GOAT of Cricket: Who is Greatest of All Time?

Ever since the game of cricket emerged, many legends have graced the sport with their greatness. Multiple batters, bowlers and all-rounders were successful in etching their names in the history of the game. Notably, there is a unique term called ‘GOAT’ to address such sportspersons who have been legends in their field. The term ‘GOAT’ stands for Greatest of all time. We often use this term in Cricket as well to address some cricketers who have been recognised as the greatest players ever.

Ranking Factors

The list will feature a combined list of five players consisting of batters, bowlers, and all-rounders. The ranking will be based on various factors like batting average and runs for batters, total wickets for bowlers, and total runs and wickets for the all-rounders. While our list might miss some big names, it’s important to note that we have included only five players.

Who is the GOAT of Cricket?

However, it’s not easy to be called a ‘GOAT’ when you know that multiple other cricketers are competing with and against you to make their country proud and also work on their individual skills and achievements to become a ‘GOAT of cricket.’ The debate over who to call the GOAT is very old, and it won’t be wrong to say that it’s going to stay forever because there will be more players in the future who will create history and break multiple records to become a GOAT of cricket.

Here is the list of Top 5 GOATs of World Cricket:

5. Sir Viv Richards

Sir Viv Richards is a former West Indies cricketer who is renowned for his heroics in cricket. He was a powerful person who charged the bowlers like there’s no tomorrow. If we look at his Test match stats, in 121 games, he has amassed 8540 runs in 121 games, at an average of 50.23. He was also a prominent member of the ODI team, and it wouldn’t be surprising to say that the bowlers were absolutely afraid to face the batter for his fierce batting. 

In the ODIs, Richards played 187 games where he scored 6721 runs. Moreover, his average was 47, which is outstanding. He also smashed 24 and 11 centuries in Tests and ODIs, respectively. The West Indies team still takes inspiration from the former player and his tactics to play against some of the best bowlers in the world.

Batting & Fielding

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	121	182	12	8540	291	50.23	–	–	24	45	84	122	0
ODIs	187	167	24	6721	189*	47.00	7451	90.20	11	45	–	100	0
FC	507	796	63	36212	322	49.40	–	–	114	162	–	464	1
List A	500	466	61	16995	189*	41.96	–	–	26	109	–	238	0

Bowling

Format	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10w
Tests	121	103	5170	1964	32	2/17	3/51	61.37	2.27	161.5	0	0	0
ODIs	187	131	5644	4228	118	6/41	6/41	35.83	4.49	47.8	1	2	0
FC	507	–	23220	10070	223	5/88	–	45.15	2.60	104.1	–	1	0
List A	500	–	12214	8872	290	6/24	6/24	30.59	4.35	42.1	4	3	0

4. Shane Warne

It is often said that SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) countries lack quality spinners. However, Australia’s answer to that was Shane Warner, who ended up becoming the greatest spinner ever to play the game of Cricket. Warne used to get an unimaginable turn with the ball, after which the batters used to be left surprised.

Apart from his bowling prowess, Warner also used to be very aggressive on the field, which surprisingly helped him to get wickets. Warne’s numbers with the bowl are enough to make him one of the contenders for the GOAT of Cricket.

Bowling

Format	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10w
Tests	145	273	40705	17995	708	8/71	12/128	25.41	2.65	57.4	48	37	10
ODIs	194	191	10642	7541	293	5/33	5/33	25.73	4.25	36.3	12	1	0
FC	301	–	74830	34449	1319	8/71	–	26.11	2.76	56.7	–	69	12
List A	311	–	16419	11642	473	6/42	6/42	24.61	4.25	34.7	20	3	0
T20s	73	71	1548	1863	70	4/21	4/21	26.61	7.22	22.1	1	0	0

3. Jacques Kallis

The South African legend, Jacques Kallis, is undoubtedly the greatest ever all-rounder who has ever played the game of Cricket. Kallis has the most decorated stats and numbers in his international career. Whether it’s batting, bowling or fielding at the slips, the Protea had every skillset to be the GOAT of Cricket. It’s hard to find a player in the current generation who has the ability to play all formats and dominate in all of them.

Not just fans, there are multiple legendary players who have recognised Kallis as one of the greatest players of the game. The records he has made often get ignored, but we can’t ignore the fact that he is the true contender for the GOAT of Cricket.

