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January 1, 2011Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
Waqar Younis and the others: a look at ODI streaks
No one ran up ODI bowling streaks like Waqar Younis did
© PhotosportThis is a logical follow-up to the brace of articles on the best 1-10 Tests streaks for bowlers and batsmen. This coves the ODI matches. I have managed to have both the batsmen and bowlers in a single article by some nifty formatting.
This turned out to be a tough task since I also wanted to utilise this opportunity to build a player-performance database. This is essential since I needed to get the best 1-10 ODI performances for each player and then get the all-time best performances. I also wanted to provide the information on the top players' 1-10 ODIs best performances so that the readers could do their own comparisons. And I was sure that there would be queries on the best performances by specific players after the article was published. I wanted to be able to provide the information quickly. In fact I have also provided the huge table of all qualifying players for downloading.
First let me emphasise that this is only a run aggregate. I myself will clarify that this aggregating of runs in specific sequences of 1-10 ODIs is irrespective of opposing team, home or away, match conditions, period lapsed between matches, not outs et al. That is not the purpose of this article. Readers should appreciate this and not come in with a comment such as "opposition bowling quality is not considered". But that is wishful thinking! Anyhow I will just publish such readers' comments without any response. Also readers who worry about batting average should understand that when someone scores over 500 runs in 10 ODIs, it does not matter about averages. It is going to be quite high.
Let us now look at the tables.
Maximum runs scored in 1 to 10 ODIs
Batsman Cty StMtId-Year No Runs
ODIs
Tendulkar S.R Ind (2962-2010) 1 200
Saeed Anwar Pak (1209-1997) 1 194
Coventry C.K Zim (2873-2009) 1 194
Richards I.V.A Win (0264-1984) 1 189
Jayasuriya S.T Slk (1652-2000) 1 189
...
Jayasuriya S.T Slk (2389-2006) 2 309
Dilshan T.M Slk (2932-2009) 2 283
Gower D.I Eng (0168-1983) 2 280
...
Gibbs H.H Saf (1882-2002) 3 385
Saeed Anwar Pak (0841-1993) 3 349
Haynes D.L Win (0322-1985) 3 346
...
Gibbs H.H Saf (1882-2002) 4 482
Tendulkar S.R Ind (1052-1996) 4 424
Salman Butt Pak (2698-2008) 4 418
Zaheer Abbas Pak (0163-1982) 4 418
...
Hayden M.L Aus (2527-2007) 5 529
Gibbs H.H Saf (1882-2002) 5 497
Salman Butt Pak (2698-2008) 5 488
...
Hayden M.L Aus (2527-2007) 6 576
Salman Butt Pak (2700-2008) 6 550
Waugh M.E Aus (1037-1996) 6 545
...
Salman Butt Pak (2698-2008) 7 626
Amla H.M Saf (2979-2010) 7 622
Hayden M.L Aus (2527-2007) 7 617
...
Amla H.M Saf (2963-2010) 8 709
Salman Butt Pak (2696-2008) 8 659
Hayden M.L Aus (2526-2007) 8 641
...
Amla H.M Saf (2962-2010) 9 743
Javed Miandad Pak (0437-1987) 9 697
Waugh M.E Aus (1033-1996) 9 685
...
Amla H.M Saf (2963-2010) 10 768
Hayden M.L Aus (2527-2007) 10 761
de Villiers A.B Saf (2962-2010) 10 730
The batting honours have been widely distributed. Amla leads with 3 top positions, followed by Hayden and Gibbs with 2 each. Tendulkar, Jayasuriya and Salman Butt share the remaining three spots. Salman Butt also figures in the top 3 of quite a few mini-tables. Gibbs is also well-represented.
- Tendulkar's 200 is in his last innings in ODI cricket.
- Upto 5 match streaks, the top batsmen have averaged over 100 runs per ODI.
- Amla's streak is vintage-2010. His 2010 form, leading upto the New Year and World Cup is phenomenal. Not to forget the recent form of de Villiers.
I am sure readers would like to see the best 1-10 ODI sequence aggregates of their favourite batsmen. Instead of cluttering up the main article I have uploaded the file and readers can view/download the complete player file.
To view/down-load the complete 1-10 ODIs table, please click/right-click here.
To view/down-load the complete player table, please click/right-click here. The batsmen who have scored 2000 runs or more are included.
Now for the bowler sequence table.
Maximum wickets captured in 1 to 10 ODIs
Bowler Cty StMtId-Year No Wkts
ODIs
Vaas WPUJC Slk (1776-2001) 1 8
Waqar Younis Pak (1724-2001) 1 7
Muralitharan M Slk (1650-2000) 1 7
Aaqib Javed Pak (0685-1991) 1 7
McGrath G.D Aus (1970-2003) 1 7
Bichel A.J Aus (1976-2003) 1 7
Davis W.W Win (0203-1983) 1 7
...
Waqar Younis Pak (1724-2001) 2 13
Azhar Mahmood Pak (1517-1999) 2 11
Gilmour G.J Aus (0031-1975) 2 11
Aaqib Javed Pak (1205-1997) 2 10
Muralitharan M Slk (1650-2000) 2 10
Harris R.J Aus (2946-2010) 2 10
Bond S.E Nzl (2273-2005) 2 10
de Mel A.L.F Slk (0211-1983) 2 10
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0625-1990) 3 15
Harris R.J Aus (2946-2010) 3 13
Gilmour G.J Aus (0031-1975) 3 13
Warne S.K Aus (1149-1996) 3 13
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0625-1990) 4 17
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 4 17
Vaas WPUJC Slk (1950-2003) 4 16
Harris R.J Aus (2946-2010) 4 16
...
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 5 20
Waqar Younis Pak (0627-1990) 5 19
Patterson B.P Win (0459-1987) 5 17
Hendrick M Eng (0071-1979) 5 17
Harris R.J Aus (2796-2009) 5 17
Donald A.A Saf (1121-1996) 5 17
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0627-1990) 6 24
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 6 22
Donald A.A Saf (1124-1996) 6 21
....
Waqar Younis Pak (0627-1990) 7 29
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 7 25
Donald A.A Saf (1124-1996) 7 24
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0625-1990) 8 33
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 8 26
Donald A.A Saf (1121-1996) 8 26
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0609-1990) 9 33
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2718-2008) 9 30
Donald A.A Saf (1121-1996) 9 29
...
Waqar Younis Pak (0625-1990) 10 35
Mendis B.A.W Slk (2735-2008) 10 34
Donald A.A Saf (1073-1996) 10 31
Unlike the batting tables, this table is Waqar Younis all the way. Vaas just managed to gather that extra wicket to lead the 1-match table. Then Mendis, with his mercurial start to his career, just about managed to get the additional wicket in the 5-match streak. The rest is all Waqar Younis. He leads in 8 of the 10 mini-tables. This was Waqar, at his toe-crushing best during 1990. This streak helped Pakistan win 10 matches in a trot.
- From 6 to 10 matches, the sub-tables have the same three players, Waqar, Mendis and Donald in the same order. R.J.Harris had an excellent sequence for Australia.
- The 1990s have been a wonderful period for such streaks.
- There is a wide proliferation of bowlers in the low number streaks.
- It is interesting to note that Waqar Younis has a long streak starting in match no 625 and a great two match streak of 7 and 6 wickets towards the end of his career. He does not appear twice because I am showing only one streak per bowler
- Upto 8-match streaks the bowlers have managed to gather more than 4 wickets per match.
- Note the absence of Indian bowlers in these tables, both Batting and Bowling.
I am sure readers would like to see the best 1-10 ODIs sequence aggregates of their favourite bowlers. Instead of cluttering up the main article I have uploaded the file and readers can view/download the complete player file.
To view/down-load the complete 1-10 ODIs table, please click/right-click here.
To view/down-load the complete player table, please click/right-click here. The bowlers who have captured 100 wickets or more are included.
For the longer streak analysis I did just one. I decided to do a 50-match analysis. 50 matches represents between 2 and 3 years in a player career and anything longer would rule out quite a few batsmen. The results are presented below.
Batsman Cty StMtId-Year No Runs
ODIs
Tendulkar S.R Ind (1277-1998) 50 2518
Lara B.C Win (0939-1994) 50 2485
Ganguly S.C Ind (1444-1999) 50 2406
Gooch G.A Eng (0144-1982) 50 2397
Kirsten G Saf (1041-1996) 50 2392
Jones D.M Aus (0502-1988) 50 2376
Gayle C.H Win (1782-2001) 50 2331
Greenidge C.G Win (0081-1979) 50 2330
Chanderpaul S Win (2437-2006) 50 2298
Javed Miandad Pak (0385-1986) 50 2296
Saeed Anwar Pak (1112-1996) 50 2277
Richards I.V.A Win (0074-1979) 50 2268
de Silva P.A Slk (1055-1996) 50 2263
Ponting R.T Aus (2260-2005) 50 2259
Hayden M.L Aus (2227-2005) 50 2249
Haynes D.L Win (0510-1988) 50 2247
Zaheer Abbas Pak (0030-1975) 50 2247
Marsh G.R Aus (0500-1988) 50 2221
Jayasuriya S.T Slk (1077-1996) 50 2207
Waugh M.E Aus (1033-1996) 50 2185
This table goes as planned. There is a collection of the best ODI batsmen of all time. Tendulkar had his best period towards end of 1990s and scored at over 50 runs per match. Lara, despite his lesser credentials in ODI matches, had his purple match during the early part of his career and averaged just below 50 runs per match. Ganguly's streak coincided with Tendulkar's.
To view/down-load the complete 50 ODIs Batsmen table, please click/right-click here.
Bowler Cty StMtId-Year No Wkts
ODIs
Saqlain Mushtaq Pak (1135-1996) 50 105
Donald A.A Saf (0977-1995) 50 104
Waqar Younis Pak (0625-1990) 50 102
Lee B Aus (1677-2001) 50 102
Bond S.E Nzl (1845-2002) 50 97
Muralitharan M Slk (1825-2002) 50 96
McGrath G.D Aus (1210-1997) 50 94
Ntini M Saf (1801-2002) 50 94
Broad S.C.J Eng (2622-2007) 50 92
Shoaib Akhtar Pak (1428-1999) 50 91
Gough D Eng (1077-1996) 50 91
Mills K.D Nzl (2276-2005) 50 90
McDermott C.J Aus (0416-1987) 50 90
Kumble A Ind (0945-1994) 50 90
Bracken N.W Aus (1698-2001) 50 90
Warne S.K Aus (0889-1994) 50 89
Pathan I.K Ind (2093-2004) 50 89
Wasim Akram Pak (0720-1992) 50 88
Pringle C Nzl (0638-1990) 50 88
Lillee D.K Aus (0003-1972) 50 88
Mohammad Sami Pak (1808-2002) 50 87
Ambrose C.E.L Win (0508-1988) 50 86
Naved-ul-Hasan Pak (2179-2004) 50 86
Zaheer Khan Ind (1729-2001) 50 86
Bishop I.R Win (0519-1988) 50 85
Umar Gul Pak (2463-2006) 50 85
Fleming D.W Aus (0907-1994) 50 84
Garner J Win (0128-1981) 50 84
Gillespie J.N Aus (1187-1997) 50 84
Johnson M.G Aus (2413-2006) 50 84
Despite Waqar Younis's great 10 match streak, it is Saqlain Mushtaq who takes the first place in this table. He has captured 105 wickets in his best 50 match period. Donald has also leap-frogged over Waqar and captured 104 wickets in 50 matches. Now comes Waqar Younis, with 102 wickets. Lee shares this spot with Waqar Younis and these four bowlers exceed 100 wickets in 50 matches. Then comes Bond and the two greats, Murali and McGrath.
