Brian Lara names Bumrah among 'GOATs' of cricket, places Rohit a notch below
The video for the same was posted on the X handle of the 'Stick to Cricket', a podcast Lara was recently a part of along with former England cricketers Phil Tuffnell, Alastair Cook, Michael Vaughan and David Llyod.
Speaking of GOATS, he placed Bumrah along with Australian pace legend Glenn McGrath, South African all-round great Jacques Kallis, and Australia's wicketkeeper-batter icon Adam Gilchrist.
A T20 World Cup winner for India, Bumrah is one of the most skilful pacers produced by India, having taken 455 wickets in 206 matches at an average of 20.47, with best figures of 6/19. He has 17 five-wicket hauls to his name. Tests are his best format, with 217 wickets in 47 matches at an average of 19.48, with best figures of 6/27 and 15 five-wicket hauls.
McGrath is the fifth-highest wicket-taker of all time in international cricket, with 949 scalps at an average of 21.76, best figures of 8/24, 36 five-wicket hauls and three ten-fers to his name. He is Australia's most successful Test pacer and second-highest wicket-taker in the format, with 563 wickets at an average of 21.64, with 29 five-wicket hauls and three ten-fers to his name. He is also the three-time 50-over World Cup winner in 1999, 2003 and 2007, holding the record for most wickets in tournament history with 71.
With over 10,000 runs in both formats and over 500 international wickets, Kallis could make it to any side as a specialist batter or a pacer. In international cricket, he is the sixth-highest run-getter with 25,534 runs in 519 matches and 617 innings at an average of 49.10, with 62 centuries and 149 fifties to his name. He also has 577 international wickets at an average of 32.14, with best figures of 6/54 and seven fifers. He is a one-time ICC Champions Trophy winner for Australia.
Gilchrist is one of those superstars who revolutionised the concept of wicketkeeper-batters, bringing in plenty of extra in terms of batting skill instead of being a specialist keeper who could just bat a bit. In 396 international matches and 429 innings, Gilchrist scored 15,461 runs at an average of 38.94, with 33 centuries and 81 fifties. His best score is 204*. While he has 9,619 runs and 16 centuries in 287 ODIs, his 5,570 runs in 96 Tests at an average of 47.60, strike rate of 81.95 with 17 centuries and 26 fifties in just 137 innings make for an incredible reading. Also, the three-time WC winner has 905 dismissals across all formats, the second-highest among all the wicketkeepers.
Lara went on to place India's skipper Rohit Sharma, his ex-teammate Chris Gayle, Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, England's Kevin Pietersen and New Zealand's Kane Williamson in the 'legend' category.
In 499 international matches, Rohit has scored 19,700 runs at an average of 42.18, with 49 centuries and 108 fifties. He has won two ICC T20 World Cups and ICC Champions Trophies each, with one each of these as a captain. Rohit is an ODI titan, with 11,168 runs in 273 matches and 265 innings at an average of 48.76, with 32 centuries and 58 fifties and has the most World Cup centuries (seven) in the tournament's history. He is also the highest run-getter in T20Is, with 4,231 runs in 159 matches and 151 innings at an average of 32.05, with five centuries and 32 fifties, the most centuries in the format.
Gayle, having over 10,000 ODI runs, is WI's third-highest run-getter with 19,538 runs in 480 international matches including 42 centuries and 104 fifties. With his brute hitting and scoring rates, he revolutionised T20 cricket, becoming its first-ever superstar with over 14,562 runs (highest by any batter), 22 centuries and 1,056 sixes (highest by any batter) and has won two T20 WCs, one Champions Trophy among other T20 league titles as well.
While Afridi does not have any international title to his name, he is one of the world's most feared pacers and already 12th-highest wicket-taker for Pakistan with 345 scalps in 174 matches at an average of 24.88 at the age of 25.
Williamson, who led NZ to their first-ever world title, the ICC World Test Championship, is their most decorated batter, with 19,086 runs at an average of 48.56, with 48 centuries and 102 fifties. His most successful format is Tests, where he has made 9,276 runs in 105 matches at an average of 54.88, with 33 centuries and 37 fifties. He is this generation's 'Fab Four' batters alongside India's Virat Kohli, England's Joe Root and Australia's Steve Smith.
