All posts by h716a5.icu

A Gayle scorcher, Tendulkar and Ponting batting together against Muralitharan, and a last-ball finish. This game had everything

Gaurav Mathur05-Apr-2013Choice of game
Since this was the first time I was watching an IPL game live, I really wanted to see Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting and Muttiah Muralitharan play. I scrimmaged for tickets and got them for this game. I had never been to the Chinnaswamy Stadium before, so this turned out to be a multitude of firsts.Team supported
When in Rome do as the Romans do. I was supporting Bangalore all the way. I even bought their official merchandise from one of the stalls in the stadium. I am always partial when it comes to Tendulkar, but my heart bled red and not blue on this occasion.Getting in
The arrangements were very systematic and the experience was quite hassle-free. The authorities had planned well and getting in was a breeze. I was seated in one of the best stands in the ground since I could see the ball move in every direction.Stadium atmosphere
Surreal, but real. The noise blew you off your feet and the music was deafening. I suddenly understood what “cricketainment” meant. This was one big party and everyone was invited. The DJ played some great music and we were dancing in our seats, and at times out of them. The entire stadium was bathed in red, with only a sliver of blue at one end.Crowd meter
Bangalore lived up to its name. The first round of the Mexican wave went around the stadium five times, and there were few more in the second innings. The crowd cheered for Bangalore, but opened their hearts for Sachin. Whichever part of the ground he went to, the crowd gave him a rousing ovation. They loved Gayle and chanted for a last-ball six. He gave them what they asked for.Star quotient
We were able to see the Bollywood actor Konkona Sen-Sharma right next to our stand, interacting with the emcee. She looked pretty in a sari and laughed when she heard cries of “Will you marry me?” from the crowd.The face-off I relished
Tendulkar v Muttiah Muralitharan. Tendulkar looked in control, hoicking Murali straight over his head and working him with ease. Ponting was at the other end as well, and for an instance it looked like it was too much for Murali to handle.Stand-outs in the crowd
We missed Lasith Malinga on the field, but not off it. There was a man in our stand who did a perfect Malinga impression, right down to the last golden curl. The original would have been impressed.Key performer
Chris “Boom Boom” Gayle. He single-handedly took on Mumbai and dragged his side to a defensible total. He didn’t take the field later due to an injury, and we missed his now customary Gangnam-style dance moves. Here’s hoping he will be back on his feet soon.Shot of the day
Gayle’s last-ball six. The man was unable to walk and was on his knees for a good couple of minutes before walking back. He was given a well-deserved standing ovation.TV versus stadium
Definitely the stadium. I could not have asked for a better experience. The crowd was well-behaved and everyone had a good time. The music and dancing in the aisles was excellent and you could see everyone let their hair down and enjoy. The crowd enjoyed the game and I could see a lot of smiles on the way out.Marks out of 10
Definitely a 10. I got what I wanted and then some. As I write this, I have a sore throat from all the screaming and I’m pretty sure I will remember this for a very long time. The face-offs, the crowd, the entertainment, the music, the cheerleaders, and the last-ball finish meant I got the whole package in a short span of time. “Cricketainment” indeed.

Plays of the Day from the third ODI between Zimbabwe and India in Harare

Liam Brickhill at the Harare Sports Club28-Jul-2013The catchIn the second match, Virat Kohli stood his ground after chipping a low catch to Malcolm Waller at mid-on. Though Waller claimed the catch, it took a second look from the television umpire to send Kohli on his way. Today, Kohli’s opposite number Brendan Taylor was the one to stand his ground. Taylor had attempted to clear mid-off with a lofted drive, but toe-ended the shot to present Mohammad Shami with a tough chance. The fielder managed to get a couple of fingers underneath the ball above the turf, but Taylor stayed at the wicket until several replays, from multiple angles, confirmed his dismissal.The shotZimbabwe’s No. 9 Tendai Chatara had batted twice in ODIs before this match, without ever scoring a run. Today, he was off the mark with four of them, thanks to an overthrow, and played the shot of the innings in the 40th over when he hooked an attempted bouncer from Vinay Kumar over deep square leg for six to give the home side’s supporters something to cheer about.The googlyAmit Mishra has taken nine wickets in three matches so far, and six of them have come via the googly. Brendan Taylor has suggested that his team-mates can pick the variation, though some apparently pick it better than others. Waller has fallen twice to the delivery, and today he was nipped out first ball by one that spun back in past his poking bat to strike his pads in front of middle stump. His dismissal left Mishra on a hat-trick, but for the second time in two matches an Indian bowler was denied that milestone.The debutantZimbabwe never had much chance of defending 183 on a benign surface, but debutant Michael Chinouya didn’t look like he was going to let a heavy defeat completely ruin his first day of international cricket. Chinouya was given some consolation with the wicket of Rohit Sharma, caught behind, as his first and after the edge was pouched, he set off on a John Cena-inspired celebratory run, waving four fingers in front of his face as he was mobbed by his team-mates.The white flagThe match ended in a flurry of boundaries, particularly off the bat of Virat Kohli, but it was Suresh Raina who hit the winning runs for India. Kohli had levelled the scores with a single to square leg off Tendai Chatara, who then offered Raina the friendliest of leg-stump half-volleys. If anything, Brian Vitori’s fielding effort at fine leg was even friendlier. He raised the white flag by trotting half-heartedly after the ball and escorting it to the boundary without a thought of a dive. The ball trickled over the rope, and with that the series was India’s.

