To imagine this world without the existence of &#8220;Sports&#8221; is really terrifying. This is the only entity which nullifies all boundaries and makes two people from rival clans or communities hug and celebrate their nation or club&#8217;s triumph together. Among the contribution of all the sports towards global peace, the contribution of cricket can never be forgotten.

The game of cricket has always been a great semblance of discipline, honour and bravery. The dynamics of the game have changed rapidly in the 21st century, but after all this time, despite the emergence of so many entertaining T20 Leagues, Test cricket has remained the elite most form.

From <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/shane-warne-recollects-how-an-anonymous-person-threatened-him-into-supporting-chelsea-fc/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shane Warne</a>&#8216;s inhuman deliveries to the legendary tales of Sir Donald Bradman, from Sunil Gavaskar, the little master who stood tall, to Sachin Tendulkar, the master who changed the face of the game, this sport has witnessed so many iconic individuals over the last 100 years and here&#8217;s a small tribute to the ten greatest among all those.

To cut down a list like this to ten is pretty difficult and we tend to miss out a few humongous personalities in the process. The names are listed in no particular and the numbers are just chronological positions.

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Malcolm-Marshall.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289772" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Malcolm-Marshall.jpg" alt="Malcolm Marshall" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289772" class="wp-caption-text">West Indies bowler Malcolm Marshall. (Photo by David Munden/Popperfoto/Getty Images)</figcaption>

A horror sight for any batsman from the 80s was a certain Malcolm Marshall speeding in and delivering the cherries whistling past their ears in the most obnoxious way possible. His canny variations, supreme athleticism and metronomic accuracy made him the greatest bowler of his generation, if not the greatest of all time. Above all, he was a gentleman par excellence.

Marshall was never shy of bowling a few life-threatening bouncers and when it came to playing mind games, not many matched up to his ingenuity. The slinging action and the angular run-up always created a lot of doubts in the batsmen&#8217;s minds and till date, he has the best bowling average in Tests among all cricketers with 200 wickets or more.

He passed away on November 4th, 1999 after battling with colon cancer for a long time. His untimely demise at a mere age of 41 made the whole world grieve and his coffin was carried by five former Windies captains, a gesture which suggests what he meant to Caribbean cricket.

Matches &#8211; 81 | Wickets &#8211; 376 | Bowling average 20.94 | 5 wicket hauls &#8211; 22 | 10 wickets in a match &#8211; 4

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/09/Imran-Khan-bowling-1981.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-277645" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Imran-Khan-bowling-1981.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-277645" class="wp-caption-text">Imran Khan. (Photo by Patrick Eagar/Popperfoto/Getty Images)</figcaption>

An irreplaceable leader with an unmatched aura, <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/imran-khan-mourns-the-loss-of-people-in-amritsar-train-accident/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Imran Khan</a>, without a shadow of a doubt, is the greatest cricketer produced by Pakistan. He was talismanic, authoritative and legendary in his own way and amassed a humongous fan following in the fraternity.

One thing people keep reminiscing of the all-rounder is his flamboyance and unflappable hunger for success and hence, it is so fitting that he is the first International cricketer to have become the Prime Minister of a country. When it came to dedication and commitment, not many came close to this man and his stats speak for it.

He captained the national side in 48 Tests, winning 14 of them. He was rightfully inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2010 for his mind-boggling contribution to the game.

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Ricky-Ponting-Test.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289777" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Ricky-Ponting-Test.jpg" alt="Ricky Ponting Test" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289777" class="wp-caption-text">Ricky Ponting of Australia. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)</figcaption>

Ricky Thomas Ponting is the most decorated and charismatic figure in Australian cricket and led his country on more occasions than anyone else. His win percentage of 62.33 was the second best for all captains who led their side in over 30 Tests, second only to another Aussie legend Steve Waugh. He is also the second most capped cricketer in Test history.

