The Worst Defeats in T20Is-2

The Malian women’s T20I team has been making headlines all over the cricket world (not only in Bamako and famed Timbuktu) for their abject defeats.

Earlier we have looked at the worst defeats of men’s T20I teams.

The worst defeat in a limited overs match is measured by either 1) runs or 2) balls remaining when the target is reached.

One can also look at 3) lowest scores by runs 4) highest scores by runs conceded

And as a stretch: 5) least balls in an innings.

We now look at the records of women’s T20Is as on 28-06-2019:

Losses by runs (100 and above):

We see that the top three defeats were sustained by Mali, with China and Lesotho a little behind. We will see much more of Mali in the remaining part of this post.

Even some “respectable” teams such as South Africa, WI and Sri Lanka can be found here.

Losses by balls remaining (72 or more):

These are all the cases where a target was chased down in 8 overs or less. In two cases only 4 balls were enough.

As you may guess, the Mali team holds the top three positions. Mozambique and Fiji are next in line. The only “respectable” team here is Ireland.

Lowest scores (30 or less):

The three lowest scores are by Mali in the span of three days in June 2019. Note that they did improve to 30/9 in 20 overs. China is also here with its record of 14 set earlier in 2019. Even Bangladesh has a score of 30.

Least balls in an innings (72 or less):

Mali again, though they took less balls to score 14 than their 6. Mexico, China and Kuwait give them company.

And finally

Highest opposing totals (190 and above):

Note that almost all of these are in the first innings.

Mali yet again in 1st, 2nd and 4th place although South Africa is in 3rd and 5th place. Many other “respectable” teams have been at the receiving end, including India against England in 2018.

You can guess why those who follow statistics may be planning to visit Timbuktu. While this is supposes to be in an area affected by terrorism, you can at least get to Mali’s capital Bamako with a single stop at Paris or Addis Ababa. With luck, you can reach there within 18 hours from Delhi.

The Worst Defeats in T20Is-1

The Malian women’s T20I team has been making headlines all over the cricket world (not only in Bamako and famed Timbuktu) for their abject defeats.

It is a good time to examine the worst T20I defeats. For a change, gentlemen before ladies.

The worst defeat in a limited overs match is measured by either 1) runs or 2) balls remaining when the target is reached.

One can also look at 3) lowest scores by runs 4) highest scores by runs conceded

And as a stretch: 5) least balls in an innings.

We now look at the records of men’s T20Is as on 27-06-2019:

Losses by runs (100 and above):

We can see that the worst defeat was sustained by Kenya in the 2007 World Championship, and that they made 88 when facing a Sri Lankan total of 260.

Losses by balls remaining (60 or more):

These are all the cases where a target was chased down in 10 overs or less.

The “winner” here was Botswana who were dismissed for 46, and then let Namibia hit off these runs in 3.5 overs or 16.1 overs/97 balls remaining. Next comes Netherlands in the course of the 2014 World Championship. Other whipping boys such as Kenya, Nepal and Germany follow.

Lowest scores (60 or less):

The biggest fail here is Netherlands with 39 against Sri Lanka in the 2014 World Championship (mentioned above).

And next is one of the big boys, West Indies with 45 against England earlier this year.

Other whipping boys such as Botswana, Germany and Nepal follow.

Least balls in an innings (90 or less):

The lowest tally here is 10.3 overs, just over the halfway mark.

Most of these are in the second innings.

Our old friends Netherlands again, followed by West Indies as mentioned above.

A few teams such as South Africa have crossed 100 here in less than 15 overs.

And finally,

Highest opposing totals (240 and above):

Note that almost all of these are in the first innings.

Ireland has conceded the most (278) to Afghanistan earlier this year. But even Australia had a similar experience against Sri Lanka in 2016. Kenya conceded 260 to Sri Lanka in 2007 as mentioned earlier.

Next we will take up women’s T20Is, which includes single-digit totals.

 

 

 

All-round match performances in the World Cup

Here is a list of all instances of 40+ runs and 4+ wickets in World Cup matches from 1975 up to June 24, 2019:

While some of these figures seem impressive, most of them have come against weak teams (if not minnows, teams which did not go beyond the first round). The exceptions are Flintoff (E v Ire), and Russell (WI v E). We already know that Afg will not be in the second round in 2019.

The only instances of 50/5wi are by Yuvraj Singh (I v Ire, 2011) and Shakib Al Hasan (BD v Afg, 2019).

