Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are a more prolific fast bowling team than Australia’s most famous pace pair, Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson.
That’s the result of research I did this week into the effectiveness of Australia’s current new-ball stars. In the 19 Tests Starc and Hazlewood have played together they have combined for 181 wickets at the brilliant average of 23.8.
By comparison, Lillee and Thomson combined for 217 wickets at 27.2 and they only took 8.3 wickets per Test, compared to Starc and Hazlewood’s 9.5 wickets per match.
So good are the numbers being put up by Australia’s young quicks that they are only a tad behind the figures of arguably the country’s best-ever new-ball pair, Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie.
Gillespie and McGrath combined for fewer wickets per match (8.3) than the current pair, due to the presence of wicket-taking machine Shane Warne. But their combined average of 23.0 from a haul of 484 wickets was even better than Starc and Hazlewood.
Regardless, it is phenomenal Starc and Hazlewood are producing numbers close to those up by McGrath and Gillespie. It would be fair to argue McGrath and Gillespie had things easier due to the pressure exerted on batsmen by Warne and the fact Australian Test pitches in their era were not as lifeless as those of the past few summers.
It would also be fair to argue Starc and Hazlewood should only get better. Many fast bowlers are at their peak aged 27 to 29 years old, so Starc (26 years old) and Hazlewood (25) may well have improvement left in them.
Both became notably better bowlers in 2016. Starc finished third on the world wicket-taking tally, with 50 wickets at 23 in Tests, en route to earning a place in the ICC Test Team of the Year.
Hazlewood had incredibly won a spot in the 2015 ICC Test Team of the Year, in what was his first year of Test cricket. Yet he bowled even better in 2016, with noticeable improvements to his fitness and ability to swing the ball.
In 2015 Hazlewood at times flagged in his third and fourth spells of the day, resulting in him bowling at a gentle pace in the high 120kmh range. Last year, however, he maintained his pace much better, particularly this summer when he at times reached 140kmh deep into his third or fourth spell.
Hazlewood also became a more dangerous bowler due to his ability to curve the new and old ball through the air.
In 2015 Hazlewood was often compared to Glenn McGrath because of his approach of bowling short of a length and looking to seam rather than swing the ball. Hazlewood maintained a fuller length more often in 2016, which he was able to do because he was generating outswing, particularly with the new ball.
His reliable, suffocating bowling is a perfect counterpoint to the less predictable, more dynamic offerings of Starc. They complement each other extremely well; this has been my opinion for some time and the stats I dug up gave it a factual foundation.
Neither Starc nor Hazlewood is as effective when the other is not playing. When Starc plays, Hazlewood averages 23.8, when he doesn’t Hazlewood averages 33.6.
When Hazlewood plays, Starc averages 23.7, when he doesn’t that figure balloons to 36.7. Starc’s latter average is a bit misleading in that he happened to hit his stride as a bowler around the same time Hazlewood joined the Australian team. Even still, it seems clear they feed off each other, and earn wickets together.
Whether they can match the numbers of McGrath and Gillespie, we’ll have to wait and watch. But they’ve already eclipsed Lillee and Thomson and that, in itself, is a remarkable achievement.
Leon
Guest
"marginally slower than Thommo was" - sorry, he is significantly slower. He is "marginally" quicker than Max Walker.
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
I was at the Gabba sitting in the grandstand level with the middle of the pitch. Rod Marsh was three walking paces further back when keeping to Thomson than when he was keeping to Lillee and DK bowled down wind that afternoon. I know because as a starry eyed 10 year old, I counted every pace from the wickets to where Marsh positioned himself.
Luke
Guest
This is nonsense.
Luke
Guest
It is not a fact that Australian pitches are more lifeless now than in McGrath-Gillespie's era. They played with Warne, and Australia prepared pitches to suit him.
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
For a few years in the early 80's, before Andy Roberts retired, the West Indies played the quartet of Roberts/ 202 test wickets @ 25.61 / Economy rate 2.91 WSC 50 wickets @ 24.14 Holding/ 249 test wickets @ 23.69 / Economy rate 2.79 WSC 35 wickets @ 23.09 Marshall/ 376 test wickets @ 20/.95 / Economy rate 2.69 Post WSC era Garner/ 259 test wickets @ 20.98 / Economy rate 2.48 WSC 35 wickets @ 24.77 I believe there has never been a better or more relentless pace bowling attack. The Aussies best? possibly LIndwall 228 wickets @ 23.03 / Economy rate 2.39 Johnston 160 wickets @ 23.91 / Economy rate 2.08 Miller.170 wickets @ 22.98 / Economy rate 2.24
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
From the start of the 74/75 Ashes series to the shoulder injury v Pakistan in 78, Thommo played in 16 tests, including a test where didn't bowl in the second innings after injuring himself on the rest day and only bowling eight overs in the Pakistan test before the collision. In those tests he took 80 wickets @23.92, averaging 5 per test, a wicket every 51 deliveries. My three greatest cricketing regrets are that I never saw Bradman bat, the great South African sides of the 70's and 80's were banned from test cricket and Thommo's shoulder injury prevented him from ever being quite so lethal as he was prior to the collision. I agree with your sentiment about Thommo's career, but his purple patch lasted longer than 12 months and until his shoulder injury he was plenty effective against all and sundry. In World Series Cricket, he took 16 wickets @ 29.75 (strike rate 49.88) in 5 games v West Indies after basically not bowling in match conditions for a year and a bit. Like you, when looking at entire career stats, I am not surprised that some partnerships have better results.
