Numbers Game
Amazing to abysmal over three decades
Series between Australia and West Indies used to be keenly anticipated not so long ago, but over the last 10 years the stats have been hopelessly one-sided
The List
The sparsest and the busiest careers
Players who've played few Tests over a long career, and those who've played a sizeable number in a short span of time
Ask Steven
Test cricket's lack of centurions, and the most ODI runs without a hundred
Captaining on debut, the highest all-out ODI score and the most lbws in an innings and match
The Dirty Dozen
As England kick off their series in South Africa, we look back to a tour that drew the fury of the wider world... more
Deluge in ODIs, drought in Tests
A fantastic series against India capped what has been a fine year in ODIs for Michael Hussey; in Tests, though, it's a different story... more
From D'Oliveira to Trott
England's tour of South Africa is a homecoming for four of their squad. We look at South Africans who switched allegiance down the years... more
Sixes for everyone, and strike-rates over 100
Innings in which every batsman hit it out of the park and scored at a run a ball or better... more
Another record for Tendulkar, and no fifties
Big scores on the losing side, the best Test bowling figures by leggies and slow left-armers, and out on the first ball of a Twenty20... more
A lowdown on batting Powerplays
A look at what the numbers suggest about the latest innovation in one-day cricket... more
They don't think it's all over
Lower-order partnerships that formed the highest percentage of the target during a chase... more
Trescothick, Gimblett and the black wings of depression
Two Somerset players, generations apart, have had their struggles with mental illness form the subject of two fine books... more
Icebergs, snowstorms and 'the fair sex'
When 12 English professionals set out on the first major overseas tour of all ... more
Dhoni and the No. 5 slot
There's been some debate over MS Dhoni's batting position in ODIs, but he's done so well at No. 5 that it's unlikely he'll relinquish it any time soon... more
The slowest to 1000 runs
Players who took the longest to reach 50, 100, 500 and 1000 career runs in Tests and ODIs... more
Hundreds against Australia, and 300 partnerships
Captains who've made ODI centuries against Australia, the most runs in a Test on debut, and the most runs in an ODI series... more
Masakadza's record, and the biggest differentials
The only player to have scored 150 twice in a one-day series, the commentator who's done the most Tests, and the worst-titled cricket books... more
Fine gestures
In honour of Dave Mohammed's alligator death roll, we take a look at XI unusual celebrations (including another by Mohammed) ... more
Masakadza sets a new record
Players who scored the most runs and took the most wickets in a bilateral series... more
The tallest players, and most ODIs without a duck
No. 11 top-scoring, most wickets without a five-for, and identical scores in both innings of a Test ... more
Barker's bowlers
A doctor, an air-force man, and 10 great players bring a childhood back to life... more
Ishant Sharma and his ODI problems
Last year's sensation has had his stats in one-dayers fall away this year, and the main difference has been his effectiveness at the start of the innings... more
Fifty-three ODIs without a fifty or a three-for
Players who never scored a half-century, nor took three wickets in an innings, during their whole careers... more
The largest crowds, and the fewest bowlers
Two bowlers doing the business by themselves, the highest ODI score by a No. 8, and the man called Scooter ... more
Barnett's bowl-out blues
When Derbyshire's bowlers found it all but impossible to hit a set of unguarded stumps... more
Bounce no aid for Lankan fast bowlers
Sri Lanka have struggled in ODIs in South Africa and Australia over the last decade, and a big problem for them has been the display of their fast bowlers... more
Sorry we missed you
Players who dropped out just ahead of, or during, games... more
Australia's fortress, and New Zealand's long wait
The longest winning and losing streaks, at home and abroad... more
The Don's average, and Dhoni's wicket
Chronic lbw candidates, king pairs off the first ball of the innings, and the Australian Pakistani ... more
Jack of two trades
Fingleton was possibly the finest cricketer-writer ever... more
The curious case of Misbah-ul-Haq
The World Twenty20 two years ago kickstarted an excellent run for Misbah-ul-Haq, but in 2009 his form has tapered away... more
How rude, I say
