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A deep dive into numbers from the last 30 years or so will reveal that Dale Steyn is not merely great, but is actually among the finest half-dozen quicks to ever have played the game

Andrew Fidel Fernando18-Jul-2018 • Updated on 31-Aug-2021Just how good is Dale Steyn? Outstanding, right? Almost everyone will agree he is an all-time great. But as he stands on the verge of breaking the record for South Africa’s most Test wickets, requiring one more dismissal to go clear of Shaun Pollock, the numbers suggest he has been even better than he is in most people’s estimation. It may be that Steyn is not merely great, but is actually among the finest half-dozen quicks to ever have played the game.We will eventually measure Steyn’s record in relation to the best quicks through cricket’s modern history, but before that let’s look at how he compares to his 21st-century peers. Among fast bowlers who have taken over 200 wickets since 2000, Steyn’s average of 22.42 is third-best, behind those of Glenn McGrath and Vernon Philander. While McGrath was experiencing a late-career harvest (his overall numbers are slightly worse), Philander is buoyed by spectacular numbers while playing at home – he has been nowhere near as effective as Steyn outside South Africa, and his returns in Asia have been particularly modest relative to his exploits elsewhere.Where Steyn is a clear leader, however, is in strike rate; no one else on the list gets close to his 41.6. He is also the second-highest wicket-taker for this period, with 421 scalps. Only James Anderson has been more successful, but Anderson’s average (27.23) and strike rate (56.2), are not in Steyn’s league. This is no real surprise – although Anderson has been a supremely skillful bowler, Steyn could do pretty much everything Anderson could do, but at 10kph faster.How Steyn stacks up against other fast bowlers of his era•Ishita Mazumder/ESPNcricinfo LtdAmong Steyn’s clearest claims to greatness have been his performances in Asia, where quicks generally encounter the least helpful surfaces. He has 92 wickets in the continent, well clear of Anderson, who is the next-most-successful non-Asian seamer this century with 59 wickets. Among quicks to have played at least 20 Tests in Asia since 2000, though, Steyn’s numbers compare favourably even with those of Asian fast bowlers. His numbers are virtually indistinguishable from those of Shoaib Akhtar, with other wonderful Asian quicks – the likes of Chaminda Vaas and Zaheer Khan – sitting way back.The best Test fast bowlers in Asia since 2000•Ishita Mazumder/ESPNcricinfo LtdWe have now established that Steyn is the most penetrative and versatile quick of the last 15 years, but let’s now look a little further back and bring the great ’90s bowlers into the frame. To do a meaningful comparison across eras, though, we must account for varying conditions and trends. Although bowler-friendly tracks have made a roaring comeback over the past few years, much of Steyn’s career was played in an infamously batting-friendly period. So instead of merely stacking up these players’ averages and strike rates against each other, let’s look at how much better each bowler was than his peers, by calculating the difference between each bowler’s numbers and the mean bowling numbers in his career span (that is, the mean bowling stats from between the bowler’s first and last Test).From among a group of eight truly outstanding quicks, Steyn has the best average differential, though he is neck-and-neck with McGrath.

Where Steyn sets himself apart from McGrath, however, is via that incredible strike rate. Only Waqar Younis had a better strike rate differential than Steyn, but then Waqar was more expensive as well.How much better is Steyn over others in his era?•Ishita Mazumder/ESPNcricinfo LtdWhere Steyn’s versatility – owing probably to his mastery of reverse-swing – really become clear is when his figures in Asia are compared to those of the best visiting quicks through cricket’s history. His raw average and strike rate in Asia is staggering enough, but throw the differential numbers in – that is, compare Steyn’s stats to the mean for his era, while doing the same for the other non-Asian greats – he comes out ahead of the pack in terms of average.How Steyn’s numbers in Asia stack up against the rest•ESPNcricinfo LtdOn strike rate, Steyn and Wes Hall are well clear of the rest. Effectively, Steyn’s wickets in Asia have come an astounding 28 balls closer together than they have for the average bowler in his era.ESPNcricinfo’s jury panel recently voted in McGrath as the right-arm quick in our Test team of the last 25 years, but given the above numbers, I would replace McGrath with Steyn, owing not only to Steyn’s prowess on the toughest continent for quicks, but also because of the value he adds via his strike rate. A full fifth of McGrath’s wickets had also come against minnows, by which of course I mean England 1994 through 2003.Even Malcolm Marshall, whose record in Asia is what clinches him the “greatest fast bowler ever” tag, for many, was not quite as statistically dominant as Steyn has been there.Is Steyn the greatest-ever non-Asian quick bowler in Asia?•Ishita Mazumder/ESPNcricinfo LtdBy now, it is clear that numbers-wise, Steyn has a strong claim to being the finest fast bowler of the last 30 years – in a fairly crowded field. He is also almost certainly the best non-Asian quick in Asian conditions. Among bowlers of any ilk with more than 200 wickets, from any era, Steyn’s career strike rate of 41.6 is the best. If you are a captain in need of quick wickets, with minimal release of pressure, there is no better player to call on from your great-bowler rolodex than Steyn; he is the most aggressive great bowler there has been.

Finally, one more figure that puts Steyn in the league of the most sublime quicks to ever bear down on batsmen: his record in victories. Aside from the first few years of his career, in which Australia dominated, South Africa have arguably been the best Test team in the world for a good portion of Steyn’s career. In that time, no bowler has been more crucial to his team’s success. In fact, few quicks have ever been as impactful for any team as Steyn. Of bowlers that played in the last 100 years, only Richard Hadlee and Imran Khan have better averages in victories (minimum: 100 wickets in wins). Steyn has more wickets in wins than the other top 15 bowlers (by average). It pretty much goes without saying by this stage that Steyn’s rocking strike rate is the best.

With all these numbers considered and put into historical context, Steyn’s career comes out looking even more monstrous than perhaps he has got credit for. How many bowlers in history can claim to have dominated matches in Galle (in 2014), as well as at the Wanderers? There is stiff competition for the pace-bowling spots in an all-time XI, but having been the clear leader during his playing period, and having put up spectacular numbers despite playing in one of the most batting-friendly eras in history, he deserves to be part of any all-time XI conversation.Stats updated till July 18, 2018

Our writers and reporters pick their standout moments of the World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-20193:22

Top 10 moments from World Cup 2019

What did you most enjoy?

George Dobell: The spirit. Cricket has become a little more gentle, a little more decent, a little nicer since the last World Cup. It was demonstrated in the gracious manner in which New Zealand reacted to their misfortune in the final. Other teams would have taken to the courts; New Zealand shrugged it off with a phlegmatic smile and warm praise for England.We saw it when Virat Kohli asked the Indian supporters to applaud Steven Smith too. Oh, and for all the rubbishness of British weather, I’m not sure another nation could have produced the multi-ethnic crowds supporting every team and at every venue without need for segregation or concern. In that way, at least, it was a great World Cup. Osman Samiuddin: The fact that it stayed alive until pretty much the last few games of the group stages. It could’ve gone so wrong had Sri Lanka lost to England that day – and England’s own tortured run to the semis was immensely enjoyable. Andrew Fidel Fernando: The bowling. I, like everyone else, thought it would be a batting World Cup. It wasn’t. The yorkers were wonderful. Melinda Farrell: Perhaps it’s self-indulgent, but it’s seeing lovely people from all around the world, people you might not have seen for a few years. The friends and colleagues who inspire you and keep you smiling when you’re running on empty. Alagappan Muthu: Kane Williamson – Every run he made was under pressure. But look back at the replays and it feels like he was having a net. Only thing missing was a straight drive while he was yawning. Sharda Ugra: For being Skills Inc. Before it began, the lament arose: 400! 500! The end of bowling! The end of contests! Fortunately, it was a World Cup of bowlers, merchants of pace and sultans of swing, with their magic variations. And yet it was marked by generous passages of high-quality batting and outright biffing. What’s not to enjoy? Andrew Miller: Full houses for pretty much every group-stage match – a tribute to multicultural Britain and a clue as to where the future of the sport in this country needs to lie as it builds on the interest generated this summer. Bangladesh’s fans deserve a special mention in this regard – from The Oval to Lord’s to Southampton to Cardiff, they were legion. The toy-tiger industry alone could prop up the economy post-Brexit.Karthik Krishnaswamy: The pitches. The England-Pakistan series before the World Cup made 500 seem like a real possibility, but we ended up with lots of 240-meets-240 matches instead.Mohammad Isam: Having the best of both worlds as a reporter. I sat with the crowd for some of the matches, which not only ensured that I hardly missed a ball, but also gave me fresh perspective. At the same time, one of the great privileges of my profession is to witness up close how a cricket team prepares and deals with high-pressure situations.Nagraj Gollapudi: Ball dominating bat. Fast men telling batsmen: give me respect.Alan Gardner: Seeing players, fans (and colleagues) from all around the world descend on the UK and help take the World Cup carnival on the road, from Taunton all the way up to Chester-le-Street.Smouldering Faf du Plessis smouldered right out of the World Cup•Getty Images

What was the biggest surprise?

