DUBAI, June 1: Australian legendary batsman Don Bradman and West Indian bowler Joel Garner have been named as highest rated Test cricket players of all time in a new rankings list.
International Cricket Council's ICC Best Ever Ratings also place English legends Len Hutton and Jack Hobbs among top 10 batsmen.
But Garner's position and ranking of leading wicket-taker in history, Shane Warne, at 16 will cause surprise. There is controversy in batting list too, with no room in top 20 for Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar.
Rankings are decided by highest ratings achieved at a particular point for players rather than sustained success over a long period of time.
For batsmen, number of runs scored by individuals and in match, quality of opposition and match results are taken into account; for bowlers factors include wickets taken, runs conceded and workload.
“Some players have a peak in their careers like Kilimanjaro, whereas for others it's more like Table Mountain,” said ICC spokesman Jon Long.
The lists will still spark debate, particularly with Sunil Gavaskar (20), Steve Waugh (32), Allan Border (39) – all with more than 10,000 Test runs to their names – missing out on top 10 spots.
Pace bowlers like Dennis Lillee (30) and Kapil Dev (35), regarded as among finest in history, are also well down rankings.
Leading batsmen: 1. D.G. Bradman (Australia) 961 pts; 2. L. Hutton (England) 945; 3. J.B. Hobbs (England) 942; 4. P.B.H. May (England) 941; 5. I.V.A. Richards (West Indies) 938, C.L. Walcott (West Indies) 938; 7. G.S. Sobers (West Indies) 938. 8. R.T. Ponting (Australia) 937; 9. M.L. Hayden (Australia) 935; 10. Zaheer Abbas (Pakistan) 930.
Leading bowlers: 1. J. Garner (West Indies) 940 pts; 2. S.F. Barnes (England) 932; 3. G.A. Lohmann (England) 931; 4. R.J. Hadlee (New Zealand) 923; 5. Imran Khan (Pakistan) 922; 6. M. Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) 915; 7. G.D. McGrath (Australia) 914; 8. G.A.R. Lock (England) 912; 9. C.E.L. Ambrose (West Indies) 912; 10. I.T. Botham (England) 911.—Agencies