It is nice to see the presence of Irfan Pathan inn this list, just behind Kumble, but above Wasim Akram and Lillee.
To view/down-load the complete 50 ODIs Bowlers table, please click/right-click here.
November 12, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
ODI Outliers: Innings which were way out
Sanath Jayasuriya: surpassed aggregate of team and opposition
© Getty ImagesLittle would Abhishek have realized what he unleashed when he made the comment on Jayasuriya's 189 being more than 50% of the combined team scores. A simple statement. However it opened up a chain reaction of multiple analysis of outlying performances.
I decided to first do the work related to what Abhishek suggested. This is really a player's performance compared with the other 21 players. Then I did some analysis of the player against the 11 players of the other team. Finally there is one analysis of the player compared to the other 10 members of his team. A few very interesting facts have come to light.
First the share of a batsman's score in the aggregate score of the two teams. For this share to be higher than 50%, quite a few factors have to come through. Barring an outrageous scoreline of "Team1: 75 a.o., Team 2: 80 for x (Player1 78)" this can only happen in matches won by the teams batting first. Even there the player has to outscore his own team-mates by a mile, enough to offset the other team score.
So much so, there is only one case of a player scoring over 50% of the combined match aggregate. That is Jayasuriya, whose 189 formed 53.5% of the total of 353 (299 + 54). Jayasuriya scored 63.2% of his team score and the very low score of India made sure the overall figure remained above 50%. As I have already said, there is necessity for a specific pattern of scores in this analysis. A batsman dominating his own team's innings AND a very low score by the opposing team.
I kept the cut-off at 33.33% and created the table. The table is given below.
SNo MtId Year For Batsman Runs Vs Total Score Share% 1.1652 2000 Slk Jayasuriya S.T 189 vs Ind 353 (299+ 54) 53.54% 2.0264 1984 Win Richards I.V.A 189 vs Eng 440 (272+168) 42.95% 3.2660@2007 Nzl McCullum B.B 80 vs Bng 188 ( 95+ 93) 42.55% 4.1049 1996 Saf Kirsten G 188 vs Uae 473 (321+152) 39.75% 5.0020 1975 Nzl Turner G.M 171 vs Eaf 437 (309+128) 39.13% 6.1943 2003 Zim Wishart C.B 172 vs Nam 444 (340+104) 38.74% 7.0322 1985 Win Haynes D.L 145 vs Nzl 388 (259+129) 37.37% 8.0323@1985 Win Haynes D.L 85 vs Nzl 233 (117+116) 36.48% 9.0405 1986 Win Richardson R.B 109 vs Slk 303 (248+ 55) 35.97% 10.0747@1992 Pak Rameez Raja 119 vs Nzl 333 (167+166) 35.74% 11.2547 2007 Pak Imran Nazir 160 vs Zim 448 (349+ 99) 35.71% 12.2803 2009 Slk Dilshan T.M 137 vs Pak 384 (309+ 75) 35.68% 13.2299@2005 Saf Smith G.C 134 vs Ind 377 (189+188) 35.54% 14.1890 2002 Saf Gibbs H.H 153 vs Bng 434 (301+133) 35.25% 15.2447 2006 Saf Kallis J.H 119 vs Ind 339 (248+ 91) 35.10% 16.0216 1983 Ind Kapil Dev N 175 vs Zim 501 (266+235) 34.93% 17.0441@1987 Win Greenidge C.G 133 vs Nzl 383 (192+191) 34.73% 18.1736 2001 Nzl Astle N.J 117 vs Ind 338 (211+127) 34.62% 19.1832 2002 Pak Mohammad Yousuf 129 vs Slk 373 (295+ 78) 34.58% 20.0015@1974 Pak Zaheer Abbas 57 vs Eng 165 ( 84+ 81) 34.55% 21.2912 2009 Zim Masakadza H 178 vs Ken 516 (329+187) 34.50% 22.1964 2003 Ind Tendulkar S.R 152 vs Nam 441 (311+130) 34.47% 23.2088 2004 Saf Kallis J.H 109 vs Win 317 (263+ 54) 34.38% 24.0457 1987 Win Richards I.V.A 181 vs Slk 529 (360+169) 34.22% 25.2828@2009 Win Gayle C.H 80 vs Eng 234 (117+117) 34.19% 26.0549 1989 Aus Marsh G.R 125 vs Pak 366 (258+108) 34.15% 27.2427 2006 Bng Shahriar Nafees 123 vs Zim 361 (231+130) 34.07% 28.1981 2003 Win Gayle C.H 119 vs Ken 350 (246+104) 34.00% 29.1837@2002 Win Gayle C.H 84 vs Ind 247 (124+123) 34.01% 30.0638 1990 Pak Rameez Raja 114 vs Nzl 341 (223+118) 33.43% Note: @ indicates second innings.
Next to Jayasuriya's 189 is the other 189, almost certainly the greatest ODI innings played. By Viv Richards, whose 189 (out of 272+168) formed 42.95% of the aggregate. However the most breath-taking of the chasing innings of all, McCullum's 80 (out of 93+95) formed 42.55% of the aggregate. This bizarre (real-life) scoreline is almost close to the outrageous scoreline I had earlier talked about. For a near-100 target to be chased by a team and one batsman scoring over 84% is unreal. No other innings exceeds 40% of the aggregate. The next chasing innings is Haynes's 85 (out of 116+117) working out to 36.5%.
It is not surprising that 9 West Indian batsmen figure in this list. Gayle is the leading batsman with 3 such dominating performances. In general the top three batsmen dominate the table. It is surprising that there is a single Australian entry (that too from Geoff Marsh) and nothing from England.
The next set of outlier innings are the ones where a batsman has outscored the other team by a wide margin. Note the clear distinction. In the first one we looked at the share of the batsman out of the aggregate. Here we look at the factor by which he outscored the opponents. Let us look at the table.
SNo MtId Year For Batsman Runs Vs Score Ratio 1.1652 2000 Slk Jayasuriya S.T 189 vs Ind 54/10 3.50 2.2088 2004 Saf Kallis J.H 109 vs Win 54/10 2.02 3.0405 1986 Win Richardson R.B 109 vs Slk 55/10 1.98 4.1970 2003 Aus Hayden M.L 88 vs Nam 45/10 1.96 5.2803 2009 Slk Dilshan T.M 137 vs Pak 75/10 1.83 6.1943 2003 Zim Wishart C.B 172 vs Nam 104/ 5 1.65 7.1832 2002 Pak Mohammad Yousuf 129 vs Slk 78/10 1.65 8.2547 2007 Pak Imran Nazir 160 vs Zim 99/10 1.62 9.2727 2008 Nzl McCullum B.B 166 vs Ire 112/10 1.48 10.2727 2008 Nzl Marshall J.A.H 161 vs Ire 112/10 1.44 11.1868 2002 Aus Hayden M.L 146 vs Pak 108/10 1.35 12.2001 2003 Ind Yuvraj Singh 102 vs Bng 76/10 1.34 13.0020 1975 Nzl Turner G.M 171 vs Eaf 128/ 8 1.34 14.1970 2003 Aus Symonds A 59 vs Nam 45/10 1.31 15.2447 2006 Saf Kallis J.H 119 vs Ind 91/10 1.31 16.0297 1985 Aus Border A.R 118 vs Slk 91/10 1.30 17.1049 1996 Saf Kirsten G 188 vs Uae 152/ 8 1.24 18.0405 1986 Win Greenidge C.G 67 vs Slk 55/10 1.22 19.0777 1992 Win Haynes D.L 96 vs Pak 81/10 1.19 20.1964 2003 Ind Tendulkar S.R 152 vs Nam 130/10 1.17
Here also Jayasuriya's 189 rules the roost. This innings was 3.5 times the Indian score of 54. Then, after a mile or two, comes Kallis's 109 against the West Indian score of 54, a factor of 2.02. These are the only two innings with a factor above 2.0. That puts the Jayasuriya innings in perspective. Readers can note how quickly the factor drops off. Needless to say that all these innings are when the team batting first wins.
In general the weaker teams have been at the receiving end. It is of interest that Sri Lanka has figured prominently at either end. For the few matches Namibia has played (6), they have been the victims 5 times (by two batsmen in a single match).
Now for the third analysis. This time against the batsman's own team mates. Taking the runs only would be quite silly since many a batsman has out-scored his team mates. Hence I have taken the scoring rate as the basis. I determined the following ratio and then ranked the players on that ratio.
Batsman's own scoring rate
Batsman outlier ratio = -------------------------------
Rest of the team's scoring rate
In order to avoid getting in a batsman scoring 10 in 2 balls and "outscoring" the rest of his team by a wide margin, I selected only innings of 50 and above. Also I have excluded the team extras from the rest of the team runs to be completely correct. Now for the table.
