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Four factors that could influence how the franchises spend their cash at the 2018 IPL player auction

Gaurav Sundararaman24-Jan-2018Are really fast bowlers worth the big bucks?
IPL teams often splurge on a bowler who is capable of consistently hitting speeds in excess of 140kph. But are such express bowlers really effective in Indian conditions? Apart from Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell McClenaghan, Chris Morris, Mitchell Starc – who had one good season – and Nathan Coulter-Nile, who was effective largely only in Kolkata last season, none of the others have made an impact consistently. Bowlers like Adam Milne, Tymal Mills, Matt Henry, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Kyle Abbott, Kane Richardson, Mitchell Johnson, Sean Abbott, Varun Aaron and Chris Woakes – to make several – have failed to justify their high prices.Eden Gardens is the only pace-friendly venue in the IPL at the moment, so while it might make sense for Kolkata Knight Riders to invest in speed for their home games, the other franchises might do well to exercise restraint while bidding on high-speed bowlers. They could be purchased for smaller amounts and played largely in the few games when conditions call for the extra yard of pace. Shorter boundaries, batting-friendly pitches, bigger bats and night games have them rarer in the IPL.About half of IPL’s most consistent batsmen over the past three seasons have been retained by their franchises•ESPNcricinfo LtdSecond-season syndrome
Do you remember Swapnil Asnodkar, Paul Valthaty, Ashok Menaria and Sudeep Tyagi? They had one really good IPL season, and no others. One-season wonders are fairly common in the IPL and the challenge for the teams is to not get carried away by them in the auction. Historically, only a few players do well across two or three IPL seasons. Hardik Pandya had a great 2015 but a woeful 2016, and came back strongly in 2017. Similarly, Shreyas Iyer had a good 2015 and a poor 2016.Over the previous three IPLs, only ten international batsmen – AB de Villiers, Ajinkya Rahane, Gautam Gambhir, Brendon McCullum, David Warner, Rohit Sharma, Robin Uthappa, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina – have scored in excess of 300 runs each season at a healthy average and strike rate. Similarly, only eight bowlers – Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Dwayne Bravo, Axar Patel, Chris Morris, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma and Yuzvendra Chahal) have been among the top wicket-takers list across all three seasons with good economy rates and strike rates. And though the likes of Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Washington Sundar and Ben Stokes did extremely well in 2017, history says that they might be hard pressed to have it as good in 2018. The franchises might want to watch out for that.Left-arm quicks have proven to be effective strike bowlers, but ill-suited to control the run flow in the IPL•ESPNcricinfo LtdLeft is right
Why did Tymal Mills get such a high bid – sold for $1.8 million – in the 2017 auction? Supply and demand. There aren’t that many left-arm quicks around internationally, and far fewer in Indian domestic cricket. Having a left-arm seamer who can swing the ball adds variety to the attack, especially because most Indian batsmen would not have faced too many quality left-armers in domestic cricket. As a result, these bowlers go for more money than others. Starc, McClenaghan and Mustafizur Rahman are some overseas success stories, while Ashish Nehra, Jaydev Unadkat and S Aravind have done well among the Indians.Data reveals that these fast bowlers are better used as wicket-taking options early on than to contain. Most left-arm pacers over the last three seasons have good strike-rates but only five have an economy below eight per over. Trent Boult, Mills, Mitchell Johnson and McClenaghan went for a lot of runs, while Aniket Choudhry, T Natarajan, RP Singh and Pradeep Sangwan failed. Franchises need to mindful of picking bowlers who are capable of providing the team with early breakthroughs, or at the back end with their variations.ESPNcricinfo LtdOverseas spinners
Unless they are Sunil Narine or Rashid Khan, overseas spinners have not had a major impact in the IPL. Only a handful have had match-winning performances in the league – a specialist overseas spinner has been Man of the Match in only 14 IPL matches. Narine won six of those awards, Shane Warne four, and Rashid Khan twice in his maiden season, which is a special performance.Apart from Imran Tahir – briefly in 2017 – no other overseas spinner has made any sort of impact consistently over the last few seasons. The likes of Adam Zampa, Ish Sodhi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Samuel Badree and Akila Dhananjaya are perhaps best suited as back-ups, rather than a first-choice overseas player. Franchises could choose to spend more prudently on overseas spinners, and pick up domestic spinners to do the job.

