Tuesday 10 December 2013

India's South African Blues & the ignominy of consecutive 100+ run ODI losses.


Indian batsmen have once again been found wanting in the pacy and bouncy tracks of South Africa. The lack of dry surfaces meant their spinners could neither be among the wickets nor apply brakes on scoring during the middle overs. The result is India trailing 2-0 in the 3-match ODI series. This is the first series loss for India since 1-2 loss against arch rivals Pakistan at the start of this year. In between they won 6 tournaments including the ICC Champions Trophy in England. It’s not just the score line which is worrying the fans & management alike but the margin of defeats in the 2 games so far. India lost the first ODI at Johannesburg by a whopping 141 runs and the second one at Kingsmead again by a huge margin of 134 runs. The latter one was their sixth loss to South Africa in as many matches at the venue.

In this week’s article we look at the instances of consecutive losses in ODIs by a margin of 100 or more runs.

India in South Africa, 2013 - Down & Out!!!

INDIA
Tournament(s) - Pepsi Cup 1998/99 & Coca-Cola Cup 1998/99
 Lost to Pakistan by 123 runs at Jaipur, 04-Apr-1999 (Final of Pepsi Tri Nation Cup)
 Lost to Pakistan by 116 runs at Sharjah, 08-Apr-1999


Tournament - Carlton & United Series 1999-2000

 Lost to Australia by 152 runs at Adelaide, 26-Jan-2000
 Lost to Pakistan by 104 runs at Perth, 28-Jan-2000


Tournament - India in South Africa, ODI Series, 2006

 Lost to South Africa by 157 runs at Durban, 22-Nov-2006
 Lost to South Africa by 106 runs at Cape Town, 26-Nov-2006


Tournament - India in South Africa, ODI Series, 2013

 Lost to South Africa by 141 runs at Johannesburg, 05-Dec-2013
 Lost to South Africa by 134 runs at Durban, 08-Dec-2013




PAKISTAN
Tournament – Sri Lanka in Pakistan ODI series 2008/09
 Lost to Sri Lanka by 129 runs at Karachi, 21-Jan-2009
 Lost to Sri Lanka by 234 runs at Lahore, 24-Jan-2009


SRI LANKA


Tournament - Reliance World Cup, 1987
 Lost to West Indies by 191 runs at Karachi, 13-Oct-1987
 Lost to England by 108 runs at Peshawar, 17-Oct-1987


Tournament - Pak in Sri Lanka, ODI Series 2009
 Lost to Pakistan by 146 runs at Colombo (RPS), 7-Aug-2009
 Lost to Pakistan by 132 runs at Colombo (RPS), 9-Aug-2009


NEWZELAND


Tournament - Wills World Series, India, 1995
 Lost to West Indies by 135 runs at Guwahati, 1-Nov-1994
 Lost to India by 107 runs at Delhi, 3-Nov-1994


Tournament(s) – Sri Lanka in New Zealand ODI Series 2006/07 & Commonwealth bank series 2006/07
 Lost to Sri Lanka by 189 runs at Auckland, 6-Jan-2007
 Lost to Australia by 105 runs at Hobart, 14-Jan-2007
 # The last ODI of the Sri Lanka - New Zealand series was abandoned after the toss.


Tournament(s) - Chappell-Hadlee Trophy 2007/08 & Natwest Series 2008
 Lost to Australia by 114 runs at Hobart, 20-Dec-2007
 Lost to England by 114 runs at Chester-Le-Street, 15-Jan-2008


ZIMBABWE


Tournament – South Africa in Zimbabwe ODI Series 1995/96
 Lost to South Africa by 134 runs at Harare, 21-Oct-1995
 Lost to South Africa by 112 runs at Harare, 22-Oct-1995


Tournament – South Africa in Zimbabwe ODI Series 2001/02
 Lost to South Africa by 153 runs at Bulawayo, 23-Sep-2001
 Lost to South Africa by 148 runs at Harare, 29-Sep-2001


Tournament - Zimbabwe in South Africa ODI Series 2004/05
 Lost to South Africa by 165 runs at Johannesburg, 25-Feb-2005
 Lost to South Africa by 131 runs at Durban, 27-Feb-2005