Isam: India not making it to the final still surprises me, given their experience and overall skill level. All they had to do was negotiate a strong opening spell from Trent Boult and Matt Henry. They weren’t chasing a big total too.Farrell: That the expectation of sexy legspin turning teams on their heads was not fulfilled.Gardner: India not making the final. New Zealand knocking them out, having lost their previous three games, was more surprising than the fact they ran England so close.Krishnaswamy: The lack of spinners among the top wicket-takers. The four years between 2015 and this World Cup were the years of the wristspinner, but Imran Tahir apart, none of them had a particularly memorable tournament, with Rashid Khan enduring a poor one by his standards.Samiuddin: South Africa. I didn’t think they were among the very top favourites but I didn’t foresee that they’d struggle so badly and be one of the first teams to be knocked out of contention for the semis.Miller: The pitches were far less conducive to murderous strokeplay than had been predicted in the build-up to the tournament, and while that came close to sinking England’s tournament after their stumble against Sri Lanka, it also vindicated their eventual triumph as they took their licks, learned their lessons, and ground it out on another dog of a deck in that thrilling final. Elsewhere, Afghanistan’s failure to land a major scalp was the biggest surprise for me. Riven by politics, they were a shadow of their true selves.Dobell: The pitches. The plan was for absolute belters where 350-plus was par, but we saw scores of 250 defended often. Whether it was the weather or the amount asked of the groundsmen, something went quite wrong there. It created several fun games, but that really was more by accident than design.Ugra: The speed with which South Africa faded despite having so many gifted, world-class players in their ranks. It was mournful to watch them implode. There were no more jokes to be made about the C word, and Faf du Plessis’ graphic description of what defeat did to teams lingered as the event wore on. Muthu: Pitches – almost forgot that England in the not-so-distant past was a bowler-friendly place.New Zealand: making cricket a kinder, more gentle and decent sport•Getty Images

Which match did you most enjoy?

Samiuddin: West Indies-New Zealand, India-New Zealand, Pakistan-England for the atmosphere, but the final, by a stretch, wins it as game of the tournament for me.Farrell: Impossible to go past the final, although “enjoy” might not be the right word. It was an experience unlike any I’ve ever had at a sporting event. Exhilarating, mind-blowing, nerve-jangling and utterly overwhelming.Gollapudi: Let us leave the final aside, as it was the game of our lives. Outside of that, I’d pick the India-New Zealand semi-final.Krishnaswamy: My enjoyment of some of the most thrilling games of the tournament – New Zealand-South Africa, New Zealand-West Indies, the final – was compromised by the frenetic activity of being on ball-by-ball or live-report duty. The games I enjoyed most, therefore, were probably those I simply watched. It was late at night when Australia were chasing 326 against South Africa, and I was lying in bed, watching on my phone, drifting off to sleep one moment and jolting awake the next. When it ended, my head was buzzing with everything that had happened, and falling asleep was suddenly a struggle.Ugra: Pakistan v South Africa. Because it was prototype Pakistan, where the textbooks are tossed aside, the process bullshit is ignored, and the game is played with a focused intensity and urgency. To be at Lord’s as Pakistanis streamed in, chatting loudly, cursing the players and their performance against India, yet determined to be in one voice was to see one wave roll in outside the field. On it, the team’s cricket turned tidal and drowned South Africa.Dobell: West Indies v New Zealand at Old Trafford. Partly because I was there as a spectator – a close finish is less fun when you have to write about it – and partly simply as it was a wonderful advert for our great game.Fernando: Of the ones I personally attended, New Zealand v South Africa was probably the best. Muthu: New Zealand v West Indies – West Indies’ fire, New Zealand’s cool. If only it could have happened again in the final.Isam: Bangladesh striking down South Africa in their first match, in front of a full house at The Oval, particularly with their very one-sided bilateral series in South Africa a year and a half ago in mind. It wasn’t a shock result but it was a surprise how Bangladesh were more disciplined than the South Africans.Miller: West Indies v New Zealand at Old Trafford was the perfect neutral’s showdown. It had been a fine match in its own right throughout – Kane Williamson’s stunning century after two golden ducks for New Zealand’s openers was worth the admission alone. But for the match to then be lit up by that grandstand finish from Carlos Brathwaite was something else entirely.Gardner: The second semi-final was a rare instance of England clinically dismantling the mighty World Cup-winning machine that is Australia. Having not won a knockout match in 27 years, they did it with ease and – shockingly – appeared to have fun doing so.The only losers in that World Cup final were our fingernails•Getty Images

What was the biggest wow moment?

Dobell: Did you see the final?Miller: Well, apart from the bleeding obvious… there’s Mitchell Starc’s yorker to Ben Stokes at Lord’s. Not only was it utterly sensational, it left the hosts and favourites on the brink of elimination, and set the group stage ablaze.Fernando: James Neesham’s outrageous one-handed catch to dismiss Dinesh Karthik in the semi-final. I gasped so hard my breathing didn’t return to normal for several minutes. Muthu: Starc v Stokes. The ball goes out as Mitchell Starc releases it. Then it swings in because of mad reverse. Physics can maybe explain that. But I still won’t get how it got the Player of the Final out on 89.Gardner: There are a dozen instances from the climax of the final, but the one I’ll never get my head around is Trent Boult stepping on the rope at long-on. That was the game, right there.Ugra: The two direct-hit run-outs in the India-New Zealand semi-final: Ravindra Jadeja getting Ross Taylor and Martin Guptill getting MS Dhoni. In a World Cup of outstanding catches and pieces of fielding, over two days we watched exact throws become the magic moments in the game.Isam: When Jofra Archer burst through Soumya Sarkar, struck the bail and had the ball sailing over the ropes in Cardiff.Farrell: That Martin Guptill catch at leg gully off a full-blooded Steve Smith pull. There were a lot of breathtaking catches in the tournament, but that one, for me, was the most incredible.Samiuddin: Guptill’s catch to (help) dismiss Steven Smith at Lord’s. And then his direct-hit run-out of Dhoni as well. Actually, the latter probably wins.Krishnaswamy: Ben Stokes’ Dive of God. There’s a Maradona-esque, Botham-esque quality to some players, where everything – even something as outlandish as an inadvertent deflection for four overthrows – seems possible, and fated to have happened. Stokes is exactly that kind of player.The ball that could not be: Mitchell Starc’s yorker was a guided missile into Ben Stokes’ stumps•David Rogers/Getty Images

What was the most gripping phase of play?

