All posts by h716a5.icu

Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium, with its short boundaries, is a spinner’s nightmare. But for Chahal, it’s a ground where he thrives

Alagappan Muthu27-Sep-20172:45

‘I never look at the name of the batsman while bowling’ – Chahal

Amit Mishra is bowling to MS Dhoni. It is an optional training session. With the series won, the No. 1 ranking secured, dominance established and a sprinkle of rain in the air, Wednesday afternoon is about having a bit of fun before India have to wrap things up. Balls go flying into the second tier of the stands. Even the car to be awarded to the Man of the Series, parked on a pedestal beyond the boundary, gets a proper tonking. This is the plight of spinners at the M Chinnaswamy stadium. Yet there is one spinner who has made his name here.Yuzvendra Chahal was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2014 for INR 10 lakh (approx USD 16,000). At the time, he had 18 wickets from 22 T20s, with only one IPL match. Three years later, he is an indispensable part of the franchise, and is building a very strong case to be kept as a frontline option for India in international cricket.Chahal’s success so far has come from his ability to read a situation. He doesn’t really turn the ball too much, sometimes it seems like he doesn’t even want to. He is accurate, though, which could be a consequence of his action. His arm at the point of release is often at 90 degrees whereas most legspinners try to avoid the perpendicular to get the ball to rip past a right-hander’s outside edge. He has a googly which has served him quite well. But his greatest strength is his temperament, and proof of that has been his performance at his home ground.Well, he’s from Haryana, but Chahal has played much more cricket for Royal Challengers, in a stadium where his style of bowling is not meant to do well. The Chinnaswamy has racked up 870 sixes in the IPL, which is by far the record. Wankhede Stadium comes in second with a count of 657. So imagine how he must feel when he looks up from his run-up and sees boundaries that are just about 60 yards away.Yuzvendra Chahal celebrates the wicket of Suresh Raina•BCCIThen again, he was at least in the middle as a team’s first-choice spinner and that hasn’t happened very often for Chahal. His first-class career is stuck at 27 matches, despite a debut eight years ago, because he has had to compete for a spot with Amit Mishra, who, considering his stints as captain of Haryana, couldn’t be dropped and because of that the second-in-line was a fingerspinner like Jayant Yadav.Royal Challengers looked past that and gave him the responsibility. Chahal responded by taking 41 wickets from 28 innings at Chinnaswamy. He is the most successful T20 bowler at this ground and among the top 10 there is only one other spinner – Piyush Chawla with 12 strikes in 12 innings.”It’s always about giving my best for the team that I play,” Chahal said. “Also, whenever I bowl, I never look at the name of the batsman I am bowling to – even if I am playing club matches, inter-matches or the IPL, I bowl only to my strengths and that gives me a lot of confidence too. If you see, Bangalore is a small ground but I have got a lot of wickets here.”Doing well at franchise level doesn’t always mean a player is ready for the step up though. But Chahal, in the 10 ODIs since his debut in 2016, has only once gone wicketless. And in this series against Australia, he has been the captain’s preferred weapon against Glenn Maxwell. When he won the head-to-head a third time in a row, Chahal celebrated by gesturing how he had out-thought the batsman.”I don’t bowl at the stumps to him,” he said. “That is his strong area. So I always look to bowl outside off stump and vary my pace. I know that if I have bowled 2-3 dots, then he will look to step out to me but that delivery – where I pitch it and how it beats him – that has to be perfect.”Those are the kind of wickets that makes a bowler smile when sitting alone at an airport on travel day while his box-office friendly colleagues are hounded for selfies. But Chahal won’t mind. He’s got work to do. Finally, he’s got work to do.

The now grizzled Bangladesh veteran was so fresh faced in 2005, he could have passed for 12

