HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: ksrao@power.ee.ndsu.nodak.edu
Subject: More about IRC
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 14:44:08 GMT
Reply-To: ksrao@power.ee.ndsu.nodak.edu
Organization: North Dakota Higher Education Computing Network

        I have IRC executibles and relevant file in ftp anonymous directory for
the persons interested to grab and play with.

        They are available by anonymous ftp from power.ee.ndsu.nodak.edu
After you get logged in go the irc subdirectory by typing:
cd [.irc]    -      note the period before irc and the square brackets. They
are REQUIRED. The following file will tell you what to do after that.

       In this directory there are irc executibles and some other files for VMS
and Unix systems.

VMS Systems:

      If the transport you are using is CMU TCP/IP, grab the file irc-cmu.exe
in binary mode. 

      If the transport you are using is UCX, grab the file irc-ucx in binary
mode.

      In both cases, running the .exe file will put you into Internet Relay
Chat (IRC).

      If the transport you are using is different from the above two, gram
irc173a.com in ASCII mode, and run that .com file. When asked for the name of the
server, give the name as   ucsd.edu   and an .exe file is created. You will be
in IRC by running that .exe file.

UNIX systems:

      I have an exectutible in this directory called irc  Grab that in binary
form and execute it. If your system is ULTRIX or one of the BSD versions, it
should be possible to run it.

      If the file does not execute, get the ircunix.tar file, 
untar it and follow the instructions in the INSTALL file. You will have to make
changes in the config.h and Makefile files

Hope this helps.


K. Sankara Rao                          e-mail k.srao@power.eee.ndsu.nodak.edu

Department of Electrical Engineering
Fargo, ND 58105  USA

Phone:  (701)237-7217  (o)
        (701)235-9912  (h)

Organization: Doctoral student, Industrial Administration, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1993 15:53:40 -0500 
From: Jayashankar Swaminathan <jsdf+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: India Wins !!

India won the second ODI against England by 5 wkts today. Set to score
199 to win India reached the target in 46 overs

--Jayashankar

  Name       : Jayashankar.M.Swaminathan
  Phone(Res) : (412)-362-9112     
  Email      : msj@cs.cmu.edu
               jsdf@andrew.cmu.edu
From: rajesh@quince (Rajesh Raman)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: Gavaskar Quiz
Date: 25 Jan 1993 03:02:19 GMT
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
NNTP-Posting-Host: quince.wpi.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]


Quit fighting, guys. This was one relatively peaceful group if there were
any. Let this not become another sci or scp.

--

Rajesh Raman

--
From: ecrjbruce@economics.adelaide.edu.au
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: QUESTION ABOUT GAVASKAR
Date: 21 Jan 93 17:01:13 ACST
Organization: Economics, University of Adelaide
NNTP-Posting-Host: eco.economics.adelaide.edu.au

In article <Jan.20.20.06.18.1993.10698@maya.rutgers.edu>, govindra@maya.rutgers.edu (S Govindarajan) writes:
> 
> Speaking of successive boundaries, what is the world record in tests?
> I can't think of any batsmen who had more than 4 in succession. 

Didn't David Hookes hit Tony Grieg for 5 in a row in the Centenary test??



regs

Rob

Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
From: urajan@leland.Stanford.EDU (Uday Rajan)
Subject: Re: Which Sharma
Organization: DSG, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
Distribution: su
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 93 03:22:19 GMT

In article <1993Jan22.020727.10201@leland.Stanford.EDU> bankerns@leland.Stanford.EDU (Nilay Suresh Banker) writes:
>
>Can anyone confirm which "Sharma" is it in the
>Indian test side.
>
 
The Sharma in is Ajay Sharma, middle-order batsman from Delhi who had a couple
of good innings against England for Delhi and Board President's XI. Chetan 
Sharma is out of the squad.

Amre, Tendulkar, Kambli, and Azharuddin are sure to occupy spots 3-6 in the
batting order (I hope in that order; of the 4, Amre is best suited to the 
3 spot), and Kapil, Srinath, Prabhakar, Kumble, and More are all almost
certain to play. Probably Sidhu as well, given his recent form. That leaves
a choice between Raman and a bowler (Raju ?) for the last spot.

Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
From: karnik@cs.umn.edu (Neeran M. Karnik)
Subject: Re: Indian Team for 1st Test
Organization: University of Minnesota
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 01:08:21 GMT

In <6687@falcon.ukc.ac.uk> rsp@ukc.ac.uk (R.S.Pickett) writes:

[team deleted]

	Ankola dropped in favour of *Sharma*?? Without even giving him
a chance?? And More's back :-( I was hoping Yadav had made it to the
Test team.... Or do the selectors have different teams for ODIs and
Tests?  Well, the team's identical but for two changes, so I don't
really see the point. Funny how Chetan Sharma's brought back when he
doesn't really have a chance to make it to the final eleven.

>Rob.

     +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~+
     | Neeran M. Karnik | #2 fan of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar on r.s.c.  :-> |
     | Dept. of CompSci.| "I am Sachin's number one fan" - Sunil Gavaskar  |
     | U of Minnesota   | "A jewel in India's crown" - Tony Cozier         |
     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
From: bnataraj@uceng.uc.edu (Bhaskar Natarajan)
Subject: Re: Gavaskar Quiz
Organization: University of Cincinnati
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 04:17:37 GMT

In article <1jvf69INNq1g@aurora.engr.LaTech.edu> spt@engr.LaTech.edu (Shyam Prasad Talluri) writes:

	IMO, comparing Vishy or Vengsarkar or Amarnath to Gavaskar is
not outlandish and certainly doesn't mean that the one making these
comparisons lacks cricketing sense. 

Ciao,
Bhaskar { Bearcats bt. UAB 40-38 (in a full game, by golly!) in the last 
	  second! Gillette, move over !!}
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 08:48:18 EST
From: Spaceman Spiff <SXK129@psuvm.psu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: QUESTION ABOUT GAVASKAR( consecutive 4 s )

In article <1jt9h9INNo4a@bigboote.WPI.EDU>, rajesh@quince (Rajesh Raman) says:
>
>        Sandeep Patil hit 6 fours off 6 successive deliveries of a
>        Bob Willis over that consisted of just those 6 deliveries.
>
nope, it was a 7 ball over. willis was so rattled that he bowled a no-ball.

Stay cool,
Spaceman Spiff

Non illegitimati carborundum          Don't let the bastards get you down
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 10:40:30 EST
From: Spaceman Spiff <SXK129@psuvm.psu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: Selfish Gavaskar & Shastri
 <C1E5s0.AF5@uceng.uc.edu>

In article <C1E5s0.AF5@uceng.uc.edu>, bnataraj@uceng.uc.edu (Bhaskar Natarajan)
says:
>
>        I saw that match and there is NO DOUBT that Gavaskar didn't go
>for it. It was only in the end when Richards, Harper and Gomes were
>bowling 10 full overs that he hit a few sixes and raised expectations.
>If you really want to quote stats, you should look at how many wickets
>fell in the entire Indian inning. To my memory it was only 3 or 4. And
>Gavaskar started hitting only after Kapil (i think) came in and started
>slogging.
>
i agree that he didn't go for it. but perhaps there was a reason for it?
like i said, two wickets fell early and india were about 26 for 2 after 8 or
9 overs. it would have been very foolish if gavaskar had decided to start
slogging then. plus, the man in, ashok malhotra, seemed pretty nervous and
took some time to get started. once malhotra got set, they shared a stand of
about 150 in about 25 overs or so. but the run rate was sky high by then.
then he started slogging and was out caught behind going for a big one.  if he
was indeed as statistics hungry as everyone says he is, he would have played
for his 100. yes, he only started slogging when kapil came in, but at that
time there was no other choice. i think anyone will agree that gavaskar has
never been a great one-day player. he was competent, at best. his role was
never that of a slogger, but that of a stabilising influence. the indian team
could have used some of that in the SA tour where we saw the indian team get
all out for <200 most of the time.
if you feel that his attitude stank in that match, what would you have liked
him to do in that game? go for sixes right from the beginning?

Stay cool,
Spaceman Spiff

Non illegitimati carborundum          Don't let the bastards get you down
From: bankerns@leland.Stanford.EDU (Nilay Suresh Banker)
Subject: About Gavaskar against WI
Organization: DSG, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
Distribution: su
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 93 10:19:00 GMT

In the match against the W. Indies Gavaskar scored 86 runs of  93
balls. That was not just a good effort - IT WAS A GREAT ONE !