Tournament - Videocon Triangular Series 2005
 Lost to New Zealand by 192 runs at Bulawayo, 24-Aug-2005
 Lost to India by 161 runs at Harare, 31-Aug-2005


Tournament – ICC Champions Trophy 2006

 Lost to Sri Lanka by 144 runs at Ahmedabad, 10-Oct-2006
 Lost to Bangladesh by 101 runs at Jaipur, 13-Oct-2006


Tournament(s) – Zimbabwe in New Zealand ODI Series 2011/12 & Zimbabwe in West Indies ODI Series 2012/13
 Lost to New Zealand by 141 runs at Whangarei, 6-Feb-2012
 Lost to New Zealand by 202 runs at Napier, 9-Feb-2012
 Lost to West Indies by 156 runs at St. George’s, 22-Feb-2013


                                                       Zimbabwe during one of those hammerings...




BANGLADESH


Tournament - Pepsi Asia Cup, 1997
 Lost to Pakistan by 109 runs at Colombo (RPS), 16-Jul-1997
 Lost to Sri Lanka by 103 runs at Colombo (SSC), 24-Jul-1997


Tournament - ICC Champions Trophy 2002/03 & Bangladesh in South Africa ODI Series 2002/03
 Lost to New Zealand by 167 runs at Colombo (SSC), 23-Sep-2002
 Lost to South Africa by 168 runs at Potchefstroom, 3-Oct-2002


Tournament(s) - Bangladesh in Australia ODI Series 2003 & Bangladesh in Pakistan ODI Series 2003
 Lost to Australia by 112 runs at Darwin, 6-Aug-2003
 Lost to Pakistan by 137 runs at Multan, 9-Sep-2003


Tournament(s) - ICC Champions Trophy 2004 & New Zealand in Bangladesh ODI Series 2004/05
 Lost to West Indies by 138 runs at Southampton, 12-Sep-2004
 Lost to New Zealand by 138 runs at Chittagong, 2-Nov-2004


Tournament - Asia Cup, 2010
 Lost to Sri Lanka by 126 runs at Dambulla, 18-Jun-2010
 Lost to Pakistan by 139 runs at Dambulla, 21-Jun-2010


* Australia, England, South Africa & West Indies never lost 2 consecutive ODIs with a 100+ margin.

* Zimbabwe (6), Bangladesh (5), India (4), New Zealand (3), Sri Lanka (2) and Pakistan (1) suffered the    ignominy at least once.

* 7 times the feat spanned across 2 tournaments. It occurred once in World Cup and thrice in Champions      Trophy.

* South Africa was the most ruthless when it comes to inflicting the defeat upon opposition with 5 times.

* Sri Lanka lost their next 2 matches in the Reliance World Cup of 1987 by margins of 25 & 113 runs    respectively against West Indies & Pakistan.

* Zimbabwe had a horror run of 4 losses of 100 or more runs in 5 ODIs in 2005. In the other ODI they    lost by 5 wickets against South Africa.

* Zimbabwe is the only side to lose 3 consecutive ODIs by a margin of 100 runs or more.

* Zimbabwe also had lost first match of the series against New Zealand by a margin of 90 runs.

* Zimbabwe’s 3 consecutive losses spanned over a year, which is the most for this record.

* Zimbabwe (twice) and Bangladesh are the only 2 teams to lose by a margin of 150 runs or more in    consecutive ODIs.

* New Zealand (114 runs) and Bangladesh (138 runs) are the only 2 instances of loss by identical margins.


* Zimbabwe (against South Africa on 21-Oct-1995 & 21-Oct-1996) is the only team to suffer this ignominy in consecutive days.

Thursday 21 November 2013

Pietersen,Gayle and century of test matches...



Hope all of you liked my first article on Sachin Tendulkar’s career in numbers. The second article on my blog is all about the players who reached the magical milestone of 100 test matches. In the next few weeks, we are going to see a few more players who joining that elite club. The first one will be Kevin Pietersen who reached there in the first Ashes test match at Woolloongabba which started yesterday. Others who are on the verge of this milestone are Chris Gayle (99), Michael Clarke (98) and Alistair Cook (98). In this blog you will get to know who was the oldest, youngest, fastest, slowest, who reached there with most runs and most wickets and many more.

