ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 / Features
Are England's top three too slow for ODIs?
Alastair Cook, Ian Bell or Jonathan Trott are not out-and-out aggressive batsmen, but they haven't done too badly in ODIs in the last 18 months
June 21, 2013
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ICC Champions Trophy
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England
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England have been one of the form teams of the Champions Trophy and are in the final, but much talk about the team has revolved around the somewhat anachronistic scoring rate of their top three. Alastair Cook, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott tend to bat in a similar tempo, preferring a strike rate of around 75. They are also not given to flashy strokeplay, preferring to accumulate their runs steadily. In today's age of ODI cricket, when batsmen are expected to take advantage of the fielding restrictions, the scoring pattern and rate of England's top order has often come in for some flak. Here's a look at some of the numbers for England's top three, and a comparison with other teams over the last year and a half.
The table below shows the year-by-year stats for England's top three batsmen in ODIs over the last ten years, and it's clear that except for a couple of years in 2010 and 2011, the strike rates for their top three have always been in the mid-70s. In those two years, it wasn't Kevin Pietersen who made the difference, but Cook, Andrew Strauss and Craig Kieswetter, all of whom scored more than 750 runs at 90-plus strike rates. In all the years before that, and in the period since, the rate has hovered in the 70s.
What has changed, though, is the average of the top three. In the last 18 months, England's top order has averaged more than 47, which is much higher than they managed in the period before 2010, when the average was in the late 20s or early 30s.
A comparison with the other top teams makes for interesting reading as well. The period between 2007 and 2009 was when England's top order was scoring at a much slower rate than everyone else - the average strike rate for other sides was more than 80, while England plodded in the mid-70s. In the last 18 months, though, the strike rates of other top sides aren't much higher than England's, while their batting averages are a lot lower. This suggests England's top order has been giving the side far more solid starts, while scoring at roughly the same rate, over the last 18 months.
It needs to be clarified, though, that all these are overall numbers, and they don't suggest that there may not have been individual instances when the top three might have batted too slowly in the context of that match. Overall, though, England's top-order numbers look pretty good.
England | Other top teams | |||||||
Year | Inngs | Average | Strike rate | 100s/ 50s | Inngs | Average | Strike rate | 100s/ 50s |
2013 | 45 | 47.26 | 79.98 | 2/ 14 | 247 | 34.16 | 79.02 | 20/ 34 |
2012 | 44 | 50.71 | 76.52 | 6/ 10 | 402 | 34.88 | 79.20 | 26/ 75 |
2011 | 89 | 39.38 | 88.11 | 4/ 24 | 521 | 36.88 | 79.86 | 30/ 110 |
2010 | 51 | 41.02 | 88.86 | 4/ 14 | 434 | 36.56 | 83.39 | 27/ 89 |
2009 | 66 | 29.60 | 74.30 | 1/ 10 | 526 | 36.92 | 84.60 | 32/ 109 |
2008 | 58 | 33.00 | 77.66 | 2/ 9 | 436 | 37.57 | 84.25 | 32/ 92 |
2007 | 102 | 27.42 | 70.46 | 3/ 12 | 598 | 37.34 | 81.00 | 31/ 136 |
2006 | 60 | 31.87 | 75.56 | 2/ 12 | 558 | 36.18 | 78.34 | 40/ 113 |
2005 | 65 | 31.71 | 75.58 | 3/ 8 | 460 | 33.22 | 79.31 | 30/ 73 |
2004 | 60 | 34.98 | 74.13 | 3/ 16 | 530 | 34.89 | 75.78 | 25/ 100 |
The strategy that teams chalk up for the approach of their top order also depends on the firepower down the order. In the current set-up, England have Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler and Ravi Bopara, all of whom are capable of forcing the pace later in the innings. England are clearly comfortable with having a top order whose main brief is to provide a solid foundation for others to capitalise on later. It's a strategy that has served them reasonably well, given that they have a win-loss ratio of 2.22 (20 wins, nine losses), better than any other team during this period.
Among all teams, India's top three have had the best strike rate, which isn't a surprise given that they have enforcers at the top of the order, and that they also play their home games in conditions that are often very good for batting. South Africa, New Zealand and Sri Lanka are the others with strike rates higher than England's, but the difference isn't that much. England's average, on the other hand, is much higher than that of the others.
Team | Innings | Average | Strike rate | 100s/ 50s |
India | 81 | 38.96 | 85.10 | 9/ 14 |
South Africa | 75 | 37.31 | 82.56 | 5/ 15 |
New Zealand | 78 | 33.80 | 81.51 | 4/ 15 |
Sri Lanka | 127 | 40.18 | 81.51 | 11/ 24 |
England | 89 | 48.92 | 78.22 | 8/ 24 |
West Indies | 84 | 31.43 | 77.52 | 6/ 10 |
Australia | 111 | 30.01 | 75.09 | 6/ 16 |
Pakistan | 93 | 30.67 | 71.23 | 5/ 15 |
Bangladesh | 42 | 27.70 | 70.51 | 2/ 7 |
Zimbabwe | 27 | 23.76 | 69.05 | 1/ 3 |
The other point that's sometimes mentioned with respect to England's top order is their high dot-ball ratio in the early part of an innings. However, as the table below shows, there are other sides who have done worse than them in the first 15 overs of ODIs in the last 18 months. South Africa and India are on top again, with percentages of around 60, but England 64.47% isn't that much adrift of the top sides.
