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Three greatest knocks in WC history

DesiChap

By DesiChap
in Cricket Talk

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DesiChap Newbie

DesiChap

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Three greatest knocks in WC history 2007022409902201.jpg Great batting performances require pleasing the romantics as well as those with a cold-blooded tendency to numerate greatness. The difference between a good knock and a great one is that the latter trivialises the stage, situation, wicket, opposition, and result. Slotting it in history is where the numbers figure. Fortunately, the knocks of Kapil Dev, Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards (all batting first) make the task simpler for all, with their respective acts of sporting violence having met with victory. Mythical mystique Kapil's unbeaten 175 off 138 balls against Zimbabwe (1983) has a mythical mystique to its aura, that comes with untelevised feats. One can only imagine the situation; walking in at nine for four, and dealing with Peter Rawson's tricky bounce on a damp Kent wicket. Reliving his audacious on-drive that cleared the ropes, his crisp pull-shots, 16 fours, six sixes (Kevin Curran bore the brunt of successive ones), square cuts and lofts over long-on and mid-wicket will require skimming through yellowing newsprint. The Zimbabwean attack in 1983 was far from the shambolic state that it is in now. With the score at 17 for five, India needed someone who could go berserk, throw a sizable measure of caution to the winds that blew through Tunbridge Wells, and still make it seem the most sensible thing to do. He completely let loose in the final 11 overs, scoring at will. It was an innings that set the tone for India's triumph, which eventually changed the face of cricket in India. Four years earlier in the final against England, Collis King lived out the then unthinkable ? briefly turning Richards into an accumulator ? while he played destroyer. For his 66-ball 86, King produced a sort of savagery that one would have expected from Richards. Richards was not his usual self upfront, but did well in gathering the runs, while the wickets fell at the other end. Stamp of authority Richards scored 138 off 157 balls, with three sixes and 11 fours. He encouraged King to go hammer and tongs, but the great man was never meant for secondary glory on a stage as big as the World Cup final. A six over square leg off the last ball of the innings closed the issue. The image of a bespectacled and slightly hunchbacked Clive Lloyd didn't quite sync with an 85-ball 102, but his century in the 1975 final against Australia was a prophetic statement on the brandish that one-day cricket would eventually turn into. What added to his knock's stature was that there were no fielding restrictions then, which meant he pierced through restrictively-positioned fielders for his twelve fours. He cleared the ropes twice; including a hook off Dennis Lillee, after walking in at 50 for three. Other great knocks The later World Cups did have their share of great performances, like Aravinda de Silva's genius in 1996, Inzamam-ul-Haq's 37-ball mayhem in '92, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid's 1999 Taunton demolition, Lance Klusener's '99 bolters, Steve Waugh's characteristic hundred in the same year, Dave Houghton's pyrrhic pyrotechnics in 1987 and Ricky Ponting's brilliance in the 2003 final. But the individual greatness and other parameters tilt the balance in favour of Kapil, Lloyd and Richards. For its all-pervading nationalistic impact and the ferocity of the innings, Kapil's 175 will live on for ever even if just through folklore.

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yoda Newbie

yoda

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Re: Three greatest knocks in WC history

yep that 98 in 03 was special however don't think it is among the 3 greatest knocks.
I agree. But I meant this para:
The later World Cups did have their share of great performances, like Aravinda de Silva's genius in 1996, Inzamam-ul-Haq's 37-ball mayhem in '92, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid's 1999 Taunton demolition, Lance Klusener's '99 bolters, Steve Waugh's characteristic hundred in the same year, Dave Houghton's pyrrhic pyrotechnics in 1987 and Ricky Ponting's brilliance in the 2003 final. But the individual greatness and other parameters tilt the balance in favour of Kapil, Lloyd and Richards.
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ViVeriUniversumVivusVici Newbie

ViVeriUniversumVivusVici

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Re: Three greatest knocks in WC history if i had to select the three very best knocks i d have to go with: 1. Kapil Dev's 175 versus Zimbabwe in 1983 2. Sanath Jayasuriya's 70 odd versus Indian in 1996 (league game) 3. Andrew Symond's 130 odd versus Pakistan in 2003. while the first and the last were scored of characters that belonged to a motley crew of unpredictable geniuses, with their backs to the wall and one hand wielding a bat and the other a shield, it was jayasuriya's knock against india while chasing a target which by then contemporary standards was a mammoth one. moreover, jayasuriya's knock had a massive psychological impact that forced gullible Mr. Azharrudin into choosing to field on a turning wicket at eden gardens in the semi final, and thereby surrendering the world cup!

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ViVeriUniversumVivusVici Newbie

ViVeriUniversumVivusVici

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Re: Three greatest knocks in WC history

srt's 98 in terms of quality' date=' perfection and aesthetics was no 1 :lol:[/quote']Yep, although haven't seen Kapil's or Richard's knocks.
save for the audience present at the 1983 india versus zimbabwe encounter, none have for it was deemed as such a low key match between an associate nation (zimbabwe) and a punch bag (india) that channel 9 skipped on the obligation to dispatch a camera crew. incredibly the greatest knock in the world cup, if not all of one day cricket has been lost to history. only the memories remain and soon those would come to pass too as that particular generation of cricketers depart from this planet.
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ViVeriUniversumVivusVici Newbie

ViVeriUniversumVivusVici

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Re: Three greatest knocks in WC history

O yeah :doh: missed that To me that knock was better then Devs as similar match circumstance but of course calibre of oppo was better
exactly. the pakistani bowling attack was much more superior than that of zimbabwe and moreover, symmonds had 10 overs less than dev. but what i admire about dev is that he returned to bowl his 12 overs and was rather handy.
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