Miller: Until Sunday, I’d have said the implosion of India’s top order in the Old Trafford semi-final. It was a Bo(u)lt through the Blue, as 2015’s beaten finalists confirmed unequivocally that they were the real deal. But come on. Every detail of that final climax, from the 49th over of England’s chase onwards, will be tattooed on my retinas till I die. Muthu: Last five overs of the final – I was on the live report and I was screaming every ball, and that’s why all of it is in capital letters.Samiuddin: Jos Buttler’s counter against Pakistan, the last two overs Carlos Brathwaite played against New Zealand at Old Trafford, Shaheen Afridi’s opening burst against New Zealand. But also, in the final, Colin de Grandhomme’s entire spell against England. It was just so counterintuitive (and down to the pitch) that a bowler like him would be such a threat against a batting line-up like England’s. The pitch as the great leveller.Ugra: Jasprit Bumrah’s tenth over against Afghanistan and the awesomeness of its inevitable efficiency. As Mohammad Nabi began to eat away at a modest total and India teetered, Bumrah was India’s insurance policy. It was duly encashed.Dobell: England’s chase against Australia at Edgbaston. And the way they attacked the bowling, in particular. Mitchell Starc might be one of the greatest white-ball bowlers in history, but after five overs he had conceded 50. Nathan Lyon was hit for six first ball and Steven Smith conceded three sixes – one of them may not yet have landed – in his only over. This wasn’t the England any of us grew up watching. And it was all the better for it.Isam: Kane Williamson’s captaincy when he brought on Colin de Grandhomme in the final. He was supposed to be New Zealand’s weakest bowler, but the in-and-out fields and lengths kept England guessing, and showed why Williamson is the rightful heir in a long line of great Kiwi thinkers that includes Richard Hadlee, Martin Crowe, Stephen Fleming and Brendon McCullum.Fernando: Angelo Mathews winning the match against West Indies with the ball, after he hadn’t bowled even in the nets for eight months, was unforgettable.Krishnaswamy: Carlos Brathwaite against New Zealand. All the classic ingredients were there – a seemingly wrecked chase in a must-win game, no recognised batsmen at the other end – and when the realisation dawned that this was actually happening, everything slowed down, and every ball became an event. New Zealand invited (and eventually earned) fines and demerit points for their long deliberations between balls, but all those long gaps were filled with exquisite tension.Gardner: Overs 49-50 (of England’s innings) and the two Super Overs in the final. They are seared on my cerebral cortex for eternity.Demons in the pitch? Not for master swordsman Ravindra Jadeja against New Zealand at Old Trafford•Getty Images

What was your favourite individual performance?

Dobell: Probably Chris Woakes’ against Australia at Edgbaston. I’ve known Chris quite a long time. Maybe there’s a more unassuming, humble international sportsperson, but I’ve not met them. To come through the injury setbacks he has had and enjoy a day like that on his home ground in a World Cup semi-final… yeah, that was a good day.Samiuddin: Babar Azam’s hundred against New Zealand. Been watching him for a long time and he is so clearly so obviously such a good player who only needed one big match-winning innings to be acknowledged as more than just a very good player – but rather one who is potentially a great already.Miller: Jonny Bairstow’s screw-you-all century against India. His wrath was ridiculous, but his response to those perceived slights in the media was both brilliant and utterly foreseeable.Gollapudi: Two. Ravindra Jadeja’s cavalier half-century against New Zealand in the semi-final, when he batted on a different pitch to the rest of the batsmen. And Ben Stokes’ smart, patient, daring innings in the final, an innings that has the potential to inspire and create a generation of cricketers across the world.Farrell: I’m going to throw Sheldon Cottrell in there. Not for a particular performance, although he had plenty, plus catch, but for all of the times I saw kids imitating his salute. They say that performing is all about connecting with the audience and he nailed it.Gardner: Since I was there and got to write about it, Lasith Malinga’s monstering of England at Headingley. It was also a performance that ensured the group stage would hold interest until pretty much the end. Muthu: Brathwaite versus New Zealand. Those sixes. The courage to trust that he had the game to keep out the best bowling attack in the world and also clatter them for sixes to win the game for West Indies.Isam: I am split between Shakib Al Hasan’s hundred against West Indies and his full quota of ten overs from the end with the shorter midwicket boundary against India at Edgbaston. Of course the performance in Taunton won Bangladesh the match, but his bowling is a testament to how effortless Shakib is as a cricketer, even when he takes on big challenges.Ugra: Babar Azam’s century against New Zealand, which is a bit biased given that I wrote about his back story and knew that a breakout performance had yet to appear. Everybody loves a stylist, and when the stylist becomes a match-winner, it’s like the gods have given their approval.Fernando: Malinga’s wobble-bellied four-for against England.Krishnaswamy: Chris Woakes’ new-ball bowling was a joy to watch throughout, and his first spell in the semi-final at Edgbaston was outstanding. Australia had never lost a World Cup semi-final, and here they were, 14 for 3, with Woakes’ control, swing and seam doing the bulk of the damage.600-plus runs, 11 wickets: Shakib Al Hasan put up numbers no player had done in a World Cup before•Getty Images

Who was the player of the tournament for you?

Farrell: Look, I’m happy that Kane Williamson got the official nod, and he’s a worthy winner. I think it’s a toss-up between him and Shakib Al Hasan, who was brilliant as ever. Who hit the most boundaries?Fernando: Shakib Al Hasan, whose runs and wickets in the tournament have confirmed him as the first all-time great cricketer from Bangladesh.Ugra: Shakib – numbers and presence and impact. A big man for a big occasion. How Bangladesh will miss him when he’s gone. Muthu: Shakib. Asking for what he wanted. Proving that he deserved it. And showing the entire world that he could get into a team on his batting alone.Krishnaswamy: Shakib. He has always been a top allrounder, but at this World Cup his batting reached new heights. Great batsmen know their strengths and weaknesses intimately, and at one point work out a method by which they can churn out fifties on autopilot. We see Virat Kohli bat like that all the time, and Shakib raised his game to that level.Gollapudi: Jofra Archer.Isam: Shakib, the third highest run getter, with 606 runs, at the tournament’s highest average, 86.57. He was the joint second-highest wicket-taker among spinners with 11 wickets. Nobody in the World Cup’s history has ever taken more than ten wickets and scored 400-plus runs. He delivered at a level never before seen by any allrounder in this tournament.Dobell: Nobody could argue with the choice of Shakib, for his all-round excellence, or Williamson for his grace and cool under pressure. But I’d have given it to Stokes: that’s what redemption looks like.Gardner: Ben Stokes. Colossal.Samiuddin: Jofra Archer. Quite simply because he transformed the England bowling attack.Miller: Shakib was stunning. With bat or ball in hand, he was in total control of his game at all times, and as a consequence no contest ever seemed entirely out of Bangladesh’s reach. Thanks to his guiding hand, they were by a distance the best of the non-semi-finalists, no matter what the World Cup table tells you. But Kane Williamson was a hugely worthy winner, for his class in every innings and his grace in (non-)defeat.Alex Carey: kid’s good off either foot•Getty Images

Who was the breakout star?

Gollapudi: Archer, but also Rishabh Pant.Gardner: You can’t get away from Jofra Archer. Literally – he will hunt you down, bounce you at 90mph and then bamboozle you with a knuckleball. The kid is fi-yah. Muthu: Alex Carey. Never seen a kid be so good off both front and back foot. Never seen a kid shrug off a blow to the helmet like that. Gonna see this kid for years to come.Ugra: Nicholas Pooran, whose heady chase with Fabian Allen in a dead rubber against Sri Lanka became the promise of tomorrow for West Indies cricket, besides their dynamo power batting and explosive bowling. Now if only the three could meet every time in every game.Krishnaswamy: Liton Das. He has been around for a few years, and it’s hard to call his tournament a breakthrough, since he only played one real innings of substance – 94 not out against West Indies – but what an innings it was, filled with the most sublime strokeplay. With the ability he has, he surely will blossom into a mainstay across formats and rewrite some of Bangladesh’s batting records.Miller: Jofra Archer has been everything we were promised, and more. Viciously quick but extraordinarily cunning as well. That knuckleball to Glenn Maxwell in the semi-final was pure witchcraft.Fernando: Jofra Archer and Lockie Ferguson were incredible to watch right through the tournament. Let’s hope they stay injury-free.Isam: Archer will become one of the brightest stars in world cricket. His languid action spewing high pace has batsmen jumping around already, and like Brett Lee, he is a fast bowler who smiles more than he snarls. A crowd favourite, and a legend in the making.Farrell: Jofra Archer has still only played a handful of ODIs. How crazy is that? Looking forward to seeing a lot more of Shaheen Afridi and Nicholas Pooran too.Kane get you out of my head: The finish feels unfair to New Zealand and throws a shadow over England’s hard-fought win•Getty Images

What was the biggest disappointment?

