The Prince of Port-of-Spain

 

Brian Charles Lara was born on May 2, 1969, in Cantaro, Santa Cruz in Trinidad. He was also known as “The Prince of Port-of-Spain” or simply “The Prince”. He is acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest batsmen. Lara captained the West Indies from 1997 to 1999.



Professionally coached, Lara was still a teenager when he started playing first class cricket and, in only his second game, blasted a century against a Barbados attack. He made his test debut against Pakistan at Lahore in the 1990/91 series, but it was not until the West Indies tour to Australia in 1992/93 that Lara 'came of age.'




He scored a brilliant 277 in the Sydney test. Later, when England toured the West Indies in 1994, he set a world record by scoring 375 during a single test. He went on to post a new record for the highest individual first class score of 501. By 2001, Lara had amassed 7,423 runs at an average of 49.48 with 18 centuries to his name.





Achievements and World Records:

In 1994, he was awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award.

Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1995.

In 2001 tour of Sri Lanka he scored a century and a double century in the third Test.

In 1994 he became the first man to score seven centuries in eight first-class innings, the first being the historic record 375 against England.

He reclaimed the record of scoring 400 not out in 2004.

He was the fastest batsmen to 9,000, 10,000 and 11,000 Test runs, in terms of number of innings.

Lara holds the world record of scoring most runs (28) in a single over in Test cricket





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We all know that he is a genius. We all know that he is arguably the greatest ever batsman of our time. We all know that he has been the solitary hope of Caribbean cricket from last 10 to 12 years. But what we don’t know is his level of hunger for runs. He is one player who kept encoring centuries after centuries with utmost of ease, style and grace. Ricky Ponting scored 9 centuries in the span of last one year and got ICC Cricketer of the year award, and Mohammad Yousuf registered 6 centuries in the same time period, but can they emulate Lara ever? Can they keep up the good work with the same level of intensity and sheer brilliance for as much length in time as Lara is doing? It is doubtful. Batsmen tend to do these sorts of things on cricket pitches. Records meant to be broken, but if there is one player who has habit of doing it again, again and again then he has to be Brian Lara.



 ( Helmet Worn by Brain lara during his historic innings  of  501)



      1987 was a breakthrough year for Lara, when in the West Indies Youth Championships he scored 498 runs beating the record of 480 by Carl Hooper set the previous year.[2] He captained the Trinidad and Tobago team at this tournament whom eventually won the tournament due to a matchwinning 116 from Lara.

In January 1988, Lara made his first-class debut for Trinidad and Tobago in the Red Stripe Cup against Leeward Islands. In his second first-class match he made 92 against a Barbados attack containing Joel Garner and Malcolm Marshall, two “greats” of West Indies teams. Later in the same year, he captained the West Indies team in Australia for the Bicentennial Youth World Cup where the West Indies reached the semi-finals. Later that year, his innings of 182 as captain of the West Indies under 23 XI against the touring Indian team elevated his reputation even further.


His first selection for the full West Indies team followed in due course, but unfortunately coincided with the death of his father and Lara withdrew from the team. In 1989, he captained a West Indies B Team in Zimbabwe and scored 145.

In 1990, at the age of 20, Lara became Trinidad and Tobago’s youngest ever captain, leading them that season to victory in the one-day Geddes Grant Shield. It was also in 1990 that he made his belated Test debut for West Indies against Pakistan, scoring 44 and 5. He had made his ODI debut a month earlier against Pakistan, scoring 11. In the 1992 World Cup Lara did well averaging 47.57 with a highest score of 88 retired hurt.


In January 1993, Lara scored 277 versus Australia in Sydney, this was his maiden Test century in his fifth Test, this innings was the turning point of the series as West Indies won the final two Tests to win the series 2-1.

Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards ('The Master Blaster')

richards is a former West Indian cricketer. Better known by his second name, Vivian or, more popularly, simply as Viv Richards, he was chosen as the greatest ODI batsman of all time by Wisden in 2002. In 2003 the list was revised and Viv was re-ranked at number 2 behind Sachin Tendulkar of India.