No MtId Year For Batsman Vs Score S/R Others S/R Ratio 1.1093 1996 Slk Jayasuriya S.T Pak 76( 28) 2.71 81(169) 0.48 5.66 2.0182 1983 Nzl Cairns B.L Aus 52( 25) 2.08 92(214) 0.43 4.84 3.0657 1990 Slk Ranatunga A Ind 58( 27) 2.15 135(267) 0.51 4.25 4.0152 1982 Ind Kapil Dev N Eng 60( 37) 1.62 115(293) 0.39 4.13 5.3039 2010 Nzl Mills K.D Ind 52( 35) 1.49 53(146) 0.36 4.09 6.0225 1983 Ind Patil S.M Pak 51( 28) 1.82 106(216) 0.49 3.71 7.0053 1978 Nzl Cairns B.L Eng 60( 43) 1.40 79(205) 0.39 3.62 8.0216 1983 Ind Kapil Dev N Zim 175(138) 1.27 79(222) 0.36 3.56 9.0576 1989 Aus Border A.R Eng 84( 44) 1.91 140(256) 0.55 3.49 10.2365 2006 Aus Gilchrist A.C Bng 76( 46) 1.65 103(218) 0.47 3.50 11.1901 2002 Zim Ervine S.M Pak 61( 41) 1.49 67(157) 0.43 3.49 12.0608 1990 Pak Wasim Akram Aus 86( 76) 1.13 69(211) 0.33 3.46 13.1660 2000 Ind Agarkar A.B Zim 67( 25) 2.68 213(275) 0.77 3.46 14.2239 2005 Pak Shahid Afridi Ind 102( 46) 2.22 134(207) 0.65 3.43 15.2687 2008 Aus Gilchrist A.C Slk 83( 50) 1.66 116(239) 0.49 3.42 16.2252 2005 Bng Mohammad Ashraful Eng 94( 52) 1.81 117(220) 0.53 3.40 17.0015 1974 Pak Zaheer Abbas Eng 57( 61) 0.93 13( 47) 0.28 3.38 18.1963 2003 Can Davison J.M Win 111( 76) 1.46 79(181) 0.44 3.35 19.2638 2007 Ber Cann L.O.B Ken 52( 32) 1.62 106(216) 0.49 3.31 20.0245 1984 Win Holding M.A Aus 64( 39) 1.64 110(222) 0.50 3.31 21.2660 2007 Nzl McCullum B.B Bng 80( 28) 2.86 7( 8) 0.88 3.27 22.2875 2009 Can Rizwan Cheema Ken 76( 38) 2.00 37( 60) 0.62 3.24 23.0547 1989 Pak Imran Khan Win 67( 41) 1.63 132(259) 0.51 3.21 24.2752 2008 Can Rizwan Cheema Win 61( 45) 1.36 102(236) 0.43 3.14 25.0481 1987 Ind Kapil Dev N Win 87( 64) 1.36 89(204) 0.44 3.12 26.1864 2002 Pak Shahid Afridi Saf 62( 40) 1.55 125(251) 0.50 3.11 27.2059 2003 Eng Flintoff A Bng 70( 47) 1.49 57(119) 0.48 3.11 28.0221 1983 Ind Patil S.M Eng 51( 32) 1.59 152(296) 0.51 3.11 29.2828 2009 Win Gayle C.H Eng 80( 43) 1.86 27( 45) 0.60 3.11 30.0622 1990 Aus Jones D.M Nzl 102( 91) 1.12 52(144) 0.36 3.11 31.2980 2010 Win Sammy D.J.G Saf 58( 24) 2.42 206(265) 0.78 3.11 32.0344 1985 Win Richards I.V.A Pak 66( 39) 1.69 111(201) 0.55 3.06 33.1814 2002 Zim Marillier D.A Ind 56( 24) 2.33 209(274) 0.76 3.06 34.2735 2008 Ind Sehwag V Slk 60( 36) 1.67 110(201) 0.55 3.05 35.2584 2007 Pak Shahid Afridi Slk 73( 34) 2.15 156(218) 0.72 3.00
Ah! how can you get this guy off the top. This is the third time, out of three, in this article that the "Matara marauder" has been at the top. At least it is for a different innings. His 76 in 28 balls against Pakistan had a scoring rate of 2.71 and the rest of his team scored at 0.48, giving this innings the stupendous ratio of 5.66. Then comes "father" Cairns whose 52 in 25 balls was scored 4.84 times faster than his team mates. Ranatunga's 58 in 27 balls gives this innings a ratio of 4.25. The century with the highest ratio is for Kapil Dev's 175 which scores 3.56. Anything said about this gem is an under-statement Afridi's 102 comes in next, clocking in at 3.43.
Holding deserves a special mention. His 64 off 39 balls compared to his team total of 197 in 43.3 overs is one of only two instances of a bowler in this exalted company. It is all the more commendable since the other teams included the greats and the bowling was Lawson/Alderman/Hogg/Rackemann. Kyle's 52 also deserves equal credit. Also spare a thought for L'O.B Cann, playing for unfancied Bermuda.
Overall it can be said that Sri Lanka and West Indies have often been at either end of the spectrum. English batsmen have rarely figured in such dominating innings. Also, with Gilchrist at the top, Australia has not appeared that frequently as expected.
This only shows the influence Jayasuriya had on the game. He outscored 21 other players, outscored 11 of his opposite team players by a factor of 3.50 and scored at a rate 5.66 times that of his 10 team-mates. He comes through on top on all three measures. Also note the daylight which exists between Jayasuriya and the second placed innings in the first two tables. When we talk of the greatest ODI players we almost always talk of Tendulkar and Richards. I think Jayasuriya needs to be included in this company.
It should be noted that these differ from the "PIF" based on the "Alex Factor" quite a lot although the third one comes near that analysis.
My thanks to Abhishek for providing the spark.
November 3, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
ODI wins: with oodles of resources to spare
Sanath Jayasuriya: set up a 245 run win over India
© Getty ImagesFirst, something of interest to the readers. In one of my responses I had mentioned that I had just finished reading Lynne Truss's classic "Eats, shoots and leaves" and hoped that my apostrophes were correctly placed. This was like a fleeting peep into the unknown. Couple of readers mailed and asked me about the book. A nice diversion for me, I thought. Here we go.
Lynne Truss's book is an all-time classic on English punctuation and should be read by anyone who does anything in English. It is now availeble in a low-cost edition in India. Okay, what about the title.
A panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires shots in the air. He then walks towards the exit.
The waiter is baffled and asks the panda "why ?". The panda produces a wildlife manual and asks the waiter to read the desription of himself, the panda.
Sure enough, there is an explanation.
"Panda: Large black-and-white bear-like animal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."
The waiter understands.
To those of you who have not got it, the single comma, inserted unnecessarily between eats and shoots, changes the whole sentence on the panda's eating habits. It should have been "Eats shoots and leaves.", "shoots", of course, referring to bamboo shoots. No wonder, he protested.
Do not miss this classic on correct punctuation. It is a constant bed-side companion book for me.
At the beginning of last year I had looked at huge ODI wins, using scoring rates as the base. This represented the relative usage of resources in an indirect manner. In this article I have looked at wins achieved with least deployment of resources looking at the same directly.
Let us first look at the chasing wins which offer the clearest look at deployment of resources. Everything is cut and dried at the beginning of the chasing innings and we would be able to determine the availability of resources in a very accurate manner.
Let me say that a team is restricted to 99 in the first innings, it does not matter whether they were dismissed in the 31st over or scored 99 for 8 (as Bangladesh did way back) in 45 overs. The target in front of the chasing team is 100. They have two resources at their disposal, viz., 10 wickets and x balls (normally 300). This is fixed and set in stone, ignoring the matches where rains come in and the duo of dons from England take over. In most cases the resource situation remain clear.
In the first part of this article I am going to look at the wins in which the winning teams expended the minimum of these resources and won by a few miles, so to speak.
First, the balls available. There may be Power play options, fielding restrictions in force, ball changes et al. However it is safe to conclude that the balls resource can be measured in a linear manner. With the advent of two optional Power Plays, no one can say that the middle overs are low-scoring overs. The batting team can take the PP at any time to compensate for a low-scoring period, although the captains rarely do so. Hence I will take the balls resource in a linear manner. If the maximum balls is 300 and 210 balls are available, 30% of this resource has been used. If 120 balls are available, 60% has been used and so on.
The wickets resource is slightly tricky. Not all wickets are equal. Certainly the top order wickets are more valuable than the low order wickets. There are two ways of doing this. The first is a simpler but very good method. I assign the following weights for the wickets. Not subjectively done, but by an informed allocation.
Wickets 1 to 6: 12.5% - 75% Wicket 7: 10.0% - 85% Wicket 8: 7.5% - 92.5% Wicket 9: 5.0% - 97.5% Wicket 10: 2.5% - 100%
If 4 wickets are lost, 50% of wicket resource has been used, if 7 wickets are lost, 85% of the wicket resource has been used and so on. It works very well. The only point of contention might be the argument that at the fall of 6th wicket we might still have a pair of very good batsman batting. But the weight is a fair 10% for the seventh wicket and Gilchrists and Dhonis, batting at 7, do not abound in plenty.
The second is to do a more accurate weighting of wicket values. I add the ODI Index (Batting average x Strike rate) values for all 11 batsmen. This represents the total available resource. I then determine the sum of ODI Index for the dismissed batsmen. This represents the already deployed resource. The ratio between the two gives us the required value. If Tendulkar and Vijay open, and one of them is out in a 9-wkt win, the resource available will vary significantly depending on which one is out. Of course for 10-wkt wins, the two methods lead to the same result.
I have done the calculations on both methods. My personal take is that the simpler method is sufficient and works well in 95% of the situations. The two resources carry equal weights. There might be situations where one might be more valuable than the other. Bot there is no clear way in which this sort of variable weight can be determined.
Let us now look at the tables. First, the one based on a simple wicket weight.
Wicket resource calculation: Method 2 - Simple wkt weight based MtId Year FBt Score SBt Score Result % Res left 2660 2007 Bng: 93/10 Nzl: 95/ 0 ( 6.0) won by 10 wkts 94.0 1776 2001 Zim: 38/10 Slk: 40/ 1 ( 4.2) won by 9 wkts 89.4 1958 2003 Can: 36/10 Slk: 37/ 1 ( 4.4) won by 9 wkts 89.1 1758 2001 Ken: 90/10 Ind: 91/ 0 (11.3) won by 10 wkts 88.5 1961 2003 Bng:108/10 Saf:109/ 0 (12.0) won by 10 wkts 88.0 1940 2003 Eng:117/10 Aus:118/ 0 (12.2) won by 10 wkts 87.7 2063 2003 Eng: 88/10 Slk: 89/ 0 (13.5) won by 10 wkts 86.2 2521 2007 Pak:107/10 Saf:113/ 0 (14.0) won by 10 wkts 86.0 2172 2004 USA: 65/10 Aus: 66/ 1 ( 7.5) won by 9 wkts 85.9 2754 2008 Saf: 83/10 Eng: 85/ 0 (14.1) won by 10 wkts 85.8 2599 2007 Hol: 80/10 Win: 82/ 0 (14.3) won by 10 wkts 85.5 2122 2004 Zim: 35/10 Slk: 40/ 1 ( 9.2) won by 9 wkts 84.4 2489 2007 Ber:133/10 Ken:137/ 0 (18.1) won by 10 wkts 81.8 2570 2007 Ire: 91/10 Aus: 92/ 1 (12.2) won by 9 wkts 81.4 2254 2005 Bng:139/10 Aus:140/ 0 (19.0) won by 10 wkts 81.0 2428 2006 Win: 80/10 Slk: 83/ 1 (13.2) won by 9 wkts 80.4 2733 2008 Bng:115/10 Pak:116/ 0 (19.4) won by 10 wkts 80.3 1891 2002 Bng:154/ 9 Saf:155/ 0 (20.2) won by 10 wkts 79.7 2424 2006 Zim: 85/10 Win: 90/ 1 (14.2) won by 9 wkts 79.4 1950 2003 Bng:124/10 Slk:126/ 0 (21.1) won by 10 wkts 78.8
It is obvious that a 10-wicket win would lead the table. However it is also essential that no balls were wasted and the win was reached post-haste. That is what New Zealand did against Bangladesh. They chased a target of 94 runs in 6 overs, at a scoring rate exceeding 15 and did this without losing a wicket. I have already talked about this match in my article on McCullum. This is the most devastating chasing win in ODI history. The next two blitzkriegs were by Sri Lanka who dismissed their opponents for sub-40 totals and then proceeded to win in below 5 overs, both times for the loss of one wicket. If either of these wins had been for no loss of a wicket, the resources available would have been 95%+. Then come India 10-wkt win over Kenya and South Africa's 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
However, from point of significant win over a good opposition, the next two losses by England are the ones to turn to. In the first case England were dismissed for 117 and then Australia blasted to 118 for no loss in a mere 12 overs. England were dismissed for 88 and Sri Lanka overhauled this for no loss in fewer than 14 overs. Pakistan also lost by 10 wickets in 14 overs to South Africa.