Where England are clearly superior to the other sides is in losing fewer wickets in the early overs. Most teams lose, on average, about two wickets in the first 15; England, on the other hand, have lost only 37 in 30 - 1.23 per game. Some might argue that England's slower run rate - which extends over more overs since these batsmen bat longer periods - puts more pressure on those following the top three than it might if they got out earlier, but the overall results show that this method has suited them quite well.
Team | Innings | Wickets | Average | Run rate | Dot-ball % |
South Africa | 25 | 43 | 40.93 | 4.69 | 59.78 |
India | 27 | 56 | 35.82 | 4.95 | 60.49 |
Sri Lanka | 43 | 81 | 36.64 | 4.76 | 62.31 |
England | 30 | 37 | 54.56 | 4.58 | 64.47 |
Australia | 37 | 77 | 30.74 | 4.30 | 65.02 |
New Zealand | 26 | 56 | 29.32 | 4.21 | 67.69 |
Pakistan | 31 | 58 | 30.63 | 3.89 | 68.41 |
West Indies | 28 | 62 | 29.24 | 4.31 | 68.41 |
In the last 18 months, Cook, Bell and Trott have done the bulk of the batting in the top three for England, and are the only ones to have scored more than 500 runs at those positions. All three have fine averages, and have innings-to-fifties ratios of less than three, which shows their consistency. The dot-ball percentages for Cook and Bell are around 57, and while that's on the higher side, it isn't unacceptable for openers, who bat when there are more fielders in the circle, and hence tend to play out more dots.
Batsman | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike rate | 100s/ 50s | Dot-ball% | 4s/ 6s |
Alastair Cook | 30 | 1221 | 42.10 | 78.01 | 3/ 8 | 57.51 | 142/ 6 |
Ian Bell | 26 | 1181 | 49.20 | 79.42 | 2/ 8 | 57.63 | 126/ 11 |
Jonathan Trott | 22 | 973 | 57.23 | 74.38 | 1/ 7 | 50.92 | 71/ 1 |
Kevin Pietersen | 9 | 466 | 58.25 | 85.19 | 2/ 1 | 53.02 | 48/ 6 |
Even among those three England batsmen, the flak for slow scoring has been directed more at Trott than at the other two. Justified or unfair? The table below lists the batsmen with the slowest strike rates in ODIs since the beginning of 2011, the period around which Trott became a regular in England's ODI side. In this period, Trott's strike rate of 77.53 is better than four batsmen (with a cut-off of 1500 runs). Among them is Kumar Sangakkara (strike rate 77.15), Mohammad Hafeez (75.66), Upul Tharanga (75.40), and Misbah-ul-Haq (69.95). Trott's average of 54.47, though, is third among the 17 batsmen who have scored 1500-plus runs during this period - only MS Dhoni and AB de Villiers have higher averages. It's true that Trott's average in losses (53.77) is almost as high as his average in wins (54.82), a stat that is brought forth to illustrate that his runs are often detrimental to the team cause. That seems to be an unfair rap, though, given that no other England batsman has averaged 40 in the ODIs that England have lost with Trott in the line-up.
On Sunday the focus will again be on England's top three, including Trott, as they take on India in the Champions Trophy final. Chances are that if they all contribute their average scores at a strike rate of around 80, England will be well served.
Batsman | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike rate | 100s/ 50s |
Misbah-ul-Haq | 57 | 2005 | 48.90 | 69.95 | 0/ 16 |
Upul Tharanga | 50 | 1591 | 34.58 | 75.40 | 4/ 10 |
Mohammad Hafeez | 63 | 1946 | 32.98 | 75.66 | 5/ 9 |
Kumar Sangakkara | 60 | 2644 | 48.96 | 77.15 | 5/ 17 |
Jonathan Trott | 50 | 2288 | 54.47 | 77.53 | 3/ 17 |
Ian Bell | 50 | 1793 | 38.14 | 78.88 | 2/ 11 |
Michael Clarke | 41 | 1653 | 47.22 | 79.50 | 2/ 11 |
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Why isn't Ravindra Jadeja better in T20 cricket? (1)
Slow left-arm spinners generally do well in T20s, plus he can also bat a bit. Then why doesn't he stop runs, take many wickets, or bat quicker in the IPL?
Re the weather - on the BBC forecast - yesterday it gave rain all day and now it gives sunshine and showers.I'd say a rain interrupted day favours India even more as England's policy is to build an inns and gather momentum whereas India are a more fluent side. EG if Eng are 30/40-0 after 10 and then the rain shortens it to a 30 over game they'll be behind the game. India would likely be anything between 50 and 70 after 10 so I don't think it would affect them so much. Not sure they'll do it as they're not the best at thinking outside the box , but I hope they look at the weather forecast (on the day) and adjust their gameplan accordingly.