The Sounders’ forward was spotted in the stands during the Mariners' recent home game and posed for photos with the Mariners' beloved mascot

• Musovski receives special recognition on stadium videoboard
• Moose performed personalized soccer-themed antics for Sounders forward
• Seattle Sounders face LAFC next in MLS

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  WHAT HAPPENED

  During a recent Seattle Mariners home game at T-Mobile Park, Seattle Sounders forward Danny Musovski was in attendance enjoying a baseball game during a break in the MLS schedule. Midway through the contest, Musovski was highlighted on the stadium's videoboard as a special guest, drawing cheers from the baseball crowd familiar with the city's soccer team. Not only that, Musovski was also brought on the field before the game and joined the Mariners' mascot Moose for photos.

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• WHAT SEATTLE SOUNDERS POSTED

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Seattle has established itself as one of America's premier sports cities, with passionate fan bases supporting teams across multiple leagues. Rather than competing for attention, the city's teams have embraced opportunities to cross-promote and celebrate each other. This strategy has proven particularly effective in Seattle, where the Sounders and Mariners share proximity in the downtown sports district, along with the Seahawks (NFL), Kraken (NHL), and Storm (WNBA).

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  WHAT’S NEXT?

  The Seattle Sounders are on a good run of form as the club is unbeaten in its last four MLS games, a run that includes their recent 3-1 win over the Houston Dynamo. It has moved the Sounders into fifth place on the Western Conference table with 19 points, with them 8 points behind conference leaders Vancouver Whitecaps (27). They go on the road next to face LAFC on May 14 before then visiting Providence Park to face the Portland Timbers on May 17.

Bezuidenhout, Kerr and Devine slam half-centuries too as Pakistan, despite Ameen’s century, fall 131 runs short

Sruthi Ravindranath12-Dec-2023A powerful batting display from New Zealand’s top four set up a big win for them in the first ODI against Pakistan in Queenstown, as they went 1-0 up in the three-match series. Pakistan went down by 131 runs chasing a big target of 366.The result aside, Pakistan were also dealt a double blow with fast bowler Diana Baig ruled out of the series with a training injury, and captain Nida Dar taken off the field during the game after she was struck in the face while bowling. In Pakistan’s chase, Sidra Ameen made 105 but did not find much support from the other end as Pakistan went down by 131 runs chasing a big target of 366.After being put in, New Zealand openers Suzie Bates and Bernadine Bezuidenhout got off to a steady start, putting up 51 runs in the powerplay. They then started accelerating and scored boundaries regularly to take New Zealand’s total past 100 without any blemishes. Bezuidenhout brought up her half-century off 50 balls in the 18th over, while Bates got to her fifty off 57 balls in the 22nd over. A run out ended Bezuidenhout’s stay a the crease, as she departed for a run-a-ball 86, her career-best in ODIs, as Pakistan broke a 165-run stand.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Amelia Kerr joined Bates and the duo made sure the momentum did not slip away as they continued to pile on the runs. Together they took New Zealand past 200, with Bates bringing up her century off a boundary in the 38th over. She was, however, dismissed in the next over by Umm-e-Hani for 108.Shortly after, in the 44th over, Dar, who was bowling her seventh over of the match, was struck on the face by the ball when Devine was on strike. She received medical attention on the field before being taken off, putting her participation in the second and third games of the series in doubt.Captain Sophie Devine and Amelia then took charge of the proceedings as the duo started building towards a strong total. Devine shifted gears in the 47th over – until then not a single six was scored in New Zealand innings – as she hit Fatima Sana for two sixes off the last ball of the over. In the next over, she took apart Omaima Sohail, plundering four sixes off her bowling in a 27-run over. In the process, she also brought up her half-century off 29 balls.Nida Dar was ruled out of the game after being hit in the face with the ball while bowling•Getty Images

