Greatest West Indies ODI XI of all time

#3 Vivian Richards

Viv Richards could destroy any bowling attack on his day

Sachin Tendulkar may be widely regarded as modern cricket's greatest batsman but those who watched Sir Vivian Richards bat would disagree vehemently. Richards was by far the biggest superstar in a team of superstars and was the most devastating batsman of his era.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the batting unit of West Indies was teeming with first-rate performers like Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge but nobody traumatised the bowlers as much as Richards did. His mere presence at the crease could send shivers down the spine of any bowling attack and the power with which he belted the ball was tremendous.

(Video Courtesy: 172Allrounder721 YouTube Channel)

While the strike rates of most of his contemporary greats hovered in the 60s or 70s, Richards struck at the rate of 90 runs per hundred balls, an excellent number even by modern day standards and his batting average of 47 is equally amazing. He was head and shoulders above other leading batsmen of his time like Javed Miandad and David Gower.

As his tally of 118 wickets shows, he was a handy bowler, too. Needless to say, Richards can walk into any 'West Indies XI' even if he did not bowl a single ball.