Andrew Miller19-Nov-2025Some Test cricketers just look startlingly, stop-in-your-tracks young when they first take the field, especially when their baby-faced features are set against the grandeur of an ancient, storied venue such as Lord’s. Sachin Tendulkar was one such player, all fluff and so little obvious substance until he streaked around the outfield to claim an astonishing catch in Graham Gooch’s 333 Test in 1990. A mere 15 years later, and back at the same venue in May 2005, Mushfiqur Rahim was another.Though the records now state that he had turned 18 earlier that month, Mushfiqur was assumed at the time to be 16, while he could have been passed off for 12 without anyone missing a beat. He was tiny, and by rights he should have been overawed. He was playing in the most auspicious Test of Bangladesh’s then-short and deeply painful history, and was up against an England team that has rarely presented a more daunting challenge.As if it wasn’t bad enough to be nursing a record of 31 defeats in 36 prior Tests – and 20 of those by an innings – Bangladesh had arrived in early-season England to face an England side with far bigger fish to fry. The seminal 2005 Ashes was on the horizon, and this contest was less a warm-up, more a canapé. In Steve Harmison, Andrew Flintoff, Simon Jones and Matthew Hoggard, the hosts had at their disposal arguably the greatest four-prong seam attack they’d ever compiled, and twin totals of 108 and 159 across 78.1 overs spoke of a team in an indecent hurry to get on with their main event.One man – one boy, rather – did his utmost to hold Bangladesh up. With time on the ball that shamed the hustled jabs and thrashes of his senior team-mates, and a thirst for the fight that belied every stereotype that his demeanour might have attracted, Mushfiqur endured for 85 minutes, making 19 from 56 balls in the first innings – one of only three double-figure scores. It wasn’t riches, but that was rather the point. It was resistance, a flicker of friction that hinted that he could yet be here to stay, unlike so many of the unready contenders that had already been chewed up and spat out in their team’s invidious circumstances.Mushfiqur Rahim received commemorative jerseys ahead of his 100th Test on Wednesday•BCBMushfiqur – the Mighty Atom, as he would soon become known – had earned his opportunity through his sheer (and rare) weight of runs in Bangladesh’s warm-up games. In his first outing of the tour, against a Sussex 2nd XI at Hove, his second-innings 63 had been the solitary crumb of comfort in a grotesque team display, one which led Dav Whatmore, their gruff and paternalistic head coach, to offer an apology to his hosts after an innings-and-226-run defeat.Then, at Northamptonshire’s Wantage Road – the scene, a mere six years earlier, of the World Cup triumph over Pakistan that had catapulted Bangladesh’s premature claims for Test status – Mushfiqur followed up with a cultured 115 not out from 167 balls, albeit against a similarly unrepresentative attack that had him admitting, at the close of play, that his first interview on the BBC World Service was the more daunting of his day’s duties.And now, 20 years and 100 Test caps later, Mushfiqur shares even more in common with Tendulkar, not simply because of his longevity, but because of what he has represented in between whiles, in his country’s long march to recognition within the sport. If Tendulkar’s tale encapsulates India’s economic flourishing and the sense of a nation growing into its supernova status, then Mushfiqur’s is, in its own way, an even more significant microcosm.It’s a tale of tenacity and optimism, and the vindication of youth in the face of overwhelming experience. Even amid the pallid horrors of Bangladesh’s early Test scorecards, it’s easy to forget the narratives that accompanied them. The calls for their status to be rescinded, and the borderline contempt with which their matches were covered. In the Asian Test Championship in September 2001, two Sri Lanka batters, Marvan Atapattu and Mahela Jayawardene, had effectively retired bored after reaching 201 and 150 respectively, and at a time long before T20 cricket had captured the zeitgeist, the notion that Bangladesh’s status cheapened Test cricket was overpowering.Mushfiqur Rahim has been a pillar of the Bangladesh team for 20 out of 25 years of its existence•Associated PressWith no first-class structure – let alone anything resembling an academy or even a serviceable indoor school – and only a handful of senior pros such as Habibul Bashar and Javed Omar to provide the short-term ballast, the only realistic option available to Bangladesh was to take a punt on its youth, and hope that a handful of likely lads would be able to last the course.With the likes of Mashrafe Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal also enduring the sink-or-swim approach, Bangladesh ended up being extraordinarily well served in that regard – and when all four combined to eliminate India from the 2007 World Cup, the sense of a future taking shape before our eyes was palpable. None, however, could come close to matching Mushfiqur’s endurance.He is a grizzled veteran now, with the sort of sage’s beard that would have been comical to even imagine when his fresh face first lined up for a team photo. But astonishingly, he’s been a pillar of this team for 20 out of 25 years of its existence – a timeframe that might have earned him close to double the number of caps had he played for a more fashionable country, or even been permitted to play in series of longer than two Tests.It’s a mark of his longevity that Mushfiqur featured in 56 series all told, with more still to come seeing as he’s going nowhere yet at the age of 38. Tendulkar, by contrast, played 73 across his 200-cap, 24-year career; James Anderson, who played 188 in 21, played 67. At the other end of the endurance scale, there’s England’s former captain, Andrew Strauss. He too played in 100 Tests, but his all came to pass in a mere eight years, and across 29 series.It just goes to show how big the gulf in opportunity remains in a sport that has never been well disposed towards the little guy. But when you think back to that origin story at Lord’s, it’s hard to imagine how Bangladesh could have stood as tall as it has since managed to do, without his five-foot-nothing presence standing front and centre.

