Who gets the title of the Godfather of Cricket and why?

Who is the new Godfather of Cricket in 2025?

In 2025, the cricketing world has changed a lot. There have been new revolutions made to the game. Nations like England are playing test cricket in a more result-focused oriented manner. The English test cricket team have changed red ball cricket. While the change has not guaranteed success over arch-rivals Australia or a formidable side of India it has certainly made them a better side. Thus the question arises who is the godfather of cricket in 2024? Is it a player or is it Brendon McCullum the coach of the England red ball team? When McCullum was given the job of managing the English test team with a new captain, Ben Stokes they had only one match of their last 17 encounters. In their next 13 games, they were the victorious side. 

Brendon McCullum will be the godfather of cricket in 2024 for the sole reason of what he has done with English test cricket. Since being handed over the role of head coach of the England test team, McCullum has redefined test cricket which has allowed journalists and experts to coin the term ‘Bazball’. It is simply a mindset of playing cricket in a positive way. This has helped in getting more results than draws. Since his appointment as the head coach, England has played 29 tests. Of these 29 tests only one has resulted in a draw. While many former cricketers including English cricketers have criticised the way England is playing there are some who are on board with the tactics. 

The McCullum and Stokes-led side have been a part of eight test series. Only one of those series ended in a loss for them when they visited India earlier this year. The England team that travelled to India were never considered to be a team which could beat India but it certainly was a threat to India’s 12-year-old home dominance. The first test of five ended in a win for the visitors, but what followed was too good of a performance from the hosts. They have drawn series in New Zealand but the one series which the McCullum-Stokes setup could have won would be the Ashes against Australia in 2023. Arch-rivals, Australia were on the back foot from the first match, but England in a brain-fade moment declared on the first day while Joe Root was on the crease. That was a moment when England could have avoided the loss in the match and more importantly won the series. 

In spite of England’s loss to India and the drawn series against Australia and New Zealand, McCullum has been handed the reigns of the two white-ball teams as well. England has moved on from their tried and trusted formula of split coaching. Stokes, the test team captain called it an unbelievable move.

Who is the Godfather of Cricket in history?

In the history of cricket, there have been many great players. These players have created a rich history for themselves and their teams. While a single player performing for a team can prove to be detrimental, some players are known for their clutch match-winning performances. 

Over the years there have been many players who have single-handedly won matches for their teams. These players have made a huge impact on the game of cricket and range from the 19th century to modern-day cricket in 2024. Therefore, singling out just one cricketer as the godfather of cricket in history can be a tough task.

Here is a list of cricketers who can be considered the godfather of cricket.

WG Grace

William Gilbert Grace from England is possibly the only cricketer from the 19th century who is still remembered to this day. Famously known as ‘The Doctor’, Grace died shortly after the turn of the century in 1915. If you go by his record at the international level it would tell you the story of an average cricketer with a below-par batting average and a career which only saw 1,098 runs. But what it will not tell is the time he played test cricket. When Grace made his test debut he was 32 years old. When he retired he was a month short of turning 51 years old. His ability to still churn out runs for fun was evident as he was an important member of the England side. Even in his last test he was the captain of the side and is still the oldest player to captain his test side.

His domestic first-class record is an epic in itself. It was his performance at the first-class level which made him the godfather of cricket. Grace scored over 54,000 runs hitting 124 centuries and 251 half-centuries. His average was still a shy under 40, but his presence as a tall fat-bellied man meant that he was feared by most players and not just bowlers. His heroics with the bat in hand are well documented but it overshadowed a more than brilliant career with the ball in hand. Grace picked up 2809 wickets at an average of close to 18 which proves his stature as the Godfather of cricket.

But is it just his performances on the field which made him deserving of the title ‘godfather of cricket’? He was a very influential man in his playing days. He was described as an amateur cricketer by many but was paid more than his peers who were deemed professional. His stature was such that he would often avoid going on tours if was not satisfied with the money he was getting. On one of the tours to Australia, Grace pocketed nearly one-fifth of the money which was required for the English cricketers’ transport and accommodation in Australia. 