Overall 56 players have reached the landmark of 100 test matches. Australia leads the pack with 11 players followed by 10 each from India and England. The strength of other teams in this club are - WI (8 players), SA (6), SL (5), Pakistan (4) and NZ (2). The most number of matches for Zimbabwe is by Grant Flower (67 tests) and for Bangladesh is Mohammed Ashraful (61 tests).

The first player to play 100 test matches was Colin Cowdrey of England. He achieved this landmark in the third Ashes test of 1968 at Edgbaston. He was leading English side in the series and he celebrated the occasion with a century, his 21st. It took another 13 years for someone else to emulate Cowdrey's feat.

First 5 players to play 100 test matches

Player
Team
Debut
100th test
Time
Venue
Match Tally
Colin Cowdrey
Eng
24-Dec-32
11-Jul-68
13y, 227d
Edgbaston
104
Geoffrey Boycott
Eng
21-Oct-40
2-Jul-81
17y, 28d
Lord’s
17 & 60
Clive Lloyd
WI
31-Aug-44
28-Apr-84
17y, 136d
Kingston
20
Sunil Gavaskar
Ind
10-Jul-49
17-Oct-84
13y, 225d
Lahore
48 & 37
David Gower
Eng
1-Jun-78
21-Jul-88
10y, 50d
Leeds
13 & 2

Oldest to play 100 tests:
Player
Team
DOB
100th test
Age
Geoffrey Boycott
Eng
21-Oct-40
2-Jul-81
40y, 254d
Clive Lloyd
WI
31-Aug-44
28-Apr-84
39y, 240d
Graham Gooch
Eng
23-Jul-53
29-Jan-93
39y, 190d
G Greendige
WI
1-May-51
12-Apr-90
38y, 347d
Alec Stewart
Eng
8-Apr-63
3-Aug-00
37y, 117d

Youngest to play 100 tests:
Player
Team
DOB
100th test
Age
Sachin Tendulkar
Ind
24-Apr-73
5-Sep-02
29y, 134d
Mark Boucher
SA
3-Dec-76
11-Jan-07
30y, 39d
Jacques Kallis
SA
16-Oct-75
15-Apr-06
30y, 182d
Kapil Dev
Ind
6-Jan-59
15-Nov-89
30y, 313d
Ricky Ponting
Aus
19-Dec-74
2-Jan-06
31y, 14d

Least time to reach 100 tests:

Player
Team
Debut
100th test
Age
Andrew Strauss
Eng
20-May-04
16-Aug-12
8y, 88d
Kevin Pietersen
Eng
21-Jul-05
21-Nov-13
8y, 123d
Mark Waugh
Aus
25-Jan-91
2-Jan-00
8y, 342d
Mark Boucher
SA
17-Oct-97
11-Jan-07
9y, 86d
Ian Healy
Aus
15-Sep-88
30-Jan-98
9y, 137d

 Most time to reach 100 tests:
Player
Team
Debut
100th test
Age
Graham Gooch
Eng
10-Jul-75
29-Jan-93
17y, 203d
Clive Lloyd
WI
13-Dec-66
28-Apr-84
17y, 136d
Geoffrey Boycott
Eng
4-Jun-64
2-Jul-81
17y, 28d
Saleem Malik
Pak
5-Mar-82
10-Dec-98
16y, 280d
Wasim Akram
Pak
25-Jan-85
29-Nov-00
15y, 308d





Most runs after 100 tests:

Player
Team
Runs
Avg
100s
Brian Lara
WI
8916
52.14
23
Kumar Sanggakkara
SL
8651
55.81
25
Rahul Dravid
Ind
8553
57.79
22
Matthew Hayden
Aus
8508
51.87
30
Virender Sehwag
Ind
8487
50.51
23


Highest batting average after 100 tests:
Player
Team
Runs
Avg
100s
Sachin Tendulkar
Ind
8405
57.96
30
Rahul Dravid
Ind
8553
57.79
22
Ricky Ponting
Aus
8253
57.71
28
Javed Miandad
Pak
7694
57.41
22
Jacques Kallis
SA
7940
56.31
24
 
Most centuries after 100 tests:

