Top Ten Indian Cricket Players of All Time

India is one of the most popular names in cricket world. They have huge fan following across the world. This South-Asian cricket team has so far won two ICC ODI World Cup and the inaugural T20 World Cup trophies. They have given birth to many talented cricketers and are still continue producing great players.
Here, I have made a list of ten Indian cricket players including batsman, bowler, and wicket-keeper. Players have been chosen based on their performance and contribution to national cricket team.
If readers think that we could add some important information then they can help us by putting that information in the comment section.

Sachin Tendulkar:
It is hard to find anyone who hasn’t heard the name of this legendary player. Sachin Tendulkar who is affectionately called Little Master by his fans is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. The 39-year-old Tendulkar made his international debut in 1989 and still continue playing cricket. In his twenty-two years of cricket career, he has achieved many records in both Test and one-day international cricket. He is the highest run scorer and highest centurion in both format of the cricket game. So far he has scored 15470 runs in Test and 18426 runs in ODI respectively. He is the only player to reach the milestone of scoring a hundred centuries, including 51 centuries in Test and 49 centuries in ODI. He is also the only player to score fifty centuries in Test cricket.
He is the first player to have scored double century in ODI cricket. He is also the first player to cross 10000 runs in one day cricket.
Sachin Tendulkar is called the God of cricket. For his batting technique, he is compared with another legend cricketer, Sir Don Bradman. He was the member of 2011 ICC World Cup winning team.
Indian government honoured him with the Padma Vibhushan award, India's second highest civilian award, and the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India's highest sporting honour. Currently, he has been nominated for receiving the Bharat Ratna award.
Besides playing cricket he is involved in some social activities. He helps many charity organizations. He is a passionate follower of Sathya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi.

Sunil Gavaskar:
Sunil Gavaskar is undoubtedly one of the greatest players in the history of cricket game. This former Indian cricketer is considered as one of the greatest opening batsmen in cricket history. He made his international debut in 1971 and played cricket for sixteen years. In his career, he has achieved many records including the most Test runs and most Test centuries scored by any batsman. His record of 34 Test centuries was unbroken for almost two decades until it was broken by Sachin Tendulkar in December 2005.
He is the first player who has scored more than 10,000 runs in Test cricket. Playing 125 Test matches, he has scored 10122 runs with an average of 51.12 with a career best of unbeaten 236 runs. Since making his ODI debut in 1974, he played 108 matches and scored 3092 runs with an average of 35.13. He scored just one century in ODI format of cricket game.
Sunil Gavaskar was well known for his batting style against fast bowling. He will be memorable for his unbeaten 103 performance in 1983 World Cup which India won. He was not a good captain and under his captaincy India went 31 matches without a victory.

Kapil Dev:
Former Indian captain, Kapil Dev, should be considered not only as one of the best cricketers but also the best captains in the history of Indian cricket. He successfully led his team to a first World Cup victory in 1983 where they defeated West Indies by 43 runs at Lord's, London. The well-known cricket magazine, Wisden, named him as the Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002. Not only that but also he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame on 8 March 2010.
Kapil Dev was a good all rounder. Since making his Test debut in 1978, he played 131 matches and scored 5248 runs at an average of 31.05 with the career best of 163. With the ball, he took 434 and became the highest wicket taker before it was broken by Courtney Walsh in 2000. Till then, he was India’s highest wicket taker in both major forms of cricket, Test and ODI.
He is the only player who has taken more than 400 wickets and more than 5000 runs in Test cricket. This performance made him one of the greatest all-rounders to have played the game. After him, we cannot find anyone who can touch or break his record set as an all-rounder.

Anil Kumble:
Anil Kumble is regarded as one of the greatest Indian cricketers. This right-arm leg spin bowler is still the leading wicket-taker for India in both Test and one-day international. Of all bowlers, he is the third highest wicket taker after Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne in Test cricket. He is one of only three bowlers who have taken more than 600 Test wickets in the oldest format of cricket game.
Playing 132 Tests, he took 619 wickets. He is one of the two bowlers to have taken ten wickets in an innings. He claimed this rare achievement against Pakistan in the second Test played in Delhi between 4 and 8 February 1999. He got 337 wickets in 271 ODI matches.
He guided Indian cricket team for few home and away series. He got the Test captaincy on November 2007 and succeeded Rahul Dravid. His captaincy was the combination of both success and failure. He announced his retirement from cricket on 2 November 2008. In 2005, Indian government honoured him with Padma Shri award, the fourth highest civilian honour, for his contribution to Indian cricket for 18 years.