A bite-size breakdown of the key action from day one of the first Test in Brisbane

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2017The (expected) early blow
Having won the toss, Joe Root was never likely to do anything other than opt to bat – despite sweaty skies in Brisbane. There was nothing as calamitous about England’s start as Steve Harmison’s wide in 2006-07 or Andrew Strauss’ third-ball duck four years later, but it still did not take long for Australia to strike. In his second over, Mitchell Starc got rid of England’s most-experienced batsman, Alastair Cook drawn into nicking to slip. Cue the first bout of night-time nerves: “It was just starting to look like the quietest start to a Gabba Test since 1998-99 … but instead, it’s taken just 16 balls for Australia to make their mark!”The (unexpected) counter
A major focus during the build-up had been on England’s 5-0 whitewashing in 2013-14 and the supposed “scars” that Australia would look to open up. An early score of 2 for 1 (or 1 for 2) hinted at trouble to come, but the promised onslaught from Australia’s fire-breathing quicks failed to materialise. Mark Stoneman and James Vince went into the Test billed as Poms to the slaughter, yet the pair of Ashes debutants made themselves at home at the “Gabbatoir” while adding a 125-run stand for the second wicket. That was better than England’s highest partnership during the 2013-14 series.The watery intervention
Pat Cummins fired a warning shot for the series when he dragged Root across his crease before swinging the ball back to trap him plumb in front (via the help of a review). He called it “the dream wicket” and, coming less than 10 overs from the close, it prevented England from taking the day. But Australia might have enjoyed more success with the old, reversing ball if Vince had not hit it into a puddle beyond the boundary rope shortly after tea. The umpires initially refused to change the ball but eventually did so after its condition deteriorated further – enabling Cummins to strike.The stat
Vince, whose technique was considered by some to be too fragile to succeed at No. 3, enjoyed a control percentage of 92% against pace bowling during his Test-best 83.ESPNcricinfo LtdQuote of the day”If he didn’t know who we were before the game, he probably does now. Reading comments like that gives you the motivation to go out there and make a statement.”What’s next?
Australia had just armed themselves with the new ball when the umpires decided to call a halt due to bad light, having lost their first review (which will no longer be topped up) over a failed lbw appeal against Dawid Malan. That fresh Kookaburra will still be only three deliveries old when Starc resumes in the morning – play will begin half an hour early to make up lost time – with Australia looking to rattle England’s lower order out quickly. That was one of the major advantages they enjoyed over the tourists in 2013-14; Malan, Moeen Ali and Jonny Bairstow will be the batsmen charged with preventing a repeat.

The best of the numbers from the opening day at Trent Bridge as India’s top order collectively repel England for the first time in the series

Bharath Seervi18-Aug-20181 – The 159-run stand between Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane was the first century stand for India in this series and also the first in the two tours this year, which includes the three-match tour of South Africa. India had over 100 partnerships without any of them crossing triple-digits on these two tours. In the first two Tests against England, India had only two fifty-plus stands out of 44 partnerships with a highest of 57. Kohli has been part of the five of the top-seven partnerships for India on these two tours.ESPNcricinfo Ltd82.6 – India’s control percentage with the bat on the first day at Trent Bridge was far higher than what they had managed in the first two Tests. They had control of just 75% in the first Test then in the second Test it fell below 70%. Each of the seven batsmen who batted had a control of over 70% and all faced more than 30 deliveries.2014 – The last time India’s top seven crossed double-figures in a Test innings on tours of Australia, England, New Zealand or South Africa. It happened in the first innings of the Gabba Test in 2013-14. There was no such instance for India in England in the last 10 Tests. The last time the top seven all scored more than 10 runs in England was in the first Test of 2011 tour at Lord’s.72 – Runs accumulated by India’s top three in this innings. The top three had scored only 118 runs from 12 innings in the first two Tests while 10 of those scores were below 20.78.4- Average score of India at the fall of the fourth wicket for India in the five Tests this year in South Africa and England, before this match. India never reached 150 before the fall of fifth wicket in those 10 innings; the highest was 132 at Centurion. At Trent Bridge, India lost their fourth wicket at the score of 241, and therefore India are marching to their highest total on these two tours.2 – Number of times Kohli has been out in the nineties in Tests. Before this dismissal on 97, the last came about five years ago in Johannesburg in December 2013 when he was out on 96. He has made 17 centuries between these two nineties. He is the first visiting captain to be out in the nineties in England since Brian Lara fell for 95 at Edgbaston in 2004. Among India players, Sachin Tendulkar (twice) and Sourav Ganguly have missed their tons after getting into the nineties at Trent Bridge.ESPNcricinfo Ltd100 – Wickets for James Anderson against India. He is only the second bowler to do so against India after Muttiah Muralitharan’s 105 scalps in 22 matches. India is the second country against which Anderson has managed more than 100 wickets. He has 104 versus Australia. He is the seventh bowler to claim 100 wickets against multiple teams. Shane Warne and Muralitharan have done it against three opponents.1 – Rishabh Pant became the first India player whose first scoring shot in Test cricket was a six (where known). He hit a six off just his second delivery, against the bowling of Adil Rashid.

Tom Verducci: The Red Sox traded Rafael Devers under duress and paid down none of his contract, which limited his value. So why trade him? When you sign someone to a 10-year, $313.5 million contract, that’s the kind of commitment to consider the player “the face of the franchise.” And your face of the franchise should set a culture that young players can emulate.

Not playing first base or third base when starters go down at those positions—positions in the spectrum of your defensive prowess, not moving from infield to outfield or corner to middle—is certainly Devers’s right. But it’s also the club's right to expect more. Taking pregame grounders at shortstop last week was just another layer of weirdness to what became a parlor game of guessing Raffy’s mindset.