There are not many batsmen in the world who could do that against
the  formidable  W.Indies bowling specially when you open the in-
nings.

Also, Gavaskar has always been the person expected to score a ton
every  time  he  steps on the cricket field, particularly against
the Windies when all others seem to chicken out.

If SG scored 86 of 93 deliveries, what were the other batsmen do-
ing  during  the remaining 34 overs. You cannot expect any opener
in the world to go out and bash an attack as good as the Windies.
It  is  also  unfair  to  say  that  he  left the slogging to the
tailenders. As far as I know there happens to be something called
a  "middle  order" in cricket. They are the ones who are supposed
to get on with the job after the new ball bowlers (generally  the
best  in  any  team)   complete  their initial spells. It is only
against the 4th and 5th bowlers that one can score heavily.  When
you are chasing a big total as 330, initial loss of wickets would
put the team in dire straits and I wonder what the Indian  team's
reply would have been had Sunny got out for 5 or 10 runs.
    150 ALL OUT IN 30 OVERS ????
From: skumar@acsu.buffalo.edu (Shivesh Kumar)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: ravi shastri
Date: 23 Jan 93 21:54:08 GMT
Organization: UB
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]

Juzer T. Kopti (kopti@seas.gwu.edu) wrote:

:  this is not a test

:  SHASTRI HAI HAI


Well done!!

-shivesh
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 19:26:36 EST
From: Spaceman Spiff <SXK129@psuvm.psu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: great all-rounders (was Re: Leading Test Averages)
 <1993Jan18.224754.12134@ennews.eas.asu.edu>
 <1993Jan25.075400.99@iwsd01.itwol.bhp.com.au>
 <1993Jan24.225739.24002@leland.Stanford.EDU>

In article <1993Jan24.225739.24002@leland.Stanford.EDU>,
rohanc@leland.Stanford.EDU (Rohan Koduvayur Kri Chandran) says:
>
>        Sobers, of course, stands above the rest. Kieth Miller too I would
>think, although I don't know his stats offhand, and I haven't seen very much
>of
>him playing. You could justifiably rank Kapil behind Botham, although I can
>see arguments both ways on that one. Imran was a better bowler in his prime
>perhaps, but Kapil had the superior batting for the most part so that again is
>a very subjective question. But Hadlee, although being a better bowler than
>all
>of these, was not in the same class as an all-rounder.
>
you know, in all this hoopla about kapil, sobers, miller, botham etc., india's
other great all-rounder vinoo mankad never seems to get any credit. here's a
 man who scored a bundle of runs (2000+) and took quite a lot of wickets (162).
he scored two 100's as an opener vs bradman's australians (the same team which
destroyed england in the 48 series). he is also one of the few men to have
scored two 200's in a test series. he's had match winning hauls of 12 and 13
wickets in his short test career and had probably the best allround performance
in a test match at lord's (72 & 184 + 5 wickets in the england 1st innings). he
was also the quickest to the test double (23 tests) until botham broke the
record in 79. he shares the test record for the 1st wicket (413) with pankaj
roy. awesome figures, but his name never seems to come up when people talk about
the great all-rounders.
and that really sucks.

Stay cool,
Spaceman Spiff

Non illegitimati carborundum          Don't let the bastards get you down
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: World XI or What?
From: WEABEP@DEVAX1 (Peter ABELA)
Date: 25 Jan 93 17:35:27 +1000
 <1993Jan19.141614.13274@waikato.ac.nz> 
 <1993Jan19.030758.24723@samba.oit.unc.edu> <1993Jan20.002338.15634@grace.cri.nz> <1993Jan21.181847.11431@vax.oxford.ac.uk>
Distribution: world
Organization: BHP Information Technology
Nntp-Posting-User: weabep
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.11

In <1993Jan21.181847.11431@vax.oxford.ac.uk> mcbean@vax.oxford.ac.uk writes:

> In fact I would add that along with Richardson (15 centuries/66 tests 4952
> runs) Crowe (15 centuries/63 tests 4591 runs) should be an automatic choice for
> the batting.  Since combined, they possess the charisma of a garden snail, they
> do not catch the eye as readily as a Richards or Chappell, and so will be
> looked over by the less discerning of armchair selectors.