To view/down-load the complete table, containing wins with reserves exceeding 50%, please click/right-click here.
Wicket resource calculation: Method 1 - ODI Index based MtId Year FBt Score SBt Score Result % Res left 2660 2007 Bng: 93/10 Nzl: 95/ 0 ( 6.0) won by 10 wkts 94.0 1776 2001 Zim: 38/10 Slk: 40/ 1 ( 4.2) won by 9 wkts 90.8 1758 2001 Ken: 90/10 Ind: 91/ 0 (11.3) won by 10 wkts 88.5 1958 2003 Can: 36/10 Slk: 37/ 1 ( 4.4) won by 9 wkts 88.0 1961 2003 Bng:108/10 Saf:109/ 0 (12.0) won by 10 wkts 88.0 1940 2003 Eng:117/10 Aus:118/ 0 (12.2) won by 10 wkts 87.7 2063 2003 Eng: 88/10 Slk: 89/ 0 (13.5) won by 10 wkts 86.2 2521 2007 Pak:107/10 Saf:113/ 0 (14.0) won by 10 wkts 86.0 2172 2004 USA: 65/10 Aus: 66/ 1 ( 7.5) won by 9 wkts 85.9 2754 2008 Saf: 83/10 Eng: 85/ 0 (14.1) won by 10 wkts 85.8 2599 2007 Hol: 80/10 Win: 82/ 0 (14.3) won by 10 wkts 85.5 2122 2004 Zim: 35/10 Slk: 40/ 1 ( 9.2) won by 9 wkts 84.8 2489 2007 Ber:133/10 Ken:137/ 0 (18.1) won by 10 wkts 81.8 2570 2007 Ire: 91/10 Aus: 92/ 1 (12.2) won by 9 wkts 81.6 2254 2005 Bng:139/10 Aus:140/ 0 (19.0) won by 10 wkts 81.0 2875 2009 Ken:113/10 Can:117/ 1 (16.2) won by 9 wkts 80.9 2428 2006 Win: 80/10 Slk: 83/ 1 (13.2) won by 9 wkts 80.8 2733 2008 Bng:115/10 Pak:116/ 0 (19.4) won by 10 wkts 80.3 1891 2002 Bng:154/ 9 Saf:155/ 0 (20.2) won by 10 wkts 79.7 1883 2002 Hol:136/10 Pak:142/ 1 (16.2) won by 9 wkts 79.2
This is based on the ODI Index and has a slight variation to the previous table. The 10-wicket wins retain the same values as in the first table. The resource-left values for other wins depends on the quality of wicket(s) lost. Note the difference in the two Sri Lankan 9-wicket wins. In one case it was Avishka Gunawardene whose wicket was lost. In the other case, the more valuable wicket of Jayasuriya which was lost.
To view/down-load the complete table, containing wins with reserves exceeding 50%, please click/right-click here.
To complete the exercise, I have also presented here the table of huge wins, this time by teams batting first. Before any reader rushes in, let me say that these two are apples and oranges or more aptly mangos and kiwi fruits. The resources are used in totally different ways. The first batting team uses all available balls resource (again rain-d-l situations excluded) and a significant proportion of the wickets resource. The second batting team is dismissed for a low total and the win is by runs and the win margin reflects the size of win. I have ordered these wins by the ratio of second innings score to the first innings score. This clearly reflects the dominance, rather than the run margins. Let us now look at the tables.
MtId Year FBt Score SBt Score Result % score 1970 2003 Aus:301/ 6 Nam: 45/10 (14.0) lost by 256 runs 85.0 1652 2000 Slk:299/ 5 Ind: 54/10 (26.3) lost by 245 runs 81.9 2088 2004 Saf:263/ 4 Win: 54/10 (23.2) lost by 209 runs 79.5 0405 1986 Win:248/ 5 Slk: 55/10 (28.3) lost by 193 runs 77.8 2803 2009 Slk:309/ 5 Pak: 75/10 (22.5) lost by 234 runs 75.7 2534 2007 Slk:321/ 6 Ber: 78/10 (24.4) lost by 243 runs 75.7 0358 1986 Nzl:276/ 7 Aus: 70/10 (26.3) lost by 206 runs 74.6 1832 2002 Pak:295/ 6 Slk: 78/10 (16.5) lost by 217 runs 73.6 1599 2000 Pak:320/ 3 Bng: 87/10 (34.2) lost by 233 runs 72.8 2001 2003 Ind:276/10 Bng: 76/10 (27.3) lost by 200 runs 72.5 2471 2007 Slk:262/ 6 Nzl: 73/10 (26.3) lost by 189 runs 72.1 2727 2008 Nzl:402/ 2 Ire:112/10 (28.4) lost by 290 runs 72.1 0297 1985 Aus:323/ 2 Slk: 91/10 (35.5) lost by 232 runs 71.8 2274 2005 Ind:226/ 6 Zim: 65/10 (24.3) lost by 161 runs 71.2 2758 2008 Aus:254/ 8 Bng: 74/10 (27.4) lost by 180 runs 70.9 1878 2002 Slk:292/ 6 Hol: 86/10 (29.3) lost by 206 runs 70.5 3030 2010 Nzl:288/10 Ind: 88/10 (29.3) lost by 200 runs 69.4 2716 2008 Ind:374/ 4 Hkg:118/10 (36.5) lost by 256 runs 68.4 1885 2002 Nzl:244/ 9 Bng: 77/10 (19.3) lost by 167 runs 68.4 3061 2010 Saf:399/ 6 Zim:127/10 (29.0) lost by 272 runs 68.2 2345 2006 Saf:289/ 7 Aus: 93/10 (34.3) lost by 196 runs 67.8 1242 1997 Zim:284/10 Bng: 92/10 (32.3) lost by 192 runs 67.6
Australia's 256-run demolition of Namibia (who ???) leads this table since Namibia scored only 15% of the Australian total. However this match must be discounted since Namibia could have been beaten by half of the state sides of South Africa, England, Australia or India. The miracle was how they restricted Australia to only 301.
The real match of significance, in this regard, was Sri Lanka's 245-run blitz of a near-full-strength Indian team. Jayasuriya, Vaas and Muralitharan made India look like a collection of novices. India scored less than Russell Arnold. In fact I have done some detailed performance analyses for a company and this Sri Lankan performance has come out to be the greatest team performance ever. Everything has to click, the bowling and batting, that too against a top side.
The next three wins by South Africa, West Indies, Sri Lanka (recently) were all against good opponents and rank only slightly below the Sri Lankan win. A feature of this table is the proliferation of top teams at the top of the tables which have lost. This indicates that it is more likely that a good team has a bad day chasing a big total. In the first collection, it was mostly the minnows who were at the receiving end.
I am amazed at the frequency with which Sri Lanka has inflicted heavy defeats. Maybe the Murali factor.
To view/down-load the complete table, containing wins with margins exceeding 50%, please click/right-click here.
Let me re-iterate to the readers that I have not compared the numbers in these two different types of wins. Each stands by itself.
September 8, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
ODI batsmen: a totally new look through BCG charts
This article is a completely different graphical look at the ODI batsmen and has been inspired by the work done by my friend Arvind Iyengar who did a similar analysis in a cricketing site to which we both contribute. I have done some significant changes and increased the scope of analysis.
Bruce Henderson of BCG (Boston Consulting group) had created these charts during 1968 to study the Growth-Share aspects of products/business units. This is an excellent way to study two related variables together. These are plotted on a graph which is split into four equal (or unequal) size quadrants. The placement of a particular product, in this case, the batsman, gives excellent insight into the batsman's position in the galaxy of batsmen.
Arvind had drawn the chart between Batsman strike rate and Batting average. I felt that the Batting average was a wrong variable since that is arrived at by multiplying Strike rate and Average balls per innings. Consequently the Strike rate is represented in both X and Y axis. hence I have changed the Axis variables to Strike rate and Average balls per innings.
The above represents a typical BCG chart. The batsmen in the top-right quadrant, the red one, are the "Top performers". They are to the right of the Strike rate line and above the Average balls per innings line. The ones in the bottom right quadrant, the green one, are the "Dashers". They score quite fast but do not last for many balls. Certainly an asset, but could do better. Similarly, the top left quadrant, the blue one, contains the "Stayers". They last long but score relatively slowly. They are probably more valuable in the ODI game. However the dashers are likely to be more valuable in the T20 game. The bottom left quadrant, the orange one, represents the "Also rans". They fall behind in both areas.
A few things are to be made clear. I have used the Average balls per played innings rather than the balls per dismissed innings. This is to make the analysis fairer across all batsmen since the later measures would benefit the middle order a lot, possibly out of proportionately.
The other thing is that the two central dividing lines can be drawn in two ways. One is to draw the same right in the middle. However this does not take into account the distribution of values. The alternative method is to draw the lines around the median value so that we get around half the batsman on top of the mid line of the Average balls per innings and around half the batsmen to the right of the mid line of the Strike rate line. This leads to unequal quadrants but would make analysis of the batsmen far more meaningful. Let me add that the drawing of the asymmetrical central lines is my own idea and most of the BCG charts have only centrally located divider lines. However my idea of asymmetrical dividing lines ensures a fairer distribution of players across quadrants.
Finally the chart is drawn on two criteria. The top run getters and the top batting averages are used as different criteria, the minimum runs requirement for the later selection being 2500.
The first chart is drawn with the runs scored as the criteria. 6500 runs are the cut-off for selection. Anything fewer will clutter up the graph. Already I feel we are over-populated. The median Strike rate is around 76 and the median Average balls is just short of 45. The dividing lines are drawn around these figures. These lines split the distribution approximately equally on either side. Let us now look at the chart. At the end I have also shown the alternate graph in which the dividing lines are drawn right in the middle.