Bangladesh made improvements in the Tests and ODIs against New Zealand but the loss in the only T20I reflected a deeper problem of the side’s ability to understand and cope with the nuances of cricket’s shortest format

Mohammad Isam06-Nov-2013Losing the one-off Twenty20 game against New Zealand has put a slight dampener on what Bangladesh have achieved over the last four weeks. Despite the drawn Test series and 3-0 whitewash in the ODIs, the hosts went back to their listless ways in the shortest format of the game.Bangladesh have now lost seven of their last eight T20s, and with the World T20s just four months away, questions are being asked of the team’s temperament and their ability to grasp the nuances of T20 cricket.”To be honest, we still cannot understand this format of the game,” Mushfiqur Rahim, the Bangladesh captain, said. “You can always say that we fought with the bat but if we play like this, we cannot improve. We need to bring more maturity in our planning and also in our power-hitting and that’s what we can earn by playing more matches. Even if we don’t win them, we can at least understand the game.”Bangladesh have already criticised the format of the 2014 World T20s because it has pitted them against three Associate Nations in the first round, and while it can seen as a bit of an affront for the host nation of such an event, there is a deeper problem facing the team – they are unsure if they can shorten the gulf between them and their opponents in a T20 game.On Wednesday, Mushfiqur was left frustrated by a bowling performance that lacked discipline, and a batting effort that was directionless despite having a target in front of them.”We didn’t bowl according to plans and gave away 20 extra runs. We haven’t become a Twenty20 side of note. You cannot expect a team to win a Twenty20 match four or months after they play their last game.”We have to play more Twenty20s, so that we can react to every situation. We should be able to handle the pressures of match situation.”The New Zealand openers scored 70 runs in the batting Powerplay and ended up on 204 for 5, to which Bangladesh replied recklessly in a gung-ho fashion. They lost two wickets in the first over, followed by a third in the second. Two partnerships followed but again, they didn’t rely on anything other than boundaries.Bangladesh struck 18 fours and eight sixes during their 189 for 9, while the visitors blasted one extra six in their total. New Zealand, like any reasonable Twenty20 side, knew how to pace their 20 overs, while in contrast, the hosts looked lost.”We cannot bat this way all the time. It was an unusual way to bat. We cannot do well by batting like this. We need to rotate the strike more, build an innings after early loss of wickets. Who will attack, who will play the anchor role. But I think we need to practise more of these situations.”We can’t attack every ball, that’s not my natural batting or Naeem bhai’s or any of our batsmen’s. I doubt we can click if we play like this in the future. We had lost too many wickets early on. In the last two overs, if we had a set batsman, I think we could have chased down the last 22 runs [needed in the last over].”One would imagine that the Bangladesh team would still leave the Shere Bangla National Stadium a happy lot. They were presented the ODI series winners’ trophy by the country’s prime minister, Sheikh Hasina.Mominul Haque, Sohag Gazi, Shamsur Rahman and Rubel Hossain have become key performers in the side. Tamim Iqbal’s new sense of responsibility, Mushfiqur Rahim’s leadership and Mashrafe Mortaza’s trouble-free comeback are the other positives that Bangladesh can take away from this series.Ultimately though, it will be the 3-0 ODI triumph and the 0-0 in the Test series that will matter the most to Bangladesh cricket.T20 cricket will remain a headache for Bangladesh, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the side. Players, coaches, officials and administrators quickly lose confidence when things don’t go right for a short time, and they get a sense of complacency in success. The T20 loss can keep them grounded and busy, and help them prepare for the 2014 World T20s.