Actually, the side I originally selected was largely based on that chosen by
McDermott in his book, "Strike Bowler." My original side contained Richardson.
In McDermott's book, he didn't include either of Crowe or Richardson.

I guess he must be counted as a "less discerning ... armchair selector" :-)


The Speaker.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------/\/\----
Peter Abela, Computing Science Cadet, Process & Engineering Section   / / /\
               BHP Information Technology, Wollongong Region         / / /  \
Mail      :    P.O. Box 261, Warrawong 2502, NSW, Australia         / / / /\ \
Telephone :    +61 42 755625 Fax: +61 42 755215                     \ \/ / / /
Internet  :    Peter.P.A.ABELA@BHPMELMSM.BHP.bhpmel04.telememo.au    \  / / /
----------------------------------------------------------------------\/\/\/---
All opinions are my own, and not BHP IT's
===============================================================================
From: rgajendr@cisco.com (I. Rajeev Gajendran)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: The best ever Test XIs
Date: 28 Jan 1993 07:55:39 GMT
Organization: cisco
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: stout.cisco.com
Originator: rgajendr@cisco.com


I was (of course) intrigued by the Sri Lanka all-time greatest list. The 
problem starts when you include players from before Test status, 
because international exposure was limited and mostly not taken very 
seriously by the opposition. So here's my team. With the exception 
of Sathasivam, everybody else has performed well dating from the 
first World Cup, when Mendis & Tissera & Co scored 278 (?) against 
Australia when Lillee & Thompson were in their prime. 

M. Sathasivam 
Siddat Wettimuny 		-- At his present clip, soon becomes Mahanama.
Roy Dias 
Anura Tennekoon 
Aravinda de Silva 
Duleep Mendis 			-- or Ajit de Silva (off-spinner) 
Michael Tissera  (C)		-- Good bat, the leader, leg (?) spinner.  
Mahes Goonetilleke (wk) 	-- too bad we need one! Can open if needed.
Asantha de Mel 			-- Medium fast, and can bat. 
Tony Opatha 			-- apparently selected by Sunil Gavaskar! 
Rumesh Ratnayake 


Bowling attack is very thin, so Wettimuny may lose his spot to another 
bowler. Then again, with this batting lineup you're always guaranteed 
300 runs against anybody else's all-time greatest team!
From: prakash@ecs.umass.edu
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject:  Sandeep Patil and consecutive 4 s
Date: 25 Jan 93 16:38:13 GMT

In article <1jt9h9INNo4a@bigboote.WPI.EDU>, rajesh@quince (Rajesh Raman) writes:
> prakash@ecs.umass.edu wrote:
> : 	If my memory is not playing tricks with me(using r.s.c's famed cliches
> : :-)), Sandeep Patil hit 3 fours each off the first 3 and the last 3 deliveries
> : of a 7-ball over.
> 
> 	Sandeep Patil hit 6 fours off 6 successive deliveries of a 
> 	Bob Willis over that consisted of just those 6 deliveries.
					  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	Hey, I did admit that my memory plays tricks with me but that is'nt the
same as saying it is `non-existent' !! There is no doubt it was a 7-ball over,
the only question is about which one Patil was not interested in !	

Guru Prakash.

> Rajesh Raman
From: spt@engr.LaTech.edu (Shyam Prasad Talluri)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: Gavaskar Quiz
Date: 25 Jan 1993 01:19:05 GMT
Organization: Louisiana Tech University
NNTP-Posting-Host: altair.engr.latech.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]

Shivesh Kumar (skumar@acsu.buffalo.edu) wrote:
: Shyam Prasad Talluri (spt@engr.LaTech.edu) wrote:

: : 	I want to write some comments which I recollect on Gavaskar's 
: : 	batting. I'll be happy if anybody could identify the context of the 
: : 	comment.

: :                             <deleted>

: : 	test other's interest in Gavaskar. It's a pity that people have 
: : 	written comments comparing gavaskar to Vengsarkar and Amarnath.Such
: : 	comments thoroughy  expose the lack of knowledge in the game and it's
: : 	useless to comment back on any such type of comments.