Muthu: Laws. Yeah, don’t make me talk about this. I’ll use bad words.Dobell: The finish. It feels untidy. It doesn’t feel fair to New Zealand, who were simply unlucky, or England, who deserve unstinting praise but may now not receive it because of the manner in which their victory was achieved. I’d have been happy to see the trophy shared. Might it not have set quite a good precedent? Might it not have shown that, however hard sides play, it’s not all about winning and losing?Samiuddin: Not that much, though I guess that rain had such an effect on some sides – good or bad – is probably one thing. The controversies around the final, to a degree, but, personally, the drama of such a great game, a great game as the final of the game’s showpiece event, overshadows those.Farrell: Not seeing as many teams as we did in the last World Cup. Also, the outrageous amount of plastic and needless waste at venues. We need to be better.Krishnaswamy: Ireland, Zimbabwe, Scotland and Netherlands were playing extremely competitive ODI cricket in the lead-up to the World Cup and during the tournament too. At least two of them should have been at the World Cup.Miller: The lack of free-to-air coverage. It’s old-hat, I know, and we’ve dealt with it in our very English manner for the past 15 years. But the incredulity of my colleagues from overseas brought it home to me, just how isolated and irrelevant English cricket has allowed itself to become in the past generation. The euphoria around the final confirmed that the latent fans are still out there somewhere.Isam: Forget free-to-air for a minute. The real culprit for a World Cup was the organisers’ lack of effort to make more people aware about the event in the host cities. A few posters with a trophy and a sponsor’s name at the bottom hardly suggested that a World Cup was happening in the neighbourhood.Ugra: West Indies’ tailspin in the event after a Sheldon Cottrell-like statement of arrival with beating Pakistan.Gardner: Afghanistan were much poorer than I thought they would be. And the wet weather in the second week was untimely.Let’s talk about six, baby: Kumar Dharmasena controversial decision in the final is going to be a conversation piece for a long time to come•Getty Images

What was the biggest facepalm moment?

Samiuddin: Easy – the appointment of Kumar Dharmasena for the final after his semi-final performance. And that blunder actually happened earlier in the year, when they awarded him Umpire of the Year, which meant that, as long as Sri Lanka weren’t in the final, Dharmasena would likely be standing, because if the ICC don’t pick their own best umpire for their showpiece game then it doesn’t put their award in a great light. So they did and… well.Isam: The overthrows off Stokes’ bat, which, firstly, should have made the ball dead (had the ICC been serious about such intricate details), and the resultant six runs which should have actually been five runs, had the umpires, already equipped with so much technology, observed things better.Gollapudi: Chris Gayle raising his bat while walking out, even as West Indies were being knocked out of the World Cup.Gardner: South Africa’s entire campaign, but in particular how many self-owns they managed in the must-win game against New Zealand at Edgbaston.Ugra: Shai Hope missing a stumping off Dhoni. And Boult, Boult!, stepping on the boundary rope in the final. When Boult loses his bearings, it is a sign that that the match is going to go England’s way. No matter how, the World Cup was England’s from that moment on.Farrell: When Gulbadin Naib brought himself on to bowl at the death against Pakistan. Muthu: Once bad boy Kohli turning goody-goody and walking when he wasn’t even out. They should make that dismissal into an emoji.Krishnaswamy: Shimron Hetmyer and Chris Gayle going for risky hits, ignoring the available singles in the must-win game against New Zealand, leading to a collapse. We’ll remember what Carlos Brathwaite did next, but the bigger takeaway for West Indies will be how their heavily T20-influenced approach failed them in two winnable games: this one and the chase against Australia.Miller: It’s not so much a facepalm as a jaw-drop. Of all the “uncontrollables” that turned the final England’s way, Trent Boult’s rope-tread was the clincher. After the poise he showed to end Brathwaite’s rampage at Old Trafford, it was an error that will haunt him for evermore.Dobell: It actually happened a bit before the start of the tournament. I was having a coffee with Moeen Ali. An Australian guy came over and said, “Ah, look, I’m an Australian but I just want to say I really admire you and the way you bat all day. How about a selfie?” I caught Moeen’s eye at this point. He looked bemused. “I bowl all day sometimes,” he said. “Batting… hmm, not so much.” Anyway, it became pretty apparent the Australian fella thought Moeen was Hashim Amla. He probably has that selfie of him and “Hashim” on Facebook now.

Stats highlights from the first day’s play in Pallekele, where the hosts were bowled out for 117 in just 34.2

Bharath Seervi26-Jul-201634.2 Number of overs that Sri Lanka’s first innings lasted, which is their shortest after electing to bat. Before this, they had lasted 38.4 overs, bowled for 95 against South Africa in Cape Town in 2000-01.1 Number of lower totals for Sri Lanka against Australia at home, than the first-innings 117. They were bowled out for 105 in Galle in 2011. Tuesday’s total is the lowest total by any team in Pallekele. Sri Lanka themselves had previously made 174 against Australia in 2011.22.30 Test average of Sri Lanka’s top three batsmen at home since July 2015, which is the lowest among all teams. In 36 innings, their top-three has managed only two centuries and one half-century.10.50 Sri Lanka’s average opening partnership in home Tests since July 2015 – again, the worst among all teams. In 12 innings, only once have their openers put on more than 50.2003 The last time Sri Lanka fielded two or more debutants in the same Test. Sri Lanka handed out debut caps to Dhananjaya de Silva and Lakshan Sandakan on Tuesday. Against New Zealand in Colombo (PSS) in 2003, Kaushal Lokuarachchi and Prabath Nissanka made their Test debuts. De Silva’s first scoring shot was a six, which makes him the first Sri Lanka player to start off his Test career with a six.

1 This is the first Test in Sri Lanka in which both teams’ openers were dismissed for single-digit scores in the first innings. Overall, there have been 19 such Tests, the last of which was at Wanderers in 2006-07 between India and South Africa.2006 The last time Sri Lanka’s top five were all dismissed for 15 or fewer runs in a Test innings at home, against Pakistan in Colombo (PSS). This is the sixth such instance for Sri Lanka in home Tests.19.16 Angelo Mathews’ average in his last six Test innings against Australia, with a highest of 35. In his first six innings against them, he averaged 87.25 – he remained unbeaten twice – with a century and three half-centuries.2 Consecutive ducks for David Warner in Tests against Sri Lanka. Warner was dismissed for a duck in the first innings of this Test, as well as in the second innings of the SCG Test in 2012-13. Incidentally, in the other four innings against them, he has made half-centuries. Sri Lanka and India are the only teams against whom Warner has two ducks.

Our correspondent goes on a culinary bender through Kolkata, Bangalore and Delhi, no thanks to the taxi and rickshaw drivers of the land

