Master of the game
Sachin Tendulkar has such staggering numbers in both Tests and ODIs that it's conceivable some of those records may never be broken
Tendulkar: outstanding numbers, whichever way you look at them © Associated Press
Enlarge
Related Links
Players/Officials: Sachin Tendulkar
A criticism that is sometimes levelled at talented cricketers is that their numbers didn't do justice to their ability. That certainly can't be said for Sachin Tendulkar, who has achieved truly staggering stats over a glittering career that is 20 years old and still going strong. That he was a precocious talent was known even before he played his first international game; even so, not many could have imagined that he would score more than 30,000 international runs and would be closing in on 100 international hundreds by 2010.
Perhaps the most impressive of several praiseworthy features about his career has been his sheer consistency. Since 1990, Tendulkar has played more than three Tests in a year 19 times, and in 17 of those years his annual average has been more than 40, and 12 times over 55. Of the 36 series of three or more Tests that he has played in, 20 times his average has exceeded 50, and only six times has it dropped below 30.
The first three years of Tendulkar's career weren't all that productive, but he'd already played enough innings to make the cricket world sit up and taken notice: his first Test century, an unbeaten 119 against England, saved India from defeat, while his 114 in Perth had all the experts gushing over his sheer class. During those early years his problem was a lack of consistency - his highest score in five innings immediately after his first Test hundred was 21.
Soon, however, that problem was conquered, and the result was stunning: he averaged almost 60 from 1993 to 1996, and more than 63 in the six years after that. The form dipped for a while as various injuries hampered him, but since 2007 Tendulkar has been outstanding once again, with 12 centuries in his last 32 Tests.
Tendulkar's Test career
Period Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Till Dec 1992 20 1085 37.41 4/ 4
Jan 1993 to Dec 1996 26 2021 59.44 6/ 11
Jan 1997 to Dec 2002 59 5705 63.38 21/ 20
Jan 2003 to Dec 2006 29 1779 44.47 4/ 7
Jan 2007 onwards 32 2857 58.30 12/ 12
Career 166 13,447 55.56 47/ 54
During that six-year period from January 1997 to December 2002, Tendulkar was unquestionably the best batsman in the world, handling pace in Australia and South Africa as effectively as he did spin in Sri Lanka. And then, of course, there was the epic 136 against Pakistan in Chennai which, unfortunately for him, wasn't enough to take India to victory against Pakistan.
In only 59 Tests he managed 21 centuries - an average of one every 2.81 matches. His average during this phase was well ahead of the second-placed Andy Flower, who led a string of batsmen who averaged in the md-50s.
Best Test batsmen between Jan 1997 and Dec 2002
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Sachin Tendulkar 59 5705 63.38 21/ 20
Andy Flower 41 3464 56.78 9/ 18
Matthew Hayden 35 3054 56.55 12/ 10
Rahul Dravid 62 5178 55.08 14/ 25
Aravinda de Silva 38 3134 54.98 12/ 9
Inzamam-ul-Haq 49 3740 51.94 12/ 15
Jacques Kallis 63 4447 51.70 11/ 25
Ricky Ponting 57 3916 50.85 14/ 14
Unfortunately for Tendulkar, his best period coincided with one where India had a poor bowling attack, especially overseas, and a batting line-up that tended to crumble quite often on tours. In 69 Tests between the beginning of 1993 and the end of 2001, India won 23, but only three of those came abroad. During this period, Tendulkar contributed almost 20% of all runs scored off the bat by India, and more than 21% when they played in Australia, South Africa, England, New Zealand or the West Indies. From 2002 onwards, there were many more batsmen contributing - Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman weighed in consistently both home and away, which significantly reduced the dependence on Tendulkar: he has contributed only 14.30% of the team runs since 2002. With the bowling attack getting stronger as well, Tendulkar has been a part of 15 away Test wins during this period, and 32 wins in all in these eight-and-a-half years.
Tendulkar's contribution to the team
Period Tendulkar's runs Team runs Percentage
Till Dec 1992 1085 9122 11.89
Jan 1993 to Dec 2001 6334 32,048 19.76
Jan '93 to Dec '01, in Aus, SA, NZ, Eng, WI 1783 8368 21.31
Jan 2002 onwards 6028 42,140 14.30
Overall 13,477 83,310 16.18
A standout feature of Tendulkar's career has been his tendency to save his best for the greatest team of his generation. Few batsmen have consistently got the better of Australia over the last two decades, but Tendulkar is clearly one of them. His two stunning hundreds on his first tour to Australia announced him as a special talent, while his Boxing Day century in 1999 showed the gulf between him and the rest of the Indian batsmen. Later in his career some of the others - Laxman and Sehwag, especially - also showed their liking for the Australian attack, but Tendulkar is the one player who has sustained his performances against Australia for 20 years.