Donald Bradman

Arguably the greatest player of all time but certainly the best batter in test cricket history, Donald Bradman is considered to be the godfather of cricket. The Australian cricketer is responsible for bringing popularity and fame to the game. His test career much similar to Grace was short-lived. In 52 matches, The Don managed to score 6,996 runs. The only possible blemish in his career was his last innings at the Oval. Bradman needed just four runs to go past seven thousand runs but was dismissed for a duck. This meant that the great Bradman retired with an average of 99.94 and fell four runs short of what could have been an average of 100.

In his international playing career spanning two decades, Bradman could score runs anytime. He only played matches in Australia or England. Due to the lack of cricket in other countries of his 52 matches, only 15 came against India, South Africa and West Indies (five each). Arch-rivals England mostly faced the brunt of his incredible performances. Bradman scored 5,028 runs against England in 37 matches. His highest score of 334 runs came against England.

He was a great batter and it was apparent by how teams devised plans to dismiss him. By his great standards, Bradmand was troubled by the infamous bodyline approach, England used in 1932-33. The ‘Bodyline’ approach by English skipper, Douglas Jardine was used to target the batters’ body by bowling short-pitched deliveries. It was the only Ashes series which Australia lost. In spite of being troubled by the bodyline approach, Bradman stood tall and averaged 56.57 scoring 396 runs in four matches which included a century.

He is still considered the godfather of cricket because of his contributions to the world cricket as well as Australian cricket. In spite of being a great team, Australia often relied upon Bradman to win their matches. 23 of his 29 tons came in winning causes while only two came in losses. In 30 matches Australia won with Bradman in their team, he scored 4,813 runs at an average of 130.08. This showed how his batting performance paved the way for Australia’s wins during his career.

Viv Richards

As the game progressed and moved to limited-overs cricket it saw players like Vivian Richards. Also known as King Viv, he was the first player to achieve greatness thanks to his swashbuckling style of batting. Unlike Bradman and Grace, Richards was part of a team which in football terms would be Real Madrid’s Galacticos. Richards was a great batter but was considerably supported by his fast bowlers like Joel Garner, Courtney Walsh, Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose and Michael Holding. In spite of producing some of the best batters including the likes of Brian Lara, West Indies never managed to repeat the success of Richard’s era. While they never found a batter as good as Richards the main reason behind their downfall remained the downfall in the bowling department.

Richards played 121 test matches scoring 8,540 runs with a highest score of 291. Unlike many batters, Richards' best performance did not come in his home country but in England. England, which is considered to be one of the toughest places to tour was the place where Richards was at his best. In 24 tests in the country, Richards scored 2057 runs at an average of 64.28. His best came in 1976 two years after his debut in test cricket. Viv in 11 matches scored 1710 runs in 1976 hitting seven centuries. His strike rate during the year was 72.85 which showed how he was so ahead of his time. At a time when there was no T20 and ODIs were mostly played for 60 overs, Richards played with positive intent changing the momentum of games in a session.

While he was a great test batter, it was in ODIs that Richards made a name for himself. Winning the first two ODI World Cups helped a lot in creating that stature. It was the four World Cups where he played his best. In 23 matches in the World Cup, Richards scored more than 1000 runs at an average of 63.31. His career-best performance of 189* came against England in ODIs in 1984 which is considered to be one of the best knocks in the format. He scored close to 70% of his team's runs and even picked two wickets in the second innings to thwart England in Manchester. This showed how he had the ability to turn the match on its head by his batting alone.

Sachin Tendulkar

The greatest cricketer of all time, Sachin Tendulkar is certainly the godfather of cricket. His ability to score in both formats, in any country, in any conditions and against every opposition meant that he was the most perfect batter. The one word which comes close to describing his batting would be pure. He could score in any corner of the ground while playing the most traditional shots. He played well on his back foot but was as good while playing on his front foot. 