A selection of tributes from Jacques Kallis’ team-mates and coaches after he decided the Durban Test will be the final one of a glorious career

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Dec-20130:00

Cullinan: Sudden end to one of the great careers

Hashim Amla says Kallis is “arguably South Africa’s greatest sportsman”•Getty Images”And the test cricketing world says goodbye to another legend,if not the greatest…Cheers Woogie! U will be missed.”
Mark Boucher
“It’s been emotional few days knowing JK retiring.all I can say what a privilege to have played with the great man!”
Graeme Smith
“140 characters just won’t be enough to do u justice, so in short then, Jacques Henry Kallis, we salute you. #legend #KingKallis”
AB de Villiers
“An amazin career from arguably South Africa’s greatest sportsman.Lookin forward to 1 last game in whites with this legend @jacqueskallis75.”
Hashim Amla
“And so after the boxing day test, come to end a test career of the #greatestcricketer the world has ever seen #certainlyinmyeyes #JHKallis.”
Alviro Petersen
“Been an honour to share a changeroom with 1 of the gr8’s of the game,may we giv u the send off u thoroughly deserve @jacqueskallis75 #legend.”
JP Duminy
“What an honour sharing a changeroom with the greatest cricketer of all time @jacqueskallis75 .u will be missed.#kingKallis #legend”
Faf du Plessis
“Congrats @jacqueskallis75 ’95 seems like just the other day! Thx for the memories & friendship! All the best with your last Test! #Respect”
Shaun Pollock
“Greatest cricketer SA has produced has retired.It was a privilege being part of a WP & Protea setup with him,@jacqueskallis75 enjoy the golf.”
Head of the high performance program and former national bowling coach Vincent Barnes
“Was an honour and privilege to work with the greatest all round cricketer of all time @jacqueskallis75, farewell to the king!! #GOAT.”
Former SA fitness and fielding coach and current Titans coach Rob Walter

The circumstances in which the pair have scored their fifties bodes well not only for their franchises but for South Africa as well

Firdose Moonda01-May-2014South Africa’s batsmen have often borne the blame for the ICC tournament failings, usually as a collective. Sometimes it is a simple case of them not putting on enough on the board (think Champions Trophy semi-final 2013); other times there are criticisms over the way they were composed, which dominated the aftermath of this year’s World T20. An aspect there has always been consensus on is that, individually, the people picked to represent South Africa are of fine fettle, and one need not look further than a foreign-based T20 league for proof of that.Keep in mind that the quality of bowling is inferior to what it would be at the international level, the boundaries could be smaller and the conditions different but it is still difficult not to notice the performances of JP Duminy and David Miller, in particular, and the circumstances in which they have scored their runs.Duminy has blossomed in the shortest format since making a return from a snapped Achilles’ tendon, sustained on South Africa’s 2013 tour to Australia, last June. In 13 T20s between August 2013 and April this year , he scored 390 runs, averaged 55.71 (compared with 37.27 overall) and scored three half-centuries. Add to that the seven wickets he has taken and it is hardly a surprise South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo calls him “our best T20 player at the moment,” and Gary Kirsten wanted him in his Delhi Daredevils side.His two fifties have come at opportune times for the team, rescuing them from 17 for 3 in their first match, which they lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore, and then helping them chase 167 against Kolkata Knight Riders in the second game.Miller’s role in Kings XI Punjab’s successes was less expected and more notable because of the context in which it happened. Miller has been batting at No.5, higher than he would be at international cricket but in the same position he plays at for his domestic franchise, the Dolphins. In that spot, Miller has the perfect mix of time to settle in but not too much time so he still experiences the pressure associated with being tasked with accelerating the innings.In the first match, Miller was at the crease in the sixth over and batted through the innings as Kings XI chased a massive 206. In the second game, Miller was playing more of the role he has been earmarked for with South Africa – finishing. He was called upon in the 14th over with Kings XI needing 66 off 37 balls and he was asked to take them over the line.With 51 off 19 balls, Miller was at his blazing best and performed in a way he has often promised to at national level but has yet to actually do. Miller has not yet scored a fifty for South Africa in a T20 but he has also not had the right mix of opportunity and circumstance to do so.Perhaps he has also not had the support. Glenn Maxwell has overshadowed Miller, and everyone else, in the bigger picture and he has provided the spark which has produced enough light for Miller to shine too.The tournament is still in its early stages and all of this could become little more than a footnote once the competition is over. But the early signs are that South African stocks are rising and the resources they have at their disposal, especially Miller, when properly used, are an asset. And that’s before even mentioning Jacques Kallis.Although he is no longer available to play international T20s, Kallis wants to get as much game time in limited-overs’ formats as possible before the 2015 World Cup, which he still has ambitions to play in. After scoring a half-century in Knight Riders’ opener, Kallis has not crossed that mark again but he has done more than his fair share of bowling to prove his match fitness and commitment, which he will hope will earn him that World Cup spot.