A one-time T20 World Cup winner, Pietersen is England's third-most successful batter of all time, with 13,779 runs in 275 international matches at an average of 44.30, with 32 centuries and 67 fifties. Test cricket became his best format, with 8,181 runs at an average of 47.28, with 23 centuries and 35 fifties and best score of 227.
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Times of Oman
12 hours ago
- Times of Oman
Fifties from Yashashvi, Sai take India to 264/4 against England in Manchester Test
Manchester : Half-centuries from left-hand batters Sai Sudarshan and Yashasvi Jaiswal took India to a total of 264/4 at the end of the first day of the fourth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 on Wednesday, which was played at Old Trafford in Manchester. At stumps on Day 1, India are 264/4 in 83 overs with Ravindra Jadeja (19*) and Shardul Thakur (19*) unbeaten on the crease. The visitors started the final session from 149/3 in 52 overs with Sai Sudarshan (26*) and Rishabh Pant (3*) unbeaten on the crease. The Shubman Gill-led side touched the 150-run mark in the 53rd over. In the 65th over, Team India surpassed the 200-run mark in their innings. At the score of 212 when Rishabh Pant was looking solid on 37 during the fourth Test in Manchester when a sharp delivery from Chris Woakes struck him hard on the right foot. The damage looked serious; there was a big swelling, a bit of bleeding, and he could barely stand. The physio rushed in, but it quickly became clear that Pant couldn't carry on. A motorised vehicle was brought in to take him off the field as he was in evident pain. Left-hand batter Ravindra Jadeja came out to replace him. In the 69th over, Sai Sudarshan completed his maiden Test fifty as he slammed a boundary on the bowling of off-spinner Joe Root. In the 74th over of the innings, India lost their fourth wicket as Ben Stokes dismissed Sai Sudarshan (61 runs from 151 balls) when the team's score was 235. On the second ball of the 79th over, India completed the 250-run mark as Shardul Thakur took a single on the bowling of left-arm spinner Liam Dawson. India finished the first day of the Manchester Test at 264/4 with Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur unbeaten on the crease. Before the end of play, both players built an unbeaten partnership of 29(55). For the Three Lions, two wickets were snapped by all-rounder Ben Stokes (2/47 in 14 overs) and one wickrt each was bagged by right-arm seamer Chris Woakes (1/43 in 17 overs) and Liam Dawson (1/45 in 15 overs) in their respective spells. Earlier in the day, England elected won the toss and opted to field first. Indian openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul started reasonably well, getting themselves a boundary each within the first three overs. Jaiswal, though, survived a catch attempt at slip in the first over as it fell short of the man at second slip. Jaiswal had some struggles against Woakes, who beat him plenty of times, but he nonetheless persisted. KL also became the fifth batter to complete 1,000 runs in England from India, joining the elite company of Sunil Gavaskar, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. India survived the first hour against Woakes, Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse, at 42/0, with KL (21*) and Jaiswal (13*). Both KL and Jaiswal continued their grind following drinks, with skipper Ben Stokes striking KL's pad in his first over, but the opener survived. A cut carved by Jaiswal, piercing the gap between third slip and gully, brought India's fifty-run mark in 17.4 overs. Towards the final few overs of the first session, Jaiswal became more aggressive, using some big hits against skipper Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer, the heroes of England's Lord's triumph. India ended the session without a wicket lost.
