Hayden has big plans for Australia
Cricinfo staff
May 2, 2007
Matthew Hayden was the World Cup's leading batsman © AFP
Matthew Hayden landed back in Australia on Tuesday and immediately set his sights on building the next stage of the team's success. While four high-profile players have walked away over the past five months, Hayden has no plans to join them, especially after finishing as the World Cup's leading run-scorer.
"This side wants to stay together for a little bit longer," he said in the Courier-Mail. "We've got a job to do within cricket just to try and set it up for the next stage of Australian cricket. I don't think you'll see too many retirements over the next 12 months anyway." Glenn McGrath stepped down after winning his third consecutive World Cup trophy while Shane Warne, Justin Langer and Damien Martyn departed during the Ashes.
Hayden travelled back from the West Indies ahead of the team, which is due to land on Thursday, to be with his wife Kellie ahead of the birth of their third child. "This week she's due and she's hung on," he said. "To get a chance to see my family after winning a World Cup is pretty exciting. At the moment I can't even think of anything else other than my family."
The Australian squad will have a 45-minute reception at Sydney's Martin Place on Thursday at midday, which will include a special tribute for the retiring Glenn McGrath.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Hayden has big plans for Australia
Posted by Mr.Green at 9:19 AM 3 comments
Monday, April 30, 2007
How Gilchrist Dstroys Sri Lanka
Australia v Sri Lanka, World Cup final, Barbados
How Gilchrist destroyed Sri Lanka
S Rajesh and HR Gopalakrishna
April 28, 2007
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In 30 previous World Cup innings, Adam Gilchrist had never reached the three-figure mark - his highest had been 99, against the Sri Lankans in 2003. It seemed the run-out on that occasion would deny him the landmark forever, but in what will almost certainly be his final World Cup innings, Gilchrist conjured up his best display. By the time he was done, he had made the fifth century - and the highest score - in a World Cup final, and had put Australia firmly on the road to a hat-trick of World Cup triumphs.
There was plenty of discussion over Ricky Ponting's decision to bat first after winning the toss in conditions which were likely to favour the fast bowlers, but Gilchrist made all that talk redundant with an astonishing display of attacking batsmanship. On a true pitch, Gilchrist needed precisely six balls to gauge the pace and bounce, before hitting Vaas for two fours and a six in a six-ball period which set the trend. In his first 24 deliveries he scored at a run a ball, before really turning it on. Once he got into his stride, none of the Sri Lankan bowlers had much clue about how to stop him.
Runs | Dot balls | 4s/ 6s | |
---|---|---|---|
First 24 balls | 24 | 13 | 2/ 1 |
Next 80 balls | 125 | 30 | 11/ 6 |
Bowler | Balls | Runs | 4s/ 6s | Scoring rate |
---|---|---|---|---|
Muttiah Muralitharan | 23 | 23 | 0/ 1 | 100.00 |
Lasith Malinga | 17 | 19 | 3/ 0 | 111.76 |
Chaminda Vaas | 25 | 30 | 4/ 1 | 120.00 |
Dilhara Fernando | 23 | 42 | 5/ 2 | 182.60 |
Tillakaratne Dilshan | 7 | 15 | 0/ 2 | 214.28 |
Sanath Jayasuriya | 9 | 20 | 1/ 2 | 222.22 |
It was a typical Gilchrist innings in terms of his scoring rate, but not in terms of the strokes he played or the areas in which he scored. Usually very strong square of the wicket on the off side, he scored 65 of his 149 runs in the V between mid-off and mid-on. In contrast, he scored just 13 in the arc from cover to third man.
On a pitch on which the ball was coming on to the bat, Gilchrist's front-foot drives were particularly lethal and fetched him 63 runs, including six fours and five sixes. And when Muttiah Muralitharan came into the attack, Gilchrist employed the sweep to counter the fact that he couldn't read the spin out of the hand.
Stroke | Balls | Runs | 4s/ 6s |
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Front-foot drives | 40 | 63 | 6/ 5 |
Flick/ pull | 34 | 57 | 6/ 2 |
Sweep | 9 | 14 | 0/ 1 |
Cut/ back-foot strokes | 21 | 15 | 1/ 0 |
The Sri Lankans were completely outclassed in the field, but the start didn't suggest such a rout was on the cards. Lasith Malinga hadn't played against the Australians in the Super Eights, and that move probably saved the Sri Lankans about 20 runs, as the Australian openers gave themselves some time to figure him out. His first four overs went for six; his next four leaked 43. The Sri Lankans allowed only 46 in the first ten overs, and 118 in the last 16, but they lost the game in the 12 overs in between, as Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden blasted 117 at nearly ten per over. That was also the period when Gilchrist took the majority of the strike, and in the mood he was in, it was simply impossible to stop him.
