The Spinning Geniuses of this generation – Part I
Muthiah Muralitharan's retirement means that all the three spinning greats of this generation have now retired from international cricket. So what was it about them that stood out?
Cricket has always been partial towards batsmen. Bowlers have never got their due. A hundred has always got more importance than a five wicket haul. But there are some who still come through all these partialities and shine like a bright diamond.
The 1990s saw the birth of three spinners who in the next ten years would chart a difference course and make a special place for them self in the history of cricket.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Muttiah-Muralitharan-c78157. All three of them were introduced to the twists and turns and challenges of international cricket in the early nineties itself.
While Kumble made his debut for India in April 1990, Warne and Muralitharan came to the international scene only by 1992. Interestingly Kumble made his foray into the world of cricket through a one-day international while the duo of Muralitharan and Warne started their playing careers through Test matches.
The three of them are spinners but very unique in their own way. While Kumble was always criticised for not being able to spin the ball much even after being a spinner, Warne on the other hand was such a great spinner of the ball that the batsmen had immense problems in reading his deliveries.
If one was to compare the statistics of these three players then Muralitharan would emerge as the finest. Both Warne and Muralitharan have taken more than 700 wickets in Test matches but Muralitharan managed to do it in much fewer matches.
While Muralitharan has taken 792 wickets in 132 matches, Warne managed to take 708 wickets in 145 matches. Kumble stands way below these two managing to take 619 wickets in 132 matches. While a feat that Kumble achieved the other two couldn’t. Kumble has the record of taking all ten wickets in an innings of a Test.
His best figures in Test stand at 14 for 149. The best of Muralitharan is 16 for 220 but he couldn’t reach the ten wicket mark in an innings and stopped at nine wickets. Lastly Warne has a best of 12 for 128 with a maximum of eight wickets in an innings.
But one thing that has always gone against Muralitharan is his performance against minnows Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. It is always said that the superior average and wickets of Muralitharan are primarily due to the fact that he has played many more matches against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747.
Statistically speaking Muralitharan has played 25 Tests against these two nations as compared to Warne’s three. In these 25 Tests Muralitharan has taken a staggering 176 wickets at an average of 15.09. While Warne has taken 17 wickets in the three matches that he has played against them. It can also be noted that the conditions in the sub-continent are much more spin friendly as compared to the rest of the globe.
Thus, the fact that Muralitharan has played majority of his matches in these favourable conditions can also go against him if a comparison between the two is done. But not everything is in the favour of this Sri Lankan legend. Muralitharan almost always had to carry the team on his shoulders alone.
He never got enough support from his seamers. Only http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 had one of the best bowling line-ups in the world. If he was there to handle the spin department then the likes of Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Brett Lee took care of fast bowling.
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