Rahul Dravid:
If you are a fan of Indian cricket team then you should agree with me regarding the inclusion of Rahul Dravid in the list of best Indian cricketers of all time. He has all the qualities to be in the list. Rahul Dravid who is widely called “The Wall of Indian cricket” for his passionate batting style is considered as the last classical batsman. In his cricket career, he has achieved many records. He is the third highest Test run scorer after Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting. He is the second Indian batsman to have scored more than 12000 runs in International cricket. He has also more than 10000 runs in ODI cricket.
He has the record of having taken the highest number of catches in Test cricket. He took more than 200 catches and surpassed the Australian legend Mark Waugh. In 2000, he was included as one of the top-five Wisden Cricketers of the Year. In 2004, in the inaugural award ceremony ICC awarded him the ICC Player of the Year and the Test Player of the Year.
On 9 March 2012, this passionate cricketer announced his retirement from all forms of cricket game with the BCCI president, N Srinivasan and former captain Anil Kumble at a press conference in Bangalore.
It would be hard for Indian selectors to get someone who could fill up the game in the national team.

Sourav Ganguly:
The former Indian cricketer, Sourav Ganguly, is undoubtedly one of the most successful captains in the history of Indian cricket. Under his captaincy, the Indian cricket team reached to a high level and represented India in a new image. He got huge reputation as a captain. He led the Indian cricket team into the 2003 World Cup final where they lost to Australia.
He is the sixth highest run scorer in One Day Internationals and is the third Indian cricketer to cross the 10000-run landmark along with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. He was ranked the sixth ODI batsman of all time after Viv Richards, Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Dean Jones and Michael Bevan.
Since making his Test debut in 1996, he has played 113 Test matches and scored 7212 runs at an average of 42.17 including 16 centuries and 35 half-centuries. He made his ODI debut in 1992 and played 311 matches where he scored 11363 runs at an average of 41.02 with a career best of 183.
He was given captaincy in 2000 and did his job successfully. He was dropped from his post in 2005 due to his dispute with Coach Greg Chappell and because of his indifference in his career. He was drafted with Rahul Dravid. He took retirement from all forms of cricket in 2008 after a home Test series against Australia.

Mohammed Azharuddin:
Mohammad Azharuddin was not only a good cricketer but also one of the most successful Indian captains. He set a record of leading the Indian cricket team to 103 ODI matches which was broken by Sourav Ganguly under him Indian cricket team won more Test matches. However, Azharuddin will be well remembered to his fans as the best captain that Indian team had in ODI. He could play cricket for more years if his career did not end up due to the match fixing reasons.
He made his international debut in 1985. Playing 99        Tests, he scored 6215 runs at an average of 45.03. He played 334 ODI matches and scored 9378 runs at an average of 36.92.
He will always be remembered for his batting style which was comparable to that of his English contemporary, David Gower and Australian batsman Greg Chappell. He was best when it came to wrist flicker shot. He was good against spin bowlers.
Mohammad Azharuddin is not involved with cricket anymore. He is now a political leader. He is a member of the Indian National Congress. He won election from the Moradabad constituency of Uttar Pradesh to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni:
Mahendra Singh Dhoni will undoubtedly be regarded as one of the most successful Indian captains till date. Under his captaincy, India won two World Cup trophies- the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 and the 2011 Cricket World Cup. He led the Indian cricket team to get the maiden T20 World Cup trophy beating Pakistan in the final match and regain the World Cup trophy after 28 years.
Under his captaincy, the Indian cricket team has claimed some remarkable achievements that the previous captains could not do during their captaincy. Dhoni led the Indian cricket team at the top position of the ICC Test rankings for the first time.
At the time of his captaincy, Indian cricket team looks much stronger than previous and they are performing well both in home and away. He has been added in Time magazine’s “Time 100” list of 100 most influential people of 2011.
He has become the first Indian player to get the ICC ODI Player of the Year award in 2008 and 2009. He also got the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award. In 2009, he was honoured with the Padma Shri award, India’s fourth highest civilian honour by government.
He was given captaincy of India Twenty 20 squad for the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 held in South Africa in September 2007 and still now he is the captain of national cricket team.