Period | Gilchrist - Balls | Runs | Hayden - Balls | Runs |
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First 10 overs (46 runs) | 30 | 31 | 31 | 14 |
Next 12.5 overs (126 runs) | 53 | 88 | 25 | 24 |
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:47 PM 0 comments
Stats tribute to Glenn McGrath
Stats tribute to Glenn McGrath
Bowing out on top
S Rajesh and HR Gopalakrishna
April 29, 2007
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Throughout a glittering career that spanned 13 years, the one aspect that stood out more than any other was his sheer consistency and the ability to deliver the matchwinning performance no matter what the conditions. The numbers bear that out amply: his career summary in Tests shows he had to work his hardest for wickets against South Africa, but even against them his average was only 27.33. Similarly, in Pakistan and Sri Lanka his average crept up to around 30, but everywhere else he was outstanding; in every continent he averaged less than 24; his home and away stats were almost identical; he was equally good in the first innings and the second; and only in two calendar years since 1995 did his average go beyond 24.
Since coming of age on that historic trip to the West Indies in 1995, McGrath never looked back in Test cricket. His average of 20.87 is bettered only by one bowler during this period.
Bowler | Tests | Wickets | Average | 5WI/ 10WM |
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Muttiah Muralitharan | 94 | 618 | 20.71 | 54/ 19 |
Glenn McGrath | 116 | 544 | 20.87 | 29/ 3 |
Curtly Ambrose | 50 | 186 | 20.88 | 11/ 0 |
Allan Donald | 55 | 255 | 21.04 | 16/ 2 |
Shaun Pollock | 107 | 416 | 23.19 | 16/ 1 |
Courtney Walsh | 64 | 280 | 23.22 | 15/ 2 |
His ODI summary is equally impressive, with an average of 22 and an economy rate of less than four runs per over. Like in Tests, in the one-dayers too he was hardly bothered by such trivialities like the toss and the playing conditions. He took slightly longer to find his ODI bearings, but since 1999 his numbers are unmatched.
Bowler | ODIs | Wkts | Average | Econ |
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Glenn McGrath | 176 | 286 | 20.03 | 3.83 |
Muttiah Muralitharan | 196 | 316 | 20.40 | 3.64 |
Brett Lee | 150 | 267 | 22.65 | 4.69 |
Shoaib Akhtar | 128 | 203 | 22.89 | 4.61 |
Shaun Pollock | 227 | 300 | 23.65 | 3.64 |
Makhaya Ntini | 150 | 235 | 23.66 | 4.42 |
Wasim Akram | 102 | 139 | 24.64 | 4.05 |
Shane Warne | 98 | 143 | 26.83 | 4.38 |
One reason why McGrath deserves to be considered among the all-time great bowlers is his performance in the subcontinent - in conditions which were usually not conducive to fast bowling, McGrath adapted superbly, averaging 23 runs per wicket, which is among the best for overseas fast bowlers.
Bowler | Tests | Wickets | Average | 5WI/ 10WM |
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Malcolm Marshall | 16 | 68 | 20.17 | 3/ 0 |
Courtney Walsh | 17 | 77 | 20.53 | 5/ 0 |
Glenn McGrath | 19 | 72 | 23.02 | 1/ 0 |
Shaun Pollock | 17 | 60 | 23.18 | 2/ 0 |
Jason Gillespie | 14 | 54 | 23.75 | 1/ 0 |
Over a long international career, few cricketers have walked the talk like McGrath has. His predictions went famously wrong during the 2005 Ashes, but almost every other time he has been spot on, a testament to his unmatched ability and his huge self-belief. On the big stage, in the most important matches, against the best opposition, McGrath has invariably brought out his A game. His Ashes average is a splendid 20.92, with 157 wickets from 30 Tests; he finished as the leading wicket-taker in World Cups, with 71 from 39 games at 18.19; and in finals of ODI tournaments he averages an astounding 16.43.
Equally impressive was his ability to live up to his pre-match talk of nailing the opposition team's best batsman, whether it be Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis or Stephen Fleming - they all rank very high in his list of batsmen dismissed most often in Tests. The table below lists his averages against specific batsmen since June 2001 - not many have enjoyed too much success against him.
