The dead-rubber dominators

The dead rubber at the end of a Test series usually has little at stake apart from pride and individual scores to settle. This week we look at batsmen who have boosted their career records by scoring heavily in such matches, and those who haven't been able to perform as impressively in relatively inconsequential matches. If you're wondering why the tables are full of Australians and Englishmen, it's because other teams rarely take part in five-Test series and therefore have played fewer dead rubbers.

Australian middle-order batsman Dean Jones' Test average drops to below 40 if you exclude dead Tests. He averaged 87.54 and scored four centuries in eight of them while averaging 39.82 in live games. In fact, four of his top six Tests scores - 216 against West Indies, 184 versus England, 150 against India, and 122 against England - came in the final Tests after the series had been decided.

Both of Brian Lara's record-breaking innings - 375 and 400 against England in Antigua - came in Tests after West Indies had clinched the series in 1994 and England took it 3-0 in 2004. If you exclude the 18 dead games during Lara's career, his average drops from over 50 to 48.89. Another Trinidadian, Dwayne Bravo, also has a significantly higher batting average in five dead Tests - 384 runs at an average of 54.85 - compared to his 30.24 in live matches. Incidentally, Bravo hasn't been part of a Test win yet. West Indies have lost 16 and drawn seven of the 23 games he's played to date.

Biggest drop in batting average when excluding dead Tests (qualification: 20 career innings)

Player	Span	Tests	Career avg		Dead Tests	Runs	Avg	100		Avg w/o dead Tests	Diff
VG Kambli (India)	1993-1994	17	54.20		2	281	140.50	1		44.61	-9.588
CP Mead (Eng)	1914-1921	17	49.37		4	378	94.50	2		40.35	-9.024
JT Murray (Eng)	1962-1967	21	22.00		4	207	69.00	1		14.95	-7.049
DM Jones (Aus)	1987-1992	52	46.55		8	963	87.54	4		39.82	-6.730
JM Gregory (Aus)	1921-1925	24	36.96		6	436	54.50	0		30.86	-6.098
TJE Andrews (Aus)	1921-1925	16	26.90		4	244	40.66	0		21.75	-5.159
JW Zulch (SA)	1910-1914	16	32.83		3	293	58.60	1		27.68	-5.153
MH Denness (Eng)	1974-1975	28	39.69		3	353	88.25	2		34.57	-5.111
WG Grace (Eng)	1886-1892	22	32.29		2	228	114.00	1		27.18	-5.106
AR Morris (Aus)	1947-1955	46	46.48		7	840	76.36	4		41.43	-5.056
Basit Ali (Pak)	1993-1995	19	26.81		4	286	47.66	1		22.00	-4.812
G Gunn (Eng)	1908-1912	15	40.00		2	235	78.33	1		35.40	-4.599
Wazir Mohammad (Pak)	1958-1959	20	27.62		2	200	66.66	1		23.11	-4.505
DJ Bravo (WI)	2004-2007	23	34.24		5	384	54.85	1		30.00	-4.243
Rev.DS Sheppard (Eng)	1951-1963	22	37.80		7	432	48.00	1		33.63	-4.170
JL Langer (Aus)	1999-2007	105	45.27		19	1816	67.25	8		41.11	-4.151
PM Toohey (Aus)	1978-1979	15	31.89		2	227	56.75	1		27.75	-4.142
RT Simpson (Eng)	1951-1951	27	33.35		2	261	87.00	1		29.23	-4.126
BC Lara (WI)	1993-2006	131	52.88		18	2369	78.96	6		48.89	-3.991
JN Crawford (Eng)	1906-1908	12	22.33		3	157	39.25	0		18.35	-3.980

Justin Langer, the former Australian opener, scored eight hundreds in 19 dead Tests and averaged 67.25, compared to his career figure of 45.27. His long-term opening partner Matthew Hayden, however, averages much lower in dead rubbers - 40.18 with only four hundreds in 20 Tests, compared to his career average of 53.

Alastair Cook, the England opening batsman, has begun to follow in Hayden's footsteps when it comes to dead Tests. Cook has scored 1460 runs at an average of 50 in 17 live Tests while his record in Tests played after the series has been decided is far inferior - 198 runs at an average of 24.75.

Kevin Pietersen is another who thrives when the stakes are high but has performed below par in dead Tests. All of his ten Test centuries have come in matches with the series still up for grabs. He averages just over 57 in live games while in four dead rubbers - against Pakistan, versus Australia in Melbourne and Sydney, and against West Indies - he has scored only 216 runs at an average of 27.

Biggest rise in batting average when dead Tests are excluded (qualification: 20 career innings)

Player	Span	Tests	Career avg		Dead Tests	Runs	Ave	100		Avg w/o dead Tests	Diff
HL Collins (Aus)	1921-1925	19	45.06		6	239	23.90	0		55.65	10.583
AF Kippax (Aus)	1925-1932	22	36.12		7	249	22.63	0		42.86	6.742
PF Warner (Eng)	1904-1906	15	23.92		3	21	3.50	0		30.05	6.126
DR Jardine (Eng)	1929-1933	22	48.00		3	160	26.66	0		54.09	6.095
DS Atkinson (WI)	1952-1956	22	31.79		3	58	9.66	0		37.56	5.772
AN Cook (Eng)	2006-2007	21	44.81		4	198	24.75	0		50.34	5.534
Rashid Latif (Pak)	1993-2003	37	28.77		6	87	8.70	0		34.05	5.281
J Ryder (Aus)	1921-1929	20	51.62		6	372	41.33	0		56.77	5.148
SJ McCabe (Aus)	1931-1936	39	48.21		6	147	18.37	0		53.08	4.871
ED Weekes (WI)	1952-1958	48	58.61		5	209	23.22	0		63.37	4.754
WH Ponsford (Aus)	1925-1932	29	48.22		5	216	27.00	0		52.94	4.717
BK Kunderan (India)	1962-1967	18	32.70		3	46	9.20	0		37.40	4.700
D Ganga (WI)	1999-2007	45	26.19		9	137	8.56	0		30.74	4.549
AJ Watkins (Eng)	1948-1948	15	40.50		1	2	1.00	0		44.88	4.388
KP Pietersen (Eng)	2006-2007	30	52.69		4	216	27.00	0		57.06	4.372
MJ Clarke (Aus)	2004-2007	27	42.00		4	75	15.00	0		46.35	4.354
VS Ransford (Aus)	1908-1912	20	37.84		3	76	15.20	0		42.03	4.193
MLC Foster (WI)	1973-1978	14	30.52		2	61	15.25	0		34.60	4.073
G Gambhir (India)	2004-2004	13	36.00		1	4	2.00	0		40.00	4.000
SM Nurse (WI)	1962-1967	29	47.60		4	153	21.85	0		51.52	3.917