Both of them have had impressive all-round performances throughout the tournament. Yuvraj was Man of the Series in 2011, when India won. Yuvraj had 362 runs and 15 wickets in 2011. Shakib has (at the time of writing on June 24) 471 runs and 10 wickets. He and David Warner (447 runs) seem to be main contenders for Man of the Series now.

In 1999, L Klusener had 281 runs and 17 wickets which earned him the Man of the Series award. His team lost narrowly in the semi-final.

 

A tale of two hat-tricks

Here is a list of all hat-tricks in World Cup matches, as on June 22 2019:

Live link: http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/records/1190325.html

The first as well as the most recent instances were by Indian bowlers.

The first one was by a bowler who is not always given the credit he deserved. He is unfortunately remembered more for a last-ball six by Javed Miandad in a crucial match.

It may not be remembered that he is still the only Indian bowler to take a 10-for in a Test in England. And that he is one of the few Indian tailenders who scored an ODI century when tried in the middle order.

See the overview:

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/player/33949.html

And his World Cup hat-trick in 1987. No one else had taken a hat-trick in the World Cup until then in matches starting from 1975.

See the scorecard:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/8039/scorecard/65114/india-vs-new-zealand-24th-match-reliance-world-cup-1987-88

That match on Oct 31, 1987 was critical, as it was India’s last match in the group and needed to defeat New Zealand by a large margin to ensure that they topped the group. If they came second, they would have to face Pakistan in the semi-final (which, by prior agreement, would have been held in Pakistan if the two teams were to meet).

New Zealand won the toss and batted first. They made steady and unspectacular progress until they reached 182/5. One of their key batsmen Ken Rutherford was batting along with pinch-hitter Martin Snedden. Chetan Sharma had not taken a wicket at that stage.

He then had Rutherford bowled, followed by bowling No 8 Ian Smith (a Test centurion) and No 9 batsman Ewan Chatfield (capable of stubborn batting). This would be one of the relatively rare all-bowled hat-tricks in international cricket.

From 182/8, they got up to 221/9 in 50 overs.

This is still the only World Cup hat-trick where all three dismissals were bowled.

The Indian team knew the required run rate. Sunil Gavaskar had not been much of a success as an ODI batsman, but seized the occasion to score his only ODI century, an unbeaten 103. Srikkanth (75) and Azharuddin (41*) also ensured that India met the required run rate. Gavaskar and Sharma shared the Man of the Match award.

So it was India vs England at Bombay, and Pakistan vs Australia at Lahore. We all know how THAT turned out. So there was an Ashes final rather than a South Asian final at Calcutta, where Border’s unheralded team won by a narrow margin.

Hat-tricks in World Cup matches remained scarce, with no instance in 1992 and 1996. The next instance was by Saqlain Mushtaq in a Super Six match against Zimbabwe in 1999.

Forward to 2019. Mohammad Shami had made a good beginning to his Test career (with a 9-wicket haul against an admittedly weak WI team) but was generally felt to have performed below expectations. He did score a fifty in a Test batting at no 11. Injuries and domestic issues played their role.

There was even some kind of fudging in his records as his birthplace was initially shown to be in Jonagar in Bengal. No such town can be found in the map. Later his birthplace was mysteriously changed to Amroha (near Moradabad in UP) which is generally considered to be correct.

From the table in the beginning, we see that hat-tricks in the World Cup had become more common since 1999, with Malinga going a step beyond with 4 in 4. That is the only such dismissal in ODIs (or Tests). Malinga also took two regular hat-tricks later.

As I write this on June 23, the result of the 2019 World Cup is unknown. The only thing we know definitely is that Afghanistan (0 points in 6 matches) cannot qualify.

Points table after matches on June 22, 2019:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/8039/scorecard/1144510/afghanistan-vs-india-28th-match-icc-cricket-world-cup-2019

In this match India batted below par and finished with 224/8, primarily due to lower-order failures. Shami’s dismissal was typical as he scored 1 off 2 balls.

Some time later the unthinkable seemed likely as Afghanistan made good progress towards the modest target. Shami had earlier taken the first wicket of H Zazai. With an over left, Afg was 209/7 with Nabi and Ikram going strong.

The upsets by Bangladesh against WI and Sri Lanka against England were fresh in viewer’s minds.

16 in the last over was difficult but not impossible (as Dinesh Karthik would testify). With the 3rd ball, Shami had Nabi caught by Pandya for 52 (213/8). 12 to get off 3 balls with 2 wickets in hand.