Sri Lanka’s august senior batsmen made 23 collectively, but a 23-year-old’s belligerence ensured his team triumphed nonetheless

Alan Gardner in Chittagong22-Mar-2014When a team has three players of the calibre of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan approaching the twilight of their careers, there are bound to be fears about the future. That august trio have nearly 4000 T20I runs between them; against South Africa they made 14, 9 and 0 respectively. That those failures did not extinguish Sri Lanka’s chances of victory was largely down to a 23-year-old named Kusal Perera.If you have heard Kusal’s name mentioned without that of Sanath Jayasuriya in close proximity you probably weren’t listening hard enough. With his low, southpaw stance and flashing blade, particularly in a wristy ability to clip the ball off his pads, Kusal has an uncanny likeness for the man who is now Sri Lanka’s chairman of selectors. Jayasuriya built his reputation with a series of dashing assaults as opener during the 1996 World Cup and Sri Lanka will believe that Kusal can have a similar catalytic effect at this tournament.T20 continues to push back the limits of the possible in cricket, as anyone who has seen the scorecard from Friday’s afternoon match in Sylhet – let alone the shots played by Netherlands’ batsmen – would know. This was a more sedate affair, despite the tension at the end, but still it showed how the world has changed, from Kusal’s early assault to Albie Morkel’s brief dalliance with seeing South Africa home.Coming into this match, after 11 innings, Perera’s T20 strike rate was a touch under 130 – coincidentally, almost the same as Jayasuriya’s when he retired (eventually) in 2011. Jayasuriya may have been ahead of his time as a batsman, but that does not mean time won’t eventually catch up. Of players to face 500 balls in T20 internationals (Jayasuriya faced 487 despite being indelibly linked to the expansion of one-day cricket a decade or so before) 14 currently score at above 130 per 100 balls, led by Yuvraj Singh at 152.72. Kusal seems likely to join them.The beefy silhouettes of Chris Gayle, Shane Watson and Aaron Finch tower over the World T20 but power comes in different guises. Kusal and, during South Africa’s innings, Quinton de Kock showed that you’ve got to look out for the little guys as well.The opening over of the match contained most of the ingredients used to spruik the tournament as a non-stop feast for the senses. Dale Steyn, a man who has razed small towns with a 145kph swinging ball, was slapped for two fours and a six – flicked over deep midwicket from outside off – by Kusal, three impudent blows that mocked the senior man.Steyn bowled wides on both sides, perhaps a little peeved at being buttonholed like this so early on, having only passed a fitness test on the morning of the game. Then Kusal took a single. Dilshan, also coming back from recent injury, is perhaps at the age where he hopes for a little time to limber up before he gets going. Instead he got ripper that clattered through him and into the top of off. Zing went the bails – they really do look good from the stands – and Steyn’s figures read 1-0-17-1 (2w)

“I think he’s got a bright future ahead. For many years to come he’ll be a dangerous player to bowl to”AB de Villiers on Kusal Perera

While South Africa worked out what to do with Kusal, they attempted to mitigate the damage he was causing by keeping him off strike. Having faced 16 of the first 24 balls, hitting three fours and two sixes, he was given only 24 of the next 57. Steyn came back – Steyn always comes back – and tested him against the short ball, a top edge landing safely between the bowler and mid-on. Irman Tahir worked further on his patience by pushing his top-spin through wider and Kusal succumbed.”I think he’s got a bright future ahead. I’m not sure how old he is, but for many years to come he’ll be a dangerous player to bowl to,” South Africa’s stand-in captain, AB de Villiers, said afterwards. “I thought he played really well, put us under pressure from the word go, probably caught Dale by surprise with the first couple of balls, going after him. I don’t think Dale expected that but he recovered really well after.”The short ball had hinted at a vulnerability and Sri Lanka reported afterwards that Kusal had suffered a blow to the head which required hospital treatment for concussion. But, just as he did last month during a T20 against Bangladesh on the same ground, Kusal had laid the platform for victory. Sri Lanka have played plenty of cricket in this country over the last few weeks and navigated their way around the terrain a little better than South Africa.Spin proved a little more influential than had been expected, with Sachithra Senanayake and Tahir the most successful bowlers, as pace on the ball merely seemed to help it off the bat. Sri Lanka’s seamers, having been able to size up the pitch from the dressing room, shortened their lengths accordingly – with the exception of Lasith Malinga who dealt with another punkish assault from de Kock with a low-slung yorker and proved himself just too difficult to put away until the final ball, with the match already won.Ahead of the game, Sri Lanka’s captain, Dinesh Chandimal, was under orders not to talk about the impending retirements of Sangakkara and Jayawardene. Afterwards, thanks to Kusal, nobody was.

