Andrew Flintoff, Graeme Smith and Match Winning Talents

Every sport has them, and every team craves them, but what defines a "match winner" and how do you know that you have one in you ranks.

Today Graeme Smith battled his way through close to 6 hours of batting, scoring a magnificent hundred, leading his side to victory against England in the third n-power test match. During the innings wickets fell all around South Africa's captain, but he kept his cool, even when McKenzie and Kallis lost balls from Flintoff out of the sight-screen (or non sight-screen) at Edgbaston Smith remained focused and determined on leading South Africa to their first series win in England since 1965. This drive and determination to carry his team home is a perfect example of a match winner, if not the definition of it.

As the Proteas closed in on victory Smith showed a confidence in his ability which is a requirement of being a match winner by taking the extra half hour to finish the game, and the series, on day four of the test. Leaving nothing to chance, making the most of the situation, is essential. If Smith were to leave play at 7pm and come back on Sunday morning, anything could happen. Although not forecast it could rain all day, because we all know the weathermen don't know what is coming, and then Smith would be hung from pillar to post for not closing out the match. It also did not allow England time to recharge their batteries for one final onslaught on the last day from Flintoff and Anderson to try blow away the South African tail. 

Andrew Flintoff on the other hand is England's supposed match winner, who everyone looks to in the England camp to bring games home and change the flow of the game. His record does not suggest this, although we have seen sparks of his ability and what he can do. His batting has changed games for England on previous occasions and this is shown by 24 half centuries and 5 hundreds. Although on the face of it this may not be a great record for a batsmen, with a conversion rate of only 17% of 50s into 100s, however it is the situation and the speed of many of the half centuries while batting with the tail that has changed the game and demoralized the opposition. With the power that Flintoff possesses this is not quite so surprising that has this ability. The worry for England is that he shows no sign of being able to recapture this form since his 18 month injury absence.

More worryingly for England is possibly his bowling. When you think of Flintoff you think of a bowler who hurries batsmen with his express pace and steepling bounce. Such bowling is evident in rare spells it would seem, for example late on day 3 in the latest test match when he removed Kallis and de Villiers in a sharp spell (with a little help from a low sight-screen). However a true match winning performance wouldn't have match figures of 6-161, and as it was, Graeme Smith came out on top of this battle. Flintoff's career figures do not show a match winning ability with the ball. In 68 test matches, bowling in 119 innings, Freddie has only taken 5 wickets twice. Add into this the times he has taken 4 wickets in an innings still does not make good reading from and England point of view, having taken 4 wickets only 10 times in test cricket.

Generally a match winning bowler would be looking to take 5 wickets in an innings regularly, with the likes of Dale Steyn, missing from the third test due to injury, taking 5 wickets eight times in an innings already in a 25 match career and Steve Harmisonalso with eight 5 wicket hauls in 57 matches. Flintoff doesn't produce the goods with his bowling to ever be considered a match winner, or even be compared to the great Sir Ian Botham, who has taken 27 five wicket hauls in his 102 game career. This is what it takes to be a match winning bowler on the world stage, not a one off burst of pace picking up 2 or 3 wickets in an innings.

England do have on match winner however, a player who can turn a game on its head in the matter of hours, South African born Kevin Pietersen. His lusty blows, eccentric switch hits and imperious drives through mid-wicket allow him to put his team in a position to win games on a regular basis with 13 hundreds and 10 fifties giving him an amazing conversion rate of close to 57%. His average of 50.39 runs per innings just shows his consistency in scoring runs for his team.

The match winners above all have one thing in common with each other, the desire to win cricket games. This is a must for a cricketer who wants to be classed as a great player, and be held in such esteem and looked up to by youths and aspiring sportsmen, much like Tiger Woods or Roger Federer to use examples of other sports who show the never say die attitudes to be considered a great, and the attitude to be a match winner in team sports, and especially cricket.