Batting & Fielding

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	166	280	40	13289	224	55.37	28903	45.97	45	58	1488	97	200	0
ODIs	328	314	53	11579	139	44.36	15885	72.89	17	86	911	137	131	0
T20Is	25	23	4	666	73	35.05	558	119.35	0	5	56	20	7	0
FC	257	421	57	19695	224	54.10	–	–	62	97	–	–	264	0
List A	424	406	65	14845	155*	43.53	–	–	23	109	–	–	162	0
T20s	176	171	28	4416	97*	30.88	3927	112.45	0	32	437	100	54	0

Bowling

Format	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10w
Tests	166	272	20232	9535	292	6/54	9/92	32.65	2.82	69.2	7	5	0
ODIs	328	283	10750	8680	273	5/30	5/30	31.79	4.84	39.3	2	2	0
T20Is	25	19	276	333	12	4/15	4/15	27.75	7.23	23.0	1	0	0
FC	257	–	29033	13532	427	6/54	–	31.69	2.79	67.9	–	8	0
List A	424	–	13673	10772	351	5/30	5/30	30.68	4.72	38.9	3	3	0
T20s	176	150	2747	3482	114	4/15	4/15	30.54	7.60	24.0	2	0	0

2. Sachin Tendulkar

The Indian batting legend, often called the GOD of cricket by his fans and many experts as well, has achieved almost everything and completed the game before retiring. Saching is the only player who has smashed 100 centuries in his international career, which will remain one of the greatest things in the history of Cricket. He is also the batter with the most runs in international runs. Sachin retired from international cricket in 2013, and the record is still unbroken.

Sachin’s batting records are so unimaginable that his bowling ability gets ignored. He used to be one of the decent spinners in the Indian squad in his time, with a great number of wickets under his name. There are many fans not just in India but across the world who believe that Sachin is definitely the GOAT of cricket.

Batting & Fielding

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	200	329	33	15921	248*	53.78	–	–	51	68	–	69	115	0
ODIs	463	452	41	18426	200*	44.83	21368	86.23	49	96	2016	195	140	0
T20Is	1	1	0	10	10	10.00	12	83.33	0	0	2	0	1	0
FC	310	490	51	25396	248*	57.84	–	–	81	116	–	–	186	0
List A	551	538	55	21999	200*	45.54	–	–	60	114	–	–	175	0
T20s	96	96	11	2797	100*	32.90	2310	121.08	1	16	359	38	28	0

Bowling

Format	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10w
Tests	200	145	4240	2492	46	3/10	3/14	54.17	3.52	92.1	0	0	0
ODIs	463	270	8054	6850	154	5/32	5/32	44.48	5.10	52.2	4	2	0
T20Is	1	1	15	12	1	1/12	1/12	12.00	4.80	15.0	0	0	0
FC	310	–	7605	4384	71	3/10	–	61.74	3.45	107.1	–	0	0
List A	551	–	10230	8478	201	5/32	5/32	42.17	4.97	50.8	4	2	0
T20s	96	8	93	123	2	1/12	1/12	61.50	7.93	46.5	0	0	0

Also Read: Who is the Godfather of Cricket?

1. Sir Donald Bradman

The Australian legend, Sir Donald Bradman, needs no introduction as his unrealistic numbers speak volumes of his talent and ability. The right-handed batter ended his career with an unimaginable batting average of 99.94 in the Test format. It won’t be wrong to say that there will hardly be any batter who will even think of breaking this record. 

Bradman only played the Test format in his international career. He might have more records under his name if there were more formats in his era. However, his first-class numbers are also more than unrealistic. The best FC career one will ever have, without a doubt. The records and stats of Bradman are enough to declare him the GOAT of Cricket.

Batting & Fielding

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100s	50s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	52	80	10	6996	334	99.94	29	13	6	32	0
FC	234	338	43	28067	452*	95.14	117	69	–	131	1

Top 10 GOAT of cricket in the world

Players such as Virat Kohli, Ms Dhoni are still playing the competitive cricket, these players are also considered as GOAT of cricket. Ricky Ponting, Sanath Jayasuriya also have been the part of this elite list of top 10 GOAT of cricket in the world.

S. No.	Player Name	International Matches	Country
1.	Sir Donald Bradman	52	Australia
2.	Sachin Tendulkar	664	India
3.	Jacques Kallis	519	South Africa
4.	Shane Warne	339	Australia
5.	Sir Viv Richards	308	West Indies
6.	Virat Kohli	550*	India
7.	Sanath Jayasuriya	586	Sri Lanka
8.	Ricky Ponting	560	Australia
9.	MS Dhoni	538	India
10.	Yuvraj Singh	402	India