in this match up. The Hs batting advantage is not enough to overcome their deficit on the bowling and keeping fronts: Hs 1.5, Rs 3.5.

THE Hs V THE Ss

This is very close on batting, with the Ss extra depth in that department possibly making the difference there. The Hs have the finer keeper, but the use of Sangakkara as keeper plus the presence of Sobers gives the Ss a range of bowling options far greater than that possessed by the Hs. Sobers in his quicker incarnation would be fifth choice seamer for the Ss, and he outranks Hammond, the Hs third seamer, as a bowler. Herath outranks the left arm orthodox version of Sobers, but does not also offer a wrist spin option. Harmer outranks Stevens. I think that with the batting fairly evenly match and the Hs having only a small advantage in spin bowling the Ss vast superiority in pace bowling gives them a huge win: Hs 0.5, Ss 4.5.

THE Hs PROGRESS REPORT

The Hs have scored 14 out of 25 points in this set of match ups, putting them on 50 points out of a possible 90, 55.56% so far.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…