Times of Oman
2 days ago
- Times of Oman
Gill's "Spirit of cricket" jab, exciting squad additions: 4th India-UK Test at Manchester has makings of another humdinger
Manchester: The fourth Test between England and India, perhaps the most important in the context of the series, will kickstart at Manchester's Old Trafford on Wednesday. With Team India lagging behind by 1-2 in the five-match series, a victory would help them level the series. If England win, they will win the series, denying Team India a shot at glory in England, which they have been seeking since 2007, when they last won a series under Rahul Dravid's captaincy. After a narrow loss at Lord's by 22 runs, India will have to rewrite history books all over again to level the series. Out of nine tests played at Old Trafford, India has lost four, and five have ended in a draw. In their previous Test at the venue, back in 2014, India lost by an innings and 54 runs, failing to outscore England's first-innings total of 367 across both their innings, managing just 152 and 161 runs. Ahead of the match during the pre-match presser, the tensions between both teams showed no signs of slowing down as Indian skipper Shubman Gill fired jabs at openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett for being "90 minutes late" to the crease during the final moments of day three and played the 'spirit of the game' card against the Englishmen themselves, known for bringing in the phrase during various instances of the games not going their way. "So let me just clear the air for once and for all. The English batsmen on that day had seven minutes of play left. They were 90 seconds late to come to the crease. Not 10, not 20, 90 seconds late. Yes, most of the teams use this. Even if we were in a position, we would have also liked to play fewer overs. But there is a manner to do it," said Gill during the presser. "We felt, yes, if you get hit on your body (one of Jasprit Bumrah's deliveries hit Crawley's hands), the physios are allowed to come on. And that is fair. But to be able to come 90 seconds late on the crease is not something that I would think comes in the spirit of the game," he added. "I would not say it was something that I am very proud of. But there was a lead-up and build-up to that. It did not just come out of nowhere. And we had no intention of doing that whatsoever. But it just, you are playing a game, you are playing to win. And there are a lot of emotions involved. And when you see there are things happening that should not happen, sometimes the emotions come out of nowhere," he concluded. In a positive update, Gill said that the superstar wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will be behind the stumps after having faced a finger injury at Lord's, which saw Dhruv Jurel take the keeping gloves while Pant batted, scoring 74 and nine. Answering a query if Pant will be wicket-keeping, Gill said, "Yes". Gill also spoke about the Old Trafford Cricket Ground pitch and said there is not much chance for the wicket to dry. "Honestly, when I went to see the wicket, the wicket did not look that damp. But obviously, now having to look at the weather, I don't think there is much chance for the wicket to dry that much throughout. So I think there would be a little bit more for the bowlers," Gill said. "And generally on this venue, it is a little bit quicker than the other venues we have seen. There's a bit more pace and bounce. So we'll have to see how the test match pans out," he added. Despite the presence of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, Team India will have to field another bowling combination in the absence of an injured Nitish Kumar Reddy and Akash Deep. Speaking of Haryana seamer Anshul Kamboj, who impressed during India's A's tour to England before the series with four wickets and a half-century with the bat, Gill said that the team has seen enough of him and the communication with him has been kept simple. He also hinted that the 24-year-old, newly drafted in the team, is "close to making his debut". "You know, why has he been brought in. But it is mainly the belief that we have within our squad that any player who comes into the team can win matches for us. And secondly, yes, Anshul, he is very close to making his debut. We are going to see tomorrow, between him and Prasidh, who is going to make it to the playing XI," he added. Kamboj is known for his ability to stick to traditional lengths and hit the deck hard, generating movement. He was part of the India A squad before for the two unofficial Tests against England Lions and impressed in the second, taking four wickets, including two in a single over. Not just with the ball, Kamboj exuded grit with the bat, stitching an unbeaten 149-run stand with Tanush Kotian in the same contest and scoring a half-century himself. In the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy season, he scalped 34 wickets in six matches and finished as the leading wicket-taker in the 2024-25 Duleep Trophy. He created history by becoming only the third Indian to take all ten wickets in an innings against Kerala. In First-Class cricket, Kamboj boasts 79 wickets in 24 matches at an average of 22.88 while maintaining a strike rate of 44.2 and an economy of 3.10. Now, moving to the other side, England skipper Ben Stokes has made one exciting addition to his side, adding Liam Dawson, an experienced spin bowling all-rounder, in place of an injured Shoaib Bashir. During the press conference, Stokes highlighted the 35-year-old's "experience and competitiveness" and expressed excitement at his return to the playing eleven. "He has been performing really well for Hampshire for a while now. I think he is getting recalled into the white ball team as well. He showed that he can