Best cricketer you've ever watched.

[Chris Jameson]

Freddie Trueman was the Muhammed Ali of cricket. He was that good.

I forgot about Fiery another of my dad's favourites, i've seen him play but don't remember any of it! Saw Tendulkar play for Yorkshire but the couple of times I saw him he didn't score many runs, one of my favourite battles was watching Richie Richardson playing for Yorkshire facing a fired up Allan Donald for Warwickshire, he was wearing his trademark floppy hat and didn't look in the slightest bit intimidated.

Forgot about Shane Warne, we're lucky we've seen some magnificent players over the years. Lara, Imran Khan, Botham,  Richard Hadlee etc

[ACVilla]

Lara for me, hands down the most elegant batsmen I have ever seen.

As for bowlers, I always enjoyed watching a genuine fast bowler at work, Waqar, AD and Brett Lee spring to mind. But my favourite was seeing big Curtly steaming into bowl.

[richl]

Re Viv Richards. I remember reading somewhere that Somerset's one day tactics only involved asking him not to get out.

[UK Redsox]

Sir Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose. Great name, even better cricketer.

Him and Walsh bowling in tandem on a seaming pitch must have been terrifying for a batsman.

I'd still take Roberts, Holding and Marshall ahead of Ambrose and Walsh.

[paul_e]

Mcgrath, Warne and Lara for me.

Mcgrath was superb, not as quick or intimidating as the likes of Marshall, Ambrose or Walsh but bowled the right line and length for any batsman he faced, if he didn't know much about someone it'd take him a couple of overs before he looked like he was bowling to a well scripted plan, brilliant bowler with a fantastic understanding of the game.

Warne, as mentioned above, bowled every ball as if he was going to take a wicket, as he says in commentary now, he always went for the ball the batsman didn't want to face, sometimes they'd clip him away for runs and a lesser bowler might wimp out but he just backed himself to get his man sooner or later, he's a true legend.

Lara, probably should have a better average than he has, every action was smooth and fluid, he always looked in control and had the ability to ease the pressure by finding a few boundaries from nowhere.  Anyone who's career best figures at international and first class read as 400* and 501* has to be included in the greatest 11 of all time.

[Legion]

Batsman would be Lara.

[Legion]

Bowler would be Warne.

[Woofles The Wonder Dog]

Of cricketers I've seen live, then it's between Sobers and Trueman.

Dad took me to the last day's play of the Edgbaston Test in 63. I got to see Phil Sharpe and Tony Lock set a record last wicket stand (Sharpe got 85 on debut) against Hall, Griffiths, Sobers and Gibbs, then watched awestruck as Fred tore the Windies a new one - all out for 91 with Trueman getting 7 for 44 against a batting lineup that had Deryck Murray in at 8.

It was my first live game and most of that day is burned bright into my head (I was 10), particularly the spectacular way Fred bowled. That was in the days of the back foot no-ball rule and Fred was one of those who dragged his back leg in his bowling stride, and what I wasn't prepared for was that his last stride was ENORMOUS and that dragged back foot raised a great rooster tail of dust that made every ball a dramatic occasion.

Oh and Sir Frank Worrell whinged all the way back to the Pavilion that he hadn't gloved Trueman to Parks in the middle of the collapse (he hadn't, it had hit his arm when we watched the highlights later on TV).

[brian green]

I was there for that game RR burned in my mind too. Equally memorable was Bears versus the Windies when Charlie Grove took eight wickets in a couple of hours against the team that included Worrell, Weekes, Walcott, Rhamadin and Valentine.

[PGW]

It is easy to pick the likes of Warne and Richards et al but having sat at Edgbaston for 40 years or so my take would be from players who i saw day in and day out plying their
trade in the Championship and other one day assorted competitions and some of my choices would come under of the greats mentioned by all and sundry in the thread so far.
I was fortunate to be at Edgbaston at the game v Durham when Lara scored his 501* an innings of sheer class but against an attack weakened by injuries but by the sheer weight of runs
he scored for Bears must make him No.1, likewise 'White Lightning' Mr Allan Donald himself would i think have to be No 1 of the bowling fraternity and we have had some good 'uns at
Edgbaston,Shaun Pollock, a young Dale Steyn unfortunately only for a season, Chris Martin - injured too often, Waqar Younis.
So i have selected my best Bears XI based on my years watching and a few of them could be mentioned by various people in this thread: So my side would be:
1 Dennis Amiss
2 Bob Barber or Rohan Kanhai
3 Alvin Kallicharran or Jonathan Trott
4 Brian Lara
5 Ian Bell
6 MJK Smith or Dermot Reeve (either as capt)
7 Jeetan Patel or Lance Gibbs (if Gibbs shunt him to 11)
8 Keith Piper - in my opinion the best ever keeper i have seen up to stumps wherever- couldn't bat but nursed Lara to his 501)
9 Tom Cartwright
10 Gladstone Small
11 Allan Donald

