Tendulkar, Dhoni to vie for greatest ODI cricketer crown

New Delhi, March 6 (IANS) Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar and present One-Day International (ODI) skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni along with three other cricketers are the leading contenders to clinch the crown of the greatest one-day cricketer of all time.

Former Australian opener Adam Gilchrist, Pakistan fast bowling legend Wasim Akram and West Indies great Vivian Richards are the other nominees in the list of an exercise conducted by the Cricket Monthly.

The winner - determined by a jury of 50 players, commentators and cricket writers from around the world - will be announced in the March issue of the magazine which will be published next week.

Tendulkar has had one of the best careers in ODIs spanning 23 years. He scored 18,426 runs from 463 matches at an average of 44.43. The little master also has 49 hundreds in the format and 96 fifties. He also has a double ton to his credit.

Dhoni on the other hand has been a revelation as a finisher in the modern ODIs. His power-packed performances have played a key role in India’s staggering success in the last few years which includes clinching the 2011 World Cup.

The Cricket Monthly's 50-member jury includes legendary cricketers Ian Chappell, Clive Lloyd, Martin Crowe, Rahul Dravid, Ricky Ponting and Graeme Smith; veteran commentators Tony Cozier, Mark Nicholas, Mike Haysman and Sanjay Manjrekar; and writers Gideon Haigh, Mike Coward, Suresh Menon and Mike Selvey.