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
Imran Khan in the late 70's was quicker than Roberts and Lillee
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
Lindwall and Miller went OK too. In the 33 tests where they opened our attack, they combined for 230 wickets at 24.46. Throw Bill Johnston left arm quicks bringing him 160 wickets @ 23.91, and our pace attack was as flexible as it was effective.
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
I would actually love to see Cummins bowl decently in a few four day games before his name even gets mentioned for test consideration.
Norvsta
Guest
Starc and Hazelwood are playing against shite batsman. They both bowl 140k an hour half ratpower darts. The only reason they get wickets is because the batsman get bored facing them and want to get back into the dressing rooms and check out facebook on their phones. Compared to Lillee and Thompson, Stork and Hazelhead are a couple of half baked 3rd grade glass arms.
Rod
Guest
Only bowler I know of who hit the sightscreen at the WACA on the full after one bounce on the pitch....which also speaks volumes of how hard that deck was in the 70s!
Ants32
Roar Rookie
Ronan, I presume you used Lillee and Thompson's official Test records. I wonder how their stats would be if you included the WSC. (Always a bone of contention). Also, I always say these sort of comparisons should only be made at the end of their test careers. Who knows what might happen in the future. :/ Besides we all know the pitfalls of comparing across eras.... Let's just say Lillee and Thommo were greats. McGrath and Gillespie are greats. Hazelwood and Starc have the potential to become greats. :/
Ants32
Roar Rookie
Beat me to it. :D
Bugs
Guest
Probably because their teammates who were in the team for their batting skills, batted with some starch... Those 5 losses in a row had very little to do with Starc and Hazlewood...
AlanC
Guest
One of the things about Thommo that is often overlooked was his ability to maintain his pace. His action was very strong but also very easy. He generated his pace with a minimum of physical effort. I saw him at the Gabba vs the Windies in 1975 and, at age 15 with good eyesight, I struggled to see the ball from side on when he bowled (subjective I know but 41 years later with poorer eyesight I have no such issues watching Starc from side on).
Bugs
Guest
I am big on calling out NSW bias in selections as a cynical Qld'er who thinks I'd make a better selector than most of the current bunch, but Hazlewood was due when he made the Aus team. He made the ODI / T20 teams way too early, but in the preceding 2 Shield seasons before his debut, Haze dropped his FC avg from above 30 to 25. So he earned his call-up. Starc's initial entry into test cricket was way before warranted. He's an exceptional talent, and has blossomed into one of the best...I just wish that when he was picked, the selectors didn't flat-out lie by saying he's been picked on merit. I support getting in young guys who are exceptional talents, so they can learn, but let's not pretend they earned selection by bowling better than all other prospectives. Plenty of justification for picking prodigious talents early - just don't treat teh public as mug lairs who have no idea. Really grating. End rant.
qwetzen
Guest
The only value of those WSC speed gun tests was that, if you assume that they were consistently wrong, Thommo was significantly faster than the 2nd fastest. Some bloke called Holding.
Paul D
Roar Guru
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kF14-_npFVw The distance between the stumps hasn't changed - and that ball travels awfully quickly from his hand into the base of leg. I'd say Thommo was routinely in the 150's, and probably broke through 160 on more than a few occasions during his career, at least the early days of it. He was legitimately as quick as people say he was. Don't listen to anyone who says he was bowling 170-180 but I'd be confident that at his quickest he had Lee and Akhtar shaded by a few k's They did try to measure him on speed guns but they weren't that accurate at the time. Plus the ball was measured at the stumps, not out of the hand. I believe, anyway.
AdamG
Guest
Why do people keep saying Thommo was the fastest bowler they have ever seen? He was well before my time, so never saw him. But, are you judging it on the naked eye, or was there a speed gun etc? I've heard this quite a few times, so just wondering if its something that people have just carried on, like the saying goes, "the older I get, the better I was", or was he legitimately that quick?
AdrianK
Guest
Those Indian pitches in 2004 were uncharacteristically green and fast. And I believe after that series loss the Indian Cricket Board gave some pretty ... ummm... 'candid feedback' to the curators that have ensured we won't see the like of those pitches again any time soon.