Tendulkar, Lara or Viv? Mark Waugh gives shocking answer to greatest batter debate

Mark Waugh chooses the greatest of all time [Source: @shourya_thakur/X]

Australia batting great Mark Waugh has revealed his all-time XI, naming Vivian Richards, Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar in the playing XI, but stopped short of picking one single batter as the greatest in his eyes.

Speaking on The Overlap Cricket podcast, Mark Waugh shared several anecdotes from his playing days and reflected on the players he grew up watching and competing against.

Mark Waugh chooses the best batter

While discussing aggressive batters and fearsome bowlers, Mark Waugh admitted that Sir Vivian Richards was his number one player while growing up.

“I like fast bowlers and aggressive batsmen. Viv Richards was my No.1 player, growing up,” Waugh said.

For the uninitiated, Richards is a West Indies batting legend who scored 8,540 runs from 182 Test innings at an average of 50.23. With the ball, he also picked up 32 wickets in Tests. In ODIs, Richards played 187 matches, scoring 6,721 runs and taking 118 wickets.

When one of the hosts, Alastair Cook, asked whether AB de Villiers fitted the profile of the aggressive batter Waugh was describing, Waugh responded by naming Tendulkar and Lara instead.

Who is the greatest - Lara, Sachin or Viv?

Later in the discussion, Michael Vaughan asked Waugh to name the greatest batter he had ever seen. Waugh gave a diplomatic answer, choosing Viv Richards, Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar together, while refusing to separate them. 

Notably, in his all-time XI, Waugh slotted Lara at number three, Tendulkar at number four and Richards at number five.

“Richards, Lara and Tendulkar are my top three. I don’t think I can pick one,” Waugh said.

Although Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as one of the finest openers in modern cricket, having scored 15,310 ODI runs from 340 innings, Waugh insisted on placing him at number four. Tendulkar has played 61 ODI matches at No. 4, scoring at a strike rate of 77.09 and averaging 38.85.

When asked which batting position he would choose for himself, Waugh said number four. Host Vaughan then asked whether that meant removing Tendulkar from the spot, to which Waugh replied with a smile, “No, I didn’t say that.”

As the conversation went deeper, Waugh was asked to choose the better batter between Steve Smith and Joe Root. He picked Smith without hesitation.

Mark Waugh chooses the best bowler he ever faced

Speaking about the best fast bowler he ever faced, Waugh named Curtly Ambrose and shared a frightening anecdote from his playing days.

“Ambrose .. I remember he got me out first ball in a Boxing Day Test. He always bounced me first ball and so I was half-ducking. He has pitched it up, and plumb. You know when Curtly does two appeals in one (wiggling his fingers), you know you are out,” Waugh said.

When asked about the spinner he would least like to face, Waugh instantly named Muttiah Muralitharan, the legendary Sri Lankan off-spinner who retired from international cricket in July 2010.

Waugh himself enjoyed an impressive international career, scoring over 8,000 runs in both Tests and ODIs. He played 209 Test innings, amassing 8,029 runs at an average of 41.81. In ODIs, he featured in 244 matches and scored 8,500 runs at an average of 39.35.