: :          	
: : 	 
: : 	With regards,


: :         Shyam.P.Talluri


: :  

: My dear Mr.Talluri,

: Have you ever played cricket?????????? 
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
MR. SHIVESH KUMAR,

FOR YOUR KIND INFORMATION, I HAD PLAYED IN THE ALL INDIA INTER UNIVERSITY
CRICKET CHAMPIONSHIP HELD IN MOIN-AL-HAQ STADIUM, PATNA IN JANUARY, 1983
AGAINST THE LIKES OF MANOJ PRABHAKAR, BHASKAR PILLAI, GURSHARAN SINGH AND
TILAK RAJ (I WONDER WHETHER YOU KNOW ANY OF THESE PLAYERS).  

IN THE SAME YEAR, I ALSO REPRESENTED ANDHRA UNIVERSITY, IN SOUTH ZONE
INTER UNIVERSITY CHAMPIONSHIPS HELD AT TIRUCHIRAPALLI.  THERE I PLAYED 
AGAINST LIKES OF ARSHAD AYUB, AZHARUDDIN, VIVEK JAISIMHA, PRAKASH RATHOD,
ABHIRAM AND SRINATH (BROTHER OF K.SRIKANTH, THE TEST CRICKETER). 

I HOPE THIS MUCH INFORMATION IS ENOUGH TO CONVINCE YOU THAT I HAVE PLAYED
SOME CRICKET AND THAT I AM ELIGIBLE TO MAKE SOME COMMENTS ABOUT THE GAME.
SO THE NEXT TIME, WHENEVER YOU PASS SOME COMMENTS AGAINST SOMEONE'S 
CAPABILITIES, BE SURE TO KNOW THAT PERSON MORE.

YOUR IMMATURE COMMENTS HAVE MADE IT CLEAR TO ME THAT YOU HAVE NEVER PLAYED
CRICKET IN YOUR LIFE.  EVEN IF YOU DID, I DON'T CARE.
: Well, simply collecting comments won't make you knowledgible
: enough say anything about cricket.I'd better advice you to play some
: cricket first and then only you can undestand the details of the game which 
: is very important for anyone to become eligible to pass back comments.
: good luck

: Shivesh

BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME,

SHYAM PRASAD TALLURI
From: sbasu@kirk (BASU)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: The best ever Test  XIs
Date: 26 Jan 93 19:56:21 GMT
Organization: New Mexico State University

In article <C1Bz3y.7pH@uceng.uc.edu> bnataraj@uceng.uc.edu (Bhaskar  
Natarajan) writes:
> 
> >> WEST INDIES
> >> -----------
> >> Gordon Greenidge
> >> Conrad Hunte
> >> George Headley (c)
> >> Everton Weekes
> >> Viv Richards
> >> Clyde Walcott (wk)
> >> Sir Gary Sobers
> >> Wes Hall
> >> Joel Garner
> >> Michael Holding
> >> Lance Gibbs
> >> =====================
> >> 
> >> Dare any of you to come up with a better XI from any of the above  
> >> countries! Suggestions about South Africa will be welcome.
> >> 
> >> - Scrooge McDuck
> 
> 	Malcolm Marshall for any one batsman !

You've got a bowling line-up of Hall, Sobers, Holding, Garner & Gibbs. How  
much stronger do you want it? And why d'ya wanna reduce the number of  
batsmen from 7 to 6 ?

Scrooge
> 
> Ciao,
> Bhaskar
From: heard@franklin.cc.utas.edu.au (George Heard)
Subject: Test 4 - End of play on Day 3
Organization: University of Tasmania, Australia.
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 07:30:24 GMT

Here is the full scoreboard for the 4th Test in Adelaide at the end of play
on the 3rd day...