Abdur Rehman and Saeed Ajmal used to be a formidable spin partnership, but Rehman has faded in the last couple of years

Umar Farooq in Galle09-Aug-2014Pakistan bowled 163.1 overs in the first innings, with the spinners Abdur Rehman and Saeed Ajmal sharing a spell of 18 overs, the longest bowling partnership on the fourth day in Galle. They conceded 56 runs, dismissed Angelo Matehws, and almost had Kumar Sangakkara caught. Apart from that period, Rehman hardly got the chance to bowl with Ajmal.The chemistry between Rehman and Ajmal is no fluke. Over the last few years, Pakistan’s fast bowlers have faded, allowing spinners to stake their claim, and the Rehman-Ajmal combination became a force. They shared 43 wickets to destroy England 3-0 in 2011-12 to further their reputation, but their bond is broken now as Rehman has been overshadowed by Ajmal’s burgeoning success. Rehman played almost every Test between January 2010 and June 2012, but couldn’t live up to expectation in the opportunities he was given later.Pitch, drops dented Pakistan – Ajmal

Pakistan ace spinner Saeed Ajmal might have taken five-wicket haul but Sri Lanka swept with an effective lead of 82 runs on day 4. He rued the ‘flat’ pitch that taken a lot of toil out him. He conceded 166 runs in 59.1 overs – the most a Pakistan bowler has bowled in an innings since 2005. He also took 46.3 overs to take his first wicket which was the longest wait for him to take wicket in one Test innings.
“Actually pitch was good for batting but we were unlucky as well as we dropped many catches,” said Ajmal. “We had plans to try every length and line but they kept on taking runs from us as wicket wasn’t really helping us at all. But if those catches weren’t dropped and DRS could have worked in our way then the scenario could have been different maybe.”
Ajmal denied his workload taking toil out of him: “See this is cricket and we are playing it. Its not like I am bowling and I will be tired if this is so then Sangakkara should have also be tired as he has also being playing alot. So its cricket and I am suppose to bowl I don’t care how much I do it. We have trainer who are there to help us and manage our work load so I am not worried at all. Yes I didn’t able to get Sanga but it’s a part of game and he is really a good batsman. Its not just me to who he plays well but he have scored against every country. I have tried to break him using whatever I had got but it won’t work.”

“We both played like one unit,” Rehman told ESPNcricinfo. “We always had a plan and my task was to contain and put pressure while his [Ajmal’s] task was to take wickets from the other end. He might end up taking more wickets then me but I was fine with it because that was the plan. That was the chemistry and we executed it.””We didn’t have to plan before every match, it was something well understood between us. I thoroughly enjoy bowling with him and there is no sense of competition between us – he tends to take wickets and I am supposed to lay the ground for him to take wickets. Our main purpose is to do well and take as many wickets and contain runs.”In the last two years opportunities have been rare for Rehman during Dav Whatmore’s tenure as coach, when Pakistan mostly played three fast bowlers and Mohammad Hafeez as Ajmal’s spin partner. Rehman’s frustration bubbled over when he was barred from bowling in an Asia Cup match against Bangladesh for delivering three full tosses above the waist. He finished with figures of 0-0-8-0.Rehman’s record in Galle isn’t encouraging. He took 1 for 151 in a Test there in June 2012 and he might have felt déjà vu on the fourth day, when he finished with 123 for 1 in 39 overs.Rehman’s struggle was obvious on a flat pitch. He dismissed Kumar Sangakkara, who scored 221, but barely celebrated. Sangakkara had already given Sri Lanka the first-innings lead, and Rehman knew he was being scrutinised.”There has been some frustration because I haven’t played much cricket in the last one year,” Rehman said. “Sometime it’s really tough to push yourself and there is some lack of motivation as well. So what I need is support. I know I can do a lot for Pakistan. I have done it in the past. What happened in Bangladesh during the Asia Cup was something that even I can’t believe. I actually wasn’t fit but played because I was frustrated at sitting out despite being part of the squad for a year.”

All sorts of records were equalled, broken or threatened in the second Test between Pakistan and Australia in UAE