Surely that was the end for Afghanistan’s hopes? Shami made sure of that by bowling No 10 (Aftab 49.4) and No 11 (Mujeeb, 49.5) and taking India’s second hat-trick in the World Cup, over 31 years after the first. He finished with 4-40.

Also see this: https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/27035426/mohammed-shami-reveals-ms-dhoni-advice-world-cup-hat-trick-ball

However, it was JJ Bumrah (2-39) who was Man of the Match as his wickets were probably more critical.

 

ODIs between India and Pakistan-2

Hope you have read Part 1.

Now we take up Bowling.

Most wickets (25 and above):

A close bunching at the top, led by the senior W.

No current players.

Best innings bowling (includes all instances of 5 or more wickets):

No performances in the last few years.

Best bowling averages (Minimum 1000 balls, all instances):

Imran and Kumble lead. Shoaib Malik is the only current player.

The best economy rates are by Akram and Imran.

The best strike rates are by Waqar and Saqlain.

Now to Fielding:

Most dismissals (15 or more):

Led by Moin and non-keeper Azharuddin. Dhoni is next.

Innings dismissals (4 and above):

Mongia is the only one with 5 dismissals. Several non-keepers have 4 catches.

Best dismissal rate (Minimum 20 innings and 0.500):

Moin Khan and MS Dhoni lead, while M Kaif has the best for non-keepers.

All-round performances:

Overall (see criteria):

Led by the semi all-rounder Ganguly and Imran.

All-round match performances ( 30 runs and 3 wickets):

Abdul Razzaq has the best figures here, followed by Tendulkar.

 

ODIs between India and Pakistan-1

It seems unlikely that there will be any bilateral series between India and Pakistan for quite some time. It has already been decided that India will not play Pakistan in the group stages of the World Test Championship.

So this seems to be a good time to look back at the records of ODIs between India and Pakistan (not just in the World Cup).

Of a total of 132 ODIs between the sides, India has won 55, Pakistan 73, no ties and No Result 4.

In India: 30 matches; Ind 11, Pak 19.

In Pakistan: 27 matches; Ind 11, Pak 14, NR 2.

In Neutral venues: 75 matches; Ind 33, Pak 40, NR 2.

Looking at individual figures:

Batting:

500 or more runs:

Headed by the older players who had more opportunities to play these matches. Among current players there is Shoaib Malik (1782) and MS Dhoni (1231).

The most centuries are 5 by Tendulkar, followed by 4 by several others.

The most 50+ scores are also led by Tendulkar with 21. Next is 16 by Inzamam and Dravid.

Highest innings: 110 and more:

Saeed Anwar’s 194 was a record in all ODIs for several years. The highest score in recent years is RG Sharma’s 140 in the current World Cup.

Highest Averages (Minimum 20 innings, 30.00 and above):

A number of current players such as Kohli are not here as they have not played 20 innings. Dhoni and Shoaib Malik have the highest averages among current players.

Highest Strike Rates (Minimum 500 balls faced, 80.00 and above):

Shahid Afridi and Sehwag lead as one would expect. Kohli, Dhoni  and RG Sharma have the highest strike rates among current players.

To be continued:

 

 

Most 6s in an ODI innings

In the World Cup match against Afghanistan on June 18, EJG Morgan made 148 off 71 balls with 17 6s and (only) 4 4s.

This is the listing for the most 6s in an ODI innings (10 or more) after England’s innings:

The live link for future reference:

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/records/283127.html

Morgan overtook these 3 who shared the ODI record:

RG Sharma, 16 6s in 209, I v A, Bengaluru, 02/11/2013

AB de Villiers, 16 in 149, SA v WI, Jo’burg, 18/01/2015

CH Gayle, 16 in 215, WI v Zim, Canberra, 24/202/2015.

(So Gayle held the previous World Cup record).

No one else has scored 10 or more 6s in an innings so far in the 2019 World Cup. The best is 5 by JJ Roy for Eng v BD and AJ Finch for Aus v SL.

While on this topic, let us see the records for the most 4s in all ODIs (20 or more):

Live link:

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/records/284017.html

The runaway winner is RG Sharma with his 33 4s and 9 6s in the ODI record score of 264 for I v SL at Kolkata on 13/11/2014.