His leadership skills were one of the main reasons behind his inclusion in the list but even as a batsman, he has done enough to earn a spot in an elite list. He was the Kangaroos&#8217; marathon man with the willow as once he settled in, he had the ability to bat for an eternity and demolish the opponent with his grit.

Ponting&#8217;s aggression was always palpable, let that be with his facial expressions or through his batting. His passion towards the game has resulted in many youngsters looking up to him and he will be revered as the finest captain the Aussies ever produced.

Matches &#8211; 168 | Runs scored &#8211; 13,278 | Average &#8211; 51.85 | 100s/50s &#8211; 41/62

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/09/Gavaskar-batting-in-1979.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-278353" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Gavaskar-batting-in-1979.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-278353" class="wp-caption-text">Sunil Gavaskar. (Photo by Patrick Eagar/Patrick Eagar Collection via Getty Images)</figcaption>

Once upon a time in Indian cricket, there was a Little Master who stood tall against the deadliest of fast bowlers and vindicated what bravery meant. The above sentence might&#8217;ve been just a fairytale if not for the living legend <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/australia-vs-india-sunil-gavaskar-names-3-players-who-should-be-included-in-the-xi-for-the-1st-test/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sunil Gavaskar</a>, who for a really long time was the highest run-scorer in Test cricket.

Facing the likes of Dennis Lillee, Jeff Thompson, Malcolm Marshall, Michael Holding, Joel Garner, Ian Botham, Imran Khan and others, Sunny never wore a helmet. This shows his tenacity and character besides the conviction he had in his batting. His contribution to Indian cricket can never be summed up in a few paragraphs.

He was the first cricketer in Test history to go past 10,000 runs and inspired many legends of the coming generation to pick up the bat. A famous quote by English legend Colin Cowdrey perfectly summed up what Gavaskar was &#8211; A pocket-sized battleship armed with an impenetrable defence and astonishing gunpowder. The bigger the battle, the better the performance.

Matches &#8211; 125 | Runs scored &#8211; 10,122 | Batting Average &#8211; 51.12 | 100s/50s &#8211; 34/45

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Jacques-Kallis.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289771" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Jacques-Kallis.jpg" alt="Jacques Kallis" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289771" class="wp-caption-text">Jacques Kallis of South Africa. (Photo by Duif du Toit/Gallo Images/Getty Images)</figcaption>

An enormous figure in South African cricket, Jacques Kallis according to many experts is the closest an all-rounder can get to Wally Hammond and Sir Garfield Sobers. Undoubtedly the finest Proteas cricketer of all time, Kallis was always in the nucleus of things on the field, let that be with the bat, ball or in the slip cordon.

The fourth most capped Test cricketer of all time, there was nothing Kallis could not do on the field. From combating the fiercest of pacers to the most technically astute spinners, getting his wicket was no walk in the park. His vocal presence on the field was always diminutive, but his statistics make all the noise stating why he&#8217;s one of the greatest of all time.

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Shane-Warne-2.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289773" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Shane-Warne-2.jpg" alt="Shane Warne" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289773" class="wp-caption-text">Shane Warne. (Photo by Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)</figcaption>

For as long as the game of cricket will exist, Shane Warne and his gobsmacking leg-breaks will remain fresh and alive. The ball would twirl and swirl off of his wrists, entangling the batsman in a flurry of thoughts and would produce a horrid time in the middle for even the most technically perspicacious batsmen.

From controversies to awe-inspiring moments, Warne and his illustrious 15-year International career constituted everything that makes up for a blockbuster movie. He loved the gentleman&#8217;s game profusely and it all was substantial by his passion on the field.

When he retired, he finished as the highest wicket-taker at that point in time, only to be taken over by Muttiah Muralitharan a while later. Apart from the few occasions where <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/arjun-tendulkar-goes-wicketless-as-mumbai-lose-to-up-in-the-u19-vinoo-mankad-trophy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sachin Tendulkar</a> mastered him, there was clearly no batsman in the cricketing universe who could stand on par with the &#8220;Spin King&#8221;.