Amelia departed for a 69-ball 83, as she consolidated her position as the top run-getter in ODIs this year. This was her fourth 50-plus score of the year and she’s made 460 runs in seven innings in 2023. Devine was out for a 36-ball 70 in the penultimate ball of the innings, as the hosts made 365 for 4 which is the highest total in women’s ODIs in New Zealand. It was also the first time in women’s ODIs that all of the top four batters of a side scored 70 runs or above.In reply, Pakistan, too, got off to a solid start, with Ameen and Muneeba Ali bringing up their 50-run opening stand in the ninth over. Ameen posted her half-century off 51 balls in the 14th over, but Devine got the breakthrough in the 19th over, sending Muneeba back for 44. Fran Jonas then removed Sadaf Shamas, Dar’s replacement for the game, for 10.The New Zealand bowlers slowed Pakistan down significantly after that, rarely conceding boundaries as the required run-rate shot up. Ameen lost three more partners before she got to her century, her fourth in the format. She was eventually run-out for 105, with Pakistan at that point needing 154 runs from 36 balls.In the middle, Pakistan lost six wickets for 41 runs, and in the end could only make 234 as Kerr took the last wicket with one ball remaining in the innings to finish with figures of 3 for 44.”The way we went about with the bat was really pleasing and it’s something as a group we’ve talked about how we want to play 50-over cricket,” Bates said after the match. “And Sophie in at [No.] 4 is reasonably new and we’ve not quite nailed it but I thought at Bernie [Bezuidenhout] at the top was order was quite outstanding. That partnership set up the match and then Melie [Amelia Kerr] and Sophie came and played. To give us 365, quite impressive on what was really a good wicket. But to get that score, everyone played the conditions well.”Devine has been pushed to the No. 4 position in recent times, having previously played as an opener in the ODI side. After making 70 off 36 balls, she also impressed with the ball, getting a crucial wicket to break the opening stand and giving away just 19 runs in her five overs.”Melie was going at such a quick rate too and Sophie made it look really easy the way she cleared the rope. That’s why we have her at [No.] 4, she’s one of the most destructive players in world cricket and she can clear the rope easily. It’s great to get that finish we’ve been searching for a long time. She was outstanding, and she really changed the game not just with the bat but with the ball as well.”

Jude Bellingham posted a hilarious story on Instagram to send wishes to his fellow Real Madrid team-mate Endrick on his 19th birthday.

• Bellingham posts funny story about Endrick
• Brazilian turned 19 on Monday
• Endrick once again called 'Bobby' jokingly

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Bellingham showcased his playful side yet again, this time while sending birthday wishes to fellow Real Madrid team-mate Endrick, who turned 19 on Monday, July 21. Taking to Instagram, the Englishman made yet another funny Sir Bobby Charlton reference in what was a fun-loving gesture towards the Brazilian.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Ever since Endrick mentioned Charlton in an interview, fans on social media started calling him "Bobby". The trend carried over to the Madrid dressing room, where the former Palmeiras prodigy is addressed as Bobby instead of his real name. The Brazil fans even chanted Sir Bobby Charlton's name during a World Cup qualifier game last September.

• WHAT JUDE BELLINGHAM SAID

  Taking to his Instagram stories, Bellingham posted two photos of himself with Endrick and wrote: "Happy birthday my Bobby. I love you so much!"

  This isn't the first time Bellingham has publicly referred to Endrick in such a manner, with the midfielder reposting the teenage forward's story in March with the words, "Be honest Bob."

  Instagram, Jude Bellingham

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ENDRICK AND BELLINGHAM?

  It remains to be seen whether Endrick stays at the Santiago Bernabeu next season. The striker has been linked with loan moves to Marseille and PSV, although no developments have taken place yet. However, he reportedly doesn't favour a departure and is likely to remain in the Spanish capital.

  On the other hand, Bellingham is set to remain on the sidelines until October, after undergoing a shoulder surgery earlier this month.

Hurricanes finished the season in fifth place, with Stars sixth, as both teams missed out on the finals

AAP15-Jan-2024Hobart Hurricanes salvaged some pride at the end of another disappointing BBL campaign, holding off Melbourne Stars by seven runs at the MCG.Like Stars, Hurricanes entered their final match of the tournament on Monday night without a chance of qualifying for the finals after Adelaide Strikers sealed the last spot in the top four with victory over Sydney Thunder the previous night.Beau Webster (55 not out in 43 balls) and Marcus Stoinis (48 in 32) looked a chance of pushing Stars past Hurricanes’ 187 for 8. But Stars’ hopes faded when Stoinis was out to Chris Jordan in the 18th over, and Stars finishing their 20 overs on 180 for 4.After being sent in to bat, Hurricanes flew out of the blocks courtesy an 86-run opening stand between Matthew Wade (63 in 41) and Ben McDermott (50 in 35). The stand was broken on the last ball of the tenth over. Hurricanes then regularly lost wickets for the remainder of their time at the crease, falling short of what they had looked like reaching.Stars allrounder Dan Lawrence collected 4 for 35 – the second four-wicket haul of his T20 career – with his gentle right-arm spin to boost Stars’ prospects.Matthew Wade scored 63 off 41 balls to finish the season•Getty Images