Andrew Fidel Fernando02-Apr-2016March 13
When I come in from the airport on a Sunday, Kolkata residents are spending the late afternoon on the streets. As the taxi goes through a residential neighbourhood, three children are in heated argument over their cricket match. We turn the corner and a group of old men are sitting on a mat on the pavement, in heated argument over their card game. There is an infectious buzz about the city. The old Raj-era buildings are in various states of disrepair, but that just serves to bring them to life.March 14
Almost anyone who has lived in or hails from Kolkata still refers to it as Calcutta. It is a city that industrialised rapidly as the capital of the British Raj during the second half of the 19th century, so perhaps it is understandable if it wishes to hold on to a fragment of what some perceive to be glory days.The reluctance to use post-colonial names, however, extends to street names as well, which makes Kolkata a slightly confusing place for visitors. The map on my phone tells me my hotel is on Shakespeare Sarani, for example, but cab drivers furrow brows and shake heads until I say “Theatre Road”, which is what the British had called it. I can’t say I blame the cab drivers. Not only does it seem odd to take the name of a famous Brit in a name-changing exercise that purports to reassert a local identity, but “Theatre Road” is also so much easier to say.And I can’t say I am surprised by the continued use of old names either. In fact, as a resident of Colombo, I find the new names underwhelming for their relative usability. At home, we have a former Albert Road, which is now officially known as Sri Dharmakeerthiyarama Road. And a Church Road that is more recently Sir Mohamed Macan Markar Mawatha.Where the streets have new names: it’s only tourists who use official road names, and to no avail•Andrew Fidel Fernando/ESPNcricinfo LtdNice try, Kolkata, but when it comes giving streets names that no one will ever use, Colombo will not, and cannot, ever be beaten.March 15
Though it’s thought the Sinhala people have their origins in East India, the two cultures have diverged substantially when it comes to food. A lot of southern Sri Lankan cuisine is loosely defined by roaring flavours and heat. From the admittedly little I’ve had of it, the strength of Bengali cuisine seems to be subtlety and relative simplicity.The fried river fish at Suruchi – a low-key Bengali restaurant run by a women’s group – bears flavours of mustard and turmeric. The Kolkata biryani at Zeeshan is also far milder than the better-known Hyderabadi equivalent, and features flavour-soaked potatoes.March 16
Many of the cabs in Kolkata are beautiful old Ambassador cars, painted yellow with a navy blue stripe running horizontally just below the window. Almost all these cabs also have “No Refusal” printed on the side, which naturally leads me to believe that the drivers would not dream of refusing me a ride.I approach one and ask if he can take me to Eden Gardens for the Pakistan v Bangladesh match. He shakes his head and drives on. I approach another with what I feel is a very generous fare, but am again rebuffed. This happens at least twice more. I wonder if they forgot crucial punctuation on the “No Refusal” signs. They should instead have read: “No! Refusal!” because in peak hours, that seems to be what potential customers can expect.Raavana: demon to one, king to another•Andrew Fidel Fernando/ESPNcricinfo LtdMarch 17

A sublime mutton curry at a dimly lit Kolkata institution called Peter Cat, and in the afternoon, my colleagues and I head to the India Coffee House, off College Street. The place can’t have changed much in the last half-century at least. A portrait of Rabindranath Tagore looks over patrons, as rows of ceiling fans whirr overhead. There is even a mezzanine floor above, and the yellow walls are a trove of local art. One line drawing in the corner, which seems to have been done by a Kolkata artist, features a man with a Maori facial tattoo.March 18
The first sign I see as I walk into Bangalore airport reads: “Pollution ” (Stop the Raavana of pollution, change the air). This is a public service announcement from the Indian government, which vilifies Raavana – a mythical king from the drop-shaped island south of the Palk Strait.Way to make a Sri Lankan feel welcome, Bangalore.March 20
Where Kolkata cab drivers gave fairly straightforward refusals, some Bangalore auto-wallahs are wonderfully theatrical about it. I stop a three-wheeler going roughly in the right direction and ask if he would mind taking me to the stadium. He shoots me a look of emphatic disdain, which asks who the hell I think I am and how dare I ask him to go to the Chinnaswamy, crinkles his nose, and without a word drives on.March 22
Nine days into the tour, halfway through a heavenly meal at a restaurant called Junior Kuppanna’s, I get just a tiny bit homesick. The place serves South Indian food, on banana leaves – just like they do in joints all over Colombo or Anuradhapura or Jaffna. And the flavours – of ground coriander, cumin and curry leaves – are close to those encountered in the north of Sri Lanka, just without Sri Lankan touches like cinnamon or and leaves.Humayun’s Tomb: the inspiration for the Taj•Andrew Fidel Fernando/ESPNcricinfo LtdMarch 23
I had been thumped at squash by former colleague Devashish Fuloria during last year’s World Cup, but I fancied that in the intervening time I had improved enough to match him. This was delusion. My match went about as well as Sri Lanka’s World T20 campaign, except that I couldn’t blame my showing on a bad knee or board politicking. Playing with a broken racquet, Devashish wins six sets to three in an inferno of a squash court. Then perhaps out of sympathy, he books and pays for my Uber back to the guest house.March 24
The man running the small hotel next to our Delhi Airbnb apartment has a good bouncer. I find this out, as I have nothing to do but join the game of galli cricket taking place in the street.My colleague Andrew Miller has gone to a Holi party some way out of town, and without him vouching for me, the security guard will not let me through the gate. I plead with him to at least let me put my luggage in the property. I try to explain that I had had to catch an early flight and hadn’t slept. He looks me up and down with narrowed eyes, then delivers a blunt “no” and shakes his head.Eventually Andrew returns, doused in red and purple dye from head to toe. It is maybe the second time I have met him, and I don’t tell him at the time because it would have been weird, but I’ve rarely been gladder to see another human being.March 25
There is a Delhi bar called Odeon Social that is definitely worth the visit if you like good beer, decent food, and hearing loss. A few of us have come here to watch the West Indies v South Africa match, and though the music is already quite loud to begin with, it becomes progressively more offensive as the match goes on. We are not far apart from each other, but by the end of the evening, smoke signals would have been more efficient than any verbal communication. I am quite certain several frequencies have been lost to my hearing forever.We eventually leave and cross the road to a rooftop bar that is much more relaxed, and affords a nice view down into the street. If only it had shown the game.A view of Delhi from the Jama Masjid•Andrew Fidel Fernando/ESPNcricinfo LtdMarch 26

My wife is visiting for the long weekend, so we decide to see a few of the sights. First stop is Humayun’s Tomb – one of the first Mughal garden tombs on the subcontinent, and a precursor to the Taj Mahal. The ponds in the causeway leading into the main building are drained when we visited, but the tomb itself is arresting nonetheless, the marble dome shimmering when sunlight strikes it. There are as many as 100 tombs in the same complex, leading to it being called the “dormitory of the Mughals”, though no one seemed to be bunking.In the afternoon, we visit the Jama Masjid mosque. The highlight of this trip is the climb up the southwest tower, below which the captivating old Delhi neighbourhood stretches out. We can see as far as the bright floodlights of the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium, which is hosting the Australia v Ireland Women’s match.March 27
We are staying very near Connaught Place, a zone of three concentric circles that is home to one of the most important business districts in India. At the centre of Connaught Place is an Indian flag about twice as big as any single piece of fabric I have ever seen. It would take a proper hurricane to fully unfurl it.Delhi auto drivers commonly refer to the area as CP, but when they venture the full name, seem to pronounce it “Cannought Place”. This is both endearing and profound, because: “Can you take me to CP please?” In this traffic, “No, I cannought.”March 28
Back to Old Delhi and through the bustling, centuries-old warren of a bazaar, where everything from sarees to meat to electronics to holidays are sold on lanes each as wide as a tree trunk, and shops the size of thimbles. One of the many culinary highlights of the trip is the chicken tikka at Karim’s, which is just through an alleyway near the Jama Masjid. The man behind the counter tells me Karim’s has been in the same family for five generations. There must be a hundred places of business in stone-throwing distance that could make similar claims.March 31
Through the tournament some Sri Lanka fans have theorised the ICC is out to get their team since so many bad decisions have gone against them. In Bangladesh, a number of people had protested the “unfair suspensions” of two key bowlers. A few New Zealand fans have groused their side had to play at five separate venues, in comparison to England, who only played at two. There have been familiar Twitter whinges from Australia about Asian bowlers with dodgy actions.Back in a Kolkata bar for the second semi-final, R Ashwin is shown to have overstepped upon review, and a man at the table next to me bellows: “Why are they only checking no-balls for India? They just don’t want India to win the cup!” It is thought that the Big Three rules cricket. Victimhood must be a close second, though.