Captains who lacked courtesy towards their opponents (or the game itself)... more
The right men for large run-chases
Batsmen and bowlers who do better when the task is bigger... more
Most ducks, the cheapest seven-for, and "Paddles"
Hundreds by the top four in an innings, the most stumpings in ODIs, and the city with six international venues ... more
Luck and a helicopter
The 1976 John Player League went down to the wire... and left the BBC relying on guesswork to avoid backing a losing horse... more
The best ODI top order, and 300-plus scores
Are the best ODI teams those which have the best top-order batsmen? And a look at teams' records when they've posted 300... more
Big hundreds without big partnerships
Matches in which two batsmen made large scores in the same innings but weren't at the crease at the same time, not even for one ball... more
England's worst one-day run, and an innings of 298
A team of 11 first-class centurions, most catches before a stumping, and the man with more centuries than some teams put together ... more
Portraits of heroes
Ronald Mason used to worship cricketers as a boy, and wrote excellent prose on them as a man... more
The favourites for the Champions Trophy
Recent form in ODIs and results in South Africa suggest the hosts, Australia and India are the best bets to lift the trophy... more
Men oddly out
Earlier in the week Kumar Sangakkara was out hit wicket when he lost hold of his bat and saw it crash into the stumps. We look at 11 other strange ways of losing your wicket... more
One batsman, many partners
Openers who've had the most batting partners, and those with the fewest... more
Big scores without byes, and big scores on debut
Out for 99 on ODI debut, the oldest centurions on ODI debut, and a player called Sunny Jim, and players of Chinese descent to have played international cricket ... more
Saved by the detour
It was New Zealand's second Test series in Sri Lanka. The first match was dull as ditch water. Then things hotted up... more
A decade of toil for bowlers
Bowlers haven't suffered as much as they have in the 2000s for 60 years... more
Can Vettori challenge Hadlee's record?
The list of progressive record wicket-takers for each country in Tests... more
Fastest to 1000 runs, and twin nineties
Out just short of a hundred twice in a Test, largest stands by a pair of debutants, run out for ducks on debut, and stumped in both innings... more
Poet of the willow
Archie Jackson, who was born 100 years ago, was the Keats of cricket in more ways than one... more
The gathering storm
In 1939 the entire summer was overshadowed by the escalating crisis in Europe... more
The decade of the batsmen
With several top bowlers retiring, the 2000s has truly been the decade in which batsmen have made merry... more
Look pa, no hands
Stuart Broad seems on course to surpass his father's legacy. We look at other sons who put their fathers in the shade... more
Late limited-over centurions
Longest gaps between a maiden Test hundred and a maiden ODI hundred, and vice versa... more
Carrying bat on debut, and most sixes in an innings
Openers who hung around, caught and bowled twice by the same bowler in a Test, and the lowest average among bowlers with over 300 wickets ... more
Samaraweera sizzles in his second innings
Since his return to the team, Thilan Samaraweera has added a whole new dimension to his game... more
When the numbers didn't add up
Instances when teams with the leading run-scorers and wicket-takers in a series ended up on the wrong side of the scoreline... more
Losing causes, and debut run-outs
Unavailing long innings, the highest ODI score, the most centuries in a losing cause, and a cricketer-turned-drummer... more
Rowdy the chronicler
In praise of a cricketer who made the transition from player to first-rate cricket writer with ease... more
Duty calls
As losses mounted at the start of World War One, cricket continued to rumble on until the public outcry grew too loud... more
Dilshan goes the Sehwag way
Tillakaratne Dilshan has always preferred aggression over defence - markedly so over the last few years... more
Pressure picks
Debuts, comebacks, recalls or other selections where the stakes were particularly high - like in the case of Jonathan Trott... more
Coventry's 194, and other unexpected innings
Batsmen with the lowest averages before scoring a fifty and a century in ODIs and Tests... more
Long gaps, Oval stats, and opening bats
Twenty-two years between Tests, both openers scoring centuries, and triples without a six... more
How good is England's middle order?