The Red Sox are not faultless. Owner John Henry, GM Craig Breslow and manager Alex Cora failed to get out in front of potential problems when it came to communicating. But nothing they did changed the fact that the team was in transition to a new, young core and Devers's intransigence was an obstacle. He should be happier in San Francisco after losing faith in the Boston front office.

The Giants are the winners of this deal today because they added an impact hitter in his prime without disrupting the major league team. Their pitching depth made Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison superfluous. The Giants have not had a left-handed hitter hit 30 home runs since Barry Bonds in 2004, and none other than Bonds since Will Clark 38 years ago. They must pay Devers, a full-time DH when Matt Chapman gets off the IL, $250 million over eight and a half years. That’s a worry for another day. His contract already doesn’t look so bad after the money paid to Juan Soto and Vlad Guerrero Jr.

Will Laws: This deal is being widely compared to the Red Sox’s disastrous trade of Mookie Betts in 2020. But I’d be shocked if this deal ages nearly as poorly as that one has. Yes, that’s setting a low bar. But Devers has never been the sort of player Betts is and his contract very well could’ve turned into an albatross long before it expires in 2033.

Devers has been a top-15 player this season in terms of offensive value, according to FanGraphs. But he’s 35th in terms of fWAR largely due to his poor baserunning and lack of defensive value. Devers has never finished in the top 10 of American League MVP voting. Betts has seven top-10 MVP placements. Betts likewise has seven seasons where he’s been more valuable by bWAR than Devers was in his best season—and that was back in 2019, the year of the juiced ball. And let’s not forget that while Devers refused to pick his glove back up in his team’s time of need after being slated as Boston’s full-time designated hitter before this season—which he was well within his rights to do—Betts has not only been willing to play multiple positions for the Dodgers over the last several years but has excelled at doing so.

Devers is a fearsome slugger, and the Red Sox are now worse than they were Sunday morning. This should also be an excellent deal for the Giants, who have long needed an infusion of power into their lineup. But Boston boasts a wealth of hitting talent and a pitching staff in need of some reinforcements, and now has the opportunity to spend the $245 million or so it still owed Devers elsewhere.

Former Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom was forced by team ownership to trade Betts and never did enough to improve the roster to fill the void left by the former MVP’s departure. He was fired after the 2023 season as a result.

Bloom’s successor, Craig Breslow, just acquired the Giants’ former top prospect, 23-year-old pitcher Kyle Harrison, as part of the return for Devers, as well as pitcher Jordan Hicks and San Francisco’s No. 2 prospect in outfielder James Tibbs III. It’s not enough to make up for the loss of Devers, but it’s a start. Let’s see if Breslow uses some of his newfound payroll space to further upgrade Boston’s pitching staff this season before prematurely sentencing him to the same fate as Bloom.

Chris Wilder will be more clued up on how strong Sheffield United’s automatic promotion credentials are by the time February is over and done with, as some tough fixtures begin to greet his side.

Playoff hopefuls Middlesbrough are the Blades’ next opponents in the unpredictable Championship, with a tricky away trip to Luton Town then following this game, before a box-office clash with table-toppers Leeds United closes out the hectic month.

Wilder will just have to hope his side doesn’t fall victim to another Hull City-style collapse on their own patch against Michael Carrick’s Boro, with Ben Brereton Diaz potentially facing the chop from the XI for this test later today.

Why Brereton Diaz could be excluded from the side

This might well feel like a strange alteration for Wilder to make, considering the Chilean did pick up an assist last time out to help his loan employers overcome Portsmouth 2-1, but it was far from the most convincing showing from the 25-year-old overall.

Indeed, the Southampton flop would only manage to complete 11 accurate passes all game long, whilst also never threatening the Pompey goal with any meaningful efforts, having trudged off on the 72nd-minute mark with no shots attempted.

It wasn’t all Brereton Diaz’s fault, however, with his manager shoehorning him into an unfamiliar position down the right wing when the ex-Blackburn Rovers man is more suited to the left flank or a traditional centre-forward role.

He is unlikely to be moved out to this more favourable left wing position, however, with Gustavo Hamer starring once more from this spot versus John Mousinho’s visitors, with his opening strike setting the Blades on their way to a hard-fought victory.

Therefore, Brereton Diaz might have to make do with a spot on the substitutes bench against Boro – if Wilder doesn’t fancy throwing him in up top.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast's Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Brereton Diaz's "remarkable" replacement

The 57-year-old’s quick ability to change things up mid-game worked wonders against Pompey, with two of his second-half substitutes combining well to gift the Blades a golden late winner.

Both Rhian Brewster and Jesurun Rak-Sakyi linked up to devastating effect to gift their side their 20th win of the league season, with the Crystal Palace loanee now perhaps in contention to start on the right wing.