India’s latest No. 4 has learnt to temper his aggression and play according to the match situation

Deivarayan Muthu in Cuttack21-Dec-20191:23

Versatile Shreyas Iyer ‘open to batting at any position’

Since the 2015 World Cup, India have tried out as many as 14 players at No. 4 in ODI cricket: Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Ajinkya Rahane, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, Manoj Tiwary, Virat Kohli and Kedar Jadhav have all had a crack at this slot over the past four years, with no batsman really nailing it down in this period.The Indian team management turned to Iyer following the 2019 World Cup, and although he has had just two hits at that position, the 25-year-old has shown the gears and temperament to become a long-term middle-order option, with Iyer and Rishabh Pant, who has got the chance to bat at No. 4 seven times since March 2015, tending to swap positions in order to maintain a left-right combination.”At the start, when I started playing first-class cricket, I was a flamboyant player and I never used to take responsibility,” Iyer recalled on the eve of the ODI series decider against West Indies in Cuttack. “I just used to back my instincts and go with the flow. Lately, I’ve realised that once you play at the highest level you’ve got to take that maturity to another stage.”You’ve got to play according to the team demands, and that’s what I did the other day [in Chennai]. The team didn’t demand me to score big shots at that time and we just needed a big partnership and we just needed the scoreboard to keep going. And that’s what I did. I feel that whatever the situation demands, you’ve got to play accordingly and I’m really happy with what I did in the first game.”Iyer’s temperament came to the fore on a sluggish Chepauk track in the ODI series opener after India had lost Rahul and Virat Kohli cheaply. He collected runs in risk-free fashion in a 114-run partnership with Pant and lifted India to 287 for 8. When Iyer entered at the end of the seventh over, left-arm seamer Sheldon Cottrell was in the middle of an incisive spell, but Iyer saw him off and then worked his way through against the rest of the West Indies attack.Iyer’s middle-order gears were on bright display when the series was on the line in Visakhapatnam. After Rahul and Rohit Sharma had reeled off centuries, Iyer extended India’s dominance with a 32-ball 53. He was on a run-a-ball 20 at one point during the second ODI, but then lined up Roston Chase’s offspin for five successive boundaries in a 31-run over – the most India have ever scored in an over in an ODI – to swell the total to 387 for 5.Shreyas Iyer is getting into his stride as India’s No. 4•BCCIThe Iyer that turned up in Visakhapatnam was the one that had torched Indian domestic cricket with his thrilling stroke play. In the 2015-16 Ranji Trophy final, Iyer made a counter-attacking century on a green top against Saurashtra in Pune. He struck 117 off 142 balls at a strike rate of 82.39 to set up Mumbai’s push for their 41st Ranji title.Iyer, though, said that he had since tempered his natural aggression to meet the demands of international cricket. He echoed Pant’s thoughts, saying that he had learned to play according to the situation in international cricket.Some of that responsibility and maturity has come from having led a young and vibrant Delhi Capitals line-up to the playoffs in IPL 2019 earlier this year. Iyer had been thrown into the deep end midway through IPL 2018, after Gautam Gambhir had stepped down as the franchise’s captain.In his very first innings as captain, Iyer scored a match-winning 40-ball 93 not out against Kolkata Knight Riders at Feroz Shah Kotla. Then, in Delhi’s run to the knockouts the next year, Iyer hit 463 runs in 16 innings at an average of 30.86 and strike rate of nearly 120. Most of those runs came on the tough pitches in Delhi and it had impressed coach Ricky Ponting.”Ricky Ponting is a very positive guy,” Iyer said. “[He] backs every player and that’s the best quality about him and he also treats everybody equally. So, he’s got an amazing nature as a coach. His man-management skill is outstanding.”Having rattled off four successive fifty-plus scores in his last four innings – two of those from No. 5 in the Caribbean and the other two at No. 4 in the ongoing series in India – Iyer believed that he could also float in the middle order.”The previous ODIs that I played, I was batting at No.5, so it’s not like I’ve been stable at No.4,” he said. “But right now in the last two games, I’ve been batting at No.4. So, I’m flexible at batting at any number. It’s just that you’ve got to play according to the situation and what the team demands and that’s what I did. And I know I can play in both flows. I can even play strokes and I can even nudge the ball and take singles. I know my game really well now and I can play accordingly.”Iyer also drew confidence from India’s thumping victory in a must-win game for them in the second ODI and hoped for more of the same in the decider on Sunday.”The last game was also do or die. If we lost that, we’d lost the series,” he said. “So, we will play this game with a similar approach. When the stakes are high, all the players lift their socks. One of the main players [should] perform and take the team to a platform from where we can win. Someone will take responsibility and create a magical moment tomorrow.”

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2016Blackwood fell to Rahat Ali’s reverse swing in the seventh over of the day•Getty ImagesDevendra Bishoo took 20 balls to get off the mark, and made 20 off 66 balls before falling to Sohail Khan•Getty ImagesRoston Chase and Shai Hope avoided further damage, and West Indies scored just 45 runs in 27 overs in the first session•Getty ImagesChase fell to Yasir Shah after the break, chasing a wide one and edging it to second slip•AFPYasir cleaned up Hope in his next over with one that kept low; West Indies were reduced to 178 for 8•AFPJason Holder farmed the strike and scored 31 quick runs•AFPBut Yasir struck again to dismiss last man Shannon Gabriel. He finished with 4 for 86 as West Indies were bowled out for 224, conceding a lead of 228•Getty ImagesSami Aslam scored a half-century and put on 93 for the opening wicket with Azhar Ali as Pakistan tightened their grip•Getty ImagesShannon Gabriel ended the association, but Azhar raised a fifty too and took Pakistan to 114 for 1 at stumps for a lead of 342•Getty Images

He couldn’t do too much worse than the current top six, and his bowling would take some of the load off an overworked pace attack. So why isn’t he playing?

