Bradman is the greatest

By Ted Corbett

LONDON, APRIL 5. Sir Donald Bradman has been chosen - unanimously, of course - as the greatest cricketer of the last century in a poll conducted among the game's great and good by the bible of cricket, Wisden Cricketers Almanack, for the edition which marks the year 2000. The same edition, which was published on Tuesday, unveils the Five Cricketers of the Century: Bradman, Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Jack Hobbs, Sir Vivian Richards and Shane Warne.

They were chosen by a unique electorate of 100 jurists from all nine Test-playing countries. In order of votes cast, the Wisden Five, who between them played Test cricket in every decade of the century, are Bradman 100 votes, Sobers 90, Hobbs 30, Warne 27 and Richards 25.

The 100 have achieved one feat that even the run machine Bradman could not sustain. When he was bowled by an Eric Hollies googly for nought in his final Test at the Oval in 1948 his average dropped to 99.94; 52 years on he has at last topped the century. How much satisfaction that gave the man who is living out his retirement, aged 92, in a small home in Adelaide, was not immediately obvious yesterday. He is a notoriously publicity-shy man.

There can be no argument that Bradman dominated 20th century cricket for all that single statistical blip. Not only did he score his runs much as he pleased, with 117 centuries and a highest first class score of 452 not out, but he was so popular that he was mobbed wherever he went much as pop stars are today, every word he uttered assumed monumental importance and the Bodyline tactic, specially designed to curb his brilliance, almost wrenched the Empire apart.

After his retirement he filled a variety of roles within the game, he was feted by every Australian Prime Minister and he took time out to raise the standard of every Australian captain who followed him. Bradman was a unique cricketer, beyond ordinary words to evaluate. He restricted his stroke play to a pull - his all- purpose destructive weapon - a late cut and what was once described to me as ``a sort of off hit.''

This strange assembly of strokes, allied to a quick eye, a rapid assessment of length and speedy footwork brought him 6,994 Test runs, 29 Test centuries and the respect of every thinking cricketer.

I once asked the great Dennis Lillee if he thought Bradman had been a great batsman in an era of poor bowlers, unthinking captains and rock hard batsmen's pitches.

``A lot of other guys played in the same conditions and they did not make half the impact,'' Lillee replied.

Even among the other four in the top five most people would argue in favour of Sobers' brilliant stroke play, Hobbs' mastery of every shot and Richard's ability to reduced great bowlers to gibbering trundlers. But none of those four could consistently make huge scores and that is why Bradman has such an image 50 years after his retirement that no-one will even try to think up a competitor for his new title.

Warne is the only one of the Five without a knighthood to his name. Perhaps the Queen is waiting for the end of his race to be the first bowler to take 500 Test wickets. By the time he hangs up his boots he will be universally described as the greatest bowler who ever lived and rightly so too.

The arguments will come about the minor places behind Bradman. Why was there no place for Ian Botham among the Five is already the cry in England? In India questions are already being asked about the absence of Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev; Pakistan's commentators will demand a recount so that Javed Miandad and Imran Khan can join the distinguished list; and New Zealanders think it strange that Sir Richard Hadlee is missing. There is no West Indies fast bowler apart from Sobers who bowled anything and everything; and South Africans will wonder why they have not yet produced anyone who can truly claim to be one of the 20th century greats.

India's Rahul Dravid is one of the Five Cricketers of the Year also announced on Monday. For only the fifth time since 1889 (1949, 1962, 1982 and 1997) the selection includes no English player, a reflection of their current low standing.

Alongside Dravid are Chris Cairns (New Zealand); Lance Klusener (South Africa); Tom Moody (Australia) and Saqlain Mushtaq (Pakistan).

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