The “remarkable” winger – as he has been referred to in the past by ex-Palace boss Roy Hodgson – confidently tapped home the dramatic winner to send Bramall Lane into delirium, with this certainly not the only time Rak-Sakyi has made his presence known from the bench this campaign.

Averaging just 51 minutes of action this season when unleashed into games, that hasn’t stopped the promising Eagles loanee from notching up a reasonable tally of five goals and two assists from 24 overall contests, meaning Wilder could be prepared to start him against Boro to try and catch Carrick’s men off-guard.

Games played

24

Games started

16

Minuted averaged*

51 mins

Goals scored

5

Assists

2

Shots per game

1.2

Big chances missed

4

Big chances created

3

Wilder could look to be playing on the visitors’ frailties by launching Rak-Sakyi into the first-team spotlight, having seen the chaos Enzo Le Fee caused down the left channel versus Boro recently, alongside Patrick Roberts also causing Ryan Giles all sorts of bother down the alternate wing in the 3-2 Sunderland victory.

Known for being a tricky and slick winger on his day, adding in Rak-Sakyi as a fresh change might well be just what the Blades need to beat their next opponents in some style, rather than nervously getting over the line with Brereton Diaz in the XI.

Sheffield United have struck gold on “leader” who's worth more than Cannon

Sheffield United have struck gold on this star Chris Wilder absolutely loves.

ByKelan Sarson Feb 9, 2025

Borussia Dortmund chief Sebastian Kehl has denied contact with Bayern Munich over a possible transfer for winger Jamie Gittens.

Article continues below

Article continues below

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Dortmund deny talks with Bayern over GittensKehl says no contact with Die RotenChelsea still interested in €60m wingerFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Reports have emerged suggesting Bayern are interested in signing Jamie Gittens from Dortmund. However, BVB sporting director Kehl denied having any contact with his Bayern counterpart Max Eberl over the winger. Meanwhile, Chelsea remain keen but haven’t matched the €60 million (£50m/$69m) asking price.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

With the Club World Cup ongoing, Dortmund are trying to avoid distractions around key players like Gittens. The 20-year-old has attracted attention from Europe’s top clubs due to his rapid development, but the Bundesliga side are unwilling to sell unless their valuation is met.

WHAT SEBASTIAN KEHL SAID

"I'm not currently in contact with Max Eberl, but otherwise we have a very good relationship. Nevertheless, there's nothing to say on the subject at the moment." Kehl told reporters in Fort Lauderdale, brushing aside Bayern speculation.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

Chelsea may return with an improved offer for Gittens, while the Bavarians' interest remains unconfirmed. For now, Dortmund will focus on their Club World Cup campaign before making any transfer decisions.

Chandimal’s sprint to 10 Test centuries, the end of Mathews’ century drought, and other statistical highlights from the third day of the third Tet

Bharath Seervi04-Dec-2017476- Balls faced by Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal during their 181-run stand for the fourth wicket. It’s the longest partnership between a visiting pair in India in the last five years, and the second-longest stand for Sri Lanka against India. Overall, this is the longest partnership for any pair at the Kotla, trumping the 433 balls Gautam Gambhir and VVS Laxman faced together against Australia in 2008-09.10- Centuries for Dinesh Chandimal in 80 Test innings: the fastest Sri Lankan to the landmark. The previous quickest was Thilan Samaraweera, who notched up 10 centuries in 82 innings. Kumar Sangakkara took 101 innings for the same.2- Number of Sri Lanka captains to score a century in India. Before Chandimal, only Sangakkara had done so, at the Brabourne Stadium in 2009-10. Chandimal is the first visiting captain in over 30 years to score a century at Feroz Shah Kotla, after Viv Richards in 1987-88.36- Number of innings without a century for Mathews before the one in this Test. Mathews averaged only 27.80 in those 36 innings with six fifties. His last ton was also against India, when they visited Sri Lanka in 2015. Between 2014 and 2015, Mathews hit six centuries in 42 innings.1981- The last instance of two centurions in the same innings for an opposition side at the Kotla. Geoff Boycott and Chris Tavare each made centuries for England then. Chandimal and Mathews’ centuries make it the fifth such instance at the Kotla. This is only the second occasion of Sri Lanka having two centurions in an innings in India.ESPNcricinfo Ltd3- Partnerships to have lasted 400 or more balls for Sri Lanka in the last five years; Chandimal has been involved in all three. He partnered Karunaratne against West Indies in Galle in 2015, and with Dhananjaya de Silva against Australia in Colombo (SSC) last year. The last such partnership, before these three, came in 2011.3- Number of times Chandimal has played innings of 300 or more balls in Tests this year – the highest. Steven Smith, Cheteshwar Pujara and Dimuth Karunaratne have played two such long innings.2009- Last instance of Sri Lanka’s Nos. 4 and 5 both scoring centuries in the same innings, as Chandimal and Mathews did in this match. Mahela Jayawardene and Samaraweera had done it in Galle then.