Highest Test averages against Australia since 1990
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Sachin Tendulkar 29 2748 56.08 10/ 11
VVS Laxman 24 2204 55.10 6/ 10
Virender Sehwag 15 1483 51.13 3/ 7
Brian Lara 31 2856 51.00 9/ 11
Kevin Pietersen 12 1116 50.72 2/ 7
Richie Richardson 14 1084 49.27 4/ 4
Graham Thorpe 16 1235 45.74 3/ 8
Shivnarine Chanderpaul 17 1303 44.93 4/ 8
Tendulkar's Test average in Australia is marginally higher than his average against them at home, while six of his ten hundreds against them have come in Australia.
Best Test averages by overseas batsmen in Australia since 1990 (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Virender Sehwag 7 833 59.50 2/ 3
Sachin Tendulkar 16 1522 58.53 6/ 5
VVS Laxman 11 1081 54.05 4/ 3
Rahul Dravid 12 972 48.60 1/ 5
Jacques Kallis 12 915 45.75 2/ 5
Brian Lara 19 1469 41.97 4/ 4
Out of the 271 innings he has played in Tests, 220 have been at the No. 4 slot, where he has amassed more than 11,000 runs at an average exceeding 57. With a cut-off of 2500 runs at that position, only five batsmen have a higher average. And 41 of his 47 hundreds have been scored at this slot, with four coming at No. 5 and two at No. 6.
Best No. 4s in Test history (Qual: 2500 runs)
Batsman Innings Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Everton Weekes 57 3372 63.62 11/ 17
Jacques Kallis 130 6943 61.99 25/ 31
Mahela Jayawardene 133 7287 59.72 24/ 24
Mohammad Yousuf 60 3373 59.17 11/ 13
Greg Chappell 86 4316 59.12 15/ 19
Sachin Tendulkar 220 11,239 57.34 41/ 45
Javed Miandad 140 6925 54.10 19/ 31
Denis Compton 86 4234 53.59 13/ 20
Inzamam-ul-Haq 98 4867 52.90 15/ 21
Brian Lara 148 7535 51.25 24/ 31
One of the criticisms levelled against Tendulkar has been his relative lack of runs in second innings: he averages only 42.76 in all second innings, and 36.72 in the fourth innings. However, that also means he has been exceptional in the first innings, thus setting up games for India. He averages 62.88 in all first innings for the team, and 71.72 in the first innings of a match. His overall first-innings average is among the highest: among the batsmen with 4000 such runs, only six have a higher average.
The ODI master
Tendulkar has set some pretty awesome records in Tests, but some of his ODI stats are arguably more staggering. His career aggregate is currently more than 4000 ahead of his nearest competitor, and it'll certainly go up even further by the time he retires. As an opener, he has scored almost 15,000 runs at an average touching 49, which is the highest for openers who've scored at least 2500.
Like in Tests, Tendulkar has also raised his game against the Australians in one-day internationals, scoring more than 3000 runs against them - the only one to do so - at an average of more than 46.
Best ODI batsmen against Australia since 1990 (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman ODIs Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Aravinda de Silva 24 997 49.85 83.43 2/ 6
Hansie Cronje 39 1364 47.03 73.05 2/ 9
Sachin Tendulkar 67 3005 46.23 85.12 9/ 14
Lance Klusener 26 794 44.11 87.34 0/ 5
Kumar Sangakkara 28 1134 43.61 74.80 1/ 8
Jonty Rhodes 55 1610 40.25 77.92 0/ 10
Brian Lara 51 1858 39.53 76.58 3/ 15
Tendulkar has already stated that he will play the 2011 World Cup, and if his past record at the tournament is anything to go by, opposition bowlers will have plenty to worry about. He has already played five World Cups so far, averaging almost 58 in 36 matches. With the format guaranteeing each team at least six matches, Tendulkar has an excellent chance to become the first batsman to score 2000 World Cup runs.