Vijay Hazare:
Vijay Hazare died many years ago but he is still remembered for leading the Indian cricket team to its first ever Test win in 1951-52 against England at Madras. He was selected captain of Indian cricket team in 1951 and led the national side for two years in 14 matches.
Since making his Test debut in 1946, he has played 30 matches and scored 2192 runs at an average of 47.65 including seven hundreds and nine half-centuries. In his short cricket career, he has achieved so many records. He has very good record in first-class record. Playing 238 first-class matches, he has scored 18740 runs at an average of 58.38 with the inclusion of 60 century and 73 half-century.
He is the first Indian player to score a triple century in first class cricket. He is also the first Indian cricketer to score back to back century of a Test match. He also made a highest 577-run partnership with Gul Mahomed for any wicket in first-class cricket.
Indian government showed honour with a trophy in his name, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, a zonal-cricket tournament in India. He and Jasu Patel were the first cricketers to be honoured with the Padma Shri award.

V. V. S. Laxman:
V. V. S. Laxman is a well-known Indian cricketer. This tall middle-order batsman has got huge popularity for his passionate batting style. He along with Rahul Dravid and some other batsmen helped to strengthen the middle order batting line up.
He has a very good record against Australia. Out of his 17 Test hundreds, he has scored six centuries against Australia. In his ODI career, he has scored 4 out of 6 centuries. He has two double-centuries in Test cricket and both of them have come against Australia.
Laxman is a regular member in Indian Test squad. The 37-year-old player has so far played 134 Test matches where he scored 8781 runs at an average of 45.97. He is not an ODI specialist and that is why, he is not selected in the shorter format of cricket game. However, he has so far played 86 ODIs and scored 2338 runs at an average of 30.76.
He will be remembered for his career best innings of 281 at Kolkata which helped the home side to get an impossible victory against Australia. He also made a record partnership of 376 with Rahul Dravid and they together survived the whole fourth day.

Top Ten Australian Cricket Players of All Time

Cricket is the most popular sports in Australia. They have the most successful team in the world and they have won the World Cup 4 times. Naturally they have produced some outstanding players and some of them are really outstanding. Here, I have made a list of top ten Australian players of all time. I hope that you would agree to at least 50% of the players that I have included here. You are most welcome to let me know your opinions in the comment section.

Sir Donald Bradman:

The Australian batting legend, Sir Donald Bradman, should be included first in the list of best Australian cricketers of all time and there is no doubt about his position. If we consider him great among the Australian cricketers then it should be wrong because he is the greatest batsman of the world who ever lived as well as the greatest cricketer of the 20^th century.

What helped him get such prestigious position is his career Test batting average of 99.94 which has been marked as the greatest achievement in any major sports. In his two decades of cricket career, he played just 52 Tests where he scored 6996 runs with 29 centuries and 13 half-centuries.

He is perhaps the only player who has more than double Test centuries than half centuries. Apart from his batting average record, he also holds the record for the most double centuries (12) and triple centuries (2). With scoring 974 runs, he became the most run scorer in one-series.

Had he been a player of today and played with today’s bat and pitch then he would get more runs, money and popularity.

Shane Warne:

There is no need to give any explanation about this veteran bowler. If we look at his bowling records in both Test and ODI cricket format then we can easily understand why he is called as one of the greatest bowlers in the history of cricket game. This right-arm leg-spinner showed how much a ball can turn. With his prodigious turn, he deceived many veteran players like Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar of his time.

Shane Warne also kept a very important role in the victory against competitive teams like Pakistan, South Africa and England. However, Shane Warne did not do well in India and it might give him pain.

Since making his debut in Test cricket in 1992, he has played 145 Tests and taken 708 wickets which was the record for the most wickets taken by any bowler in Test cricket until it was broken by Muttiah Muralitharan.

Playing 194 ODI games, he got 293 wickets but he will be remembered for his performances in the 1996 and 1999 world cup semi-finals. His 5-wicket spell in the 1996 world cup and in the 1999 world cup helped his team to get impossible victory.

Steve Waugh

History of Australian cricket will be incomplete without Steve Waugh. He was a great allrounder and perhaps the greatest captain of all time. Under his captaincy, Australia won 15 consecutive matches and it is a record that speaks for itself. He scored 10,927 playing in 168 test matches. He achieved a lot but he failed to get a series win in Indian soil. Of course, it is a very difficult thing to achieve for any touring side.

