93: Andy Roberts

47 matches. 202 wickets @ 25.61. Strike rate: 55.12. 11x 5wi.

10 years. 1x good. 5x excellent. 1x outstanding.

The discussion

Andy Roberts.

Right-arm fast.

Yep. Sure was.

Of the great West Indian fast bowlers of the 1970s and 1980s, it all started with Andy Roberts. He debuted in 1974, and was followed by Michael Holding (1975), Joel Garner (1977), Colin Croft (1977) and Malcolm Marshall (1978). It is remarkable that of the five fast bowlers, that four were so successful that they make this list.[1] The achievement is even more remarkable when you consider that, in a pace battery of four world-class fast bowlers, there was rarely an opportunity to take large bags of wickets. Individually, they were so successful that the 20 wickets on offer each Test were regularly shared.

Roberts had a classic run to the crease and an easy action for a genuinely fast bowler, which allowed him to extract both swing through the air and movement off the pitch. When that didn’t work, extra bounce and a change of pace were Roberts’ weapons. His bouncer was appreciably quicker, and well disguised. Everyone knew this — it was true for all the West Indian fast bowlers — but the reality is that it is far easier to notice that a bouncer is quicker than normal when watching from the grandstand or the dressing room. Much harder when you are at the crease. Too often for hapless batsmen of this era, the ball was into the wicketkeeper’s gloves, often still on its way up, or thudding into their ribcage, by the time they noticed the extra pace. But I digress a little.

As mentioned when writing about Ian Bishop, in some ways, being part of a fast-bowling cartel that featured four all-time greats helped each of their individual averages. At any one time, any of the West Indian ‘big four’ (and they were all tall!) in that era were bowling with another world-class bowler operating at the other end. Once their spell was complete, the bowlers who followed them were also world-class. There was genuinely no respite from the relentless attack from the West Indies during the 1970s and 1980s. There was nowhere for a batsman to hide. Rarely was a spinner or a part-timer needed or used for an extended period, which meant batters had little opportunity to even draw breath for a moment by escaping the constant fear of injury and physical harm.

This constant pressure means fewer opportunities to score, and more likelihood of taking wickets. My view is that this leads to lower averages and strike rates. It is no surprise that all members of the ‘big four’ averaged under 25 (ish) and struck at under 55 (ish). Roberts has the highest average and strike rate at 25.61 and 55.12, respectively.

But there is also a statistical downside to being part of a group of all-time greats, and that shows up most clearly in the raw numbers — the counting stats. Fewer wickets overall, fewer five-wicket hauls and even fewer ten-wicket hauls because the wickets were shared around. That is the challenge — more wickets do not always equate to a better bowler, especially when comparing bowlers that were part of a great bowling attack. Sometimes we need to look past the raw numbers and look a little deeper into the context of how those numbers came about. The further back in time we go, the harder is it to understand the context. Even given the fact that other West Indian fast-bowlers were competing for the same 20 wickets in every Test, Andy Roberts rate of taking five and 10-wicket hauls still sits inside the top 50 in both categories.

Andy Roberts wasn’t just fast, he had the ability to inspire fear into batters as well. Just ask Imran Khan (fellow Hall of Famer maybe?) who described a delivery from Andy Roberts as “the fastest and most terrifying he had ever faced”.

Critics will argue that Andy Roberts inclusion in the Hall of Fame is in part due to his being part of a fearsome quartet of fast bowlers, whose combined reputation made them seem more impressive than that their stats would suggest. And that’s partly true, for these four fast bowlers their legacy is enhanced by their combined success, and legacy that they helped leave on the game. It is for precisely this reason that Andy Roberts and co. should be included. Their legacy is their success, and their direct contribution to one of the greatest Test sides of all time is a hallmark of their greatness.

The verdict

When I was creating this list, my first attempt at a cut off for bowlers was either an average of 25 or a strike rate of 55, with 200+ wickets.  In fact, there are only 16 bowlers in the history of Test cricket that meet all three benchmarks. Pick any two of those three benchmarks, and there are fewer than 30 bowlers that meet the criteria. [2] Andy Roberts was an outstanding bowler who was a hair’s breadth from achieving all three benchmarks and joining that elite group.

For me, the numbers back up the reputation of Andy Roberts being a fearsome fast bowler: average, strike rate, 10wm and 10wm rate all hovering in the low 40s. I’d want Andy Roberts on my team (I certainly wouldn’t want to be facing him) and I want him in the Hall of Fame.

Right-arm fast. You are darn right.

In one word

Genesis

Notes

1. Spoiler alert. But you probably already knew that.

2. I applied a minimum number of matches in this analysis as well, to filter out players with a great average and strike rate that only played a handful of Tests.

Bio

Record

Source: ESPN CricInfo

career peak

Sources: ESPN CricInfo