WI First Innings

D. Haynes      st. Healy b. May          45
P. Simmons     c. Hughes b. S. Waugh     46
R. Richardson  lbw. Hughes                2
C. Hooper      c. Healy b. Hughes         2
B. Lara        c. Healy b. MacDermott    52
K. Arthurton   c. S Waugh b. May          0
I. Bishop      c. M Waugh b. Hughes      13
C. Ambrose     c. Healy b. Hughes         0
K. Benjamin    b. M Waugh                15
J. Murray      not out                   49
C. Walsh       lbw. Hughes                5
Extras (12 NB 11 LB)                     23
                                        252 all out

Hughes  21.3 - 3 - 64 - 5
McDermott  16 - 1 - 85 - 1
S Waugh   13 - 4 - 37 - 1
Warne     2 - 0 - 11 - 0
M Waugh     1 - 0 - 3 - 1
May      14 - 1 -  41 - 2

Australia First Innings

M. Taylor       c. Hooper b. Bishop       1
M. Waugh        c. Simmons b. Ambrose     0
J. Langer       c. Murray b. Benjamin    20
A. Border       c. Hooper b. Ambrose     19
I. Healy        c. Hooper b. Ambrose      0
S. Waugh        c. Murray b. Ambrose     42
M. Hughes       c. Murray b. Hooper      43
S. Warne        lbw. Hooper               0
T. May          c. Murray b. Ambrose      6
C. McDermott    b. Ambrose               14
D. Boon         not out                  39
Extras                                   29
                                        213 all out

Bishop 18 - 3 - 48 - 1
Ambrose 28.2 - 6 - 74 - 6
Benjamin 6 - 0 - 22 - 1
Walsh 10 - 3 - 34 - 0
Hooper 13 - 4 - 25 - 2

West Indies 2nd innings

Haynes          c. Taylor b. McDermott   11
Simmons         b. McDermott             10
Lara            c. S Waugh b. Hughes      7
Arthurton       c. Healy b. McDermott     0
Hooper          c. Hughes b. May         25
Murray          c. M Waugh b. May         0
Richarson       c. Healy b. Warne        72
Ambrose         st. Healy b. May          1
Benjamin        c. Warne b. May           0
Bishop          c. M Waugh b. May         6
Walsh           not out                   0
Extras                                   14
                                        146 all out

McDermott 11 - 0 - 66 - 3 (sorry, they were up on the TV for a nanosecond)
Hughes    13 - 1 - 43 - 1
S. Waugh     -   -  8 - 0
Warne        -   -    - 1
May          -   -  9 - 5


More reports tomorrow!

George
From: peterm@pinhigh.Aus.Sun.COM (Peter Miles)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.cricket
Subject: Re: Leading Test Averages.
Date: 28 Jan 1993 07:44:33 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Distribution: world
Reply-To: peterm@pinhigh.Aus.Sun.COM
NNTP-Posting-Host: pinhigh.aus.sun.com

In article 29K@cs.uiuc.edu, bharat@cs.uiuc.edu (R. Bharat Rao) writes:
Spaceman, you are making, IMO, a common error when judging Ian Botham.
However, if you compare Botham at his PEAK -- which lasted 4-5 years, .

At this peak Botham was one of of the greatest players of all time.
Bharat
-- 
R. Bharat Rao                         E-mail: bharat@cs.uiuc.edu
AI Group, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology
405 N. Mathews, Urbana, IL 61801   (217)-333-5978 (O), 337-6498(H)
Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana



My dear friend Bharat,

Let me put my 2c worth in here.

There is no denying that if you look at the statistics, Botham appears
to have been a world class cricketer, and unfortunately, statistics
are just that.!!! Statistics, they cannot tell the TRUE story, or TRULY
reflect the real picture..

Botham was a good player, but NEVER, could he EVER be mentioned in
the same breath as a SOBERS, G.CHAPPELL, BRADMAN, IMRAN or DEV.

His batting style and technique,at best could be decribed as "roughshod"
and that is being kind. 

His bowling, was never Athletic, merely up and down.

I would bet that if one was to check out his Test batting and bowling
figures, they would reveal that he attained 60% or more of both his
runs and wickets against either India and Pakistan, at a time when
neither country was a real force in International cricket. 

Further, I think you would find that Botham used to get the majority
of his wickets from "tailend batsmen". England always relied upon
reliable old Bob Willis and co, to take the wickets of the "real"
batsmen.

I know I cringed the day that "Botham the imposter" passed 
D.K Lillees then World record of 355 Test wickets. Botham is
not fit to "tie Dennis Keith's shoelaces". 

Fortunately, since then, true "all-rounders in the shape of
Sir Richard Hadlee, and Kapil Dev, have surpassed Bothams
hollow stats.

Regards  Peter.