A look at his performances against those of other players in the same matches

Kartikeya Date29-Apr-2018Twenty years ago this week, Sachin Tendulkar scored two hundreds in two run chases against the Australians in Sharjah. The first ended in defeat for his team, but ensured India qualified for the final of the tournament. The second won India the tournament.Tendulkar has played better in ODI cricket than he did that week dozens of times since that innings, and a few times before as well. The wicket in Sharjah was flat. Australia didn’t have Glenn McGrath or Jason Gillespie. Brett Lee was yet to emerge and there was no serious pace in the Australian attack that day. As a technical challenge, the Australians of 1998 were decidedly average (despite the presence of Shane Warne). For difficulty, consider, for instance, Tendulkar’s 77 in Brisbane against Curtly Ambrose, Malcolm Marshall, Patrick Patterson and Anderson Cummins in 1992. The other Indian batsmen in the top six that day made 4, 1, 1, 8 and 3, and the next best score was Kapil Dev’s 28. Or consider any one of Tendulkar’s 18 scores between 90 and 99 (Nathan Astle, Aravinda de Silva and Grant Flower have nine each, the next highest), and you will find memorable stories, difficult attacks, difficult targets or difficult conditions in many of them.In retrospect, that week 20 years ago came to symbolise an era in India’s (and Tendulkar’s) ODI history. Cricket, it is said, is an individual sport masquerading as a team sport. I think this is backwards. Cricket is a team sport masquerading as an individual sport. Each delivery involves exactly one bowler and one batsman, but its possibilities are shaped by realities beyond the control of these two individual players. When teams win consistently, they tend to have a large number of top performers. But to find the truly exceptional individual superstar, look in a team that loses more often than it wins. Think about Andy Flower, or Brian Lara in the latter half of his career, or Muttiah Muralitharan in the Sri Lankan attack. Think, indeed, about Tendulkar in India’s ODI side of that era.Previously, I’ve written about how the central difference between Virat Kohli and Tendulkar in the ODI game is the contribution at the other end. In 48 years of ODI cricket, there have been 130 instances of batsmen scoring 1000 or more runs in a calendar year. I calculated the net batting average and net strike rate for each of these 130 instances.Kartikeya DateTendulkar made 1894 runs in 1998 at an average of 65.3 and a strike rate of 102 runs per 100 balls faced. The other batsmen in those matches scored at 32.6 and averaged 80 runs per hundred balls faced. This gave Tendulkar a net batting average of +32.7 and a net scoring rate of +22. This is represented by the red dot in the chart above. The blue dots represent corresponding records for all other instances of batsmen scoring 1000 or more runs in a calendar year.The extraordinary performance in the top right corner is AB de Villiers in 2015. De Villiers made 1193 runs at 79.5 and scored at 138 runs per hundred balls faced. The other batsmen in those matches scored at 41.6 and at a strike rate of 99 per 100 balls faced. De Villiers crossed 50 ten times in 18 innings that year. In nine out of those ten innings, he scored at least a run a ball. He had innings of 149 (44 balls), 162 not out (66), 119 (61) and 104 not out (73) – an extraordinary year.Other players have averaged better than 70 in a calendar year, scoring more than 1000 runs. In 2017, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma both achieved this, and both scored at 99 runs per 100 balls faced. Hashim Amla made 1058 runs at 75.6 in 2010. He scored at 104 runs per 100 balls faced; the other batsmen in those matches managed to score at 99 runs per 100 balls faced, and averaged 42.8. MS Dhoni made 1198 runs at 70.5 in 2009, scoring at 86 runs per 100 balls faced; the other batsmen scored at 101 runs per 100 balls faced, and averaged 35.9. Ricky Ponting made 1193 runs at 79.5 in 2007, and scored at 92 runs per 100 balls. Australia won the World Cup that year and the other batsmen averaged 44.8 and scored at 103 runs per 100 balls.In an earlier era, Dean Jones made 1174 runs at 69.1 and scored at 79 runs per 100 balls faced. The other batsmen in those matches scored at 32.3 and at 79 runs per 100 balls faced. In 1987, Javed Miandad made 1084 runs at 67.8 and scored at 70 runs per 100 balls faced; the other batsmen scored at 29.8, but managed 81 runs per 100 balls faced.A batsman who scores 1000 ODI runs in a calendar year can be said to be having a great year. Tendulkar in 1998 and de Villiers in 2015 are unique in that they were not only more consistent than their team-mates, but scored significantly quicker than them as well. A comparison between Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly, who scored 1000 runs or more in a calendar year six times, is illustrative. In five out of these six years, Ganguly scored slower than the other batsmen in his matches.