The next two positions are also held by India’s SR Tendulkar and V Sehwag (25 each), followed by ST Jayasuriya and several others with 24, i.e. far behind RG Sharma’s outlier.

The World Cup record is held by MJ Guptill with his 24 4s and 11 6s for NZ v WI at Wellington on 21/03/2015.

During this World Cup, no one else has crossed 20 4s. The best is 16 by these:

 

The jinx in India-Pakistan matches (updated in June 2019)

It is often said that India dominates Pakistan in ICC tournaments. Hence the “Mauka Mauka” ads which aired at the beginning of the 2015 and 2019 World Cups.

Let us see take a closer look at the history of these encounters. First, the World Cup:

Note the two matches at Manchester separated by 20 years. In 1999 the mini-war in Kargil was in progress.

India and Pakistan never met in the World Cups of 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1987. They were somehow always drawn in different groups so they could have met only in the semi-finals or finals.

It was not until 1992 that they met in the World Cup. In that tournament (as in 2019) all teams played each other in the round-robin knockout stage.

They met in the quarter-finals in 1996, Super Six in 1999, and a pool match in 2003. India won all these matches so the feeling of a jinx over Pakistan kept growing.

In 2007, both India and Pakistan were jinxed and failed to proceed beyond the pool stage, being displaced by Bangladesh and Ireland respectively.

In 2011, India won in the semi-final, repeated this in a pool match in 2015 and again in a round-robin match in 2019.

This makes it 7 out of 7.

If you want to see the scorecards, open this link and click on the blue square on the extreme right.

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=2;filter=advanced;opposition=7;orderby=start;team=6;template=results;trophy=12;type=team;view=results

Now we go to the T20 World Championship. We will come back to the Champions Trophy at the end.

The teams met twice in the inaugural championship in 2007. Though the match in the pool stage was a tie, India got the winner’s points as they won in the bowl-out which was then the method used to determine the winner of a tied match.

Then India won against Pakistan in the final. The teams did not meet in 2009 and 2010. India won the next three encounters in 2012, 2014 and 2016. All of these were in the group stages and not the semi-final or final. Thus India leads 5-0 (including the tie) in the World T20 Championship.

You can see the scorecards from this link:

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=3;filter=advanced;opposition=7;orderby=start;team=6;template=results;trophy=89;type=team;view=results

For details of the bowl-out in the first match in 2007, see the commentary section rather than the scorecard.

But the story in the Champions Trophy is somewhat different:

India and Pakistan did not meet in 1998, 2000 or 2002 (when India shared the trophy with Sri Lanka). Pakistan won the first encounter in 2004 in the group stage. They did not meet in 2006. Pakistan won in 2009, also in the group stage. India finally won in 2013, in a group match on their way to the trophy.

In 2017, India won the group match but lost in the final.

So the jinx on Pakistan in ICC tournaments does not apply to Pakistan in the Champions Trophy, where they lead India 3-2.

See the scorecards here:

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=2;filter=advanced;opposition=7;orderby=start;team=6;template=results;trophy=44;type=team;view=results

 

 

Book on Industrial Locomotives of South Asia

The more determined railway fans from South Asia would appreciate this weighty book by Simon Darvill (2013):

It gives most details of industrial locomotives which ran in the countries between Afghanistan and Myanmar. A special feature is the lengthy section on the British Army’s military railways in what is now India and Pakistan, including the large amount of rolling stock and other material sent to other theaters of WW1 and WW2.

An interesting point (which one had not come across earlier) is that there was a serious plan to lay a 2’0″ Decauville track across the Khyber Pass from the then railhead at Jamrud, crossing the border and extending into Dakka Fort in Afghanistan during the 3rd Afghan War in 1919. This was some years before the “real” broad gauge line was built to Landi Kotal and Landi Khana.

However, there is no direct mention of this little line in accounts of the war. So there is some doubt if it was actually built. It would have probably been a little over 50 km long. Mr Darvill has found evidence that some equipment had been dispatched to the region. Details are on p.493.

While the stress is on steam, there are plenty of diesel locomotives listed as well. Profusely illustrated with b/w photographs.

This book may be available from amazon com and amazon in. Otherwise it is available from specialized bookshops in the UK. Sellers can be located by using Google for the book’s title or ISBN no 9781901 556827

International shipping charges will be high as the packed weight is over 1.5 Kg.

Footnote: Dakka is too obscure to be found on Google Maps, but you can take its location at 34.2222 N, 71.0347 E. It is on the road from Torkham to Jalalabad.