Best performers in World Cups (Qual: 1000 runs)
Batsman Matches Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Viv Richards 23 1013 63.31 85.05 3/ 5
Sachin Tendulkar 36 1796 57.93 88.21 4/ 13
Herschelle Gibbs 25 1067 56.15 87.38 2/ 8
Sourav Ganguly 21 1006 55.88 77.50 4/ 3
Mark Waugh 22 1004 52.84 83.73 4/ 4
Ricky Ponting 39 1537 48.03 81.06 4/ 6
Javed Miandad 33 1083 43.32 68.02 1/ 8
Brian Lara 34 1225 42.24 86.26 2/ 7
And here's further proof of Tendulkar's ability to rise to the big occasion: he averages more than 55 in tournament finals, with six hundreds in 39 games. There was a period, between 1999 and 2004, when his big-match form deserted him, but he hit back strongly in the CB Series finals against Australia in 2008, scoring an unbeaten 117 and 91, and he followed that with 138 in the final of the Compaq Cup in Colombo last year.
Best performers in ODI tournament finals (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman Matches Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Gary Kirsten 20 1019 67.93 74.16 3/ 7
Viv Richards 18 836 55.73 84.78 1/ 9
Sachin Tendulkar 39 1833 55.54 87.41 6/ 10
Matthew Hayden 17 760 50.66 73.14 1/ 6
Dean Jones 30 1064 48.36 73.12 1/ 8
Aravinda de Silva 24 930 44.28 88.06 2/ 6
Sanath Jayasuriya 39 1613 42.44 98.35 2/ 13
Marvan Atapattu 26 969 40.37 70.01 2/ 6
Some of the important records that stand in Tendulkar's name:
Tests
Most Test runs (13,447) and hundreds (47). Also the only player with more than 100 scores of 50-plus in Tests.
Most runs scored by a batsman at No. 4; more than 3500 runs ahead of the second-placed Lara.
Most runs put together by a non-opening partnership (5747, with Rahul Dravid).
Two Tests short of equalling the record for most Tests by a player (Steve Waugh's 168).
One-day internationals
Most ODI runs, hundreds.
Only batsman to score a double-hundred in this format.
Involved in the highest partnership for any wicket (331 with Dravid against New Zealand in 1999), and in total partnership runs with a single batsman.
Most Man-of-the-Match awards.
Most runs in World Cups, and in multi-team tournament finals. Also, most runs in a single World Cup.
Most ODI runs against Australia, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Two matches short of equalling Sanath Jayasuriya's record for most matches.
Sachin Tendulkar has such staggering numbers in both Tests and ODIs that it's conceivable some of those records may never be broken
Tendulkar: outstanding numbers, whichever way you look at them © Associated Press
Enlarge
Related Links
Players/Officials: Sachin Tendulkar
A criticism that is sometimes levelled at talented cricketers is that their numbers didn't do justice to their ability. That certainly can't be said for Sachin Tendulkar, who has achieved truly staggering stats over a glittering career that is 20 years old and still going strong. That he was a precocious talent was known even before he played his first international game; even so, not many could have imagined that he would score more than 30,000 international runs and would be closing in on 100 international hundreds by 2010.
Perhaps the most impressive of several praiseworthy features about his career has been his sheer consistency. Since 1990, Tendulkar has played more than three Tests in a year 19 times, and in 17 of those years his annual average has been more than 40, and 12 times over 55. Of the 36 series of three or more Tests that he has played in, 20 times his average has exceeded 50, and only six times has it dropped below 30.
The first three years of Tendulkar's career weren't all that productive, but he'd already played enough innings to make the cricket world sit up and taken notice: his first Test century, an unbeaten 119 against England, saved India from defeat, while his 114 in Perth had all the experts gushing over his sheer class. During those early years his problem was a lack of consistency - his highest score in five innings immediately after his first Test hundred was 21.
Soon, however, that problem was conquered, and the result was stunning: he averaged almost 60 from 1993 to 1996, and more than 63 in the six years after that. The form dipped for a while as various injuries hampered him, but since 2007 Tendulkar has been outstanding once again, with 12 centuries in his last 32 Tests.
Tendulkar's Test career
Period Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Till Dec 1992 20 1085 37.41 4/ 4
Jan 1993 to Dec 1996 26 2021 59.44 6/ 11
Jan 1997 to Dec 2002 59 5705 63.38 21/ 20
Jan 2003 to Dec 2006 29 1779 44.47 4/ 7
Jan 2007 onwards 32 2857 58.30 12/ 12
Career 166 13,447 55.56 47/ 54
During that six-year period from January 1997 to December 2002, Tendulkar was unquestionably the best batsman in the world, handling pace in Australia and South Africa as effectively as he did spin in Sri Lanka. And then, of course, there was the epic 136 against Pakistan in Chennai which, unfortunately for him, wasn't enough to take India to victory against Pakistan.