Richards will be remembered as one the most exciting batsman ever to have played the game. He first represented the West Indies against India in the 1974/75 series, and went on to play 121 tests, scoring 8,540 runs with 24 centuries to earn an impressive career average of
50. 24. He established a record for the most sixes at the test level (84) and became the first West Indian to have scored over 100 first class centuries (114).


                   



Additionally, Richards scored the fastest test century (56 balls) and set a record for most runs scored in a calendar year (1,760). The West Indies team won 27 of the 50 test matches under Richards's leadership. 'The Master Blaster' was voted Wisden's Cricketer of the Year in 1977 and was selected as one of its five Cricketers of the Century in 2000. Richards was knighted for his services to cricket on May 29, 2000, at the Antigua Recreation Grounds.

    (Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua)

Richards, also known as the “Master Blaster”, was a forceful right-hand batsman with an attacking style, a good fielder, a handy off-spin bowler and a successful captain. His impressive style of play, and relaxed but determined demeanour, made him a great crowd favourite.





The word “swagger” is frequently and aptly used to describe his batting style.[citation needed]. An inspiring figure, endowed with very keen eyesight, his batting often dominated opposing bowlers. He had a great ability to drive good-length balls from outside off-stump through midwicket, his trademark shot. He was widely known for his habits of nonchalantly chewing gum while playing, and preferring to wear a cap rather than a cricket helmet even against the fastest bowlers, regardless of the personal danger.


  (Sir Vivian Richards, cricket legend and great human being, holds the torch in Antigua, 12 June 2005 for the Caribbean World Harmony Run)

KAPIL DEV “BORN FOR INDIA”

Kapil Dev (born 6 January 1959, Chandigarh)  was the greatest pace bowler India has produced, and their greatest fast-bowling allrounder. If he had played at any other time - not when Imran Khan, Ian Botham and Richard Hadlee were contemporaries - he would surely have been recognised as the best allrounder in the world. In any case he did enough to be voted India’s Cricketer of the Century during 2002. His greatest feats were to lead India almost jauntily, and by his allround example, to the 1983 World Cup, and to take the world-record aggregate of Test wickets from Hadlee. It was the stamina of the marathon runner that took him finally to 431 wickets and only a yard beyond. He might not have been quite the bowling equal of Imran, Hadlee or Botham at his best, and his strike rate was less than four wickets per Test. But he was still outstanding in his accuracy and ability to swing the ball, usually away from right-handers. And he could hit a ball even more brilliantly than he bowled it, with uncomplicated flair.






The ICC cricket World Cup 1983 held in England in June 1983 can be said to be a golden era in history of Indian cricket. India, quoted at 1 to 66 before world cup began, won the most prestigious cricket cup defeating the then world champions, West Indies, in the finals held on June25, 1983 at Lord’s by 43 runs. Though India batting first was all out for an average score of 183, India knocked out the champions for just 140 odd runs. It was the all round performance of Mohindar Amarnath and Indian captain, Kapil Dev which led India India to surprise victory in the finals.



The ICC cricket World Cup 1983 held in England in June 1983 can be said to be a golden era in history of Indian cricket. India, quoted at 1 to 66 before world cup began, won the most prestigious cricket cup defeating the then world champions, West Indies, in the finals held on June25, 1983 at Lord’s by 43 runs. Though India batting first was all out for an average score of 183, India knocked out the champions for just 140 odd runs. It was the all round performance of Mohindar Amarnath and Indian captain, Kapil Dev which led India India to surprise victory in the finals.

 

This world cup saw the emergence of all time great players like Sunil Gavaskar, K Srikkanth, RMH Binny, Ravi Shastri and Syed Kirmani (Ind), Javed Miandad and Abdul Qadir (Pak), Alan Border (Aus) and R Hadlee (NZ). A total of 8 teams participated in the world cup with Zimbabwe replacing Canada.



The world cup started with two fine surprises with India beating West Indies and Zimbabwe beating Australia in the group stages. While India won 6 out of its 8 group matches while lost one each to Australia and West Indies. As against the last two world cups the sides played twice with each other in the group stages in this world cup. Also each of the eight sides registered at least single victory. Unexpectedly Binny (Ind) and De Mel (SL) came out as leading wicket takers. The aggregate attendance was 232081 while gate receipts amounted to 1195712Pounds



(celeb of world cup final)

MURALI "SPIN WIZARD"

He was born on 17th April, 1972 at Kandy in Sri Lanka. Also known as the "Smiling Assassin", he has continuously improved his game and gained popularity with each passing day.
he was statistically rated as the greatest Test match bowler ever  by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002.