Graph of runs scored
© Ananth Narayanan
The "Top performers" are led by Tendulkar and include Ponting, Lara, Mark Waugh, Saeed Anwar and Richards. It is difficult to question the credentials of any of these ODI greats. Gayle just about falls short of breaking in. The "Dashers" group is led by Gilchrist, Sehwag, Jayasuriya, Gayle and Yuvraj. Quite a few attacking batsmen also fill this group. The "Stayers" group is led by Haynes and is followed by Kallis, Ganguly, Miandad and a few others. The strugglers group, the "Also rans", has Border, Fleming and Azharuddin as the prominent members. Andy Flower and Sangakkara are in this group but are quite close to the central point. Sangakkara could move out of this group by either increasing his scoring rate or average balls.
The second chart is drawn with the Batting average as the criteria. 40.00 is the cut-off with a minimum of 2500 runs. The median Strike rate is around 76 and the median Average balls is around 46. The dividing lines are drawn around these figures. These lines split the distribution approximately equally on either side. Let us now look at the chart. The selected batsmen are distributed around the whole graph quite well. Hence the mid-point graph is not necessary. It will be almost the same as this one.
Graph of batting average
© Ananth Narayanan
The "Top performers" are Tendulkar, Zaheer Abbas, Hayden and Ponting. No one else is even on the border. Richards leads in the "Dashers" group and is followed by de Villiers, Dhoni, Hussey and Pietersen. Greenidge and Haynes top the "Stayers" group which also has Jones, Ganguly and Bevan. The last "Also ran" group has very few members. Even amongst these, Sarwan, Clark and Martyn are very close to the centre line of the Strike rate. It is easy to conclude that once we select batsmen with averages of 40.00 it is difficult to find really average performers. They compensate for deficiency in one with the other. Lara, Sarwan, Clark and Mohd Yousuf are quite close to the central point.
I had also drawn the charts for the top players by Strike rate. This is quite a lop-sided graph since there is a huge gap between the strike rates of the top batsmen (113, 103, 96 ...). Surprisingly many of these players have fairly high Balls per innings. Hence the graph is heavy with players on the left side.
Graph of strike rate
© Ananth Narayanan
In addition, I had also drawn the charts for the top players by Average balls played. This is also quite a lop-sided graph since there is a huge gap between the balls played values of the top batsmen (67, 62, 57 ...). Surprisingly many of these players have decent strike rates. Hence the graph is heavy with players on the bottom.
Graph of average balls played
© Ananth Narayanan
To view/down-load the graph of top run-makers with an equal quadrant size split, please click/right-click here. The graph is self-explanatory. As I feared, this is a totally unacceptable presentation. Just one player, Tendulkar makes it to the "Top performers" group.
I will next do a similar analysis on ODI bowlers. The intriguing feature in this graph will be that for both Bowling strike rate and Bowling Rpo, the lower the value is the better the bowler. In other words, the quadrants will exchange their significance. Readers are welcome to give their suggestions.
An important announcement to the readers. In one of my comments I had mentioned that I would create an open mail id to which readers could send their suggestions. To start with I would appreciate if readers can send in their suggestions on which batting and bowling performances in the third innings can be considered. I will complete my work and depending on the reader responses will incorporate a few popular performances amongst these. Please note that this is a one-to-one communication and the contents will not be published. Please continue to use the blog posting method for the comments you want to be published. This is not my mail id and has been created only for this purpose. To separate the spam, it will be a nice idea if all readers can follow a simple idea of making their title as "It Figures Blog: ..............".
The mail id is ananth.itfigures@gmail.com
Since the readers would have to use a mail route I give the readers my assurance that the mail id is safe and will never be used by me for anything other than communicating with the reader specifically. This will not be part of any group mail nor will mails be cc'd.
July 2, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
Significant ODI innings: a look at the innings and the batsmen
Viv Richards' 189 against England is the top ODI innings
© Getty ImagesThe articles on significant innings in Tests received very good response from the readers with excellent suggestions for improvement which enabled me to come out with a follow-up article incorporating a number of suggestions. That has emboldened me to do the same for ODIs. Many of the lessons learnt from the earlier exercises have been applied in this effort.
The numbers have totally different implications in the two formats. The data availability, especially the scoring rates, is 100% in ODIs as compared to Tests. Balls faced has different implications in Tests and ODIs. Almost always cameos mean nothing in Tests, not so in ODIs. Hence the two processes are as different as chalk and cheese.
As I have already explained in the Test articles, the following measures have not been considered. All these have value in a Ratings exercise. Not in this effort. And if I consider one I have to consider all.
- Ground/Pitch conditions.
- Result.
- Quality of bowing attack.
- Team strength of opposition.
- Innings position at entry.
- Home/Away.
- Importance of match et al.
The only figures used are the runs scored and balls faced by the concerned batsman and the runs scored and balls faced by his team. No other data is used. It makes the exercise simpler and easier to understand.
The most important requirement of a batsman is to score runs. The next important requirement is that he scores these runs as quickly as possible. Nothing more. I have followed this important guideline in determining the significance of innings. "Significance" is a subjective word and this methodology converts this into an objective measurable process.
After a lot of experimentation, I have determined that I should adopt a different methodology for ODIs. Partly I have used my favourite weighting concept. I have weighted the innings on five measures, assigned these values based on a pre-determined formulae and summed these five values. That represents the significant innings index and the rest is routine. The measures are explained below.
1. Absolute runs scored: It took 26 years for the 175 to be overhauled by 189, the 189 to be equalized, the 189 to be overtaken by 194, the 194 to be equalized and (this time, quite quickly) the first 200 to be scored. Hence I have kept 200 as the pinnacle. Let me cross the 200+ bridge as and when it is crossed by a batsman. The little master's 200 gets 2 points and the other innings get proportionate values.
2. % of Team score: It is very important to differentiate innings such as the 189 which was scored out of 272 and the 175 out of 262 from the 200 which was out of 401 and a 101 out of 363. Hence this percentage is calculated and 2 points allocated for a % of team score value of 84.2% which is the highest % of team share achieved by McCullum (80 out of 95).
3. Score comparison with 'runs per batsman': This is somewhat similar to the Test significant innings work. This is necessary to distinguish between an innings of 150 out of 300 for 2 and an innings of 150 out of 300 all out. The first two values for these two innings will be identical. The Runs per batsman (the number of batsmen who took strike - as against the wickets) value is calculated and the ratio between the batsman runs and this value arrived at. The maximum value of 2 points are allotted for a ratio of 7.64. Richards' 189* has the highest ratio and gets allotted a point value of 2.00.
4. Absolute scoring rate: This is an important measure and gets recognized. Out of all qualifying innings, Chris Lewis' 20 in 6 has the highest scoring rate, viz., 333.3. This is taken as the base for fixing the 2.0 point mark. The other innings get proportionate allocations based on their innings strike rates. The highest innings included, Shahid Afridi's 55 off 18 balls, has a strike rate of 305.6. This innings gets a value for this index of 1.83 points.
5. Strike rate comparison with 'team strike rate': This is somewhat similar to the Test significant innings work. This is necessary to distinguish between an innings of 50 off 50 balls out of 150 in 50 overs and an innings of 50 off 50 balls out of 300 in 50 overs. The fourth measure value for these two innings will be identical. The Strike rate value for the team is calculated and the ratio between the batsman strike rate and this value arrived at. The maximum value of 2 points are allotted for a ratio of 4.67. Afridi's 29 off 10 (2.90) out of a Pakistani total of 142 off 37.5 (0.62) has the highest ratio of 4.67 and gets allotted a point value of 2.00. The others get allotted proportionate values.
Thus it can be seen that runs scored has a weight of 60% and strike rate 40%. It seems fair to me since ultimately runs matter more. However there is no overlap and each measure has a clear significance and separation.
A few other criteria to define the significant innings.
1. All not out scores of below 20 are excluded from consideration. Such scores happen often in ODIs and these should not distort the picture.
2. A SI total value of 2.50 has been considered to be the minimum required for being a significant innings. This represents 25% of the maximum and has worked out quite well.
3. The batsmen listed are those who have scored 3000 ODI runs and above. Readers should remember two facts. One is that all innings are considered and included in the analysis. It is only for display of the tables that the cut-off of 3000 runs is taken. There is nothing arbitrary about this. I also considered use of number of innings, say 100, for cut-off. However this leads to the inclusion of quite few bowlers. 3000 runs gives us 109 batsmen, a good population size. 2000 runs will increase this to 157 but will also bring in quite a few non-batsmen.
Now let us look at the tables.
First the list of top batsmen ordered by the % of SIs played out of the selected innings.
| No. | Batsman | Country | Innings | Runs | Sel Inns | SI Inns | %SI | Avg SIIdx | Avg SI-RPI |
| 1 | Vivian Richards | WI | 167 | 6721 | 163 | 64 | 39.26 | 3.434 | 75.0 |
| 2 | Sachin Tendulkar | Ind | 431 | 17598 | 424 | 155 | 36.56 | 3.413 | 84.2 |
| 3 | Michael Hussey | Aus | 120 | 4208 | 114 | 41 | 35.96 | 3.005 | 63.7 |
| 4 | Chris Gayle | WI | 215 | 7885 | 214 | 72 | 33.64 | 3.365 | 76.8 |
| 5 | MS Dhoni | Ind | 147 | 5593 | 139 | 46 | 33.09 | 3.111 | 73.7 |
| 6 | Kevin Pietersen | Eng | 93 | 3332 | 93 | 30 | 32.26 | 3.283 | 74.5 |
| 7 | Marcus Trescothick | Eng | 122 | 4335 | 121 | 39 | 32.23 | 3.374 | 80.4 |
| 8 | Brian Lara | WI | 289 | 10405 | 285 | 91 | 31.93 | 3.330 | 75.7 |
| 9 | Gordon Greenidge | WI | 127 | 5134 | 126 | 40 | 31.75 | 3.170 | 81.7 |
| 10 | Saeed Anwar | Pak | 244 | 8824 | 243 | 75 | 30.86 | 3.264 | 76.1 |
| 11 | AB de Villiers | SA | 97 | 3616 | 95 | 29 | 30.53 | 3.203 | 77.8 |
| 12 | Andy Flower | Zim | 208 | 6786 | 204 | 62 | 30.39 | 3.058 | 69.8 |
| 13 | Jacques Kallis | SA | 289 | 10838 | 280 | 85 | 30.36 | 3.119 | 79.4 |
| 14 | Dean Jones | Aus | 161 | 6068 | 157 | 47 | 29.94 | 3.232 | 76.5 |
| 15 | Virender Sehwag | Ind | 217 | 7112 | 215 | 64 | 29.77 | 3.298 | 71.7 |
| 16 | Allan Lamb | Eng | 118 | 4010 | 116 | 34 | 29.31 | 3.188 | 69.0 |
| 17 | Martin Crowe | NZ | 141 | 4704 | 137 | 40 | 29.20 | 3.312 | 72.2 |
| 18 | Graeme Smith | SA | 152 | 5732 | 152 | 44 | 28.95 | 3.211 | 76.2 |
| 19 | Nick Knight | Eng | 100 | 3637 | 98 | 28 | 28.57 | 3.300 | 81.1 |
| 20 | Adam Gilchrist | Aus | 279 | 9619 | 277 | 79 | 28.52 | 3.315 | 74.1 |
There should be no surprises in the top-3. Richards and Tendulkar are the two "First among equals". Nearly 40% of the innings Richards has played are significant indicating the impact he has had on the game. There is some daylight and then there is Tendulkar. The fact that more than a third of the 400+ innings he has played are significant is a stupendous achievement. His influence on the modern game and the Indian team's ODI performances is legendary. Now comes Hussey, whose place in the modern game as a finisher is substantiated by this high ranking. I do not understand why he should bat behind White in the current Australian team. He also comes in quite often in situations where he has no option but to take undue risks (as at Oval a few days back).