Matches &#8211; 145 | Wickets &#8211; 708 | Bowling Average &#8211; 25.41 | Five-wicket hauls &#8211; 37 | 10 wickets in a match &#8211; 10

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Vivian-Richards.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289774" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Vivian-Richards.jpg" alt="Viv Richards" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289774" class="wp-caption-text">Viv Richards. (Photo by Patrick Eagar/Popperfoto/Getty Images)</figcaption>

With a vehemently exuberant pneuma and terrestrial fortitude to battle for his country, <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/may-31-1984-when-viv-richards-washed-out-england-single-handedly/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sir Vivian Richards</a> epitomized everything that a definitive cricketer must have in his arsenal. Even before the newbie social media freaks started using the word &#8220;Swag&#8221;, he had already personified it in the 70s and 80s.

People often wonder if a charismatic attitude can help anyone escalate their game and in the case of Sir Viv, his sheer magnetism and mystical presence would draw millions to watch the game. He always took these expectations as a challenge and rarely disappointed the expectant fans. He was the heartbeat of the greatest Windies side and till date remains a fan favourite across the cricketing world.

Technically shrewd and stubborn, he was also hailed as the greatest entertainer the game had seen considering how easily aggressive he was even against the greatest bowlers in those days. Without any uncertainty, one can easily concede that cricket would&#8217;ve been incomplete without the chapter named &#8220;Viv Richards&#8221;.

Matches &#8211; 121 | Runs scored &#8211; 8,540 | Batting average &#8211; 50.23 | 100s/50s &#8211; 24/45 | Best score &#8211; 291

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/08/Sri-Lanka-defeated-Pakistan-2-1.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-276681" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Sri-Lanka-defeated-Pakistan-2-1.jpg" alt="Sri Lanka defeated Pakistan 2-1" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-276681" class="wp-caption-text">Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)</figcaption>

The wizard of the emerald isle, <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/january-5-2002-when-muralitharan-was-denied-a-ten-wicket-haul-by-russel-arnold-and-kumar-sangakkara/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Muttiah Muralitharan</a> was rated as the greatest Test bowler ever by the Wisden Cricket Almanack in 2002. Who in the world can argue with that? Whenever Murali spun a web, he would end up getting his desired result and was one of those cricketers who could do magical stuff at will.

Another gentleman par excellence, the only controversy he had to face was the allegations against his action, which many felt was illegitimate. On many occasions, he was abandoned from bowling and had to work tirelessly to satisfy ICC with his action, but no matter how many pauses his career suffered, Murali never lost his form.

He was a pure wicket-taker with a knack of picking five-fers and averaged over 6 wickets a game. In his farewell Test against India, the Lankan maestro picked up 8 wickets, thus becoming the first and only cricketer till date to amass 800 wickets. Interestingly, he played 12 Tests less than Warne but picked up 93 wickets more.

Matches &#8211; 133 | Wickets &#8211; 800 | Bowling Average &#8211; 22.72 | Five-wicket hauls &#8211; 67 | 10 wickets in a match &#8211; 22

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2018/10/Garfield-Sobers.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-289770" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Garfield-Sobers.jpg" alt="Garfield Sobers" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-289770" class="wp-caption-text">Sir Garfield Sobers of West Indies. (Photo by Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)</figcaption>

The paradigm of perfection and a quintessential gentleman, Sir Gary Sobers was the closest anyone came to scoring cent per cent in the exam named cricket. Many often term him the greatest cricketer the Caribbean Islands have produced and that barely has any scope for a debate. He also captained the Windies national side in 39 Tests, winning 9 and they drew 20 of them.

Widely recognised as the greatest all-rounder in the game&#8217;s history, he was a beast in everything he did. He was the first cricketer to hit six sixes in first-class cricket and was rated as one of the finest fielders of the century. Before the emergence of Sachin Tendulkar, the &#8220;Greatest ever&#8221; debate only constituted two names for over 3-4 decades, Sir Gary and Sir Don.