 

 

 

Highest score at No 8 in World Cup

Nathan Coulter-Nile’s 92 against the West Indies was the highest score by any No 8 batsman in the World Cup.

Here are the list of all such scores above 40:

It can be seen that the record score at No 8 was earlier 72* by HH Streak in 2003.

The previous highest score by Australia was somewhat further down at 43 by BJ Haddin in 2015. Nearby there is 42 by CH Morris of SA in 2019.

The best by India is a mere 28 by NR Mongia in 1999.

The fastest steam locomotives of all time

A nice little film summarizing the fastest steam locos of all times, with the record going to the British LNER “Mallard” with its 126 mph (203 kmph) in 1938.

Although most of the other locos shown here have been scrapped, the Mallard can still be seen at the National Rail Museum at York.

Naturally, if you are passing that way you should try to visit her.

As I did in 2006:

This old lady was active in exhibition runs until very recently, but may not run again. Other locos of the same A4 class can sometimes be seen on exhibition runs.

In 2006, #9, the “City of Truro” was also hailing excursion trains. I was lucky to travel on one of them.

Another famous resident of the NRM:

As you might guess, this is not the original from 1829 but a working model. This also goes for exhibition runs. The real Rocket is at the Science Museum in London.

These may be of interest:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Railway_Museum#Locomotives

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LNER_Class_A4_4468_Mallard

 

Politicians of the Doon School-June 2019

After the dust had died down from the general elections of 2019, we take a roll call of persons connected with the Doon School who are active members of Parliament and Assemblies today.

Elected to Lok Sabha:

Rahul Gandhi (INC, Kerala, Waynad)

Dushyant Singh (BJP, Rajasthan, Jhalawar-Baran)

Nakul Nath (INC, MP, Chhindwara); first-timer

The highest victory margin was by Dushyant Singh (4.54 lakh) followed by Rahul Gandhi (4.31 lakh).

Incumbents who lost in Lok Sabha elections:

Rahul Gandhi (INC, UP, Amethi)

Jyoti Scindia (INC, MP, Guna)

Kalikesh Deo (BJD, OR, Bolangir)

Bharatendra Singh (BJP, UP, Bijnor)

Raghav Lakhanpal (BJP, UP, Saharanpur)

The smallest margins of loss were by Kalikesh Deo (0.19 lakh), and Raghav Lakhanpal (0.22 lakh).

At least two formerly prominent MPs from UP lost their deposits as they failed to cross the 1/6 threshold.

Elected to Vidhan Sabha:

Naveen Patnaik (BJP, OR); continues as CM since 2000.

Kamal Nath (INC, MP); By-election; continues as CM since 2018. Was in Lok Sabha until recently.

Also in Vidhan Sabha:

Amarinder Singh (INC, PB): continues as CM since 2017.

Manpreet Badal (INC, PB): continues as state finance minister.

Jaivardhan Singh (INC, MP)

(and a few others who are lesser known).

Current Rajya Sabha members:

None.

Another interesting sideline is to look at close relatives of Doon School alumni. These include non-alumni who are parents, spouses, siblings and children of alumni.

Elected to Lok Sabha:

Preneet Kaur (INC, PB, Patiala)

Harsimrat Kaur Badal (SAD, PB, Bathinda); continues as Minister of State

Jagdambika Pal (BJP, UP, Domariyaganj)

Varun Gandhi (BJP, UP, Pilibhit)

Sonia Gandhi (INC, UP, Rae Bareli)

Maneka Gandhi (BJP, UP, Sultanpur)

Diya Kumari (BJP, RJ, Rajsamand); first-timer

The highest winning margin was 5.52 lakh by Diya Kumari.

Incumbents who lost:

Moon Moon Sen (Mrs Dev Varma), (TMC, Asansol, WB)

Current Rajya Sabha Members:

RK Sinha (BJP, BH)

Ahmed Patel (INC, GJ)

Digvijaya Singh (INC, MP); former CM

PL Punia (INC, UP)

Also in Vidhan Sabha:

Vasundhara Raje (BJP, RJ); former CM and Lok Sabha member.

and a few others who are lesser known.

Also note: Of the above relatives, those who studied at well-known schools include Maneka Gandhi (Sanawar) and Digvijaya Singh (Daly).

There is a BJP MP from RJ named Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. He is not the same as our Gajendra Singh Khimsar who was an MLA and state minister in RJ until recently.