Next the list of top batsmen ordered by the number of SIs played.
| No. | Batsman | Country | Innings | Runs | Sel Inns | SI Inns | %SI | Avg SIIdx | Avg SI-RPI |
| 1 | Sachin Tendulkar | Ind | 431 | 17598 | 424 | 155 | 36.56 | 3.413 | 84.2 |
| 2 | Sanath Jayasuriya | SL | 432 | 13428 | 428 | 113 | 26.40 | 3.410 | 75.5 |
| 3 | Ricky Ponting | Aus | 341 | 13057 | 331 | 92 | 27.79 | 3.135 | 82.2 |
| 4 | Brian Lara | WI | 289 | 10405 | 285 | 91 | 31.93 | 3.330 | 75.7 |
| 5 | Inzamam-ul-Haq | Pak | 350 | 11739 | 347 | 89 | 25.65 | 3.098 | 71.6 |
| 6 | Jacques Kallis | SA | 289 | 10838 | 280 | 85 | 30.36 | 3.119 | 79.4 |
| 7 | Aravinda de Silva | SL | 296 | 9284 | 292 | 81 | 27.74 | 3.235 | 72.5 |
| 8 | Rahul Dravid | Ind | 313 | 10765 | 303 | 81 | 26.73 | 3.031 | 74.1 |
| 9 | Adam Gilchrist | Aus | 279 | 9619 | 277 | 79 | 28.52 | 3.315 | 74.1 |
| 10 | Saeed Anwar | Pak | 244 | 8824 | 243 | 75 | 30.86 | 3.264 | 76.1 |
| 11 | Saurav Ganguly | Ind | 300 | 11363 | 297 | 75 | 25.25 | 3.333 | 89.2 |
| 12 | Chris Gayle | WI | 215 | 7885 | 214 | 72 | 33.64 | 3.365 | 76.8 |
| 13 | Mohammad Yousuf | Pak | 267 | 9624 | 265 | 72 | 27.17 | 3.199 | 76.9 |
| 14 | Shahid Afridi | Pak | 278 | 6222 | 269 | 70 | 26.02 | 3.237 | 54.1 |
| 15 | Mahela Jayawardene | SL | 302 | 8863 | 291 | 70 | 24.05 | 3.066 | 70.4 |
| 16 | Mohammmed Azharuddin | Ind | 308 | 9378 | 297 | 68 | 22.90 | 3.174 | 70.9 |
| 17 | Shivnarine Chanderpaul | WI | 245 | 8648 | 237 | 67 | 28.27 | 3.216 | 73.6 |
| 18 | Vivian Richards | WI | 167 | 6721 | 163 | 64 | 39.26 | 3.434 | 75.0 |
| 19 | Virender Sehwag | Ind | 217 | 7112 | 215 | 64 | 29.77 | 3.298 | 71.7 |
| 20 | Herschelle Gibbs | SA | 240 | 8094 | 238 | 64 | 26.89 | 3.328 | 82.7 |
This is the one time a longevity table has some meaning. Tendulkar has played over 150 significant innings. To do this day in and day out for over 21 years is the stuff only the all-time-greats can dream of. Note the 27% gap between Tendulkar and Jayasuriya, although both have played the same number of ODI games. Three wonderful ODI batsmen, Ponting, Lara and Inzamam follow next. The top-5 are all awe-inspiring ODI batsmen.
The last one is the list of top batsmen ordered by the average value of SI index.
| No. | Batsman | Country | Innings | Runs | Sel Inns | SI Inns | %SI | Avg SIIdx | Avg SI-RPI |
| 1 | David Gower | Eng | 111 | 3170 | 109 | 20 | 18.35 | 3.505 | 80.8 |
| 2 | Vivian Richards | WI | 167 | 6721 | 163 | 64 | 39.26 | 3.434 | 75.0 |
| 3 | Sachin Tendulkar | Ind | 431 | 17598 | 424 | 155 | 36.56 | 3.413 | 84.2 |
| 4 | Sanath Jayasuriya | SL | 432 | 13428 | 428 | 113 | 26.40 | 3.410 | 75.5 |
| 5 | Marcus Trescothick | Eng | 122 | 4335 | 121 | 39 | 32.23 | 3.374 | 80.4 |
| 6 | Graham Gooch | Eng | 122 | 4290 | 121 | 25 | 20.66 | 3.372 | 82.6 |
| 7 | Chris Gayle | WI | 215 | 7885 | 214 | 72 | 33.64 | 3.365 | 76.8 |
| 8 | Steve Tikolo | Ken | 121 | 3304 | 120 | 31 | 25.83 | 3.342 | 68.5 |
| 9 | Nathan Astle | NZ | 217 | 7090 | 217 | 54 | 24.88 | 3.325 | 85.2 |
| 10 | Saurav Ganguly | Ind | 300 | 11363 | 297 | 75 | 25.25 | 3.333 | 89.2 |
| 11 | Brian Lara | WI | 289 | 10405 | 285 | 91 | 31.93 | 3.330 | 75.7 |
| 12 | Herschelle Gibbs | SA | 240 | 8094 | 238 | 64 | 26.89 | 3.328 | 82.7 |
| 13 | Adam Gilchrist | Aus | 279 | 9619 | 277 | 79 | 28.52 | 3.315 | 74.1 |
| 14 | Desmond Haynes | WI | 237 | 8648 | 236 | 60 | 25.42 | 3.312 | 84.1 |
| 15 | Martin Crowe | NZ | 141 | 4704 | 127 | 40 | 29.20 | 3.312 | 72.2 |
| 16 | Shoaib Malik | Pak | 172 | 5188 | 162 | 35 | 21.60 | 3.311 | 79.5 |
| 17 | Geoff Marsh | Aus | 115 | 4357 | 115 | 26 | 22.61 | 3.308 | 90.1 |
| 18 | Nick Knight | Eng | 100 | 3637 | 98 | 28 | 28.57 | 3.300 | 81.1 |
| 19 | Virender Sehwag | Ind | 217 | 7112 | 215 | 64 | 29.77 | 3.298 | 71.7 |
| 20 | Kevin Pietersen | Eng | 93 | 3332 | 93 | 30 | 32.26 | 3.283 | 74.5 |
There is a surprise at the top. I would have expected Richards and Tendulkar to be on top. However they have been leap-frogged by the stylist, David Gower. That indicates that when he performed, Gower went way past the line. Richards follows next close behind and is followed by Tendulkar. Very well-deserved positions indeed for these greats. Jayasuriya and Trescothick take the next two places. In this table Hussey is quite low with only around 3 points.
Readers will note that I have also given the average runs per innings for the SIs. Tendulkar's average RpI is very high at 84.2. Richards' RpI value is 80.0. Note the very high RpI value of Ganguly, 89.2. In fact Ganguly is second only to Geoff Marsh who has averaged 90.1 runs. Astle is in third place with 85.2 and Tendulkar is fourth. Hussey is way down with a value of 63.7 runs indicating the inability to play longer innings in late-order.
Finally the top four SI values and the related scorecards.
If some one does not know about Richards' all-time classic innings, he probably follows only T20 games or is not interested in Cricket. Over the past few years I have done quite a few ODI Innings rating lists, including the Wisden-100. The one constant factor in all these lists is the presence of Richards' 189* in the top place. Not once has this innings come second. It is my firm conviction that if 100 unbiased, objective and informed followers are asked the question of what was the best ever ODI innings, 90 would point to Richards' 189.
The points secured by Richards are 1.89, 1.65, 2.00, 0.67 and 0.58 totaling to 6.79 points.
The only reason why Kapil Dev's 175* is in second place is the presence of Richards' 189. Otherwise the same 90 would point to Kapil's classic as the best ever. To say that this innings was one of the major reasons for India winning the World Cup may not be hyperbole.
The points secured by Kapil Dev are 1.75, 1.56, 1.72, 0.76 and 0.74 totaling to 6.53 points.
Third is Coventry's monumental 194, albeit on the losing side. The points secured by Coventry are 1.94, 1.48, 1.62, 0.75 and 0.52 totaling to 6.31 points.
In fourth place is a surprise innings. Not even a hundred and not even in a winning cause. However its place is well-deserved mainly because of the way-out scoring rate. How Sri Lanka lost after this Jayasuriya classic is a mystery. The points secured by Jayasuriya are 0.76, 1.05, 1.27, 1.63 and 1.34 totaling to 6.05 points.
I have given the summary figures below. I have not done the %. I leave it for the readers.
TotInns:52235 TotSelInns: 46329 Tot SIs: 7952
100+runs: 1072 50+runs: 5054 <50runs:1826
BPos 1-7: 6967 BPos 8-11: 985
1Inns: 4284 2Inns: 3668
Wins: 4361 Losses: 3416 Ties/NRs: 175
I have also made available the complete list of significant performances for all the 109 qualifying batsmen. Let me warn that this is a huge file (660k). This is a formatted text file and could easily be imported into an Excel sheet.
To view/down-load the list of SIs , please click/right-click here.
To view/down-load the complete Player tables, all three in a single file, please click/right-click here.
March 18, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
Top ODI performers in each position: a quick follow-up
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| MS Dhoni has an excellent ODI batting index, which is next only to that of Viv Richards © AP |
The ODI Batting Index (OBI), which is a product of batting average and strike rate, was used by me as part of television analysis during 2002/3. Afterwards it has undergone many transformations, Strike rate remaining common but multiplied by batting average, runs per innings and even extended batting average. However the original idea is still the best. The batting average is the most accepted of all measures.
First I am going to present the top-10 batsmen, based on OBI, based on their career figures. This has been given to let the readers have a perspective. An OBI of 50.00 has not been reached so far !!!