Hurricanes captain Nathan Ellis had an eventful night, but proved crucial in his team securing their fourth win of the campaign.After smashing 16 from five balls batting at No. 9, Ellis dropped two catches in the first two overs of the Stars chase, appearing to hurt his ribs after putting down one chance when he fell on the ball.But Ellis (2 for 29) pushed through the pain barrier to continue bowling, dismissing opener Thomas Rogers for 10.The match completely swung in Hurricanes’ favour when Ellis bowled Glenn Maxwell (32 in 18) after the Stars captain had threatened to produce a trademark match-winning knock.Once perennial BBL title contenders without ever winning the tournament, Stars missed out on the finals for a fourth straight season. Since they lost the 2019-20 final to Sydney Sixers, Stars have finished seventh, sixth, last and fifth.Hurricanes’ record isn’t much better – they have made the finals just once in the last four seasons.

Arne Slot has dismissed claims that Liverpool are short at the centre-back position as they prepare to defend their Premier League crown.

• Slot speaking after 4-2 loss to Milan
• Gomez carrying minor injury
• Boss claims Endo and Gravenberch can play at the back

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Slot made the comments in the immediate aftermath of the Reds' 4-2 pre-season loss to Milan in Hong Kong on Saturday. Ryan Gravenberch started the game alongside Virgil van Dijk in the heart of Liverpool's defence, with Ibrahima Konate and Kostas Tsimikas taking over the responsibility in the second half. Understandably, questions over the Reds depth at the position came in the post-match presser. Slot said he felt Gravenberch proved he can provide cover, and that Wataru Endo can also step into the role when required.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The Dutchman accepted the club had yet to replace Jarrell Quansah; the academy product was allowed to leave for Bayer Leverkusen earlier this summer to pursue first-team football. Joe Gomez has returned to Liverpool from the club's pre-season tour of Asia as he is carrying an Achilles injury, which has been described by Slot as "minor".

• WHAT SLOT SAID

  Slot said: "I don’t think we have a concern at centre-back. In terms of depth? I think Ryan showed today, by the way, that he can play in that position. He did it last season as well. Although we all know we favour him as a No.6. Wata [Endo] can play there. Joe Gomez only has a minor injury, he has been good for us last season as well. We have enough options left. But it’s true that Jarell Quansah left and we haven’t replaced him yet."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR LIVERPOOL?

  The Anfield club have spent big this summer, signing two attacking full backs in Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, while splashing the cash on marquee attacking names in Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike. Little has been done to address the spine of the team. Given Quansah's exit and Gomez's long injury history, could that decision scupper their Premier League title defence?

Osman Samiuddin on the World XI squads to face Australia in the Super Series

Osman Samiuddin23-Aug-2005

Who would want to be a selector? If you’re lucky you please some of the people some of the time. If you’re dreaming you please all the people all the time. If your constituency is slightly larger than that of the average national selector, as was the case for the selectors of the World XI squad then, well, good luck.A glance at both the squads announced by the ICC selectors and the criterion they laid out for selections suggests that, try as they might to convince the world that theirs was an exercise dictated only by on-field endeavour and considerations, it was clearly accompanied by no little commercial nous.It’s not that the squads are weak, far from it in fact. By and large, they are a comprehensive representation of players acknowledged as the best in the world over the last year. But within the squads there are some selections – and some omissions – which only enhance the suspicion that the selectors were swayed at least as much by star value as they were by form and performance.It could explain Inzamam-ul-Haq’s absence from either squad; a Test average of nearly 60 and an ODI average of 45 since the beginning of 2004 is cancelled out by a personality cocooned from hype and celebrity. Undoubtedly it doesn’t help that his record against
Australia is poor and popular misconceptions about his comical running (it has actually improved) and his fielding (inside the circle and at slip, he is still more than competent) persist. But a poor record against Australia hasn’t harmed the prospects of Jacques Kallis.Sachin Tendulkar lacks nothing in star value, but he does lack form, runs and match fitness. In ODIs, he averages 36.80 since the beginning of 2004. And lest the more zealous among us think it is a nationality bias, it isn’t; Tendulkar’s team-mate Rahul Dravid has figures to compare to Inzamam’s, and in fact anyone in the world, yet finds himself only in the Test squad.Dravid’s omission from the ODI squad hints at the selectors’ predilection for the superficial, for following fashion over form; despite his growth as an ODI player, Dravid doesn’t astonish a crowd – or selectors – with his daring and bravado as does a Tendulkar. But currently, he is more likely to score runs and that too against Australia. But it seems a World XI without Tendulkar, in or out of form, is still near-blasphemous.However, if Inzamam and Dravid’s cases are marginal, then the exclusion of Chaminda Vaas from the ODI squad is shocking, and highlights best the central dilemma that plagued the selectors. Vaas is not quick and he doesn’t take the breath away with speed as Shoaib Akhtar does; neither is he an admirable product of a controversial, much-discussed and far-reaching social policy as Makhaya Ntini is. But as an opening and closing bowler with rare intelligence and rarer gifts of control, seam and cut, he is almost unparalleled in ODIs, a successor to the original left-arm of God. To boot, he has a robust record against the Australians.

