G. D. McGrath - An unbeaten century

[Nikhil]

And what a great one at that!!

I put my hand up and declare him the best fast bowler of my generation, which he undisputedly is. He is playing his 100th test match in Nagpur and thus has become only the seventh (correct me if I'm wrong here) Aussie player to do so.

A very economical and almost perfect action has allowed him to play 100 tests on pigeon legs, while most fast bowlers could only dream to do so. It's not only the action that's economical, the bowling is as economical as one can imagine. Hitting the top of off is his speciality. Even though the speed has decresed as age has caught up, he is still far from finished. He's still the best seamer around, one certainly worth making more than a hundred appearances for Australia.

Career stats:

(6 ball overs)       Mat    O       R   W   BBI    BBM     Ave  Econ    SR  5 10

overall               99  3882    9695 446  8/38  10/27   21.73  2.49   52.2 24  3

[Mike Small]

No disrespect he is a great fast bowler but I'd be celebrating the day he hangs up his boots, he's been a real pain in the ass for many teams.

[Milo]

He has clearly now done enough to silence a lot of the opinions that he is 'way past his best' and 'will never return from this injury'. Give him a helpful pitch and he will still run through you. Give him a batting paradise and he will go at 2 an over.

The best fast bowler in the world? Yes, I think we can still say that.

[Maranello]

Milo, a slight correction...on the batting paradise today..he went at less than 1 an over!

McGrath's figures in his 100th test:

20-12-18-2

and one of the two wickets was the Indian skipper, Dravid...

He definitely is the premier fast bowler in the world when fit and on song... not sure how long he will be around for though!

[Ernest]

Originally Posted by Maranello

He definitely is the premier fast bowler in the world when fit and on song... not sure how long he will be around for though!

Well this is a good point, at his age, just how long can he keep going, and steer clear of injury.

Ern

[Shaka]

If one bowler epitomises the mantra that pace is not everything it's this guy. Umar Gul has described him as the bowler he tries to model himself on and i wish we had a few more who could try and learn some of the basics from bowlers like this! A classic action and a lifetimes resluts to back up his pedigree.

[Maranello]

That's a good point Shaka...in fact, Umar Gul's exploits on Day 1 of the Lahore Test, when he took 5 of the key Indian batsmen for 30 odd runs (in 12 overs), were compared to McGrath at his best by many observers...read below:

It is difficult to see how Gul could have bowled any better. The pitch offered some movement, had consistent bounce, and the best strategy for a medium pacer was just to land it on a good length in the corridor, relentlessly, and the wickets would come. Easier said than done, but Gul did it. Of the 44 balls he bowled before lunch (seven overs, with two no-balls; he took 3 for 14 in that time), 41 pitched just outside off stump, and two pitched on off – a McGrathesque corridor line. And what of the remaining two? Well, they were bowled to the left-hander, Yuvraj, and pitched outside leg stump and angled across him. No bad balls in that lot.

To add to his metronomic accuracy, Gul moved the ball both ways, and kept the batsmen guessing. Virender Sehwag was out to one that left him, and Sachin Tendulkar was lbw to one that came in sharply. VVS Laxman, who had been troubled by Shabbir Ahmed's incoming balls in the one-day series, was well sorted out by Gul, as a series of incutters was followed by one that went away, which Laxman followed like an ardent lover, and edged.

[Shaka]

Umar was the one bowler I was really pinning my hopes on in Australia later this year. His height and ability to get lift and seam movement would have been perfect for Aussie pitches. It would have been good to see how he fared in comparison to his mentor McGrath...except of course he'd be bowling to a much better class of batsmen so it would be more difficult

[Beny]

Originally Posted by Ernest 22694

Well this is a good point, at his age, just how long can he keep going, and steer clear of injury.

Ern

McGrath rekons he wants to be playing for at least another 2 years and there is no reason why he shouldent.

[Maranello]

Originally Posted by Beny

McGrath rekons he wants to be playing for at least another 2 years and there is no reason why he shouldent.

2 years is a long time, a lot of variables...and a lot can happen...age catching up...form...fitness...staying injury free etc

So I will give him only a 50-50 chance of still being one of the world's top three bowlers in Oct 2006...