just come back in and get to work straight away. I think someone, when you have as much experience as Dawson has, it makes coming back in, not easier, but it does make it easier, if that makes any sense at all." "Because he has got all that experience to fall back on. Obviously, I am sure there will be a bit of nerves for Dawson coming back in and playing his first game in eight years, as you said. But yes, he is a very good cricketer, and I am excited for him this week," he added. He has performed consistently for Hampshire for several years, scoring 10,731 runs in 212 first-class matches at an average of 35.29, with 18 centuries and 56 fifties, and taking 371 wickets at an average of 31.54. In the most recent County Championship, Dawson made 536 runs in nine matches and 14 innings at an average of 44.36, with a century and two half-centuries. He also took 21 wickets at an average of 40.04, with best figures of 5/158. With his team getting their World Test Championship (WTC) points docked for slow-over-rate, Stokes also made an interesting suggestion to change the over-rate rules as per different continents, depending on the prevalence of spin or pace, as spinners take less time and energy, while there is a lot of rest, tactical side of things and workload managing involved for pacers who are "breaking their backs", "There are periods in the game where you do try to slow everything down, more tactically, if anything like that. Overrating is not something I worry about, but that doesn't mean I purposely slow things down. I do understand the frustration around it, but I honestly think there needs to be a real hard look at how it is structured," said Stokes. "You cannot have the same rules in Asia where spin is bowling 70 per cent of the overs to have the same laws in New Zealand, Australia, England, where it is going to be 70-80 per cent of seam bowlers. Because the spinners take less time than the seamers to get done with their overs, common sense would think that you should look at maybe changing how the overs are timed in different continents," he added. Stokes, while already crowned 'Player of the Match' for an all-round show at Lord's, would be aiming for big runs. In three matches during the ongoing home series, Stokes has scored 163 runs in six innings at an average of 27.16, with a best score of 44. While a big score continues to elude him, he is England's highest-wicket-taking bowler, with 11 scalps at an average of 29.45 and best bowling figures of 4/66. With the series' future to be decided at Old Trafford, this is another occasion that calls for a Stokes' special. He has a fine record at the venue, scoring 579 runs in eight Tests and 12 innings at an average of 52.63, with two centuries and three fifties. His best score is 176. With the ball, he has 11 wickets at an average of 27.54, with best figures of 27.54. The climb towards the top of Test run charts gets easier for Joe Root, who is just 120 runs away from becoming the second-highest run-getter in the format and sitting next to Indian icon Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs). In three Tests so far, Root has scored 253 runs at an average of 50.60, with a century and a fifty each. He is the eighth-highest run-getter so far, a little disappointing given his gigantic standards this decade. Root has a fantastic record in Manchester, being the all-time highest run-getter with 978 runs in 11 Tests and 19 innings at an average of 65.20, with a century and seven fifties. His best score is 254. The stylish batter is currently the fifth-highest run-getter of all time in Tests, with 13,259 runs in 156 Tests and 285 innings at an average of 50.80, with 37 centuries and 66 fifties and a best score of 262. Scoring just 30 more runs will push him to fourth spot, outdoing Indian great Rahul Dravid (13,288 runs in 164 Tests), while 120 more runs will help him topple South Africa's Jacques Kallis (13,289 runs in 166 Tests) and Australia's Ponting (13,378 runs in 168 matches) to become the second-highest Test run-getter of all time. Indian skipper Shubman is also eyeing some records and milestones, 107 runs away from 6,000 international runs. Despite a brief lull at Lord's, Gill is still the highest run-getter in the series, with 607 runs in six innings at an average of 101.16 and an audacious strike rate of over 71, with three centuries to his name. His closest competitors, the wicketkeeping-batters Rishabh Pant (425 runs) and Jamie Smith (415 runs) are yet to touch even the 500-run mark in the series. So far in his international career, Gill has scored 5,853 runs at an average of 46.45, with 17 centuries and 25 fifties to his name, with the best score of 269 in 141 innings. 107 more runs will take him to the 6,000-run mark. In 35 Tests so far, he has shown both promise and inconsistency, scoring 2,500 runs at an average of 41.66, with eight centuries and seven fifties in 65 innings, including a best score of 269. Pacer Chris Woakes, who received backing from his skipper despite taking just seven wickets so far at an average of 56.42, will be aiming to continue his fine record at Old Trafford and become the eighth English player to reach the 400-wicket mark in international cricket, just eight scalps shy of the milestone. At Old Trafford, having taken 35 scalps in just seven Tests at an average of 17.37, strike rate of 35.8, with best figures of 5/50. He has two five-wicket hauls at the venue. England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes(c), Jamie Smith(w), Liam Dawson, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer India Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Anshul Kamboj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Prasidh Krishna, Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel.