Steven Lynch04-Nov-2014Was Misbah-ul-Haq the oldest person to score twin centuries in a Test? asked Qaiser Ahmed from Pakistan
Misbah-ul-Haq has knocked off one of the records held by cricket’s most famous batsman with his astonishing double against Australia in Abu Dhabi at the weekend. Misbah was 40 years 158 days old when he hurtled to his second century, and broke the record set by Don Bradman for Australia against India in Melbourne in 1947-48 – the Don was 39 years 129 days old when he scored twin centuries in the match for what, slightly surprisingly perhaps, was the only time in Tests. Bruce Mitchell (38 in 1947), Eddie Paynter (37 in 1938-39), Alan Melville (37 in 1947) and Graham Gooch (37 in 1990) come next on this list.Misbah and Azhar Ali both scored two centuries in the match at Abu Dhabi. Has this ever happened before? asked Anshuman Bharati from India
The double feat of Misbah-ul-Haq and Azhar Ali in Abu Dhabi was only the fourth occasion that two batsmen have scored twin centuries in the same match. The first instance was in the Ashes Test in Adelaide in 1946-47, when Denis Compton scored 147 and 103 not out for England, and Arthur Morris replied with 122 and 124 not out for Australia. In Wellington in 1973-74, Ian Chappell scored 145 and 121 for Australia against New Zealand, while his brother Greg hit 247 not out and 133; this was the only previous time two batsmen on the same side had achieved the feat in the same Test. Finally, in Hamilton in 1990-91, Andrew Jones made 122 and 100 not out for New Zealand, and Asanka Gurusinha 119 and 102 for Sri Lanka.Is Younis Khan the oldest Pakistani to score a double-century in a Test? asked Douglas Berkheiser from the UK
At 36 years 336 days old, Younis Khan became Test cricket’s 22nd-oldest double-centurion against Australia in Abu Dhabi. Top of the list is South Africa’s Eric Rowan, who was a week past his 42nd birthday when he scored 236 against England at Headingley in 1951. Younis Khan was actually already the oldest to score a double-century for Pakistan – he was 35 when he made 200 not out against Zimbabwe in Harare last year. Zaheer Abbas was also over 35 when he scored 215 against India in Lahore in 1982-83.Was Australia’s defeat in Abu Dhabi the heaviest in their history? asked Chris Lawrence from Australia
Australia’s 356-run reverse in Abu Dhabi was their third-heaviest defeat by a runs margin, following England’s win by 675 in Brisbane in 1928-29, and a West Indian victory by 408 in Adelaide in 1979-80. Australia also lost to England by an innings and 579 runs at The Oval in 1938, an innings and 230 at Adelaideasked Richard Jackson from England
I wasn’t sure about this one, and was quite surprised at the name on the top of the list: it’s the West Indian fast bowler Merv Dillon, who between 1997 and 2004 took 131 wickets in 38 Tests – none of them against England. Next come a pair of Zimbabweans: Hamilton Masakadza, with 28 caps (the most recent last week against Bangladesh) and Craig Wishart with 27 (1995-2005). John Reid played 58 Tests without ever playing against Australia, but that was because New Zealand didn’t play against them during his long career (1949-65) – after the Aussies dominated a one-off match in 1945-46, they didn’t meet in official Tests again until 1973-74. That also accounts for second-placed Bert Sutcliffe, Reid’s great Kiwi contemporary – but he’s just been joined on a total of 42 Tests by Bangladesh’s captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who also hasn’t played against Australia yet.What is the highest individual score which was the lowest score in a completed Test innings? asked Zaheer Ahmed from the United Arab Emirates
There have been 12 occasions now when all 11 batsmen in a Test innings reached double figures (for the list, click here). Most of them feature a lowest score of 10 and 11, but when India made 359 against New Zealand in Dunedin in 1967-68, Bapu Nadkarni’s 12 was the lowest score of the innings (Ajit Wadekar top-scored with 80).

Australia are expectedly No. 1. Who takes silver?

Bishen Jeswant28-Jan-2015Australia have won four World Cups, the most. They have won 55 matches in World Cups, the most. Their batsmen have scored 16,165 runs, the most. Their bowlers have taken 556 wickets, the most. They have had a 34-match unbeaten streak extending across four World Cups, by far the longest. It is inarguable that Australia have been the best team in World Cup history.However, which team has been second-best? England have been in three finals, without ever winning the title. India and West Indies have also been in three finals, winning two each. Pakistan have reached the semi-finals on six occasions, making the final on two, and winning once. New Zealand have got past the group stage eight times, more often than even Australia.Only the top-eight cricketing nations have been considered for the purpose of this analysis.Win-loss ratios
Two teams have won twice as many matches as they have lost. Australia have 55 wins with 19 losses, while South Africa have 30 wins and 15 losses. The only team that loses more matches than they win is Sri Lanka, who have 31 wins and 32 losses. However, Sri Lanka received Test status much after the other seven teams, and have only been a force to reckon with during five of the ten World Cups. During the last five editions Sri Lanka have in fact won twice as many matches as they have lost, 27 wins and 12 losses.At the other end of the spectrum are West Indies, who had the best win-loss ratio (2.4) in the first five World Cups (22 wins, nine losses), and the worst ratio (1.0) in the next five editions (16 wins, 16 losses).New Zealand have won 40 World Cup games, next only to Australia, who have 55 wins. However, they have also lost 29 games, the second most. As a consequence, their win-loss ratio (1.37) is the second-worst, next only to Sri Lanka.