With Shoaib at least, there is no comparison, statistically, spiritually or in practice – Vaas has taken 40 wickets in 23 ODIs (Shoaib has 37 from 28) at nearly ten runs less per wicket (19.75) and with an economy rate almost a whole run better (3.95 per over) since January 2004. And, an Afro-Asian Cup apart, Shoaib has played no international cricket since January, although that hasn’t precipitated lesser media coverage.Many more debates, borne perhaps from a skewed sense of national identity and pride, are likely to emerge over coming days. Daniel Vettori possesses a decent record against Australia and burgeoning batting skills additionally, but can he really bowl the side out to win a game, as Anil Kumble (in particular) and Harbhajan Singh (to a lesser extent) have done? Does Ntini’s legendary fitness, stamina and increasing incisiveness not deserve a place in the Test side too? Has Steve Harmison developed enough ODI cunning and confidence to warrant a place? And is his captain Michael Vaughan not in possession of a supreme record against the Australians, as well as a fondness for Australian tracks, to manage a place in the top order?The most pertinent of those debates, however, will remain. To ensure the success of the Super Series, the ICC selectors are in need of hype just as they are in need of a competitive contest, and they have picked the personnel best suited to achieve that aim.

The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket

Steven Lynch19-Jun-2006The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket:

In all three England-Sri Lanka Tests, the first three batsmen in the order on both sides were left-handers – has this happened before in Tests? asked Jim Thorn
No, this has never happened before. The nearest was in two separate Tests in 2004, when six left-handers did feature – but only due to a change in the batting order both times. When Australia played India at Chennai in October 2004 their top three in the first innings was Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer and Simon Katich, while Adam Gilchrist came in up the order at No. 3 in the second innings instead of Katich. India had Irfan Pathan at No. 3, but Yuvraj Singh’s opening partner was a right-hander, Virender Sehwag. Oddly, it happened again little more than two months later, at Durban: Jacques Rudolph batted at No. 3 in South Africa’s first innings, and Nicky Boje was there in the second. But again there was a right-hand opener to spoil the party – Herschelle Gibbs, who opened with Graeme Smith. England’s top three in both innings were Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss and Mark Butcher. There have been six other occasions in Tests – all since 1994-95 – when in an unchanged top three, five of the six involved on both sides were left-handers.Who was the first batsman to wear a crash helmet in a Test? asked Andrew Mottram from Cheshire
The first man to wear a recognisable modern-style batting helmet in a Test was the Australian left-hander Graham Yallop, against West Indies at Bridgetown in March 1978. He wasn’t daft: Andy Roberts and Colin Croft took the new ball, with Joel Garner as first change. Australia’s captain Bob Simpson, who faced the same trio without a helmet in that game even though he was 42, wrote: “Yallop made history by being the first batsman to wear a full protective helmet in Test cricket. The extra protection seemed to work wonders because he looked far more composed against the pacemen.” Yallop made 47 – but West Indies still won, by nine wickets, inside three days.Who is Shane Warne’s bunny, and who has taken most catches off him, Adam Gilchrist or Ian Healy? asked Chris Kwiatowski from Redfern, Sydney
Shane Warne’s “bunny” – the man he has dismissed most often in Tests – is Alec Stewart, who fell to him 14 times. Warne seems to target England captains: he also removed Stewart’s successor, Nasser Hussain, on 11 occasions, and his predecessor, Mike Atherton, 10 times. He has also dismissed South Africa’s Ashwell Prince on 11 occasions – and Prince has only had 18 innings against Australia. Adam Gilchrist has taken 39 catches off Warne to Ian Healy’s 34 – but Mark Taylor took more catches off Warne than either of them, with 51. If you take stumpings into account, Gilchrist has featured in 57 Warne dismissals, and Healy 49. Mark Waugh also took 39 catches off Warne in Tests: Matthew Hayden has so far taken 38, and Ricky Ponting 35.Bangladesh recently beat Sri Lanka for the first time, and I also remember them beating Australia and Pakistan. Have they beaten all the other Test-playing nations yet? asked Sagir Parkar