Times of Oman
2 days ago
- Times of Oman
Bangladesh seal first ever T20I series win against Pakistan
Dhaka: Bangladesh completed their first T20I series win against Pakistan, after prevailing in an eight-run win in the second game on Tuesday. The packed Shere Bangla National Stadium got a thrilling finish with the hosts staving off a late Faheem Ashraf onslaught. Pakistan's top six couldn't reach double digits in this game, with five having missed out in similar fashion in the previous outing too. This time it was their bottom-half that gave them some hope. Ashraf top scored with his maiden T20I half-century, having added 41 runs for the ninth wicket with Abbas Afridi. Bangladesh however kept their cool, particularly their pace trio of Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman and Tanzim Hasan putting pressure on the visitors. Bangladesh's start with the ball put them well in front, which also ultimately helped them get the win in the end. Earlier, Pakistan won the toss and opted to bowl first. Skipper Salman Agha's decision was proven correct as Faheem Ashraf, in the second over, removed Mohammad Naim (3) before Salman Mirza, in a span of three balls, got skipper Litton Das (8) caught out and Towhid Hridoy (0) run out to put Bangladesh under pressure early. Ahmed Daniyal then got the wicket of Parvez Emon (13) as Bangladesh lost four wickets inside the 10-over mark for just 53. Mahedi Hasan (33) tried to get Bangladesh back on track and added crucial runs for the fifth wicket with Jaker Ali before losing his wicket to Mohammad Nawaz. Shamim Hossain (1) was the next to depart after Ahmed Daniyal cleaned up his stumps, before Salman Mirza in the next over dismissed Tanzim Sakib (7) as Bangladesh lost their seventh wicket. Abbas Afridi, six balls later, cleaned up Rishad Hossain (8) as Bangladesh were pushed towards being bowled out. Shoriful Islam (1) was then run out while trying to get the in-form Jaker Ali back on strike in the final over. Jaker went on to score a brilliant 55 to take Bangladesh's total to 133 before being dismissed as the 10th wicket on the final ball of the innings. In reply, Pakistan lost their first wicket in the very first over as Saim Ayub (1) was run out on the last ball of the over. Mohammad Haris (0) was the next to depart in the very next over as Shoriful Islam got him trapped in front of the wicket. He then got Fakhar Zaman (8) caught behind as Pakistan were pushed on the back foot early in the chase. Tanzim then struck to remove Hasan Nawaz (0) and Mohammad Nawaz (0) on back-to-back deliveries to reduce Pakistan to 15 for 5. Skipper Salman Agha (9) stayed for 23 balls and tried to stabilise the innings but eventually fell victim to the run-rate pressure and lost his wicket to Mahedi Hasan while trying to clear the deep mid-wicket area. Khushdil Shah (13) then fell to Mehedi Hasan as Pakistan were reduced to 47 for 7. Abbas Afridi (19) played some good shots and added 41 runs for the eighth wicket with Faheem before losing his wicket to Shoriful Islam to give Bangladesh passage back into the match. Faheem Ashraf (51) then completed his half-century to get Pakistan on the verge of a win but was clean bowled by Rishad Hossain on the final ball of the 19th over. Pakistan needed 13 runs in the final over. Ahmed Daniyal (17) started the over with a boundary but lost his wicket on the second ball as Pakistan were bundled out for 125, eight runs short of the target.