Ganguly and Tendulkar in years when they made over 1000 runs in ODIs year

PlayerYearAggregateAvgSRAvg at other endSR at other endGanguly1997133841.87028.482Ganguly1998132841.57035.486Ganguly1999176746.57631.184Ganguly2000157956.48326.179Ganguly2002111438.48335.594Ganguly2007124044.37336.395Tendulkar1994108947.38938.480Tendulkar1996161153.78226.578Tendulkar1997101130.68529.578Tendulkar1998189465.310232.680Tendulkar2000132839.18228.980Tendulkar2003114157.1872981Tendulkar2007142547.58632.389Tendulkar played ODI cricket for India from 1989 to 2012. In all but two of those years, he played at least ten games. Using the method of the net average and strike rate, his career can be split into three distinct phases. The chart below shows Tendulkar’s net average and strike rate per calendar year. Each point represents a calendar year (1989 and 2010 are ignored).Kartikeya DateThe first, formative, phase ran from 1989 to 1993 (green dots in the chart above). Tendulkar played in the middle order in a largely unsuccessful side. In 1994, the coach Ajit Wadekar and captain Mohammad Azharuddin decided to move Tendulkar to the top of the batting order.This began the second phase (red dots) of Tendulkar’s career. He was both the most consistent and quickest-scoring player in the side. It was in this phase that he stood out as the exceptional performer. This phase could be said to have ended with the 2003 World Cup in particular, and the year 2003 in general.In 2004 (and especially 2005), Tendulkar struggled with injuries, and the Ganguly era was drawing to a close, giving way to a significantly stronger and more successful Indian ODI side. In this third phase (blue dots), Tendulkar was more consistent than his average team-mate but scored slower.

Tendulkar’s ODI career divided into three phases

PhaseInningsRunsAverageStrike rateAverage at other endStrike at other end1989-199365167931.17427.7741994-20032561100648.58931.4812004-2012142574144.28534.092Desert Storm marked an exceptional point in that middle phase of Tendulkar’s career. I’ve always thought that the emblematic innings of that phase was not one of the Sharjah ones but his 90 in 84 balls against Australia at the Wankhede Stadium in 1996 in a World Cup game. Australia batted first and reached 258, thanks to Mark Waugh’s 126. During the innings break, Geoffrey Boycott was asked whether he thought India would chase these runs. He said: “No.” After a while, he said, “They have a chance if Tendulkar scores big.”Nearly two hours later, Tendulkar was nearing his hundred, with Sanjay Manjrekar for company. He had taken McGrath to the cleaners with the new ball and seemed to be able to do as he pleased, no matter who was bowling.Boycott was asked again what he thought. “If Tendulkar goes, they’ll struggle,” he said.When Tendulkar was dismissed, India had six wickets in hand and needed 116 in about 24 overs. Boycott didn’t think India would get those, and he was right.On April 19, 1998, in Sharjah against Australia, Tendulkar made 80 in 72 balls as India chased 265 and lost by 58 runs. On April 22, he made 143 in 131 as India chased 276 and lost by 26 runs. Finally, on April 24, he made 134 in 131 as India chased 273 and won by six wickets. Over those three games against Australia, Tendulkar made 357 in 334 balls and was out three times (avg 119, SR 107). At the other end, 374 runs were scored in 497 balls for 17 dismissals (avg 22, SR 75).India lost three out of their five matches in that tournament and still won the title. They lost two of their three matches against the Australians and still won. In a sense, both India and Tendulkar played to form that week. India showed themselves to be the average side that they were then, who lost more than they won. Tendulkar showed himself to be a miraculous player approaching the peak of his powers.That magical year 20 years ago gave the Indian team a look at limited-overs mastery they could aspire to. Indeed, by the time Tendulkar left the international game in 2013, he was no longer the miraculous player from 1998, but India had come closer to being a miraculous side than at any other time in their history.At his best or otherwise, I found Tendulkar’s batting mesmerising to watch. But as good as his batting was, the advancement of the Indian side during these 20 years is perhaps Tendulkar’s greater achievement.

The Multan Sultans batter talks about his preference for batting in the top order, and how, despite a series of injuries, he couldn’t bring himself to give up cricket