The match you mention against Sri Lanka was at Bogra February. Bangladesh have also beaten India once (at Dhaka in 2004-05), and Zimbabwe four times, as well as recording official ODI victories over Hong Kong, Kenya and Scotland. But there are four other Test teams that they have still to beat in ODIs – they have played seven each against England, New Zealand and South Africa and lost the lot, and have lost nine of eleven matches against West Indies, with two no-results.Can you please tell me the name of the first Test player to die? Someone told me it was WG Grace, but I don’t think it was, asked Mohammad Hasan from Pakistan
The unfortunate holder of this unwanted distinction is England’s James Southerton, an offspinner who played in the first two Tests of all in 1876-77 – he was 49 then, and remains Test cricket’s oldest debutant. Southerton died little more than three years later, in June 1880, at the age of 52. Although WG Grace lived on till 1915, when he was 67, his brother GF (Fred) Grace was not so lucky – he made his Test debut alongside WG at The Oval on September 6, 1880, but caught pneumonia shortly afterwards and died on September 22, aged only 29.What unusual event delayed the start of the fifth Test between South Africa and England in 1930-31? asked Terence Frederick of London
This was the fifth Test of that series, at Durban, and the reason for the delay is one of Test cricket’s most unusual ones: the bails were the wrong size, and the umpires had to make a new set! It’s not as incompetent as it sounds – not quite, anyway – as the laws had recently been changed to increase the size of the stumps to the current size of 28 inches high by nine inches wide (previously it was 27×8). The stumps at Kingsmead were the right size, but the bails weren’t. Gerald Brodribb, in Next Man In, his excellent study of the evolution of cricket’s laws, reports that a new set of bails had to be made on the spot, and adds: “England, who had won the toss and put South Africa in on a drying wicket, made a strong protest at this annoying delay.”

Stats highlights of the third day’s play of the fourth Test between Australia and England at Melbourne

Kanishkaa Balachandran28-Dec-2006

3 – The number of times Australia have been 4-0 up in an Ashes series after winning the first four games. The first instance was in 1920-21, before sweeping the series 5-0. The second was in 2002-03, though England managed a consolation win in the fifth Test at Sydney.40* – Warne’s score which happens to be his highest at the MCG, his home ground. His previous highest was just 18.56 – Warne’s wicket tally at the MCG, in 11 Tests. He now has over 50 Test wickets in four home venues, his favourite venue being the Gabba where he has 68 wickets at an average of just a shade over 20.17 – The number of Man-of-the-Match awards for Warne in Tests. He is the joint world-record holder with Pakistan’s Wasim Akram. Close on their heels are Jacques Kallis and Muttiah Muralitharan who have 16 each.35 – Glenn McGrath’s duck count after he was dismissed for zero today at the MCG. He was tied with Warne on 34 before the Boxing Day Test and has now moved into second place on the overall list behind Courtney Walsh who has 43.2 – The number of instances Chris Read has effected six dismissals in a Test innings. The first instance was on his debut Test, against New Zealand at Edgbaston in 1999. This is also the eighth such instance of an England wicketkeeper affecting six or more dismissals in an innings.335 – Runs added by Australia after England had them on the mat at 5 for 84.156 – Andrew Symonds’s highest Test score, which is also the second highest by a number seven batsman at the MCG. The highest remains Don Bradman’s 270, which is a world record.