He held numerous records to his name, the most famous being the highest individual score in Tests. His 365 against Pakistan remained the best individual score in Tests for 46 years before another Caribbean legend <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/when-i-was-18-i-wasnt-as-powerful-as-prithvi-shaw-brian-lara/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brian Lara</a> surpassed him. It&#8217;d be fair to say, there was no one like him and there will never be anyone like him.

1. Sachin Tendulkar and <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/september-6-1930-don-bradman-gets-out-to-an-indian-for-the-first-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sir Donald Bradman</a>

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2017/10/Sachin-Tendulkar.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-182595" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Sachin-Tendulkar.jpg" alt="Sachin Tendulkar" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-182595" class="wp-caption-text">Sachin Tendulkar. (Photo Source: Twitter)</figcaption>

As diplomatic as it might appear, this is probably the finest way, to sum it up. The &#8220;Greatest ever&#8221; debate is another eternity away from culminating, but rationally thinking, both these cricketers had a surreal impact which literally changed the dynamics of the game in their respective eras.

In a career that spanned over 20 years, Sir Don never stood way ahead of anyone from his generation, in fact, was a country mile ahead in terms of scoring runs and contributing to the game&#8217;s popularity. His average of 99.94 can easily be considered as one of the greatest achievements in sporting history overall.

Tendulkar, on the other hand, became the face of Indian cricket in the 90s and made this sport a religion in the country with a billion people. He became a demigod for the masses in a very short span of time and also carried the burden of Indian cricket solely on his shoulders for over two decades. Tendulkar reinvented the game with his jaw-dropping improvisation and out of box strokeplay.

The most capped player in Test history, most runs scored in Test cricket, most centuries registered in Test cricket &#8211; there&#8217;s a good chance that all these records owned by the Master Blaster might never be broken.

<a href="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/2017/04/Sachin-Tendulkar-6.jpg"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-171641" src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/Sachin-Tendulkar-6.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-171641" class="wp-caption-text">Sachin Tendulkar with Sir Don Bradman. (Photo Source: Twitter)</figcaption>

On Sir Don&#8217;s 90th birthday in 1998, he met two of his favourite cricketers, Tendulkar and Warne. The Aussie immortal famously said that he never missed out on watching Tendulkar bat and the respect has always been mutual.

These two no-nonsense, respectable and legendary individuals were the flag-bearers of this sport. Sir Don passed away in February 2001 and Tendulkar last played an International game in November 2013, but somewhere around the cricketing world at every point in time, the whispers of their names will always keep echoing.

Sir Donald Bradman: Matches &#8211; 52 | Runs scored &#8211; 6,992 | Batting Average &#8211; 99.94 | 100s/50s &#8211; 29/13 | Best score &#8211; 334

Sachin Tendulkar: Matches &#8211; 200 | Runs scored &#8211; 15,921 | Batting Average &#8211; 53.78 | 100s/50s &#8211; 51/68 | Best score &#8211; 248*

Honourable Mentions &#8211; Sir Jack Hobbs, Walter Reginald Hammond, Brian Lara, Wasim Akram, Sir Ian Botham, Kapil Dev, Adam Gilchrist, Sir Richard Hadlee, Glenn McGrath

Many might have strong objections &#8211; either to the ranking or the names excluded &#8211; Do feel free to list out your names in the comments.

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This sport has witnessed so many iconic individuals over the last 100 years and here's a small tribute to the ten greatest among all those.

10 Greatest Test cricketers of all-time

The game of Cricket has always been a great semblance of discipline, honor and bravery. The dynamics of the game have changed rapidly in the

10 Greatest Test cricketers of all-time

This sport has witnessed so many iconic individuals over the last 100 years and here's a small tribute to the ten greatest among all those.

8. Ricky Ponting