BRIDGETOWN, April 27: Sir Vivian Richards praised the contribution to world cricket of Muttiah Muralitharan after naming the off-spinner in his team of the World Cup.

Richards, world cricket's leading batsman during the 1970s and 1980s, said Sri Lanka's Murali and Australia leg-spinner Shane Warne helped revive the disappearing art of slow bowling after years where teams such as the dominating West Indies side he captained had relied on a four-man pace attack.

“There was a craft that was missing for quite some time and they rekindled the spirit of what spin bowlers can be,” said Richards.

He added it was hard to compare players from different eras.

“Batsmanship will always be, that is why we still here the name of Don Bradman, that is why we still hear the name of Sir Gary Sobers. The Don's name still rings in people's minds, even of people who never saw him play,” said the West Indian.

“The one thing that has improved in the game today is fielding. But batsmen will always be batsmen, bowlers will always be bowlers.”

However, Richards who averaged over 50 in Tests during an era of fierce fast bowling despite having his head protected by nothing more than a modest, peaked cap, did indicate that modern batsmen had perhaps a more comfortable life compared to his duels with two of Australia's most aggressive quicks.

“We had nasty guys like Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee. You see the guys today, they've got a lid on and all that,” said Richards.

“If you'd asked the guys today to face Dennis Lillee today without a grille or a helmet they would find it quite hard.”

Richards, a member of the West Indies teams that won the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979, did not spring too many surprises when naming his team.

Perhaps his most contentious selection was going for Kumar Sangakkara as his wicket-keeper rather than Adam Gilchrist.

Vivian Richards's team of the World Cup: Matthew Hayden (Australia), Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka, wicket-keeper), Ricky Ponting (Australia, captain), Kevin Pietersen (England), Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka), Herschelle Gibbs (South Africa), Scott Styris (New Zealand), Shaun Tait (Australia), Shane Bond (New Zealand), Glenn McGrath (Australia), Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka).—AFP