Highest individual scores in the last innings of the match and the player with a better batting average than the Don, and more

Steven Lynch27-Nov-2007The regular Tuesday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket:

What is the highest individual score made in the fourth innings of a Test match, or any first-class match? asked Tony Britton from Ireland
The highest score in the fourth innings of a Test remains George Headley’s 223 for West Indies against England at Kingston in 1929-30 – he was helped by the fact that that was a timeless Test. Nathan Astle ran him exceedingly close with 222 for New Zealand against England at Christchurch in 2001-02. There have only been three other double-centuries in the fourth innings of a Test: Sunil Gavaskar’s 221 for India v England at The Oval in 1979, Bill Edrich’s 219 for England v South Africa at Durban in 1938-39 (another timeless Test), and Gordon Greenidge’s 214 not out to help West Indies win the 1984 Lord’s Test against England. The first-class record changed hands last year, when Cameron White made 260 not out in the final innings for Somerset against Derbyshire at Derby (Somerset still lost by 80 runs, despite making 498). White broke the record previously held by Hansie Cronje (251) since 1993-94.Inspired by the fact there’s an ODI scheduled for Melbourne on February 29, 2008, how many Test matches have been in progress on Leap Year Day? asked Daniel McDonald from Australia
There have been 12 occasions when play was scheduled in a Test match for February 29, although in three of them no actual play took place because of bad weather. The first was in 1904, when the third day’s play in an Ashes Test at Sydney was washed out, the fate also of the sixth scheduled day of the 1911-12 Ashes Test, again at Sydney. The first time there was any play in a Test on Feb 29 was in 1932, when New Zealand played South Africa at Christchurch: the South African opener Jim Christy completed the first Leap Year Day hundred in a Test. Since then it has happened in 1935-36, 1963-64, in two matches in 1967-68 and 1979-80, and one each in 1987-88 and 1999-2000. The most recent time play was scheduled for Feb 29 – Zimbabwe v Bangladesh at Bulawayo in 2003-04 – rain again prevented any play. There have been seven ODIs on a Leap Year Day: one in 1984, three in 1992, two in 1996 (including the famous World Cup game at Pune when Kenya beat West Indies), and two in 2004.How many players have a Test average higher than Don Bradman’s, if you include everyone? asked Mohammad Imthinal from Sri Lanka
The only person to average more than Don Bradman’s 99.94 in Tests is the West Indian Andy Ganteaume, who had one Test innings, against England at Port-of-Spain in 1947-48, and scored 112. He never played again, so finished with an average of 112.00. The Sri Lankan Naveed Nawaz played one Test, against Bangladesh in Colombo in 2002, and scored 78 not out and 21, giving him a Test average of 99.00. The highest of anyone else who has had at least 15 innings is Michael Hussey’s current average of 86.18.I note that in the ODI between India and Pakistan on November 8 a total of 57 wides were bowled. Is this a record? asked Paul Clifford
Well, 57 would have been a new record – but in fact there were “only” 47 wides in that match at Mohali, 31 by Pakistan and 16 by India (actually there were only 38 deliveries signalled wide, as some of them cost more than the one-run penalty). The record for the most wides in a single ODI remains 52, sent down by Kenya (21) and India (31) in a World Cup match at Bristol in 1999. There have been three other matches in which the wide count exceeded the recent Mohali game, as this new table shows.

Looking through Glenn Turner’s career I saw that in 1971-72 he averaged 96 in a series in the West Indies. What I found astounding was that that five-Test series finished 0-0. This seems inconceivable today, at least in a long series. How many times has this happened and when was the last? asked Stephen Partridge from the UK
That series in the Caribbean in 1971-72, in which Glenn Turner scored two double-centuries (and four in all on the tour) was – perhaps mercifully – the last of four five-Test series which have finished without at least one positive result. The other three all involved India: their series against Pakistan away in 1954-55 and at home in 1960-61 (the two countries played out 13 successive draws at around this time, and overall 36 of their 57 Tests have ended in draws), and the home series against England in 1963-64. There have also been two four-Test series which ended up 0-0: England v New Zealand in 1949 (a series which put an end to three-day Tests), and Pakistan v India (again) in 1989-90, which was Sachin Tendulkar’s debut series.Which cricket stadium has most floodlight towers? Is it the PCA Stadium in Mohali? asked Sumanth from India
Without going round every ground it’s hard to say, but the feeling in the Cricinfo office is that it would be hard to beat the one that you mention, the Punjab CA Stadium in Mohali, which has 18 floodlight towers, as you can see in the picture above. One reason for this is that the ground is near an air-base, so the towers have to be a bit lower than is customary.