He is Test cricket's highest wicket-taker, having overtaken the previous record-holder Shane Warne on December 3, 2007, and is also second in the list of wicket-takers in One Day Internationals. Averaging over six wickets per Test, Muttiah Muralitharan is one of the most successful bowlers in the game, the greatest player in Sri Lanka's history. His strike rate of
6 wickets per match is also phenomenal. Since then, he has just kept on improving. His career statistics speak for themselves and deserve total credit. Despite all the controversies surrounding him over the years, he has stood bravely in the face of those controversies and showed the world that he is a man of character.



Test wicket milestones:

1st Craig McDermott lbw 9 vs Australia

100th Stephen Fleming bowled 59 vs New Zealand

200th Dominic Cork caught Romesh Kaluwitharana 8 vs England

300th Shaun Pollock caught Tillakaratne Dilshan 11 vs South Africa

400th Henry Olonga bowled 0 vs Zimbabwe

500th Michael Kasprowicz bowled 0 vs Australia

600th Khaled Mashud caught Lasith Malinga 6 vs Bangladesh

700th Syed Rasel caught Farveez Maharoof 4 vs Bangladesh




With 20 ten-wicket hauls in Tests, he is clearly the leader in that category, with the second-placed Warne having managed only half that number. In fact, Murali has taken a ten-for at least once against every opposition that he has played against. His 60 five-wicket hauls is a record as well.
   



He bowls marathon spells, yet is forever on the attack. From a loose-limbed, open-chested action, his chief weapons are the big-spinning offbreak and two versions of the top-spinner, one of which goes straight on and the other, which has now been labelled his doosra, which spins in the opposite direction to his stock ball. His newest variation is a version of Shane Warne's slider, which is flicked out the side of his hand and rushes onto batsmen like a flipper. His super-flexible wrist makes him especially potent and guarantees him turn on any surface.

FIELDING AT ITS BEST

  
Cricket is a game that has much to do with statistics and averages, but one cannot judge Jonty Rhodes purely on those because he was worth far more than the story those numbers tell.

As a batsman he began his international career with some shortcomings in his technique, but managed to work those out to become a top-class international player. What is more, his selection introduced a new dimension to fielding, as he became generally recognised as the best fielder in the world, the inspiration for a South African team that set a world standard in the field.


(The dive that astounded the cricketing world)


That is how Jonty Rhodes first came to the attention of the world: South Africa was facing Pakistan in March 1992 in the World Cup in a match played in Brisbane. The dangerous Inzamam ul-Haq was at the crease for Pakistan when he discovered just how good Rhodes is in the field.

Swooping onto a ball from his position at backward point, Rhodes raced ul-Haq, who had ventured down the pitch, to the crease, beating him, with his right arm holding the ball and extended like Superman, with a dive that knocked all three stumps out of the ground. The pictures were shown around the world and a legend was born.




There was an article in a South African newspaper that screamed to life with these words, “Water covers 67 per cent of the earth’s surface - Jonty covers the rest.” that about summed it all up! A real livewire in the field, setting high standards for fielding.
He holds the World Record for most dismissals by a non-wicketkeeper in a One Day International, after taking five catches against the West Indies in the Hero Cup match in Bombay in 1993/94

CAPTAIN OF CRICKET

 

One cannot think Cricket without Steve Waugh. No doubt he has his place among cricket’s all-time greats. Not only for he scored mountain of runs in both form of game, or for his astonishing stint as Australia’s captain, or for figuring in the
most number of Tests by any player,

but for qualities with which he enriched the game. His eyes like flints, skin made of rawhide, cricketing heart of stone, will of conqueror .

The foremost among them was his commitment to the team’s cause. The 38year old Steve Waugh will forever be remembered as an unselfish player, who put his best foot forward when his side needed him the most.

Waugh’s achievements as a captain are out of the ordinary. The Aussie’s 41 wins in 57 Tests matches make him the most successful skipper ever.