Adam Gilchrist:

The former Australian wicketkeeper has got huge recognition for his aggressive batting. He is undoubtedly one of the greatest entertainers in the ODI format of cricket game. He entertained the cricket fans with the bat. Making his international debut in 1996, he has played 96 Tests and 287 ODI matches and scored respectively 5570 and 9619 at an average of 47.60 and 35.89.

Adam Gilchrist is regarded as the greatest wicketkeeper-batsman of all time. As like his batting, he was more effective behind the wicket. In ODI, he has 417 catches and 55 stamping while in Test, he took 379 catches with 37 stamping.

It is really hard to get any player like him and still no one could void his place in the Australian cricket team.

Glenn McGrath

Glenn McGrath was not the fastest bowler on the pitch when he played but he surely was the most successful fast bowler and his record of 641 wickets in test cricket is yet to be surpassed by any fast bowler. Of course, ahead of McGrath, there are 3 bowlers with more test wickets but all 3 of them are spinners not pacers. It was his accuracy that killed the opponents. He played in 124 test matches- a rare achievement for a fast bowler. He played an important role in the World Cup tournaments of 1999, 2003 and 2007 and you know that Australia won all 3 of them.

Ricky Ponting

What an eventful career Ricky Ponting had? He won World Cup in 1999 as a player and then in 2003 and 2007 as a captain. So, he played crucial roles in these 3 successive championships for Australia in World Cup Cricket. Well, not only Ricky Ponting was a great captain but he was also a great individual player. He got 12,913 runs in 160 test matches and 13,686 runs in 370 ODIs. So, you see that Ponting was equally successful in both ODI and Test Cricket. He took 188 and 157 catches respectively in Test and ODI.

Allan Border

Allan Border started playing for Australian cricket team at a time when a number of their top players were almost out of their prime. So, he had to become captain at a difficult time but this was the best thing happened to the team and for himself as well. Under his captaincy, the greatest moment for Australian cricket came in 1987 world cup as they become the champion for the first time. Under his captaincy, Australia won many things in many places but not a series win in the West Indies. Who cares for that? Border scored 11174 in 156 test matches and it was a world record that time. He is first great captain for Australia and his captaincy laid the foundation of Aussie supremacy in cricket for years to come.

Dennis Lillee

The people of this generation may know much about Dennis Lillee but he was a fearsome fast bowler and any batsmen in front of him was afraid to face him. It was a nerve wrecking experience for any batsman in the world facing this great Australian bowler. In just 70 test matches, he captured 355 wickets and it was a world record that time. On 23 occasions, he got 5 or more wickets in an innings. In first class cricket, he captured 882 wickets. We have to remember the matter that Denis Lillee played at a time when West Indies fast bowlers dominated but Lillee just never ever knew to give up on becoming the best.

Mark Waugh

I often feel that Mark Waugh got somewhat overshadowed by his twin brother Steve Waugh. After all, he scored 8029 in 128 test matches and 8500 in 244 ODIs. By the way, he was a prolific run scorer in first class matches too with 26855 from 368 FC matches and he was a decent par time bowler too. He together with his brother Steve helped to take Australia to the number one team for years during the 1990s. Oh, I forgot to say that Mark Waugh was perhaps one of the top 3 slip fielders of all time. If you don’t agree with me then what you will say about his 181 test catches? It is not a small feat my friend.

Richie Benaud

To be honest, I wanted to include Mark Taylor in this top ten list and I am sure that his fans won’t be happy for omitting him. However, I felt that I simply cannot just leave Richie Benaud alone. He was a good batsman and spin bowler, he was a better captain but he was one of the greatest figures in cricket. In fact, he has devoted his life to cricket and he is one of the greatest commentators of the game.

Ireland Clinched a Historic Victory over England in World Cup Cricket 2011

Ireland secured an incredible 3-wicket victory over England in Bangalore, India today in a group B match of the ongoing World Cup 2011. A record-breaking innings of 113 off 63 by Kevin O’Brien helped Ireland to successfully chase down England’s big total of 327 runs.

Winning the toss, England captain Andrew Strauss decided to bat first and his batsmen proved his decision true with their sensible batting. After a 91-run opening partnership between Strauss and Pietersen, England’s middle order built on the momentum given by the openers. Pietersen played a good innings of 59 off just 50 balls. Strauss’ 37-ball innings came to an end when he was played on by Dockrell on 34.

Trott and Bell added 167 runs for the third wickets. Trott missed his hundred just for 8 runs, while Bell fell on 81. Despite having a good platform given by the top order batsmen, England’s lower middle order failed to score quickly in the slog overs. After 50 overs, England could score 327 runs, losing 8 wickets.