In only 59 Tests he managed 21 centuries - an average of one every 2.81 matches. His average during this phase was well ahead of the second-placed Andy Flower, who led a string of batsmen who averaged in the md-50s.
Best Test batsmen between Jan 1997 and Dec 2002
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Sachin Tendulkar 59 5705 63.38 21/ 20
Andy Flower 41 3464 56.78 9/ 18
Matthew Hayden 35 3054 56.55 12/ 10
Rahul Dravid 62 5178 55.08 14/ 25
Aravinda de Silva 38 3134 54.98 12/ 9
Inzamam-ul-Haq 49 3740 51.94 12/ 15
Jacques Kallis 63 4447 51.70 11/ 25
Ricky Ponting 57 3916 50.85 14/ 14
Unfortunately for Tendulkar, his best period coincided with one where India had a poor bowling attack, especially overseas, and a batting line-up that tended to crumble quite often on tours. In 69 Tests between the beginning of 1993 and the end of 2001, India won 23, but only three of those came abroad. During this period, Tendulkar contributed almost 20% of all runs scored off the bat by India, and more than 21% when they played in Australia, South Africa, England, New Zealand or the West Indies. From 2002 onwards, there were many more batsmen contributing - Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman weighed in consistently both home and away, which significantly reduced the dependence on Tendulkar: he has contributed only 14.30% of the team runs since 2002. With the bowling attack getting stronger as well, Tendulkar has been a part of 15 away Test wins during this period, and 32 wins in all in these eight-and-a-half years.
Tendulkar's contribution to the team
Period Tendulkar's runs Team runs Percentage
Till Dec 1992 1085 9122 11.89
Jan 1993 to Dec 2001 6334 32,048 19.76
Jan '93 to Dec '01, in Aus, SA, NZ, Eng, WI 1783 8368 21.31
Jan 2002 onwards 6028 42,140 14.30
Overall 13,477 83,310 16.18
A standout feature of Tendulkar's career has been his tendency to save his best for the greatest team of his generation. Few batsmen have consistently got the better of Australia over the last two decades, but Tendulkar is clearly one of them. His two stunning hundreds on his first tour to Australia announced him as a special talent, while his Boxing Day century in 1999 showed the gulf between him and the rest of the Indian batsmen. Later in his career some of the others - Laxman and Sehwag, especially - also showed their liking for the Australian attack, but Tendulkar is the one player who has sustained his performances against Australia for 20 years.
Highest Test averages against Australia since 1990
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Sachin Tendulkar 29 2748 56.08 10/ 11
VVS Laxman 24 2204 55.10 6/ 10
Virender Sehwag 15 1483 51.13 3/ 7
Brian Lara 31 2856 51.00 9/ 11
Kevin Pietersen 12 1116 50.72 2/ 7
Richie Richardson 14 1084 49.27 4/ 4
Graham Thorpe 16 1235 45.74 3/ 8
Shivnarine Chanderpaul 17 1303 44.93 4/ 8
Tendulkar's Test average in Australia is marginally higher than his average against them at home, while six of his ten hundreds against them have come in Australia.
Best Test averages by overseas batsmen in Australia since 1990 (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman Tests Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Virender Sehwag 7 833 59.50 2/ 3
Sachin Tendulkar 16 1522 58.53 6/ 5
VVS Laxman 11 1081 54.05 4/ 3
Rahul Dravid 12 972 48.60 1/ 5
Jacques Kallis 12 915 45.75 2/ 5
Brian Lara 19 1469 41.97 4/ 4
Out of the 271 innings he has played in Tests, 220 have been at the No. 4 slot, where he has amassed more than 11,000 runs at an average exceeding 57. With a cut-off of 2500 runs at that position, only five batsmen have a higher average. And 41 of his 47 hundreds have been scored at this slot, with four coming at No. 5 and two at No. 6.
Best No. 4s in Test history (Qual: 2500 runs)
Batsman Innings Runs Average 100s/ 50s
Everton Weekes 57 3372 63.62 11/ 17
Jacques Kallis 130 6943 61.99 25/ 31
Mahela Jayawardene 133 7287 59.72 24/ 24
Mohammad Yousuf 60 3373 59.17 11/ 13
Greg Chappell 86 4316 59.12 15/ 19
Sachin Tendulkar 220 11,239 57.34 41/ 45
Javed Miandad 140 6925 54.10 19/ 31
Denis Compton 86 4234 53.59 13/ 20
Inzamam-ul-Haq 98 4867 52.90 15/ 21
Brian Lara 148 7535 51.25 24/ 31
One of the criticisms levelled against Tendulkar has been his relative lack of runs in second innings: he averages only 42.76 in all second innings, and 36.72 in the fourth innings. However, that also means he has been exceptional in the first innings, thus setting up games for India. He averages 62.88 in all first innings for the team, and 71.72 in the first innings of a match. His overall first-innings average is among the highest: among the batsmen with 4000 such runs, only six have a higher average.