Win-loss ratios in World Cups

TeamMatWonLostTiedNRW/L ratioAustralia765519112.89South Africa473015202.00England663925111.56West Indies643825011.52India673926111.50Pakistan643626021.38New Zealand704029011.37Sri Lanka663132120.97Performance in knockout games
Australia have won ten of the 14 knockout matches they have played, including quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. They have three losses and a tie. India have won seven out of ten, the next most. England and New Zealand have the most losses in knockout matches, seven each.

Performance in World Cup knockout matches

FinalsSemi-finalsQuarter-finalsOverallTeamWonLostWonLostWonLostWonLostTiedW/L ratioAustralia42501110313.33India2132207302.33Sri Lanka1231206302.00West Indies2131116302.00Pakistan1124114600.67England0332023700.43New Zealand0006111700.14South Africa0002020410.00The only team that has never won a single knockout game is South Africa, who have no wins from three semi-finals and two quarter-finals. They suffered four losses in those five games, managing to tie the other, against Australia in 1999. However, South Africa, as the table below shows, have the best record in the group stages, even better than Australia. South Africa have 24 wins and eight losses, with a win-loss ratio of 3.0, significantly better than Australia’s ratio of 2.06, based on 33 wins and 16 losses. Another team that has a better win-loss ratio than Australia in the group stages is England, who have 33 wins and 15 loses, a ratio of 2.20.

Performance in the preliminary and advanced league stages

Super 6s / 8sGroup matchesTeamWonLostW/L ratioWonLostW/L ratioSouth Africa632.002483.00England331.0033152.20Australia120-33162.06New Zealand651.2033171.94West Indies150.2031171.82Pakistan120.5031181.72India422.0028211.33Sri Lanka541.2520250.80Performance of the top eight teams against each other
Sometimes, the overall performance of teams in a global event such as the World Cup appear statistically inflated because a significant percentage of matches are played against relatively weaker opposition. Australia’s win-loss ratio of 2.9 drops to 1.9 when the assessment is restricted to their performance against the top-eight teams (34 wins, 18 losses). However, this too is far higher than the ratios for any other team. South Africa, who have only been playing in World Cups since 1992, are next best with a ratio of 1.3 (17 wins, 13 losses).The three teams that lose more matches than they win against the top-eight nations are India, New Zealand and Sri Lanka. However, in the last five World Cups, both India and Sri Lanka have won more than they have lost against such opposition, while New Zealand still lose more.

Performance of top eight teams against each other in World Cups

TeamMatWonLostTiedNRW/L ratioAustralia543418111.88South Africa321713201.30England502622111.18Pakistan492424011.00West Indies482424001.00India472124110.86New Zealand512229000.76Sri Lanka511731120.54Overall performance
The above segments set out the order of merit of these top-eight teams with respect to their win-loss ratios, performances in knockout/group games and their performances when playing each other. However, in the broader scheme of things, the success of a team’s World Cup campaign is assessed based on how far they progress in a certain edition of the tournament. Below is a table setting out the performance of the top-eight teams in the various World Cups. Points have been allotted based on where these teams have finished in each edition of the tournament. The allocation is as follows:Winner: 10 points
Runner-up: 6 points
Semi-finalist: 4 points
Super6: 3 points
Quarter-finalist: 2 points
Super8: 2 points
The proportionate allotment of points in the table below is comparable to other merit-based systems in which ranking points are allotted in global sports such as tennis and squash.

Overall performance of the top-eight teams in World Cups

Team/Edition1975197919831987199219961999200320072011PointsAustraliaRunnerGroupGroupWinnerGroupRunnerWinnerWinnerWinnerQuarter54IndiaGroupGroupWinnerSemiGroupSemiSuper6RunnerGroupWinner37PakistanGroupSemiSemiSemiWinnerQuarterRunnerGroupGroupSemi34West IndiesWinnerWinnerRunnerGroupGroupSemiGroupGroupSuper8Quarter34EnglandSemiRunnerSemiRunnerRunnerQuarterGroupGroupSuper8Quarter32New ZealandSemiSemiGroupGroupSemiQuarterSemiSuper6SemiSemi29South Africa*DNPDNPDNPDNPSemiQuarterSemiGroupSemiQuarter27Sri LankaGroupGroupGroupGroupGroupWinnerGroupSemiRunnerRunner26*South Africa’s points have been normalised to account for the fact that they could not participate in the first four editions of the World CupSouth Africa have been perennial underperformers at World Cups and the above table only reinforces that fact. South Africa are the best-performing team in the group stages. They have the second-best overall win-loss ratio after Australia. They have the second-best win-loss ratio against the top-eight teams. Yet, they have not won a single knockout game in five attempts, and therefore find themselves lingering at the bottom of the above table. Similar is the case with New Zealand, who are the only team to have gone past the group stage in each of the last six World Cups but have lost each of their six semi-finals, thus finding themselves just a rung above South Africa.Sri Lanka’s position on the table – last – does them no justice because they have been exceptional over the last five editions, before which they were merely making up the numbers. Sri Lanka have earned all of their 26 points since the 1996 World Cup, the second most in this period after Australia (36).Overall, India have the most points after Australia and it could be argued that they are therefore the second-best World Cup team. India seem to be the antithesis of South Africa. India’s overall numbers are not too impressive, whether in the context of win-loss ratios, performances in the group stage or against top-eight opposition. However, they do win 70% of their knockout matches. They have only lost three such games, the same number as Australia, whose win percentage in knockouts (71%) is not dissimilar to India’s.