Danyal Rasool in Cape Town04-Jan-2019″Horses for courses” is one of the pithier selectorial phrases in cricket. It has justified, or tried to justify, calls based on players’ particular talents, and in an increasingly data-driven sport, helped inform selection calls based on format, context and, of course, location. It is why Steve O’Keefe played for Australia in Pune in 2017, and the reason Will Somerville and Ajaz Patel made their New Zealand debuts against Pakistan in the last two months, keeping Tim Southee and Neil Wagner out of the side. Essentially, it’s about picking players likeliest to succeed in the conditions games will be played in.In Faheem Ashraf, Pakistan have the type of seam-bowling allrounder Faf du Plessis waxed lyrical over in Centurion, saying a seam bowler who batted at seven was a combination to be found in “a perfectly balanced Test team”.It was an option Pakistan used with relative success in Ireland and England, with Faheem scoring 83 on debut in Malahide and a 38-ball 37 at Lord’s to pile greater pressure on England. At Headingley, where Sarfraz Ahmed’s side found themselves on the wrong end of a hiding, he was their best bowler, taking 3 for 60 even as Pakistan suffered an innings defeat.ALSO READ – Can Shadab Khan and Faheem Ashraf give Pakistan the flexibility they need?These performances led to thoughts of Faheem featuring even in the UAE where, even if his brand of seam bowling would find limited purchase, his canny ability with the bat would go further than it had in the British Isles. When that didn’t materialise, it was horses for courses that justified it, with Mickey Arthur eager to play two spinners and Sarfraz Ahmed at seven. That squeezed Faheem out, and if it felt a tad harsh on a player who seemed to improve with each passing match, it was at least fathomable.South Africa appeared to be the perfect place to unleash the talents of a player who has looked, more seriously than any other, capable of filling the role last played consistently in Pakistan’s line-up by Abdul Razzaq. If his bowling had looked a threat under the cloud cover in England and Ireland, it was likely to be a handful on the bouncy pitches in Centurion and Cape Town. Preciously, it was a potent fifth-bowling option against batsmen of South Africa’s quality, likely to come in handy as one partnership or other wore the stock quartet down.If Pakistan won’t play him here, as has been the case for the first two Tests, what does it say about Faheem’s Test-match prospects? The horses-for-courses equivalent of benching Faheem Ashraf here is Frankel taking a year off at Ascot.Even Arthur effectively acknowledged after the first Test that playing without Faheem had been a mistake, though in that particular instance Yasir Shah would have been the player to miss out. Today, somewhat bizarrely, he refused to characterise Faheem as a seam-bowling allrounder, instead calling him “a bowler who bats a little bit at the moment. We’re hoping to get him into that allrounder role.””He’s going to get a game, there’s absolutely no doubt about it,” Arthur said. “When we sit down and select, we do so with the balance of the team in mind. After Centurion, we felt we needed six batsmen, we looked at the wicket, we thought there was enough work there for three seamers. We knew if we could take the game deep, the spinner would come into it.”That is a colossal “if” which didn’t work in Centurion, and hasn’t worked in Cape Town either.Faheem Ashraf reaches for the ball•Getty ImagesIt isn’t like the need for five bowlers hasn’t arisen either. Today, as Faf du Plessis and Temba Bavuma batted Pakistan out of the game, Pakistan turned to the gentle medium-pace of Shan Masood and the offspin of Asad Shafiq while the bowlers enjoyed a breather. And if you’ve got 177 on the board, that becomes a problem. The eight overs Masood and Shafiq bowled today went for 31 runs, casting Pakistan further back into the wilderness in a game they must not lose if they are to avoid yet another series defeat in South Africa.Should they decide to play Faheem in place of Fakhar Zaman or Imam-ul-Haq, they have the added advantage of a proven opener at this level. Azhar Ali may now occupy a spot in the middle order, but in 35 innings as opener he averages 47.25, which is better than his career average of 44.12. That way, Shan Masood keeps his place at number three, where he’s regularly attributed his success to the openers taking the shine off the ball, and no batsman is shunted into a position too high for them.The strongest argument against Faheem’s inclusion has been Pakistan’s nervousness about shortening an already fragile batting order, but who could bet on him scoring significantly fewer runs across the series than, say, Fakhar?Since Razzaq’s retirement, Pakistan, along with India, have turned to the fifth and sixth bowling option for under 15% of their overs, less than any other Test side. Shorn of a genuine fifth bowler, Pakistan have opted instead to have their specialists plugging away into fatigue and injury, alleviated by the occasional gentle legspin of Azhar Ali at best.It is perhaps why Junaid Khan’s knees will never be the same again, and why Mohamad Amir was so overloaded he sat out an entire home summer this year. Even today, Amir’s pace was down; according to , he bowled more deliveries in the 120-132 kph range – 61% – than in any other innings in his Test career. Arthur himself contrasted the relative pace of the two attacks.”Our bowlers struggled a little bit with the comeback spells in terms of pace,” he said. “The difference is the South African pacers bowled at 145 kph while our bowlers only managed 135 kph, and at this level those 10 kilometres are very significant.”The presence of an allrounder could alleviate these concerns, yet Pakistan have routinely spurned that option. This was simply the most baffling example of it.”I’ve sat and thought about five bowlers a hell of a lot, and there’s two ways of doing it,” Arthur said. “You can go out with five bowlers or four, and we went with four. Rightly or wrongly, it’ll play out in the end.”Whether it plays out rightly or wrongly isn’t much of a question at this point, but the wider trend of Pakistan’s reticence over using a fifth bowling option makes it hard to take Arthur’s comments about considering the strategy in detail at face value. For whatever reason, the Pakistan coach has been reluctant to opt for a five-bowler strategy anywhere in the world. The Ireland and England Tests last year were very much the exception to the rule. In those Tests, the batting ability of Faheem – he averages 30.75 from four innings with a half-century – and Shadab Khan allowed Pakistan to pad up a historically fragile tail.For two Tests in a row now, Pakistan have botched up their team balance and personnel. It’s not just a case of getting marginal calls wrong; these are bread-and-butter decisions they have floundered over. Tours to South Africa are harder for Pakistan than visits anywhere else, and a perfectly selected team in good form would still likely end up second-best. South Africa certainly do not need added assistance from their guests in the form of confounding selections, and they have been offered that advantage for two matches in a row.

The Test readiness of England’s rookies is perhaps secondary to the sense of purpose that their inclusions project

Andrew Miller at Lord's08-Aug-20181:47

Pope gets the nod for England, but who’ll miss out?

The kids are alright, you know. For the fourth time in 2018 alone, and for the fifth time since the selection of Haseeb Hameed on the last tour of India in November 2016, England have plumped for youth over experience, excitement over stability, the bold approach over the same old narrative with interchangeably seasoned campaigners.At the age of 20 years and 219 days, Surrey’s Ollie Pope will bat at No.4 for England in the Lord’s Test – a position that effectively leaves him man-marking one of the game’s all-time great batsmen in India’s captain, Virat Kohli, the scorer of 200 formidable runs in last week’s Edgbaston Test.With just 15 first-class matches under his belt, Pope slots into England’s Test history as their third-youngest specialist batsman behind Denis Compton (19 years and 83 days) and Hameed (19 years and 269 days), and does so in the wake of his Surrey team-mate and fellow 20-year old, Sam Curran, being named as Man of the Match for a precocious allround display in the first Test.Throw into the mix the bloodings of Mason Crane (20 years and 320 days) at Sydney in January, and Dom Bess (20 years and 306 days) for the Pakistan Tests in May and June, and is clear that the only thing being fast-tracked more quickly than young English talent is a sense of revolution from the new national selector, Ed Smith, who whiled away his time during England’s nets session by patrolling the Nursery Ground outfield with phone glued to ear and with shades and rolled-up shirtsleeves transmitting a stockbroker’s air of urgency.What could possibly go wrong? Well, everything and nothing, in the opinion of England’s captain, Joe Root (who was himself a grizzled 22-year-old when he made his own Test bow at Nagpur in 2012-13). Before this sudden baby boom, England had chosen just 19 under-21s in their first 140 years of Test history – most recently Steven Finn as a last-minute replacement on the tour of Bangladesh in 2010. But with the team’s current Test record perhaps as erratic as it has been in a generation, there is arguably a perverse prudence to such an abrupt change of strategy.”If you’re old enough, you’re good enough,” Root said. “A lot of the selections of late have been quite bold, we’re not shy of being a little bit brave and doing things slightly differently. It’s worked out for us so far.””I think when you give exciting young talents responsibility, they tend to surprise you,” he added. “We’ve seen that so far. The challenge for them moving forward is to try and sustain that and not put too much pressure on themselves and too much expectation on them to deliver on a really consistent basis.”Ollie Pope and Sam Curran warm up ahead of training•Getty ImagesThe issue of youth and renewal is one that cuts to the core of everything in English cricket at present. The question of whether the likes of Pope and Curran are truly ready for the step-up in class is perhaps secondary to the sense of purpose that their inclusions project.Much as was the case with Adil Rashid’s recall at Edgbaston (and maybe, if you want to extrapolate even further, the ongoing mayhem that is The Hundred), the noses that get put out of joint by the ECB’s sudden predilection for thinking outside the box are less important than those outside the game’s usual confines who get wind of this disruption to the status quo, and poke their noses in for a first sniff of the action.Certainly Root was at pains to make it clear that the door is not closed to county performers who earn their recognition through the more traditional formula of runs and wickets over time. But, tellingly, he also seemed less interested in immediate dividends, even with a series as important as a five-Test rubber against India on the line. The long game is what really matters as England attempt to reboot their red-ball fortunes.”I think we’ve got to be really realistic that these guys are exciting young players and they will do some very good stuff,” said Root. “It might not all happen straight away and we have to be a little bit patient with that.” Join us for the ride, in other words, and invest in these guy’s stories. Whatever transpires, it is unlikely to be dull.Even India’s captain seemed rather engaged by Pope’s tale. “We want to try and knock him over as early as possible, but on a larger front, I am happy for him,” Kohli said. “As a cricketer I understand how important it is. I will tell him to enjoy the occasion, and not get too many runs!”The prospect of Pope having his credentials scrutinised by the best batsman in the world may be daunting, but it is not as if England’s rookies are being thrown into the fray without a serious support network behind them. In Alastair Cook, James Anderson and Stuart Broad – not to mention Root himself, whose 6000 Test runs are still only the start of what he could achieve – this team’s senior pros are among the most senior ever to have played the game.”We’ve got some very good experienced players around them so they can learn and mould their games at the highest level,” said Root. “For young guys coming in, that’s exciting for this team, and for people around it, seeing a young man in Sam performing how he did last week with a real bright future, it’s exciting for English cricket. That should fill a lot of other lads around the country with a huge amount of confidence.”And if the beauty of Test cricket lies in its narrative, then what could be more beautiful than these kids-turned-veterans, looking back in 15 years’ time on the priceless nuggets of wisdom that they received first-hand in their earliest outings? It may be wildly out of kilter with everything that English cricket has preached about Test cricket in the course of its first 990-odd engagements. But since the turn of the year, there’s been a turning of the page. And are you not entertained already?