Mr. Reliable as he is known as for every time Australia has been in trouble he has been the man to take them out of trouble. The only player who has excelled in every condition and against every team, it comes as no surprise that he is regarded as one of the best batsmen of all times.

Waugh made 10927 runs n 168 Tests at a highly creditable 51.06, and a majority of these runs surfaced when his team required him to dig in deep. Not too many cricketers have lasted 19 years in international cricket, and still finished on a high note. Waugh remarkable fitness levels, strength of mind, fierce focus and the ability to adapt to the different conditions enabled him graduate in to a dependable, resilient, match winning batsman from being a run of the mill player in the middle order.

 
Waugh was easily one of the most influential cricketers of our times for he could so easily cut across barriers, reach out to the masses. Among the most popular players to have visited the country, his spontaneous participation in charitable causes meant the people of India could relate to him for reasons other than cricket. Steve Waugh will have his seat in the pantheon of the all-time greats …

MASTER BLASTER

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (born April 24, 1973 in Bombay, Maharashtra, India) is an Indian cricketer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket.
Tendulkar's batting style has been compared to that of Sir Donald Bradman.
In 2002,Wisden rated him as the second greatest Test batsman after Sir Donald Bradman, and the second greatest One-day international batsman behind Sir Vivian Richards. In 2003, this list was revised where Tendulkar was ranked No. 1 and Richards at No. 2.


Sir Donald Bradman, the greatest batsman of all time, considered Tendulkar to have a batting style similar to his. In his biography.




Sachin Tendulkar has been the most wholesome batsman of his time, and arguably the biggest cricket icon as well. His batting is based on the purest principles: perfect balance, economy of movement, precision in stroke-making, and that intangible quality given only to geniuses, anticipation. If he doesn't have a signature stroke - the upright, back-foot punch comes close - it is because he is equally proficient in each of the full range of orthodox shots (and plenty of improvised ones as well) and can pull them out at will.


Though he has adopted a noticeably conservative approach in the last quarter of his career, there are no apparent weaknesses in Tendulkar's game. He can score all around the wicket, off both front foot and back, and has made runs in all parts of the world in all conditions.

Some of his finest performances have come against Australia, the overwhelmingly dominant team of his era. His century as a 19-year old on a lightning fast pitch at the WACA is considered one of the best innings ever to have been played in Australia. A few years later he received the ultimate compliment from the ultimate batsman when Don Bradman confided to his wife that Tendulkar reminded him of himself.



Blessed with the keenest of cricket minds, and armed with a loathing for losing, Tendulkar set about doing what it took to become one of the best batsmen in the world. This was after he was turned away from a fast-bowling camp in Chennai by Dennis Lillee.


Tendulkar's greatness was established early: he was only 16 when he made his Test debut. He was hit on the mouth by Waqar Younis but continued to bat, in a blood-soaked shirt. His first Test hundred, a match-saving one at Old Trafford, came when he was 17, and he had 16 Test hundreds before he turned 25

RAVI SHASTRI "Champion of Champions"

shankar ("Ravi") Jayadritha Shastri (born 27 May 1962 in Mumbai) , is a former Indian cricketer. He was an all–rounder who batted right–handed and bowled left arm spin. His international career started when he was 18 years old and lasted 12 years. He started his career purely as a bowler but gradually became more of a batsman who could bowl.



He had made his first-class debut as a 17 year old in Indian domestic cricket in 1980, and in 1980/81 Shastri made his Test debut against New Zealand. He subsequently appeared in 80 Tests and 150 One Day Internationals, besides being
“Player of the Tournament” in the 1984/85 World Championship of Cricket in Australia.




Unlike most other big hitters, Shastri started his career as a lower-order hitter, but he could also be - and increasingly was - a top-order stonewaller who was often criticised for his slow scoring. The Jekyll and Hyde style was never more apparent than in January 1985. On January 4 he had been pelted with fruit by an angry crowd for his seven-hour hundred in the Test against England, and riot police had to be summoned to Eden Gardens. Exactly a week later he became the  second man to hit six sixes in an over when he mauled the unfortunate slow left-armer Tilak Raj while playing for Bombay against Baroda in a Ranji Trophy match. His Test century took 354 balls; against Baroda he made a double hundred in 112 minutes off 123 deliveries.


