Has any delivery been genuinely unplayable? Can you think of a single ball in the history of the game that would have dismissed anyone that faced it? Our two-part odyssey of discovery begins here...
Found the last bit really interesting: "It’s in the nature of great batters to think that they can only be dismissed by their own mistakes. There is an odd kind of comfort in that because it means everything is controllable. Almost every innings ends in dismissal, but it does not end because the ball cannot be played. The delivery itself may have not been played, but that does not make it unplayable."
I have often found it to be the other way with great batters... something on the lines of "I am a fantastic batter and regular balls can't get me out at all, of course. The ball that gets me out will be absolutely otherworldly beyond all comprehension - a once-in-a-lifetime ball. And hence, I continue to be a fantastic batter even after this dismissal."
Yes, I think both are true to a degree. Apparently Botham was a great one for saying he was never out. You just have to find a way of rationalising and the immediate reaction can be 'there's nothign I could do'. But a batter interested in it not happening again would look more honestly and work out why, just maybe not admitting publically... That's my guess anyway!
Hmm. Stokes is another one in the Botham category, very visibly so. A montage of the choicest Stokes' reactions to some of his recent dismissals would be pure Scorsese level cinema. In India, we often thought Sachin made dismissals off lower bouncing balls look extra menacing with his reactions.
That delivery to Pope by Bumrah in Vishakhapatnam
Gets a mention tomorrow...!
Found the last bit really interesting: "It’s in the nature of great batters to think that they can only be dismissed by their own mistakes. There is an odd kind of comfort in that because it means everything is controllable. Almost every innings ends in dismissal, but it does not end because the ball cannot be played. The delivery itself may have not been played, but that does not make it unplayable."
I have often found it to be the other way with great batters... something on the lines of "I am a fantastic batter and regular balls can't get me out at all, of course. The ball that gets me out will be absolutely otherworldly beyond all comprehension - a once-in-a-lifetime ball. And hence, I continue to be a fantastic batter even after this dismissal."
Your thoughts on this?
Yes, I think both are true to a degree. Apparently Botham was a great one for saying he was never out. You just have to find a way of rationalising and the immediate reaction can be 'there's nothign I could do'. But a batter interested in it not happening again would look more honestly and work out why, just maybe not admitting publically... That's my guess anyway!
Hmm. Stokes is another one in the Botham category, very visibly so. A montage of the choicest Stokes' reactions to some of his recent dismissals would be pure Scorsese level cinema. In India, we often thought Sachin made dismissals off lower bouncing balls look extra menacing with his reactions.