Batsman | Balls | Runs | Dismissals | Average | Runs per over |
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Herschelle Gibbs | 492 | 191 | 3 | 63.67 | 2.32 |
Nathan Astle | 297 | 189 | 3 | 63.00 | 3.81 |
Brian Lara | 233 | 90 | 2 | 45.00 | 2.31 |
Jacques Kallis | 378 | 133 | 3 | 44.33 | 211 |
Michael Vaughan | 349 | 193 | 6 | 32.16 | 3.31 |
Marcus Trescothick | 438 | 184 | 6 | 30.67 | 2.52 |
Kevin Pietersen | 270 | 135 | 5 | 27.00 | 3.00 |
Graeme Smith | 224 | 81 | 5 | 16.20 | 2.16 |
Chris Gayle | 177 | 63 | 4 | 15.75 | 2.13 |
Michael Atherton | 210 | 86 | 6 | 14.33 | 2.45 |
Stephen Fleming | 222 | 63 | 7 | 9.00 | 1.70 |
Rahul Dravid | 170 | 26 | 3 | 8.67 | 0.91 |
It was no different in the ODIs - Tendulkar, Kallis, Sanath Jayasuriya, Herschelle Gibbs and Fleming were among the wickets he nailed most often in the shorter version as well. The key aspect here - apart from the fact that he got the good batsmen out - is the number of times he dismissed them early in their innings, before they got starts. The averages column in the page of batsmen dismissed indicates the average score of the batsmen in the innings in which McGrath dismissed them - significantly, that figure is mostly in the teens, or sometimes even in single digits.
The table below breaks-up his Test and ODI wickets by batting positions, and by cheap dismissals. He got rid of the openers 155 times in Tests, and on 84 of those occasions they fell for less than ten. The corresponding stat is even more impressive in ODIs.
Match type | Openers | Openers <10 | Nos. 3-7 | Nos. 3-7 <> | Tail | Tail <> |
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Tests | 155 | 84 | 266 | 115 | 142 | 95 |
ODIs | 128 | 72 | 171 | 99 | 82 | 57 |
More McGrath stats
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Labels: mcgrath
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:43 PM 0 comments
Australian team is perfect for a coach
Australian team is perfect for a coach
AFP
April 30, 2007
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John Buchanan, who has retired from his coaching role, said it was Australia's destiny to be at the cutting edge of cricket after they had won a third straight World Cup title. Australia's victory over Sri Lanka by 53 runs meant his players gave Buchanan, 54, a winning send-off in his last game after eight years in charge.
Although supervising a gifted side, Buchanan has been credited with extending the team's horizons. Buchanan, who is set to concentrate on what had been a motivational speaking sideline, had challenged the rest of the world to match Australia's standards after they beat India in the 2003 World Cup final.
But while now reluctant to pass on tips to other nations, Buchanan was clear where the sporting future of Australia lay. "It's our role always to lead change, to lead new ideas to be right at the cutting edge of cricket or of sport," he said. "Then it's up to other countries to try to chase us. In a sense we're not interested in what other countries have to do, it's what we still have to do."
India and West Indies are two of the sides looking for a new coach after World Cup failures, but Buchanan said he had no interest in taking charge of another country. "I suppose you can never say never but right at the moment no," he said. "I feel very loyal to the team that I coach and the players that I've worked with. So right at the moment I'm looking to venture into new territory altogether. This sort of role will be a thing of the past for me."
Buchanan said the key to Australia's enduring success - they are the world's best Test side and have now gone 29 games unbeaten at the World Cup - began with the players. "Each individual has strived for perfection all the time," he said. "From a coach's point of view, that is the perfect team. The perfect team is the one that keeps wanting to be better day in and day out. I've been basically a passenger for the last three years or so. I get there [to practice], put the gear out and bring it back in again."
But Ricky Ponting said: "We shouldn't let the coach get away with that. He's challenged us all the whole time he's been in charge of this team. He's always been overlooked. It's not an easy thing to do to take over a team that's already playing good cricket and make it better.