His incredible success has been well-documented over the years. Known as the god of cricket and treated like one in India, Tendulkar during his playing days would often be either the match-winner for India or the player who brought them close to a victory. For his fans who often deemed anything less than a century a failure he still remains the god.

The only man to play 200 tests, Tendulkar dominated the red-ball format like no one else. He scored 15,921 runs hitting 51 tons. He holds the record for scoring the most runs and the most centuries in the format. He debuted at the age of 16 and it was certainly a baptism by fire for the teenager as he was up against the likes of Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram, Imran Khan and Abdul Qadir in Karachi. His first century in the format came at Old Trafford as he ended up saving the match for India all while he was just 17. In test cricket, playing for 24 years, Tendulkar retired as the most decorated player.

His success in ODIs came at a slower pace than test cricket. His first ton came after he had played more than 75 matches. Tendulkar scored 18,426 runs in ODIs including 49 tons. He holds the record for scoring the most runs in the format and for a long time held the record for scoring the most centuries as well before Virat Kohli overtook him. In spite of age catching up to him, he was a great cricketer as he became the first man to score a double-century when he was about to turn 37. His biggest motivation to play for a long time could be the quest for winning the ODI World Cup. In spite of coming close in 2003, Tendulkar had to wait 22 years since his debut to become a World Champion. In the 2011 World Cup, Tendulkar was still the best batter for India as he ended up as the second-highest run scorer of the tournament.

Who is considered the Godfather of Indian cricket history?

There are many who could be considered to be the godfather of Indian cricket history. While the name of Sachin Tendulkar stands out among the rest there are many others who are worthy of the title. 

Kapil Dev, not only won the first World Cup for India as the captain but also showed his prowess as a player. Dev held the record for the highest individual score for a while when he bailed out India from a very tough position in the 1983 World Cup against Zimbabwe. India lost four wickets for only nine runs on the board when the skipper came to the crease. He saw his side being reduced to 17-5 and 78-7. Kapil played a magnificent unbeaten knock of 175 runs helping India win the match.

Even before Kapil Dev’s heroics at the 1983 World Cup, there were some pioneers of Indian cricket including Bishan Singh Bedi. The Punjab-born spinner is the first bowler to be considered as a godfather of cricket. He was a great bowler for India and picked up 266 wickets in 67 matches. He was even better at the first-class level playing for Delhi, Northern Punjab and Northamptonshire. He picked up 1560 wickets in first-class cricket which is more than any other Indian bowler. After he died in 2023, Bishan Bedi was termed as the godfather of cricket in northern India by Madan Lal. Lal said, “He’s like the cricket godfather of North India. His contributions to Punjab and Delhi cricket were significant.” Former cricketer, Gursharan Singh said, “He was my Godfather.” Singh believed Bedi was his godfather because of the trust the veteran spinner showed.

Sourav Ganguly is one more name which pops up when people talk about the godfather of Indian cricket. Ganguly was a great captain forming one of the best Indian cricket teams while also grooming youngsters like MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra who all went on to become the World Champions. Ganguly was a leader among men and a brilliant batter. He could also bowl and was far better than a part-time bowler. 

Who is known as the Godfather in the IPL?

There are many great players who have been part of the IPL. This includes overseas as well as Indian stars of the game. These players have certainly made a name for themselves by playing in the IPL as the greats of the game. But who is the godfather of IPL? There are some players deserving of the title of godfather of IPL.

Virat Kohli with the amount of runs he has scored should be considered as the godfather of IPL. He has scored 8,004 runs at an average of 38.66. While he has done almost everything he can do which includes bettering his strike rate in 2024 he is still yet to win the IPL. The fact that he still has not won the trophy just shows how cricket is a team game and in spite of having the best batter of the tournament in your team winning the tournament remains a hard task.

MS Dhoni is considered to be the godfather of IPL as he is the most successful captain the tournament has seen. He has captained in the IPL for the most amount of matches (226) and has a winning percentage of 59.37 which is better than any skipper who has captained for 50 or more matches. He has proven himself to be an incredible leader winning the trophy with players who were not great performers for other teams.