Interview by Umar Farooq24-Jun-2021Since the start of 2020, Sohaib Maqsood has the highest T20 strike rate among Pakistan batters and is ninth on the global list (among those with a minimum of 500 runs and 20 innings). It has been a period of transformation for the 34-year-old middle-order batter who was striking at 125.79 previously.Ahead of playing the 2021 PSL final for the Multan Sultans against Peshawar Zalmi, Maqsood, the third-highest run scorer in the tournament, spoke about how he developed his game after his career nearly ended in 2016.Multan Sultans are playing the PSL final for the first time. How has the journey been for everyone in the camp?
The best part about Andy Flower’s coaching style is that he never allows negativity to come close to the team. Otherwise, with the sort of performances we gave in Karachi [losing four out of five games], it would have been very easy for any coach to come and shout [at the players], but he doesn’t work like that.When we came here to Abu Dhabi, 90% of our team thought we are here to play a few games and go back. But credit to him and our skipper [Mohammad Rizwan]. He [Flower] calls us champions even when we lose games. He calls us champions in training sessions, in the dressing room. Sometimes we used to laugh, saying we are more losers than champions, but he had that self-belief.After one victory here, we started to get our belief back and take one game at a time. We never thought we will end up in the top two. Not only did we make it to the qualifier, but it was remarkable how we won it so comfortably.I think in the final, the pressure will be more on Zalmi than us. They are playing their fourth final and they have lost the final twice already. It’s a kind of pressure to not lose a third final in a row.This PSL season, the Multan Sultans went from losing four of their first five games to winning five of their next six to qualify for their first final•Fareed Khan/Associated PressWhat have you done to evolve your white-ball game in the last year?
I have been consistent in domestic cricket for the last two years, but the turnaround came only in the PSL for a reason. I always said that I am a top-order batsman but I never got an opportunity in the PSL to bat higher until this [second] leg in Abu Dhabi. I was playing at Nos. 5 and 6 or sometimes at four. Even in the first leg, in Karachi, I was playing at Nos. 4 or 5, so my performance was irregular.In Abu Dhabi I got to bat at No. 3 and all I did was to bat exactly as I do in domestic cricket. At the same time, form also matters. There is hard work behind [my performances] and it came with my entire focus on white-ball cricket, so it’s paying off well.Who did you have to persuade to make you play at No. 3?
I didn’t convince anyone and I didn’t talk to the captain or management. Shahid [Afridi] ).You have had your fair share of injuries. How are you working to keep yourself fit?
I have suffered nearly every injury other than to my knee. In 2011 I had a ligament rupture in the ankle. I couldn’t play for almost two years. I also had a long history of a back injury. But the worst came when I was at the peak of my career, at the end of 2014, when I picked up a wrist injury that broke the hamate bone in my hand. It was a career-threatening injury. I played the 2015 World Cup with the injury and had surgery after. I feel that injury set my career back the most.How did you bounce back from it?
My family and friends know there was a time when I might have quit cricket. I had other career opportunities as I have a good educational background, but cricket was something I thought I could not live without, so I had to push myself. It was actually not about playing for Pakistan. It was [just] about playing cricket.I know if I am not playing cricket, I might not enjoy anything in life. If I had left cricket because of the injuries and was working in some other profession, I’d still be playing club cricket at least, because it’s my life and I can’t live without it.Did you come close to quitting elite cricket?
I can’t complain about the lack of opportunities in my career, either with the national team or in domestic cricket – I always got a chance. Even in the PSL, despite bad performances, I was still selected for the next edition. Obviously there were a few good performances to back my selection.It was just injuries that made me think of quitting. You can’t do much about injuries, especially when you pick them up when you are doing well. In Under-19, I was a star and then my back injury made me sit out for nearly one and half years. That was frustrating. The injuries were hindering my progress and every step forward I took, I was coming backwards all over again.You know cricketers in Pakistan mostly come from lower-middle-class families. It’s rare that they come from the elite class. So it’s very important for a cricketer to have some [alternative] career when you are 20-22 in case anything goes wrong in your cricketing career. With this mind, I thought I should go to England to study or work.With Mohammad Irfan (left) at the 2015 World Cup. “If I could have taken care of my fitness, my international career would have been a lot better than it is”•Fiona Goodall/AFP/Getty ImagesAt some point, after recovering from my wrist injury, I felt helpless. My game was changed and I wasn’t the player I used to be. No power, no shots, and I felt embarrassed playing cricket because I was not able to do the things I wanted to. Then I thought I should do something else, but there was a voice in my head that I can’t do anything else, so I just had to carry on and keep believing.I learned some hard lessons. In fact, I would like to tell every young player that I wish I can go back and train harder and look after myself better as far as my fitness is concerned. If I could have taken care of my fitness, my international career would have been a lot better than it is.Were you the type of player who relied on natural ability instead of focusing on your fitness?
When I was around 17, I was not a natural athlete. I was a chubby kid and never a quick runner either. Sometimes a player will tell me that when they were 16, they used to fly [around the field], but I can’t say that. When I was 17, I was 110kgs. But when you are over 30, you have to take care of your body. If you can’t train, you can’t play. I still give myself some credit, because with so many career-threatening injuries and surgeries, I still had belief.You are totally right that I used to believe in my natural ability more than hard work. I believed I was naturally blessed, and despite the laziness and avoiding training, I still carried on playing and had a reasonable career.Do you have any ambitions of playing for Pakistan again?
Obviously, if you are playing cricket, your dream is to play for the country. I am 34 now but I still think I can contribute in the T20 format. There are a couple of World Cups coming up in a year and a half. I am in good form and have the belief that if the opportunity comes my way, I will grab it. I know there are a few people who whine about not being selected, but I am not that kind of a guy.I think if people are doing well in the national team, that also needs to be considered. I know whenever I score runs, people start talking about putting me in the team to fill in the No. 5 or 6 spots, but I am afraid if I play [in those positions], I won’t be able to deliver much. I know you have to bat for your country wherever you are asked to, but I believe if I bat in the top order, that’s where I can do better for the country.