Player
Team
Runs
Avg
100s
Sachin Tendulkar
Ind
8405
57.96
30
Sunil Gavaskar
Ind
8479
52.33
30
Matthew Hayden
Aus
8508
51.87
30
Ricky Ponting
Aus
8253
57.71
28
Kumar Sangakkara
SL
8651
55.81
25
Greame Smith
SA
8173
50.14
25


Most wickets after 100 tests:
Player
Team
Wickets
Avg
5-wkts
Muttiah Muralitharan
SL
593
22.37
49
Anil Kumble
Ind
485
27.98
31
Glenn McGrath
Aus
451
21.73
24
Shane Warne
Aus
444
26.56
21
Harbhajan Singh
Ind
411
32.38
25


Best bowling average after 100 tests:
Player
Team
Wickets
Avg
5-wkts
Glenn McGrath
Aus
451
21.73
24
Muttiah Muralitharan
SL
593
22.37
49
Wasim Akram
Pak
409
23.17
25
Shaun Pollock
SA
391
23.25
16
Courtney Walsh
WI
367
25.64
15


 Most 5 wicket hauls after 100 tests:

Player
Team
Wickets
Avg
5-wkts
Muttiah Muralitharan
SL
593
22.37
49
Anil Kumble
Ind
485
27.98
31
Ian Botham
Eng
383
28.24
27
Wasim Akram
Pak
409
23.17
25
Harbhajan Singh
Ind
411
32.38
25


 Highest individual scores in 100th test:

Player
Team
Wickets
Inzamam ul Haq
Pak
184
G Greenidge
WI
149
Javed Miandad
Pak
145
Ricky Ponting
Aus
143*
Graeme Smith
SA
131

 Best bowling figures in an innings in 100th test:

Player
Team
Wickets
Muttiah Muralitharan
SL
6/54
Shane Warne
Aus
6/161
Anil Kumble
Ind
5/89
Daniel Vettori
NZ
4/36
Kapil Dev
Ind
4/69

 Most catches in 100th test:

Player
Team
Catches
Mark Waugh
Aus
4
Sunil Gavaskar
Ind
3
Mark Boucher
SA
3
Allan Border
Aus
3

·         14 players lead their sides during their 100th test.

·      The years in which most players completed the 100th test are : 2006(8 players); 1998 (5); 1988 (4); 2000(4); 2005(4)

·         Ian Healy was the first wicket keeper to play 100 tests. Mark Boucher is the only other wicket keeper to do the same. Alec Stewart and Kumar Sangakkara played 82 & 48 tests respectively  as a wicket keeper.

·         Michael Atherton and Alec Stewart played their 100th test the same match as did Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock and Stephen Fleming.

·         Graham Thorpe and Andrew Strauss played exactly 100 tests. Mohammed Azharuddin is the only player to end up on 99 tests.

·         KapilDev was the first bowler to play 100 tests.

·         Allan Border (153), Mark Waugh (107) and Sunil Gavaskar (106) are the only players to play 100 or more tests consecutively. Among the current players Alistair Cook (96), AB de Villiers (87) and Brendon McCullum (79) leads the list.

·       Ricky Ponting is the only player to score 2 centuries on his 100th test. He achieved this against South Africa at Sydney in 2006.

·         Miandad scored 163 on debut, 280*(his personal best) in 50th test and 145 in 100th test.

·         Viv Richards took his 100th catch in 100th test.

·         Gordon Greenidge scored 93 & 107 on debut and 149 in his 100th test.

·         Brian Lara scored a double century in his 99th test, a fifty in his 100th test and a century in his 101st test.

·         Among players with 100 or more tests, Stephen Fleming and Andrew Strauss are the only 2 non-wicket keepers who never bowled.

·         Ian Botham took a 5-wicket haul on his debut and a century in his 50th test.

·         Kirsten scored a century and bagged a duck in his 50th test.

·         Ricky Ponting is the only player to win 100 or more tests.

·         Graeme Smith is the only player to captain in 100 or more tests.



TAILENDER

Pietersen served as a commentator for ESPN-Star during the ICC World T20 in SL as he was not a part of English squad following a disciplinary action from the ECB. Chris Gayle brought Gangnam style celebration during the tournament. Click here to watch who is better in Gangnam dance -  Pietersen or Gayle?