[adrenachrome]

It is easy to pick the likes of Warne and Richards et al but having sat at Edgbaston for 40 years or so my take would be from players who i saw day in and day out plying their
trade in the Championship and other one day assorted competitions and some of my choices would come under of the greats mentioned by all and sundry in the thread so far.
I was fortunate to be at Edgbaston at the game v Durham when Lara scored his 501* an innings of sheer class but against an attack weakened by injuries but by the sheer weight of runs
he scored for Bears must make him No.1, likewise 'White Lightning' Mr Allan Donald himself would i think have to be No 1 of the bowling fraternity and we have had some good 'uns at
Edgbaston,Shaun Pollock, a young Dale Steyn unfortunately only for a season, Chris Martin - injured too often, Waqar Younis.
So i have selected my best Bears XI based on my years watching and a few of them could be mentioned by various people in this thread: So my side would be:
1 Dennis Amiss
2 Bob Barber or Rohan Kanhai
3 Alvin Kallicharran or Jonathan Trott
4 Brian Lara
5 Ian Bell
6 MJK Smith or Dermot Reeve (either as capt)
7 Jeetan Patel or Lance Gibbs (if Gibbs shunt him to 11)
8 Keith Piper - in my opinion the best ever keeper i have seen up to stumps wherever- couldn't bat but nursed Lara to his 501)
9 Tom Cartwright
10 Gladstone Small
11 Allan Donald

Damn good X1 that, PGW. I would consider David Brown and John Jameson.

When Kanhai and Jameson were on form together, it was something to behold.

For pure poetry in motion on the cricket field, I would go for Dennis Lillee. I have always preferred watch the game behind the wicket, but when he was bowling I would go to square leg.

[Legion]

Best all-rounder for me would be Botham.

[Villan For Life]

It is easy to pick the likes of Warne and Richards et al but having sat at Edgbaston for 40 years or so my take would be from players who i saw day in and day out plying their
trade in the Championship and other one day assorted competitions and some of my choices would come under of the greats mentioned by all and sundry in the thread so far.
I was fortunate to be at Edgbaston at the game v Durham when Lara scored his 501* an innings of sheer class but against an attack weakened by injuries but by the sheer weight of runs
he scored for Bears must make him No.1, likewise 'White Lightning' Mr Allan Donald himself would i think have to be No 1 of the bowling fraternity and we have had some good 'uns at
Edgbaston,Shaun Pollock, a young Dale Steyn unfortunately only for a season, Chris Martin - injured too often, Waqar Younis.
So i have selected my best Bears XI based on my years watching and a few of them could be mentioned by various people in this thread: So my side would be:
1 Dennis Amiss
2 Bob Barber or Rohan Kanhai
3 Alvin Kallicharran or Jonathan Trott
4 Brian Lara
5 Ian Bell
6 MJK Smith or Dermot Reeve (either as capt)
7 Jeetan Patel or Lance Gibbs (if Gibbs shunt him to 11)
8 Keith Piper - in my opinion the best ever keeper i have seen up to stumps wherever- couldn't bat but nursed Lara to his 501)
9 Tom Cartwright
10 Gladstone Small
11 Allan Donald

Damn good X1 that, PGW. I would consider David Brown and John Jameson.

When Kanhai and Jameson were on form together, it was something to behold.

For pure poetry in motion on the cricket field, I would go for Dennis Lillee. I have always preferred watch the game behind the wicket, but when he was bowling I would go to square leg.

Good side. I'd look to include Tim Munton and I always had a soft spot for Trevor Penney for his amazing fielding skills.

[LeeB]

Sir Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose. Great name, even better cricketer.

Him and Walsh bowling in tandem on a seaming pitch must have been terrifying for a batsman.

Yeah, watching those two as a youth tear through us time and time again set the benchmark in my mind for what fast bowling is.

Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis together were pretty devastating when on song.

[Chris Jameson]

It is easy to pick the likes of Warne and Richards et al

To be fair the question was who is the best cricketer you've ever watched and there aren't many better.