Great article and good that this came up at this time when England top 3 are going through some unnecessary criticism. I read 3 contrasting articles from Gavaskar, Boycott and Manjerakar. While Boycott and Sanjay agreed to the approach of building a foundation and then going great guns at the end, Gavaskar did not like the idea and found the stability provided by these 3 a tad slow. I am surprised by Gavaskar, especially when these 3 are actually scoring at a pretty decent rate. England should rather focus on the consistency of the bottom half of their batting which lets them down, hopefully Pietersen will bring that stability at down the order. More ofen than not, these 3 will win a lot of matches for England except for maybe in some flat tracks in Asian conditions, where England should be ready to be a little flexible in their batting order. You need your Cooks, and Trotts and Kohli's and Williamson's and Baileys alonwith your Dhoni's, Pietersen's, Taylors,Watson's to be successful!!
Noticed an interesting fact about Pietersen yesterday, which is that his average since the start of 2009 to present is just 31.47 (about ten points lower than his career average. His strike rate has been slightly higher than England's current top three at 84.90, but that's a big difference in average.
please publish this time. Nothing that can be deemed offensive to anyone
One thing they mentioned on one of the CT games was that comparing Trott with Amla. I think it was said that when Amla scores big SA win but when Trott scores big it's not always the same result for England. I change my mind about Trott all the time but I think he is harshly pigeonholed as the slowcoach when Bell and Cook generall go at a similar pace and are not as consistent scoringwise. I still think they could do as well with 2 of the 3 with Root also playing a similar role if necessary. Also feel Jos should learn to settle down. The guy has so much ability but is so much better when he builds an innings. So I'd rather see him score heavier at a lesser SR. He could still score at a SR of 130-50 without taking huge risks
Here are some other interesting stats:
In the last two years, England and India have played each other in England on 5 occasions. England won 3, there was one tie and one 'no result'.
India's 'runs per over' rate was an impressive 5.71
However, England's rate was 6.19.
A small sample, but certainly suggests that England have a pretty good chance of not just matching but indeed outscoring India in tomorrow's match.
The problem, as a couple of people have pointed out, is less these three and more the team management's lack of flexibility in assessing the match situation. Against Australia England were 168-2 when Trott got out in the 33rd over. A nice platform had been set and the powerplay was due in the 35th over. A powerplay is a nice opportunity for guys like Morgan and Buttler to get a few boundaries away without going aerial and get themselves set for the last 10. Instead England sent in Root. Joe's certainly got the ability to score at a good lick (as seen against Sri Lanka) but he's not a power player. He should have been held back until Bell got out (or until all the power players had gone in and gotten out) to "finish" the innings. When KP comes back I'd have him at 4 in seam-friendly conditions but open (with Bell at 4) in conditions that either favour the batsman or the spinners. Dhoni's used flexibility to great effect (2011 World Cup final) and England would do well to follow suit.
Unfortunately these stats dont tell the real picture. The fact of the matter is England are a far better team when battind 2nd as they know at what tempo they have to chase, when batting first the urgency tends not to be there, the game v sri lanka being a prime example - Cook, Bell & Trott in that game scored 155 runs off 209 balls betwwen them leaving only 91 balls (or 15.1 overs) for the rest of the team, to get the 290 odd we did from that view was a good effort but not enough as it proved. Whilst this article proves englands success has been based on a solid top 3 which most of the time is a good thing, there has to be an element of flexibility within in certain games to up the tempo, especially batting first, but i suppose if Pietersen was playing we wouldnt have the issue because he would naturally increase the tempo anyway.!!
@ maddy20 on (June 22, 2013, 8:18 GMT) KP to open or come in at 3. To open IMO as that's where he left off and had success in UAE vs Pakistan. BTW surely there would be similar pressure on those who bat below KP whether he bats at 2,3 or 4. In fact I'd say if there is a pressure thing there will be more pressure on those below KP the lower he comes in at. Also guys like Morgan and Buttler are capable of upping the tempo of an inns although the latter needs to settle down a little more and not keep trying to repeat the 47 off 14.
@landl: Which team has the batting resources whose career strike rate is more than 130 in ODI's? Because a strike rate of 130+ is required in every one of the games that England plays in to score 120 runs in the last 15 overs?
@landl47 Sanga is a good player but not great. Mahela is just too inconsistent and hence at best an average player. The best ODI players in the modern era are Amla, KP, Kohli, Dhoni, AB. All of them average 50 or there about and have fantastic strike rates. Cook and Trott are good players too. If KP does return to ODIs then they should continue to bat Trott at 3 and KP at 4. It means that he will be in at around the 20-25 over mark and will have enough time to get his eye in to tee off in the power play. Playing him at 3 would be huge risk as there will be tremendous pressure on the others if he gets out. Morgan, Bopara etc., will provide the fireworks towards the end. An explosive middle order batsman that can dictate the game is the only thing England's ODI team lacks.