Plus: most successive Tests since debut, and most 150-plus scores

Steven Lynch17-Nov-2015David Warner and Joe Burns had two partnerships of more than 150 at Brisbane. Has this ever happened before? asked Keith Lucas from England

David Warner and Joe Burns shared stands of 161 and 237 for Australia against New Zealand in Brisbane last week. It turns out that this is the first instance of two 150-plus stands by the openers in the same Test, and only the second time overall: for England against South Africa in Johannesburg in 1938-39, Paul Gibb (making his Test debut) and Eddie Paynter shared stands of 184 and 168 for the second wicket. Warner has now shared four successive century opening stands, another record – two in England with Chris Rogers, and these two with Burns at the Gabba. David Warner scored centuries in both innings against New Zealand in the recent Test. I think he has done it before as well. Who holds the record for doing it most often? asked Aakinchan Sharma from Finland

David Warner’s double against New Zealand in Brisbane – 163 in the first innings and 116 in the second – was actually the third time he had scored two centuries in the same Test. He also did against South Africa in Cape Town in 2013-14 (135 and 145) and India in Adelaide in 2014-15 (145 and 102). That gives him a share of the overall Test record: the only others to do it three times are Sunil Gavaskar (against West Indies in Port-of-Spain in 1970-71 and in Calcutta in 1978-79, and against Pakistan in Karachi earlier in 1978-79) and Ricky Ponting (all in 2005-06, against West Indies in Brisbane and against South Africa in Sydney and in Durban). Ten other batsmen have managed it twice. Warner’s Brisbane brace was the 80th time the feat had been achieved in Tests.Ishant Sharma took his 200th Test wicket a couple of months ago, in his 65th match. Was he the slowest to reach 200? asked Ray from India

Ishant Sharma did indeed take his 200th wicket (Angelo Mathews) in his 65th Test earlier this year, against Sri Lanka at the SSC in Colombo. Three players – all allrounders – took longer to reach 200 in terms of matches. Andrew Flintoff got there in his 69th match, and Garry Sobers in 80, while Jacques Kallis didn’t take his 200th wicket until his 102nd Test match. Ishant has the worst bowling average (36.51) of anyone at the end of the match in which they took their 200th wicket – next come the New Zealand pair of Daniel Vettori (34.74) and Chris Martin (34.69). Sobers took longest to reach 200 in terms of time – over 17 years from his debut in 1953-54. Next come Chris Cairns (around 13½ years) and Bhagwath Chandrasekhar (almost 13).There were only 694 runs scored in the recent Test at Mohali. Was this a record for a match in which all 40 wickets went down? asked Nair Ottappalam from India

India (201 and 200) beat South Africa (184 and 109) in the first Test in Mohali, a match aggregate of 694 runs. Rather surprisingly perhaps, there have been 24 Tests in which all 40 wickets fell for fewer runs, although most of these were long ago – only four were in the current century (most recently 693 runs in the match between West Indies and India in Kingston in June 2006). The lowest of all came way back in 1888, when Australia (116 and 60) beat England (53 and 62) on a rain-affected pitch at Lord’s in a match that produced a grand total of just 291 runs. Said Wisden: “There had been so much rain within a few hours of the start that it was impossible the ground should be in anything like condition for good cricket.” For the full list, click here.Jacques Kallis took his 200th Test in his 102nd match•AFPAB de Villiers played 98 successive Tests after his debut, but missed one recently. Who holds the record now? asked Kerrie Pillinger from South Africa

AB de Villiers, who made his Test debut against England in Port Elizabeth in 2004-05, had indeed played 98 successive Tests before he was rested from South Africa’s recent tour of Bangladesh. The previous record was 96, by Adam Gilchrist from his debut in 1999-2000, which remains the best for an entire career. But Gilchrist’s record – and that of de Villiers – is under serious threat: the Brisbane Test was Brendon McCullum’s 95th Test for New Zealand successively since his debut against South Africa in Hamilton in March 2004. For the full list of players with the most consecutive Tests (not just from debut), click here. Who holds the record for the most scores of 150 and above in Tests and ODIs? asked Davo Kissoondari from the West Indies

Sachin Tendulkar leads the way in Tests, which 20 separate innings of 150 or above during his 200 Test appearances. Brian Lara and Kumar Sangakkara made 19, and Don Bradman comes next with 18, from just 52 Tests. Both Bradman and Lara amassed 4066 runs in these innings (Sangakkara comes next, with 3997). Tendulkar also leads the way in one-day internationals, with five 150s; Chris Gayle and Sanath Jayasuriya made four. Aaron Finch, with 156 for Australia against England in Southampton in 2013, is the only man so far to reach 150 in T20Is.Send in your questions using our feedback form.

In other news, Faisalabad end their season with just one point, Salman Butt’s hopes of an international recall diminish, and Fawad Alam’s patchy form continues

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Nov-20171:22

Highlights – Umar Akmal’s blistering century for United Bank

Group stage concludesIn April this year, Misbah-ul-Haq featured in grade 2 cricket for his native Faisalabad side and helped them regain first-class status. A nine-wicket victory against Multan promoted Faisalabad to grade one, allowing them to return to the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan’s premier
first-class tournament. They had been out of it since being relegated at the end of the 2014-15 season.Their time in the top tier, however, has been disastrous, with the side losing six out of seven games, the final game being abandoned due to fog that has gripped much of the country.And so Faisalabad, now led by the offspinner Saeed Ajmal, finished rooted to the bottom of Pool A, managing just one point. SNGPL remained unbeaten, winning six matches, while SSGC, Lahore Blues and WAPDA qualified for the super eight round.From Pool B, UBL, HBL, KRL and Lahore Whites went through to the next stage with FATA ending up bottom, losing five games and winning one. Pakistan Television, a department side that qualified for this year’s tournament, also lost five out of six games, finishing just ahead of FATA. The next round will kick off next month and the final will be played on December 16.Feast or famine for Umar AkmalUmar Akmal’s troubles of late have garnered significant media attention, the 27-year old losing his central contract and being ordered to return to domestic cricket and prove himself all over again. His Quaid-e-Azam Trophy season with United Bank (UBL) didn’t begin happily either, with scores of 47, 6, 11 and 12 in his first four innings.So when he was dismissed by Habib Bank bowler and fellow former international Umar Gul for a first-ball duck, it appeared he was
continuing his downward spiral of the last few months. However, he stormed back in the second innings to play one of the innings of the season so far, smashing 116 off 144 balls in a reminder of the quality he can offer to any line-up he adorns. It helped his side amass 309 in the second innings and defeat Habib Bank by 142 runs. It may prove nothing, however; people have waxed lyrical about his talent for ages anyway. But if he can add consistency and discipline to the mix, he could plot a route back to the international team for the fresh start he clearly believes he deserves.Salman Butt strugglesSalman Butt had pinned his hopes of returning to the international side on this year’s first-class performances, but that call-up now seems a distant prospect. After a couple of stellar seasons, runs have dried up for the former Pakistan captain. He has only managed 264 at 20.30 this season – a performance that fell far short of the standards he would have set himself.During the season, he came under the spotlight after he raised a question about sportsmanship following a close finish in which his side lost by four runs due to No. 11 batsman Mohammad Irfan being mankaded. It invited, given his past background, considerable derision. His national selection almost became a reality earlier this year before Pakistan’s tour of the West Indies, but plans had to be shelved in the wake of the PSL spot-fixing saga.Fawad watchAfter a half-century last week, Fawad Alam stuttered again with the bat in what has been an inconsistent season for the SSGC captain. The slow pace of the game – only 15 wickets fell over the four days – meant he only got to bat once. He couldn’t capitalise on the opportunity, and was out for 6. However, having qualified as the second-placed side from Pool A, Fawad should get the opportunity to showcase his class in the knockouts, and thereby continue to plug away at the ever-receding prospect of an international recall.