How the Guardian’s Ashes Top 100 was voted and who made the cut

The Guardian asked 51 judges to each name their top 50 men’s Ashes players, awarding 50 points for a No 1 down to one point for No 50, and compiled a top 100 from the totals. Judges assessed players only on Ashes performances and were required to pick at least 15 players from each country and a minimum of five players from each of five eras: pre‑first world war, interwar, 1946–1974, 1975–1999 and 2000 onwards.

Shane Warne finished top with 2,503 points, 121 ahead of Don Bradman. Ian Botham and Glenn McGrath were the other players to pass 2,000 points. Only 14 judges placed Warne at No 1, but no one ranked him outside their top three; 33 judges put Bradman first. The list is dominated at the top by Australians: they hold seven of the top 10 and 14 of the top 25, though the overall country split in the 100 is 50:50.

There was little recency bias—the era that produced the most players debuted between 1946 and 1975, while only four of the top 25 made their Ashes debuts from 2000 onwards (Steve Smith, Stuart Broad, Adam Gilchrist and Andrew Flintoff). The top ranks skewed toward bowlers, but batters remain well represented across the list.

Fast bowlers famed for raw impact—Jeff Thomson, Mitchell Johnson, John Snow and Frank Tyson—fell outside the top 20, with the panel favouring longevity and run accumulation.

Key Topics

Culture, Sports, Cricket, Ashes, Rankings, England, Australia