1 Hussey M.E.K Aus 115 38 4136 53.71 88.4 47.46 2 Dhoni M.S Ind 143 37 5420 51.13 89.9 45.95 3 Richards I.V.A Win 167 24 6721 47.00 90.2 42.40 4 Zaheer Abbas Pak 60 6 2572 47.63 84.8 40.39 5 ~ Bevan M.G Aus 196 67 6912 53.58 74.2 39.74 6 Tendulkar S.R Ind 431 41 17598 45.12 86.3 38.92 7 Pietersen K.P Eng 88 15 3220 44.11 86.7 38.24 8 de Villiers A.B Saf 92 13 3333 42.19 88.9 37.52 9 ~ Klusener L Saf 137 50 3576 41.10 89.9 36.96 10 Symonds A Aus 161 33 5088 39.75 92.4 36.75As per request of some readers I have given also the OBIdx based on the eminently acceptable Runs per innings measure. This removes the anamolies of excessive not outs. However the main tables are still based on batting average since the not outs impact there is minimal. Position no.3 will always have lower number of not outs than no.7 and is applicable to all.
1 Zaheer Abbas Pak 60 2572 42.87 84.8 36.35 2 Richards I.V.A Win 167 6721 40.25 90.2 36.30 3 Tendulkar S.R Ind 431 17598 40.83 86.3 35.22 4 Sehwag V Ind 215 7091 32.98 103.5 34.14 5 Dhoni M.S Ind 143 5420 37.90 89.9 34.06 6 ~ Gilchrist A.C Aus 279 9619 34.48 96.9 33.42 7 de Villiers A.B Saf 92 3333 36.23 88.9 32.22 8 Hussey M.E.K Aus 115 4136 35.97 88.4 31.78 9 Pietersen K.P Eng 88 3220 36.59 86.7 31.72 10 ~ Smith G.C Saf 147 5613 38.18 83.1 31.73First I worked out the all-match ODI Index for each batting position. In this case the OBI will be appropriate since the same methodology is used to determine the individual batsmen figures. Since the comparisons are across all batsmen at the same position the impact of not outs is minimised. The Strike rates are for that position. In order to ensure that flashes in the pan do not spoil the comparisons, a minimum limit of 1000 runs is set for Opening, no.3, no.4, no.5 and no.6 positions. For the position 7, the bar is set at 700 runs.
The OBI of the batsman in the relevant position is divided by the all-match OBI for that position and the ratio is arrived at. The tables are ordered on this ratio and the top-10 shown. Let us now look at the tables.
Analysis of Opening position ODI Index for all matches: 22.50 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Dilshan T.M Slk 25 2 1263 54.91 1238 1.020 56.02 249.0% 2.Tendulkar S.R Ind 319 23 14482 48.93 16431 0.881 43.12 191.7% 3.Watson S.R Aus 48 5 1986 46.19 2264 0.877 40.51 180.1% 4.Sehwag V Ind 182 5 6336 35.80 6100 1.039 37.18 165.3% 5.Gilchrist A.C Aus 259 7 9200 36.51 9386 0.980 35.78 159.0% 6.Gayle C.H Win 193 14 7510 41.96 8901 0.844 35.40 157.3% 7.Turner G.M Nzl 29 5 1197 49.88 1688 0.709 35.37 157.2% 8.Hayden M.L Aus 147 14 5891 44.29 7486 0.787 34.86 154.9% 9.Lara B.C Win 52 5 2166 46.09 2871 0.754 34.77 154.5% 10.Smith G.C Saf 146 9 5598 40.86 6724 0.833 34.02 151.2%Dilshan retains his position at the top. However, Tendulkar, with his excellent Strike rate has moved into the second position. The mountain of runs at an outstanding OBI of 43.12 is testament to the greatness of Tendulkar in this position. Any comment will be an understatement.
The pleasant surprise is the presence of two great attacking players, Sehwag and Gilchrist in the top 5. They had missed out in the earlier analysis.
Analysis of no. 3 position ODI Index for all matches: 23.04 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Richards I.V.A Win 51 9 2418 57.57 2891 0.836 48.15 209.0% 2.Mohammad Yousuf Pak 43 7 1988 55.22 2521 0.789 43.55 189.0% 3.Ganguly S.C Ind 32 4 1476 52.71 1952 0.756 39.86 173.0% 4.Lara B.C Win 106 9 4447 45.85 5167 0.861 39.46 171.3% 5.Zaheer Abbas Pak 47 3 2009 45.66 2485 0.808 36.91 160.2% 6.Gambhir G Ind 31 4 1161 43.00 1403 0.828 35.58 154.4% 7.Ponting R.T Aus 305 30 11978 43.56 14779 0.810 35.30 153.2% 8.Kallis J.H Saf 176 29 6898 46.93 9455 0.730 34.23 148.6% 9.Chanderpaul S Win 25 2 1125 48.91 1635 0.688 33.66 146.1% 10.Hick G.A Eng 58 9 2182 44.53 2891 0.755 33.61 145.9%In the pivotal position of no.3, there is no one to beat the great Viv Richards. His OBI is an amazing 48.15. The well-known no.3 batsmen, Md Yousuf, Ganguly and Lara follow. It is interesting to note that Ponting has scored nearly 12000 runs at an OBI of 35.30.
It may be of interest to note that Dhoni has scored 993 runs at an OBI of over 75.00.
Analysis of no. 4 position ODI Index for all matches: 25.40 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Richards I.V.A Win 81 12 3373 48.88 3593 0.939 45.89 180.7% 2.de Villiers A.B Saf 42 8 1740 51.18 1967 0.885 45.27 178.2% 3.Sarwan R.R Win 43 12 1707 55.06 2172 0.786 43.28 170.4% 4.Bevan M.G Aus 53 15 2265 59.61 3232 0.701 41.77 164.5% 5.Jadeja A Ind 29 10 1008 53.05 1391 0.725 38.45 151.4% 6.Crowe M.D Nzl 53 14 1899 48.69 2436 0.780 37.96 149.4% 7.Boon D.C Aus 35 12 1255 54.57 1811 0.693 37.81 148.9% 8.Twose R.G Nzl 44 5 1829 46.90 2410 0.759 35.59 140.1% 9.Ranatunga A Slk 36 6 1272 42.40 1540 0.826 35.02 137.9% 10.Kallis J.H Saf 73 17 2635 47.05 3636 0.725 34.10 134.3%The change has meant that Richards moves to the top position in this position instead of Bevan whose scoring rate is a pedestrian 0.7. Richards is the only batsman to have finished on top in two batting positions. de Villiers has shown his potential greatness by getting into the second position with a 45+ OBI. A surprise in this position is the high placement of Ajay Jadeja.
Analysis of no. 5 position ODI Index for all matches: 22.77 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Dhoni M.S Ind 38 9 1560 53.79 1832 0.852 45.81 201.2% 2.Flintoff A Eng 48 10 1749 46.03 1854 0.943 43.42 190.7% 3.Hussey M.E.K Aus 25 6 1003 52.79 1221 0.821 43.36 190.4% 4.Symonds A Aus 96 18 3473 44.53 3780 0.919 40.91 179.7% 5.Yuvraj Singh Ind 81 13 2878 42.32 3268 0.881 37.27 163.7% 6.Collingwood P.D Eng 74 16 2621 45.19 3213 0.816 36.86 161.9% 7.Rhodes J.N Saf 90 23 2734 40.81 3302 0.828 33.79 148.4% 8.Cronje W.J Saf 43 7 1451 40.31 1745 0.832 33.51 147.2% 9.Dravid R Ind 69 13 2459 43.91 3341 0.736 32.32 141.9% 10.Inzamam-ul-Haq Pak 105 22 3473 41.84 4559 0.762 31.88 140.0%This is Dhoni's position. He is now batting more and more at no.5. He again has a very high OBI of 45+. Flintoff jumps over Hussey into the second position. What a loss Flintoff's is to the game. Hussey just about gets in at a 43+ OBI. It is a surprise that Symonds, while scoring the same runs as Inzamam, has an OBI value of 40.91, which is about 8 more than Inzamam. Dravid retains his top-10 position with a respectable ODI of 32.32.
Analysis of no. 6 position ODI Index for all matches: 19.91 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Raina S.K Ind 32 10 1087 49.41 1171 0.928 45.86 230.4% 2.Bevan M.G Aus 87 34 3006 56.72 3871 0.777 44.04 221.2% 3.Younis Khan Pak 28 5 1012 44.00 1108 0.913 40.19 201.8% 4.Hussey M.E.K Aus 51 14 1607 43.43 1811 0.887 38.54 193.6% 5.Arnold R.P Slk 59 21 1703 44.82 2273 0.749 33.58 168.6% 6.Cronje W.J Saf 45 16 1235 42.59 1567 0.788 33.56 168.6% 7.Dhoni M.S Ind 47 11 1395 38.75 1718 0.812 31.46 158.0% 8.Yuvraj Singh Ind 57 8 1727 35.24 2032 0.850 29.95 150.5% 9.Jadeja A Ind 43 8 1324 37.83 1743 0.760 28.73 144.3% 10.McMillan C.D Nzl 39 5 1058 31.12 1244 0.850 26.47 132.9%The change in measure has allowed Suresh Raina, a faster scoring batsman, to jump over Michael Bevan, the finisher extraordinary. Both have very high OBI values of around 45.
Analysis of no. 7 position ODI Index for all matches: 15.86 No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge Balls S/R OBI AllIdx-% 1.Hussey M.E.K Aus 20 14 706 117.67 706 1.000 117.67 741.9% 2.Shahid Afridi Pak 40 9 718 23.16 527 1.362 31.56 199.0% 3.Abdul Razzaq Pak 79 21 1848 31.86 2076 0.890 28.36 178.8% 4.Hopes J.R Aus 38 6 896 28.00 911 0.984 27.54 173.6% 5.Pollock S.M Saf 81 26 1633 29.69 1836 0.889 26.41 166.5% 6.Boucher M.V Saf 44 16 846 30.21 991 0.854 25.79 162.6% 7.Chigumbura E Zim 38 6 995 31.09 1222 0.814 25.32 159.6% 8.Streak H.H Zim 40 12 864 30.86 1175 0.735 22.69 143.1% 9.Arnold R.P Slk 36 12 707 29.46 984 0.718 21.17 133.5% 10.O'Donnell S.P Aus 38 12 717 27.58 950 0.755 20.81 131.2%Hussey has numbers which are beyond imagination. Granted he has scored only 700+ runs but what a finishing job he does. The next best is Shahid Afridi with 31.56. I am happy that Afridi is in this list because he is an outstanding talent. Before any negative comments are made on the high number of not outs, please do not forget that each not out instance indicates that the batsman has stayed on and finished his job, maybe not always successfully.
The candidates for the top-7 positions in an all-time ODI team, again my choice, are given below. Since this analysis incorporates the Strike rates it is possible to select a team. I have not just gone on the numbers.
