Shane Warne's top-50 list continued to spring surprises as the spin wizard rated
Mark Waugh higher than Indians stalwarts Rahul Dravid and Anil
Kumble while including Aussie paceman Merv Hughes in the best 20.
Warne placed former Australian batsman Waugh at 12th spot, in front of India's
highest wicket-taker Kumble (13th) and Dravid (14th).
Admiring Kumble, who is the third most successful Test bowler
after Warne and Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan, the Aussie legend said, "I
can empathise with Kumble as a wrist-spin bowler. He is a real fighter, a bloke
who will give you nothing on the field but has always been a true gentleman
off it.
"With his height and bounce he comes into his own when
the pitch is up and down, but he adapts well to most conditions. To score a
maiden Test hundred in his 118th game was amazing; I wish that I'd matched that,"
Warne, with a highest Test score of 99, wrote in the 'Daily Times.' Dravid too
drew high praise from Warne for The Wall's ability to punish bowlers in his
own style while comitting minimum mistakes.
"Dravid grew in my estimation the longer I played Test
cricket. He will not destroy you like a few batsmen lower in my list, but he
can grind you down.
"As a bowler you know that once he is in, you need to
produce a very good ball. That sounds obvious, but he is so strong technically
that he makes fewer mistakes than other batsmen. He should have captained India
far earlier than he did," the leggie opined.
However, Warne did not give reasons for putting Waugh ahead
of the Indian duo.
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