Walsh And Ambrose Reveal The Secret Of Unplayable Bowling Partnerships

When anyone speaks about furious fast bowlers of the past, the West Indian pace battery from the days of yore comes to the forefront of the discussion. Among them, Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose are two of the most revered pace-bowling figures of all time.

So it is not surprising to see Ambrose being happy at witnessing pacers doing well right now.

Meanwhile, Walsh is particularly pleased with how well both Stuart Broad and James Anderson have done in Tests as the iconic pair have over 1000 victims in the most gruelling format of the game.

What made the legendary West Indian duo so fiery is their desire to win games instead of focusing on their own numbers.

And, oh boy, did they keep winning.

Between the years of 1988 and 2000, only one team won more Test matches than West Indies: Australia. Until the end of 1995, West Indies had the second-best win-loss ratio. Unfortunately, since then, the quality of cricket in the Caribbean has been on a decline.

While the English duo of Broad and Anderson have over 1000 Test wickets to their names, Walsh and Ambrose aren’t that far behind in terms of numbers. The two played a combined 230 Test matches as Walsh took 519 while Ambrose picked 405 scalps – taking their tally to 924 overall.

That, however, is not even the best part. The pair opened the bowling for their team in 52 Test matches and took 412 wickets in the process – which is a record bettered by on two new-ball partnerships.

It is safe to say that the duo set the standard.

Ambrose nearly did NOT become a cricketer

It is unthinkable to entertain the thought of the legendary pacers not bowling 140 kmph+ regularly, let alone be so successful at it. However, if all the stars didn’t align, Ambrose and Walsh would have had very different careers.

Ambrose’s first love wasn’t cricket… actually, neither was his second as basketball and football took up those spots. It was, however, his mother that pushed him to pursue cricket professionally.

Meanwhile, Courtney Walsh, too, could have headed down in another direction if it weren’t for fate.

How the duo developed their chemistry

In 1984, Courtney Walsh made it to the team and was joined by Ambrose about four years down the line.

It wasn’t a rosy partnership from the word go itself as the two really started forming a bond once they became roommates. It was the point from which the chemistry – that sent a chill down the spines of the batsmen facing them – began.

Only three new-ball partnerships have been able to breach the 400 wickets mark. The first to reach the milestone were Walsh and Ambrose, obviously, and they were followed by Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis of Pakistan, who were then succeeded by England’s Anderson and Broad.

And according to Ambrose, there was no secret ingredient as they would just look out for each other and go with the flow.

However, there was always the fun rivalry going on between the two.

In the end, it was Walsh that reached the landmark of getting 500 wickets in Test – and he was the first one to do so.

The captaincy and how it further accentuated the bond

10 years after his introduction to the international scene, Courtney Walsh was announced as the captain of the West Indies. While it might have been a problem for other friendships in cricket, Walsh’s jovial nature meant that the transition was effortless.

Ambrose fondly recalls the time when he still had the dibs on which end to bowl from.

Walsh concurred, stating that the most important part of the West Indies team was that they loved to be in each other’s company, something that made the bond within the team stronger.

Anderson and Broad are now taking part in what could be their last Ashes as a pair. While Australia might be the favourites to win the Ashes according to the latest odds, Anderson and Broad could surely change the tide in England’s favour and further enhance their reputation as one of the greatest bowling-pairs of all time.

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