Op Tendulkar S.R Ind 319 23 14482 48.93 16431 0.881 43.12 191.7% Op Gilchrist A.C Aus 259 7 9200 36.51 9386 0.980 35.78 159.0% 3 Lara B.C Win 106 9 4447 45.85 5167 0.861 39.46 171.3% 4 Richards I.V.A Win 81 12 3373 48.88 3593 0.939 45.89 180.7% 5 Symonds A Aus 96 18 3473 44.53 3780 0.919 40.91 179.7% 6 Hussey M.E.K Aus 51 14 1607 43.43 1811 0.887 38.54 193.6% 7 Shahid Afridi Pak 40 9 718 23.16 527 1.362 31.56 199.0%Now add 4 top bowlers and we have a team the Gods would stop and watch. It is unfortunate Dhoni misses out but Gilchrist wins for many reasons, his numbers and the balance he brings by taking the opening positions. Hussey or Bevan is a tough call and a personal one.
Arjun Hemnany has done some additional work on the Not outs % by position. This is quite relevant to the discussions on Batting average vs Runs per innings. I have presented this table below.
% of Not outs out of all innings Openers - 4.74 % no.3 - 7.84 % no.4 - 13.14 % no.5 - 16.09 % no.6 - 19.83 % no.7 - 23.69 % no.8 - 27.39 % no.9 - 33.56 % no.10 - 41.98 % no.11 - 59.74 %At a later date I will come out with the Batting position analysis incorporating the figures above so that we would see a "normalized" Batting average figure. Many thanks to Arjun.
March 15, 2010Posted by Anantha Narayanan at in ODIs
ODI batting positions - the top performers
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| Michael Hussey averages 117.67 at the No.7 slot © Getty Images |
First I worked out the all-match average for each batting position. In this case the average will be appropriate since the same methodology is used to determine the individual batsmen figures. Since the comparisons are across all batsmen at the same position the impact of not outs is minimised. In order to ensure that flashes in the pan do not spoil the comparisons, a minimum limit of 1000 runs is set for Opening, no.3, no.4, no.5 and no.6 positions. For the positions 7 and 8, the bar is set at 500 runs.
The batting average of the batsman in the relevant position is divided by the all-match batting average for that position and the ratio is arrived at. The tables are ordered on this ratio and the top-10 shown along with the last player in that position. Let us now look at the tables.
Analysis of opening position. All matches average: 32.21
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Dilshan T.M Slk 25 2 1263 54.91 170.5%
2. Turner G.M Nzl 29 5 1197 49.88 154.8%
3. Tendulkar S.R Ind 319 23 14482 48.93 151.9%
4. Dippenaar H.H Saf 43 6 1752 47.35 147.0%
5. Watson S.R Aus 43 5 1794 47.21 146.6%
6. Lara B.C Win 52 5 2166 46.09 143.1%
7. Greenidge C.G Win 120 10 4993 45.39 140.9%
8. Hayden M.L Aus 147 14 5891 44.29 137.5%
9. Waugh M.E Aus 141 11 5729 44.07 136.8%
10. Chanderpaul S Win 74 9 2814 43.29 134.4%
...
...
83. Obuya D.O Ken 45 1 1012 23.00 71.4%
We are in for a minor surprise. Two opening batsmen have moved ahead of the greatest ODI batsman ever, Tendulkar. This proves without any doubt that Dilshan is among the most explosive of ODI openers now playing. Not to forget his strike rate. Turner averaged nearing 50 when batting was not that easy.
Now comes the master. An average of nearly 50 maintained over 300 matches while scoring nearly 15,000 runs tells the tale. There has been no better ODI player and probably never will be. Note how high Watson is placed, higher than masters such as Lara, Greenidge, Hayden and Mark Waugh.
Analysis of no. 3 position. All matches average: 32.90
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Richards I.V.A Win 51 9 2418 57.57 175.0%
2. Mohammad Yousuf Pak 43 7 1988 55.22 167.8%
3. Ganguly S.C Ind 32 4 1476 52.71 160.2%
4. Kallis J.H Saf 176 29 6898 46.93 142.6%
5. Lara B.C Win 106 9 4447 45.85 139.3%
6. Zaheer Abbas Pak 47 3 2009 45.66 138.8%
7. Hick G.A Eng 58 9 2182 44.53 135.4%
8. Ponting R.T Aus 300 30 11814 43.76 133.0%
9. Jones D.M Aus 131 14 5100 43.59 132.5%
10. Gambhir G Ind 31 4 1161 43.00 130.7%
...
...
45. Aftab Ahmed Bng 52 4 1253 26.10 79.3%
In the pivotal position of no.3, there is no one to beat the great Viv Richards. He averages over 57 while scoring nearly 2500 runs. The well-known no.3 batsmen, Md Yousuf, Ganguly, Kallis and Lara follow. It is interesting to note that Ponting has scored nearly 12000 runs at an average of 43.76.
It may be of interest to note that Dhoni has scored 993 runs at 83.75.
Analysis of no. 4 position. All matches average: 34.77
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Bevan M.G Aus 53 15 2265 59.61 171.4%
2. Sarwan R.R Win 43 12 1707 55.06 158.4%
3. Boon D.C Aus 35 12 1255 54.57 156.9%
4. Jadeja A Ind 29 10 1008 53.05 152.6%
5. de Villiers A.B Saf 42 8 1740 51.18 147.2%
6. Richards I.V.A Win 81 12 3373 48.88 140.6%
7. Crowe M.D Nzl 53 14 1899 48.69 140.0%
8. Kallis J.H Saf 73 17 2635 47.05 135.3%
9. Twose R.G Nzl 44 5 1829 46.90 134.9%
10. Clarke M.J Aus 64 11 2420 45.66 131.3%
...
...
49. McMillan C.D Nzl 43 0 1092 25.40 73.0%
The great finisher, Mike Bevan has a near-60 average in no.4. A surprise in this position is the high placement of Ajay Jadeja. Note the high average of de Villiers. Richards averages nearly 50 at this position.
Analysis of no. 5 position. All matches average: 30.69
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Dhoni M.S Ind 38 9 1560 53.79 175.3%
2. Hussey M.E.K Aus 25 6 1003 52.79 172.0%
3. Flintoff A Eng 48 10 1749 46.03 150.0%
4. Collingwood P.D Eng 74 16 2621 45.19 147.2%
5. Symonds A Aus 96 18 3473 44.53 145.1%
6. Dravid R Ind 69 13 2459 43.91 143.1%
7. Chanderpaul S Win 61 15 1996 43.39 141.4%
8. Yuvraj Singh Ind 81 13 2878 42.32 137.9%
9. Fairbrother N.H Eng 45 14 1302 42.00 136.9%
10. Inzamam-ul-Haq Pak 105 22 3473 41.84 136.3%
...
...
34. Jayawardene D.P.M.D Slk 63 6 1458 25.58 83.3%
This is Dhoni's position. He is now batting more and more at no.5. Hussey just about gets in at 50+ average. It is a surprise that Symonds, while scoring the same runs as Inzamam, has an average nearly 3 more. Dravid has a fair average at no.5.
Analysis of no. 6 position. All matches average: 26.49
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Bevan M.G Aus 87 34 3006 56.72 214.1%
2. Raina S.K Ind 32 10 1087 49.41 186.5%
3. Arnold R.P Slk 59 21 1703 44.82 169.2%
4. Younis Khan Pak 28 5 1012 44.00 166.1%
5. Cronje W.J Saf 45 16 1235 42.59 160.8%
6. Hussey M.E.K Aus 47 13 1418 41.71 157.4%
7. Dhoni M.S Ind 47 11 1395 38.75 146.3%
8. Jadeja A Ind 43 8 1324 37.83 142.8%
9. Yuvraj Singh Ind 57 8 1727 35.24 133.0%
10. Tillakaratne H.P Slk 60 19 1393 33.98 128.3%
...
...
26. Border A.R Aus 61 11 1174 23.48 88.6%
Mike Bevan is the finisher extraordinary and stays on top at no.6 by a wide margin. He is the only batsman to have finished on top in two batting positions. Raina is proving his value to India in this finishing position. It is surprising that Border is the last in this position.
Analysis of no. 7 position. All matches average: 21.18
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Hussey M.E.K Aus 20 14 706 117.67 555.6%
2. Dhoni M.S Ind 24 9 589 39.27 185.4%
3. Kemp J.M Saf 24 8 579 36.19 170.9%
4. Kaif M Ind 30 10 667 33.35 157.5%
5. Mahmudullah Bng 27 8 621 32.68 154.3%
6. Abdul Razzaq Pak 79 21 1848 31.86 150.4%
7. Chigumbura E Zim 35 6 916 31.59 149.1%
8. Oram J.D.P Nzl 22 3 590 31.05 146.6%
9. Harris C.Z Nzl 105 36 2136 30.96 146.2%
10. Streak H.H Zim 40 12 864 30.86 145.7%
...
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36. Wasim Akram Pak 87 12 1227 16.36 77.2%
What is the number we are seeing here. Hussey, granted he has scored only 700 runs has remained not out on 14 occasions and has an average of over 100. The next best is Dhoni with 39.27. Before any negative comments are made on the high number of not outs, please do not forget that each not out instance indicates that the batsman has stayed on and finished his job, maybe not always successfully.
Analysis of no. 8 position. All matches average: 16.84
No Batsman Cty Inns No Runs Avge % of all
avge
1. Klusener L Saf 36 18 1056 58.67 348.4%
2. Harris C.Z Nzl 23 10 519 39.92 237.1%
3. Dharmasena H.D.P.K Slk 42 18 719 29.96 177.9%
4. Streak H.H Zim 58 19 1147 29.41 174.6%
5. Abdul Razzaq Pak 35 9 751 28.88 171.5%
6. Moin Khan Pak 38 13 608 24.32 144.4%
7. Pollock S.M Saf 74 23 1145 22.45 133.3%
8. Shahid Afridi Pak 25 2 504 21.91 130.1%
9. Hogg G.B Aus 47 20 590 21.85 129.8%
10. Rashid Latif Pak 49 15 688 20.24 120.2%
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15. Agarkar A.B Ind 59 13 678 14.74 87.5%
Kluesener is the leader here with a very high average of over 58 while scoring over 10900 runs. He is leading by a big margin over Chris Harris. This is the place for the all-rounders and the bowlers who can bat.
Taking into account the runs scored and averages attained, the 6 outlier batting position performances are given below.
OP. Tendulkar S.R Ind 319 23 14482 48.93 151.9% 3. Kallis J.H Saf 176 29 6898 46.93 142.6% 3. Ponting R.T Aus 300 30 11814 43.76 133.0% 4. Richards I.V.A Win 81 12 3373 48.88 140.6% 5. Symonds A Aus 96 18 3473 44.53 145.1% 6. Bevan M.G Aus 87 34 3006 56.72 214.1%Since I felt that nos 9-10-11 analysis would not lead to anything significant I have not done the analysis for these positions.