Chennai Super Kings have maintained their dominance in the IPL as a result of a host of their players standing up when needed

Alagappan Muthu in Bangalore23-Apr-20153:27

Agarkar: Nehra is keeping it simple

Chennai Super Kings are like a magician’s handkerchief of match-winners. Pull on the end and it unfurls one after another after another.And Royal Challengers Bangalore did pull. They got rid of Brendon McCullum in the second over, only to run into Suresh Raina. They toppled three batsmen, including captain MS Dhoni, for nine runs as the final overs approached only to bear witness to Faf du Plessis’ audition for finisher. Still 182 is not an insurmountable target at M Chinnaswamy Stadium – a haven for chasing teams and six-hitters. Perhaps Ashish Nehra just likes odds stacked against him.He is 35 years old, but fit enough to clock 140 kph. He has spent the last four years out of the Indian team, but maintains a yorker that he can execute repeatedly, under pressure and more often than not to the detriment of the stumps. Over the last two years – 45 innings across formats in domestic and IPL cricket – there have only been nine occasions of him not picking up a wicket.All four of Nehra’s overs today were delivered at crucial junctures. At the top, he dismissed the openers to chop the score from 31 for 0 in three overs to 33 for 2 six balls later. At the death, he took out Virat Kohli on 51, Harshal Patel the next ball and ended up a David Wiese outside edge short of a hat-trick. But 4-0-10-4 should suffice.Super Kings had introduced the world to Sir Jadeja on Twitter two years ago. Now they’ve got #Nehra (Mr Nehra) doing the rounds. His perennial shortcoming though is in the field. Luckily for him and the hashtag the rest of his team-mates are better equipped.A du Plessis stunner at mid-off reminded batsmen everywhere that the 10-yard radius around him is restricted air space. And it isn’t too hard to imagine McCullum sulking if he doesn’t get to bolt after a ball, dive headlong at it inches before the boundary and alter its course. The prize wicket came via a run-out as well and everyone in the stadium knew it.There had been a spectacular chant war going on throughout the match. Specks of yellow spouting “C-S-K!” Hordes of red retaliating with “R-C-B!” Often times it became a garbled, unrecognisable combination of the two. But when Dhoni caught AB de Villiers short of his ground, there was only one clear and long rumble: C-S-K.MS Dhoni flicked a relay throw into the stumps in time to catch AB de Villiers short of his ground•BCCIThe result of their improved fielding and bowling is that Super Kings’ batting looks a lot shinier, and Raina has long been their crown jewel. Yellow jersey on, his method is comfortingly simple. Hit straight and hit hard, tactics that can be trusted even in delicate situations like a wicket having fallen the previous ball.Raina’s first scoring shot was a four, albeit mis-hit, down the ground. His response to a tight over was lunging down the pitch and lofting the ball. Never does he go half-hearted. Royal Challengers erred by allowing him a free licence on the front foot – only three of the 32 balls he faced were short or shortish – and he came away with 62 runs. Forty-three of them were scored against 13 balls of spin.While Raina was not asked to fudge his game plan much, du Plessis was saddled with a role he isn’t accustomed to. A top-order batsman all his life, he strode in during the 15th over and delivered another testimonial that orthodox cricket has a place in T20. He constructed his own lines and lengths by manipulating the crease with nimble footwork, but his 33 off 18 balls at a strike rate of 183 were a result of calculated cricketing shots.Could Super Kings have won if any of those contributions hadn’t happened? Evidence from the season so far suggests someone would have put their hands up. Nehra and Dwayne Bravo tied up Delhi Daredevils. McCullum and Dhoni dissected Sunrisers Hyderabad, McCullum and Dwayne Smith blitzed Mumbai Indians. Who is it going to be next time?