In reply, Ireland did not have a good start as they lost Porterfield’s wickets in the first ball of the innings. At one stage, Ireland was struggling at 111 for 5, leaving Kevin O’Brien and Alex Cusack in the wicket.

Kevin and Cusack then pulled the string for Ireland, contributing 162 runs off just 103 runs for the sixth wickets. Kevin literally steamrolled the English bowling attack with his magnificent innings. Here, it is noteworthy that he made the record for fastest hundred in World Cup by reaching three figures in 50 balls.

Cusack missed the half-century just for 3 runs, but his 58-ball innings played a big role in Irish victory. Later on, Mooney’s unbeaten 33 off 30 balls ensured Ireland’s triumph.

Among the English bowlers, only Graeme Swann could show some resistance, picking up 3 wickets for 47 runs.

Kevin O’Brien was man of the match for his extraordinary innings.

Bowling: A Cause of Concern for India in World Cup 2011

India is considered as one of the favorites in the ongoing World Cup Cricket 2011. They started off very well, clinching a big-margin victory over Bangladesh in the opening match. However, their weak bowling was brutally exposed by the English batsmen on Sunday as England tied India’s total of 338 runs.

No Indian bowlers could dominate over the English batsmen. In fact, most of them even failed to show any resistance against Strauss and Bell, let alone dominance. What was clear from India’s bowling performance is that they must consider a plan B with their bowling attack.

Even against Bangladesh Indian bowlers were not at their best and it was only India’s batting that ensured an easy victory that day. If Nehra is fit, he should be brought in the next game against Ireland.

For spin attack, Yusuf Pathan cannot be a reliable spinner you can trust for 10 overs regularly. His batting could be effective in the batting power-plays, but it did not happen in many matches. More than that, there is no use of carrying an extra batsman when you bowlers are conceding all the runs scored by your batsmen. So, the ultimate solution is to play an extra spinner, and thus, increasing maximum spin options for Dhoni.

Overall, I think, India should play Ravichandran Ashwin alongside Harbhajan and Chawla at the cost of a batsman.

Kemar Roach Guided West Indies to a Commanding Win over Netherlands

Pacer Kemar Roach’s six wickets including a hat-trick guided West Indies to a 215-run victory in a group match of the World Cup Cricket 2011 in Delhi on Monday.

Winning the toss Netherlands sent West Indies to bat first. The Caribbean side put 330 runs on the scoreboard losing 8 wickets after 50 overs thanks to three half-centuries from Chris Gayle, Devon Smith and Kieron Pollard. In reply, Netherlands got all out for 115 runs after 31.3 overs with Roach finishing 6 for 27.

West Indies got a good start as the two openers- Smith and Gayle- brought 100 runs in the opening partnership. Gayle scored 80 runs, while Smith got out for 53. Pollard then played a blistering innings of 60 off just 27 balls, hitting five 4s and four 6s. Seelar took 3 wickets for the Dutch side.

Except Tom Cooper, who scored 55 off 72 balls, no other Canadian batsmen showed any resistance against the Caribbean bowlers. Besides Roach’s 6 wickets, Benn also picked up 3 wickets for West Indies.

Kemar Roach got the man of the match award for his match winning bowling performance.

Zimbabwe Defeated Canada by 175 Runs in World Cup Cricket 2011

Zimbabwe clinched a 175-run victory over Canada today at Nagpur in India in a group A match of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2011. Batting first, Zimbabwe scored 298 runs losing 9 wickets after 50 overs. In reply, Canada got all out only for 123 runs after 42.1 overs.

Zimbabwe did not have a good start as they lost 2 wickets at 7, but Tatenda Taibu and Craig Ervine led Zimbabwe towards a big total, adding 181 runs for the third wicket. Taibu fell just 2 short of his hundred off Balaji Rao and Ervine scored 85 runs. After that Williams’ 30, Cremer’s 26 and Utseya’s 22 guided Zimbabwe to 298 runs. Balaji Rao picked up 4 wickets for Canada.

Chasing big total, Canadian batsmen could not show any resistance against the Zimbabwean bowlers. Gunasekera’s 24 was the highest score in Canada’s innings. Raymond Price and Graeme Cremer shared 3 wickets each for Zimbabwe.

Tatenda Taibu was adjudged man of the match for his match winning innings.