"But he's been able to do that with me and with all of us. Some of that is to do with the players, but a lot of it is also to do with how you're coached as well
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:39 PM 0 comments
Shoaib Malik's Profile
Shoaib Malik
Pakistan
Full name Shoaib Malik
Born February 1, 1982, Sialkot, Punjab
Current age 25 years 89 days
Major teams
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm offbreak
Statsguru Test player, ODI player
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 18 | 29 | 4 | 941 | 148* | 37.64 | 2132 | 44.13 | 1 | 5 | 130 | 8 | 8 | 0 |
ODIs | 137 | 121 | 16 | 3524 | 143 | 33.56 | 4567 | 77.16 | 5 | 21 | 297 | 39 | 48 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 2 | 2 | 0 | 31 | 16 | 15.50 | 33 | 93.93 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 73 | 111 | 13 | 2766 | 148* | 28.22 | 6 | 12 | 36 | 0 | ||||
List A | 199 | 165 | 28 | 4951 | 143 | 36.13 | 8 | 29 | 77 | 0 | ||||
Twenty20 | 17 | 16 | 5 | 606 | 88* | 55.09 | 483 | 125.46 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 0 |
Mat | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4 | 5 | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 18 | 1429 | 820 | 13 | 4/42 | 4/94 | 63.07 | 3.44 | 109.92 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
ODIs | 137 | 4798 | 3584 | 104 | 4/19 | 4/19 | 34.46 | 4.48 | 46.13 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 73 | 9842 | 4905 | 163 | 7/81 | 30.09 | 2.99 | 60.38 | 5 | 1 | ||
List A | 199 | 8094 | 5866 | 201 | 5/35 | 5/35 | 29.18 | 4.34 | 40.26 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
Twenty20 | 17 | 197 | 231 | 15 | 5/13 | 5/13 | 15.40 | 7.03 | 13.13 | 0 | 1 |
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:30 PM 0 comments
Shahid Afridi's profile
Shahid Afridi
Pakistan
Full name Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi
Born March 1, 1980, Khyber Agency
Current age 27 years 61 days
Major teams
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm medium, Legbreak googly
Statsguru Test player, ODI player
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 26 | 46 | 1 | 1683 | 156 | 37.40 | 1954 | 86.13 | 5 | 8 | 216 | 50 | 10 | 0 |
ODIs | 238 | 226 | 10 | 4998 | 109 | 23.13 | 4598 | 108.69 | 4 | 27 | 468 | 225 | 83 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 2 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 28 | 17.50 | 27 | 129.62 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 96 | 163 | 4 | 5105 | 164 | 32.10 | 12 | 25 | 61 | 0 | ||||
List A | 313 | 298 | 12 | 7088 | 112 | 24.78 | 5 | 43 | 99 | 0 | ||||
Twenty20 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 153 | 49 | 17.00 | 96 | 159.37 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Mat | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4 | 5 | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 26 | 3092 | 1640 | 47 | 5/52 | 5/43 | 34.89 | 3.18 | 65.78 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
ODIs | 238 | 9255 | 7113 | 201 | 5/11 | 5/11 | 35.38 | 4.61 | 46.04 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 2 | 33 | 47 | 0 | - | - | - | 8.54 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 96 | 11463 | 5958 | 216 | 6/101 | 27.58 | 3.11 | 53.06 | 7 | 0 | ||
List A | 313 | 12583 | 9626 | 284 | 5/11 | 5/11 | 33.89 | 4.59 | 44.30 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Twenty20 | 11 | 222 | 244 | 11 | 3/23 | 3/23 | 22.18 | 6.59 | 20.18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:28 PM 0 comments
Mohammad asif's profile
Mohammad Asif
Pakistan
Full name Mohammad Asif
Born December 20, 1982, Sheikhupura, Punjab
Current age 24 years 132 days
Major teams
Playing role Bowler
Batting style Left-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm fast-medium
Statsguru Test player, ODI player
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 9 | 13 | 6 | 40 | 12* | 5.71 | 163 | 24.53 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
ODIs | 22 | 7 | 2 | 20 | 6 | 4.00 | 65 | 30.76 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 68 | 91 | 37 | 448 | 42 | 8.29 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 | ||||
List A | 53 | 23 | 13 | 155 | 40 | 15.50 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | ||||
Twenty20 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 12 | 6.50 | 24 | 54.16 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
Mat | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4 | 5 | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 9 | 1914 | 986 | 49 | 6/44 | 11/71 | 20.12 | 3.09 | 39.06 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
ODIs | 22 | 1024 | 702 | 22 | 3/28 | 3/28 | 31.90 | 4.11 | 46.54 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Twenty20 Int. | 1 | 24 | 21 | 2 | 2/21 | 2/21 | 10.50 | 5.25 | 12.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 68 | 12169 | 6713 | 280 | 7/35 | 23.97 | 3.30 | 43.46 | 17 | 5 | ||
List A | 53 | 2371 | 1834 | 54 | 4/30 | 4/30 | 33.96 | 4.64 | 43.90 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Twenty20 | 14 | 311 | 323 | 24 | 5/11 | 5/11 | 13.45 | 6.23 | 12.95 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Career statistics | |
Statsguru Tests filter | Statsguru One-Day Internationals filter | |
Test debut | Australia v Pakistan at Sydney - Jan 2-5, 2005 scorecard |
Last Test | South Africa v Pakistan at Cape Town - Jan 26-28, 2007 scorecard |
ODI debut | Pakistan v England at Rawalpindi - Dec 21, 2005 scorecard |
Last ODI | South Africa v Pakistan at Johannesburg - Feb 14, 2007 scorecard |
Only Twenty20 Int. | England v Pakistan at Bristol - Aug 28, 2006 scorecard |
First-class span | 2000/01 - 2006/07 |
List A span | 1999/00 - 2006/07 |
Twenty20 span | 2004/05 - 2006/07 |
Posted by Mr.Green at 5:25 PM 0 comments