The highlight of his career was when he was elected the "Champion of Champions" in the World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985. In the same season, he equalled West Indian Garry Sobers's record of hitting six sixes in an over in first class cricket



Shastri also holds the world record for the fastest ever double century in first-class cricket, having hit 200* off just 123 balls in only 113 minutes for Bombay against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy at Bombay. During this career best performance, Shastri hit thirteen sixes, including six in an over from Tilak Raj.

 

Sir Garfield Sobers "36 IN A OVER IS EASY"

 

Sir Garfield St Auburn Sobers (born July 28, 1936 in Bridgetown, Barbados), often known as Garry Sobers (though earlier in his life he preferred the spelling Gary), is a former West Indies cricketer, widely regarded as the greatest all-rounder (batsman and bowler) the game has ever seen. He was born with two extra fingers, one on each hand, which were removed at birth. He also excelled at other sports, and played golf, football, basketball, table tennis and dominoes for Barbados. He is universally regarded as one of the most exceptional players ever to grace the game.

Cricket is bread and butter for him.






Sobers was a true all-rounder, he both batted and bowled, and was also an outstanding fielder, usually fielding close to the wicket. With the ball, Sobers performed superbly, taking 235 Test wickets at an average of 34.03. He bowled left-arm orthodox spin, left-arm unorthodox spin, and also left-arm fast-medium. Sobers was also exceptionally talented with the bat, with a career Test batting average of 57.78. He scored a then-record 8032 runs in his career. He played his last Test in 1974 against England, in Trinidad.



In 1968, Sobers became the first ever batsman to hit six sixes off one over of six consecutive balls in first-class cricket

In 1975 Queen Elizabeth II awarded Sobers a knighthood for his services to the sport. In 2003 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia, where he played many first-class games for South Australia .

He was made a National Hero of Barbados by Prime Minister Owen Arthur in 1999

In 2000 Sobers was named by a 100-member panel of experts as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century

  

For all Sobers' many achievements, one that stands out, mainly because it was recorded by the BBC's cameras, came in 1968 when he became the first man to hit six sixes off a first-class over. Captaining Nottinghamshire against Glamorgan at Swansea, Sobers hit out in a bid for quick runs. The hapless bowler, Malcolm Nash, was a left-arm seamer who was experimenting with spin - "Sobers came along and quickly ended my slow-bowling career," he said. "It was a pretty short experiment." The fifth of the six was caught on the boundary edge but the fielder toppled over the rope. The sixth disappeared out of the ground and was returned a day later by a schoolboy who found it lying in the street.

HANSIE CRONJIE

                                                                                           
A born leader, Cronje, the son of former Free State cricketer Ewie Cronje, was tagged as a future national cricket captain while still at school at Bloemfontein’s renowned Grey College. He played three years for Free State Schools and two years for the South African Schools team, captaining the side in 1987 with his close friend Jonty Rhodes as vice-captain.
In the same year, he made his debut for the senior Free State team against Transvaal in Johannesburg.
Cronje quickly established himself as a player to be reckoned with, and when South Africa made its foray back into international cricket in 1991 in India, he was chosen to accompany the side for the experience.









Hansie led the team with great skill and prowess, leading from the front, with both bat and ball. With the bat, he averaged 36.41 in the longer version of the game, with six centuries which came when the chips were down. In one-dayers, he performed better, with an average of 38.64, and a strike rate of 76.48. He was particularly destructive against the slower bowlers, and was one of the few South Afrcians who could read Shane Warne. He was also a useful medium-pace bowler with more than a hundred one-day wickets.Cronje played in 68 Tests for South Africa, leading his country on 53 occasions. He scored 3 714 runs at an average of 36.41 and captured 43 wickets but it was the intangibles of his leadership and toughness that really stood out.






On 1 June 2002 Cronje's scheduled flight home from Bloemfontein to George had been grounded so instead he hitched a ride as the only passenger on a cargo flight in a Hawker Siddeley 748 turboprop aircraft. Near George airport, the pilots lost visibility in cloud, and were unable to land, partly due to unserviceable navigational equipment. While circling, the plane crashed into the Outeniqua mountains northeast of the airport. Cronje, aged 32, and the two pilots were killed instantly