Stats indicate it compares quite poorly with those of the other top teams over the last decade... more
Sixteen for six, and other horror stories
The poorest performances by the top, middle and lower orders in Tests... more
The fastest pair, and the worst bowling figures
Dismissed twice in a minute, wicketless for 259, and five-county professionals... more
Lessons for leaders
Brearley, Ranji, EM Rose, and the art of captaincy... more
From pup to top dog
A century in his 50th Test has only confirmed that Michael Clarke has risen more than a few notches over the last three years... more
Settling the Ashes
Eleven factors that have been crucial in cricket's premier contest down the years... more
From Charles Bannerman to Ricky Ponting
The leading run-scorers for each Test-playing country down the years... more
Miandad's record, and an ambidextrous bowler
Nine innings and as many fifties, ambidextrous bowlers, and the longest wait for a Test century... more
Bangladesh's best
Shakib Al Hasan has been a terrific find with bat and ball in Tests and ODIs... more
Hot? Not
Like Mitchell Johnson they went into series accompanied by great expectations, only to flounder. We look at XI promise breakers from the last 30 years... more
Most runs in a day, and the mystery man on the honours board
More than 500 in a day, men on both honours boards at Lord's, the most matches before a first-class ton, and the most bowled dismissals in an innings... more
The third T
Frank Tyson has been among our best analysts of players' temperament and what made them tick... more
Happy at last
Batting in the fourth innings of a match is no longer the nightmare it once used to be... more
A lack of ducks, and a surfeit of lbws
The most games since debut without being out for 0, captaincy on debut, three centuries in four days, and the players closest to 100 first-class hundreds... more
First-Test stars and flops
Batsmen who have stamped their authority on the first Test of a series, and others who have struggled... more
Daft wafts
Following Kevin Pietersen's much-maligned dismissal to an injudicious shot in the first Ashes Test in Cardiff, Cricinfo takes a look at other criticised strokes from the history of the game... more
The 100th anything
To commemorate Sophia Gardens becoming the 100th Test venue, we've looked at other 100ths in this week's column - the 100th match, 100th century, 100th duck, 100th five-for, and the like, across all formats... more
Four tons in an innings, and starting big but losing
Four-thirty-five and losing, Pakistan's lowest Test totals, and the most prolific Australian... more
So nearly Botham's annus horribilis
It was Botham's Summer but before that, it very nearly ended in tears... more
Is top-order batting so difficult in England?
Traditional wisdom suggests facing the new ball is the most difficult proposition in England, but numbers from the last two decades indicate otherwise... more
Winning despite dreadful batting performances
In this week's column we've looked at games - Tests, ODIs and Twenty20 internationals - which teams have won despite having the lowest high score... more
Winning the first Ashes Test, and losing at Lord's
The closest encounters, the highest individual score on the losing side, and the most experienced umpires - in this Ashes special edition... more
Grand exits
Men who quit in style, like Younis Khan did with Twenty20, making people ask why as opposed to why not... more
When being too old, or young, didn't matter - Part 2
The oldest, and youngest, players top-scoring or taking most wickets in an ODI series... more
Middle-order centuries, and Flintoff's middling form
Yuvraj beats de Silva's record, Flintoff's last century, two hat-tricks in a Test, and most sixes in a first-class match... more
All Rhodes
Two of the greatest books on one of the greatest allrounders ever... more
The crowd without the silver lining
It had rained, the conditions were not suitable, but these spectators wanted their monies' worth and just wouldn't go home... more
Why Younis Khan shouldn't have retired from Twenty20 cricket
Pakistan's captain may have announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket, but stats suggest he is the perfect batsman for the format... more
When less is more in Twenty20
Teams winning despite hitting fewer boundaries, scoring slower, and losing more wickets than the opposition... more
Most maidens in a Test, and most wickets in a T20 international
Hard-to-score-off bowlers, Umar Gul's Twenty20 exploits, the corpse with pads on, and West Indies' national anthem... more
New Zealand's bogey opposition
Ask any New Zealand cricketer which team he least prefers to play, and the answer will probably be Pakistan... more
Men at work
Eleven players who had careers outside of cricket ... more
Slow centuries, and Kamran Akmal's new record
No boundaries in hundreds, four stumpings in an innings, and the bail that wouldn't budge... more
Gold from the Ashes
Celebrating Cardus' evocations of cricket's premier contest... more
When the boot was on the other foot
A decade ago it was Ricky Ponting in the firing line, in circumstances similar to the ones Andrew Symonds finds himself in these days... more
Australia's bowling debacle, and left-arm seamers on the rise
The Australian attack was one of the most profligate in terms of conceding boundaries in the first stage of the World Twenty20... more
The 3000th Test century, and the longest Twenty20 innings
The most balls faced by a batsman in a Twenty20 international, all four innings in one day, and most wickets away from home... more
Batting tactics in the Powerplays and the slog overs
Go all out from the beginning or keep wickets in hand and launch an assault at the end? Stats indicate different teams adopt different measures... more
Not enforcing the follow-on and losing, and old bowlers
When teams paid for not forcing the issue, the oldest to take five- and 10-fors, Charlie Griffith's book, the fearsome foursome, and Bradman the bowler... more
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