The Top Order Podcast Mens' Test Cricket Hall of Fame

In every cricket club, bar, pub and grandstand since time immemorial, debate has raged over the greatest cricketer of all time. Is it a batter, a spinner, a fast bowler? Does batting on uncovered wickets have a greater impact on a batter’s average than wearing a helmet or using a bigger bat? What about eight ball overs, front foot no-balls, protective equipment, better fitness and coaching analytics? How do they factor into the debate? And would you rather have watched peak Barry Richards for only a few tests, or 10 years of Michael Clarke? Then the ultimate question in all great sporting debates: How do you compare disciplines and eras?

Inspired by Bill Simmons’ The Book of Basketball, I (Baldy) set out to answer these questions. The result: the Top Order Podcast Test Cricket Hall of Fame.

This was no small task, and ground rules had to be established. Therefore, the Hall of Fame is not a single list. Instead, it is split into tiers, which represent the elite clubs of cricketers.

Rather than simply debate whether Viv Richards is better than Warnie, or whether the exploits of Bill Ponsford in the 1920s are greater than those of Graeme Smith and Alastair Cook, I wanted to dive deeper, to somehow find a way to justify each individual spot in the rankings. And, of course, more questions emerged:

• Did Barry Richards have enough impact on the game to make it to the elite?

• How long before Stuart Broad qualifies for the XI?

• Does Mark Waugh belong in the same club as his brother Steve?

• And so many more.

So before we get to the top 100, have a look at our preamble, which explains in detail how we constructed the Top Order Podcast Test Cricket Hall of Fame. . .