The ODI master
Tendulkar has set some pretty awesome records in Tests, but some of his ODI stats are arguably more staggering. His career aggregate is currently more than 4000 ahead of his nearest competitor, and it'll certainly go up even further by the time he retires. As an opener, he has scored almost 15,000 runs at an average touching 49, which is the highest for openers who've scored at least 2500.
Like in Tests, Tendulkar has also raised his game against the Australians in one-day internationals, scoring more than 3000 runs against them - the only one to do so - at an average of more than 46.
Best ODI batsmen against Australia since 1990 (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman ODIs Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Aravinda de Silva 24 997 49.85 83.43 2/ 6
Hansie Cronje 39 1364 47.03 73.05 2/ 9
Sachin Tendulkar 67 3005 46.23 85.12 9/ 14
Lance Klusener 26 794 44.11 87.34 0/ 5
Kumar Sangakkara 28 1134 43.61 74.80 1/ 8
Jonty Rhodes 55 1610 40.25 77.92 0/ 10
Brian Lara 51 1858 39.53 76.58 3/ 15
Tendulkar has already stated that he will play the 2011 World Cup, and if his past record at the tournament is anything to go by, opposition bowlers will have plenty to worry about. He has already played five World Cups so far, averaging almost 58 in 36 matches. With the format guaranteeing each team at least six matches, Tendulkar has an excellent chance to become the first batsman to score 2000 World Cup runs.
Best performers in World Cups (Qual: 1000 runs)
Batsman Matches Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Viv Richards 23 1013 63.31 85.05 3/ 5
Sachin Tendulkar 36 1796 57.93 88.21 4/ 13
Herschelle Gibbs 25 1067 56.15 87.38 2/ 8
Sourav Ganguly 21 1006 55.88 77.50 4/ 3
Mark Waugh 22 1004 52.84 83.73 4/ 4
Ricky Ponting 39 1537 48.03 81.06 4/ 6
Javed Miandad 33 1083 43.32 68.02 1/ 8
Brian Lara 34 1225 42.24 86.26 2/ 7
And here's further proof of Tendulkar's ability to rise to the big occasion: he averages more than 55 in tournament finals, with six hundreds in 39 games. There was a period, between 1999 and 2004, when his big-match form deserted him, but he hit back strongly in the CB Series finals against Australia in 2008, scoring an unbeaten 117 and 91, and he followed that with 138 in the final of the Compaq Cup in Colombo last year.
Best performers in ODI tournament finals (Qual: 750 runs)
Batsman Matches Runs Average Strike rate 100s/ 50s
Gary Kirsten 20 1019 67.93 74.16 3/ 7
Viv Richards 18 836 55.73 84.78 1/ 9
Sachin Tendulkar 39 1833 55.54 87.41 6/ 10
Matthew Hayden 17 760 50.66 73.14 1/ 6
Dean Jones 30 1064 48.36 73.12 1/ 8
Aravinda de Silva 24 930 44.28 88.06 2/ 6
Sanath Jayasuriya 39 1613 42.44 98.35 2/ 13
Marvan Atapattu 26 969 40.37 70.01 2/ 6
Some of the important records that stand in Tendulkar's name:
Tests
Most Test runs (13,447) and hundreds (47). Also the only player with more than 100 scores of 50-plus in Tests.
Most runs scored by a batsman at No. 4; more than 3500 runs ahead of the second-placed Lara.
Most runs put together by a non-opening partnership (5747, with Rahul Dravid).
Two Tests short of equalling the record for most Tests by a player (Steve Waugh's 168).
One-day internationals
Most ODI runs, hundreds.
Only batsman to score a double-hundred in this format.
Involved in the highest partnership for any wicket (331 with Dravid against New Zealand in 1999), and in total partnership runs with a single batsman.
Most Man-of-the-Match awards.
Most runs in World Cups, and in multi-team tournament finals. Also, most runs in a single World Cup.
Most ODI runs against Australia, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Two matches short of equalling Sanath Jayasuriya's record for most matches.
No comments:
Post a Comment