The West Indies cricket team is one of the most talented teams in the world. So in this article, we have compiled a list of the top 5 best West Indies batsmen of all time. We’re going to break this down through series wins, average run rates, and individual batting records.
Brian Lara is one of the all-time greats when it comes to batting. His career average of 52.79 is the second-highest balls faced average. When he scored his famous 375 against England at Antigua, he became the only batsman to pass 400 twice in Test match cricket. Today, we will be looking at his illustrious career and identifying why he is undoubtedly the best West Indies batsman ever. Also, with the top 5 list of the best West Indies batsmen.
Ranking the best West Indies batsmen of all time | 2022 updates
| Rank | Player Name | Total Career runs |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Brian Lara | 11,912 |
| 2. | S Chanderpaul | 11,867 |
| 3. | I V A Richards | 8,540 |
| 4. | Garfield Sobers | 8,032 |
| 5. | Gordon Greenidge | 7,558 |
1. Brian Lara- The best West Indies batsmen of all time
Initially, Lara played for the West Indies under-19 squad in 1987. He scored a century in his first match and made his Test (international) debut against Pakistan during the 1988–89 cricket season. In his 13th Test match against Australia in 1993, Lara surpassed Sir Garry Sobers’s record for most runs scored by a West Indian in a single Test match with 375. It stood as the world record for the next 15 years.
Despite Lara’s feats, the West Indies squad struggled during the 1990s with internal issues and off-field controversies. He got removed from the national team after he publicly criticized West Indies Cricket Board officials in 1995. Later that year, he returned to international play and was named captain of the West Indies team.
Widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of his era, Lara also holds the record for the highest individual score in a Test inning. He scored 400 (not out) against England at Antigua in 2004. On 14 September 2012, he was inducted into the ICC’s Hall of Fame as one of the 55 inaugural members. Lara also holds the record for scoring the most runs in a single over in a Test match. He scored 28 runs off an over during the West Indies tour of South Africa in 2003-04.
2. S Chanderpaul
Shivnarine Chanderpaul is a Guyanese cricketer of Indian descent and former West Indies captain. Chanderpaul is the first Indo-Caribbean to play 100 Tests for the West Indies. He played his first Test match in 1994 (against England) and his first One Day International three years later, against Pakistan. He was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2008. On 1 April 2009, he also became the fourth player to score 10,000 Test runs batting at No. 5 or lower position.
Chanderpaul is known for his unorthodox batting stance, which he developed as a child because he had difficulty gripping the bat. This stance has seen him compared to Garfield Sobers and Rohan Kanhai. He is also known for his ability to occupy the crease against fast bowlers. His success has often been credited to his ability to effectively defend good deliveries. Moreover, in 2010, he became the second player from the West Indies after Brian Lara who passed 10,000 runs. Finally, in 2015, he announced his retirement from One Day Internationals after not being selected for the 2015 Cricket World Cup squad.
3. I V A Richards
The legendary West Indies batsman Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards scored 8540 runs, with 24 centuries. He was one of the greatest batsmen of all time. He represented the West Indies at Under-15, Under-19, and Under-23 levels before making his Test debut against India at Bangalore in 1974. Richards was also a pioneer of the hook and the pull shot. Sir Isaac Vivian not only dominated fast bowling with hook shots but also mastered spin bowling with his quick footwork.
Richards also made an impact at the international level by scoring unbeaten 192 runs in Melbourne with 21 fours and 4 sixes. Furthermore, he scored ten hundred in his first 13 Tests, averaging 67.62 runs that season. He notched up 15 centuries in the first 50 matches while averaging 59.46.
In the 1987 World cup, Richards scored 33 runs off 25 balls against Sri Lanka at Ahmedabad. That helped West Indies to win their second World Cup title. He is commonly known as Viv Richards. He is also the mentor of the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals, where he is assigned to train young cricket players. Furthermore, Richards became one of five Cricketers of the Century.
4. Garfield Sobers
He is one of the greatest all-rounders of all time. Primarily a left-handed batsman, he was also an effective bowler, either pace or spin. Since his debut in 1954, he scored 8032 runs at an average of 57.78. He also took 235 wickets with his slow left-arm orthodox bowling at an average of 34.03 per wicket and held 109 catches as a fielder.
He was captain of the West Indies between 1965 and 1972. He also became “Wisden Cricketer of the Year” in 1965, having scored 3 centuries on tour there during 1964. Moreover, Queen Elizabeth II knighted Sobers in 1975 for his services to cricket. He became a dual Barbadian-Australian citizen through marriage in 1980 and has lived in Melbourne since 1993.
5. Gordon Greenidge
Greenidge is the fifth-best West Indies batsman of all time. His best score was 214 against England at Headingley in 1984. Greenidge also captained Barbados and succeeded Clive Lloyd as West Indies captain in 1988. He led them for two years. Initially, Greenidge made his Test debut aged 19 against India at Bombay (now Mumbai) in 1974-75. He opened the batting with Roy Fredericks and also scored 25 runs.
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Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed our article on the best West Indies batsman ever. Please drop your thoughts and opinions in the comment box below. The source of information for this article is Wikipedia and ESPNcrickinfo. Since the topic is subject to change, our website (crickettipmaster.com) makes no guarantee for the accuracy of the data.
