SA Footy

After having a debate with a Kiwi (of all people), we agonised over who is the better batsman-
Brian Lara
Sachin Tendulkar
Ricky Ponting

I have looked at their Test Stat's,
& present them for the jury to decide...

Brian Lara


Sachin Tendulkar


Ricky Ponting

In order i'd rank them:

1. Lara
2. Ponting
3. Tendulkar

There is so little between them though it is such a difficult debate. Lara for me though did such special things that defied belief more than the other two. His single handed carrying of an ordinary side was so impressive.

My quick summary-

Ponting has the stats
Lara had the class
Tendulkar has the timing

I also don't want to hear Ponting's stat's diminished either- Australia depsite being the #1 Test side by a mile didn't always have things their own way, & achieved their greatness in tough conditions.

Interesting to note Lara had only 6 Not Outs-one could presumably put this down to the fact that he had no faith in the tail, or could have the tendancy to throw away his wicket when he saw the writing on the wall?

Punk Rooster wrote:My quick summary-

Ponting has the stats
Lara had the class
Tendulkar has the timing

I also don't want to hear Ponting's stat's diminished either- Australia depsite being the #1 Test side by a mile didn't always have things their own way, & achieved their greatness in tough conditions.

Just look at the most recent test match to prove he isn't just a fairweather cricketer. The guy is a superstar and one of the truly great players of all time.

I went
the Little master
Ponting
Lara

1. Lara
2. Ponting
3. Tendulkar

Not much between them, but that's the way I see them.

One of Tendulkar's weakness (imo) was finding odd ways to get out.

Tough choice. Personally I'd take Ponting first, then Lara, then Tendulkar.

But if I thought about it again tomorrow I'd probably change the order, then change it again the next day!

Obviously something slightly off on the stats there Punky, 'cos I can't belive that Tendulkar never hit a 4 in Test Cricket!

Lara
Ponting
Tendulkar

That is the order for me. Lara is the one, IMO, that if he got to 40 then, more opposition sides would rather bowl to Ponting or Tendulkar than him as he was nearly unstoppable at his best.

Ponting
Lara
Tendulkar

That's my order!
Ponting is complete, i am still and will always be in awe of his pull shot! he has the best player IMO. Lara is a freak, he had the ability too convert the hundreds into big ones.Tendulkar is third on the list for me because i think he has only made 4 centuries in the second dig, and i guess that shows maybe he hasnt put in those extremely hard yards. He probably also made more scores between 100-120 then the othersi would think but im not 100% on that.

I went....

Tendulkar
Ponting
Lara


I haven't seen Lara play much and it was pretty close between Tendulkar and Ponting IMO.

hearts on fire wrote:I went....

Tendulkar
Ponting
Lara


I haven't seen Lara play much and it was pretty close between Tendulkar and Ponting IMO.

That's a shame but thanks to modern technology you have the opportunity of getting plenty of footage. Do yourself a favour and watch one of the greatest entertainers of all time. I'll never ever ever forget his 277 in Sydney. Brian Lara to me is the reason cricket was invented.

My best memory of Lara was seeing him hit Shane Warne onto the members stand roof at Adelaide Oval!

rod_rooster wrote:

hearts on fire wrote:I went....

Tendulkar
Ponting
Lara


I haven't seen Lara play much and it was pretty close between Tendulkar and Ponting IMO.

That's a shame but thanks to modern technology you have the opportunity of getting plenty of footage. Do yourself a favour and watch one of the greatest entertainers of all time. I'll never ever ever forget his 277 in Sydney. Brian Lara to me is the reason cricket was invented.

It is very very close, all three are legends of the game, but thats from what i have seen. Your right though, i really do need to have a look at some footage of Lara and watch arguably the best batsmen of the modern era doing his business.

hearts on fire wrote:

rod_rooster wrote:

hearts on fire wrote:I went....

Tendulkar
Ponting
Lara


I haven't seen Lara play much and it was pretty close between Tendulkar and Ponting IMO.

That's a shame but thanks to modern technology you have the opportunity of getting plenty of footage. Do yourself a favour and watch one of the greatest entertainers of all time. I'll never ever ever forget his 277 in Sydney. Brian Lara to me is the reason cricket was invented.

It is very very close, all three are legends of the game, but thats from what i have seen. Your right though, i really do need to have a look at some footage of Lara and watch arguably the best batsmen of the modern era doing his business.

Watch his 277 in Sydney and that's a start. Lara more than anyone else was able to play epic innings. His concentration and excellence is beyond peer. Look at Ponting and Tendulkar, they are outstanding but neither has ever been able to get near Lara's best first class score or best test score. Lara isn't the best batsman to ever play the game but he has second place all to his own IMHO. His nickname is the "Prince" Bradman was the "King".

In terms of results and consistency, it probably has to be Punter (as much as Im not a fan of the bloke) ... Batted on less "roads" I would have thought too.

Personally I reckon the other two are more aesthetically pleasing (although only just), but I'd base it on the bottom line as such, and that would lead me to Licky Ponting.

another point that favours Ponting-
Lara & Tendulkar were standouts in (arguably) poorly performed sides.
Ponting became a force amongst some very decent batsmen, in a time when Australia dominated World Cricket

What about the position in which the three batters played for most of there careers???
Ponting has batted at three for a considerable amount of time, im unable to recall who he replaced as the long term number 3 but he has been doing it for some time.Tendulkar has batted in a lot of positions that also favours him i guess, and lara im not sure where he batted for the majority of his innings! I would suspect four or five because if they exposed him early and he failed they were stuffed! Ponting also improved when he captained, as his stats prove, and the others im not sure what there stats show but i would think that they did not improve like pontings did. (and i know that doesnt mean he is a better batsman because his record improved under his leadership)

CoverKing wrote:What about the position in which the three batters played for most of there careers???
Ponting has batted at three for a considerable amount of time, im unable to recall who he replaced as the long term number 3

Give or take a few overnight stayers, was it the great man Booney?

I think you'd be right there CP, Ponting debuted in 95, which i think was approximately the year Boony retired.