ESPNcricinfo Awards 2014: A year for New Zealand, and Angelo Mathews
The top players of 2013, as decided by the numbers. Also starring Dale Steyn, Rangana Herath, Brendon McCullum and AB de Villiers
Main awards
(cut-off: 750 runs in Tests, 750 in ODIs)
(cut-off: 30 wickets in Tests, 20 in ODIs)
(cut-off: 750 runs)
Only Sangakkara scored more Test runs than Mathews in 2014, but Mathews had the better average - 87.80 to 71.09. Even after factoring the extra runs that Sangakkara scored, Mathews had a Test score of 77.45 to Sangakkara's 71.09. Steven Smith was next with a score of 62.83, while Younis Khan and Brendon McCullum rounded off the top five.
(cut-off: 750 runs)
In 21 Test innings in 2014 (20 in matches that began after January 1, 2014, and one in the second innings of the Test that started on December 31, 2013), Mathews was dismissed for less than 15 only once. He passed 40 on 14 occasions, which is a good indication of how consistent he was in 2014. His standard deviation - which is a measure of the average distance from the mean - was a comparatively low 40.86. That, combined with his average of 87.80, gave him a consistency index (average divided by standard deviation) of 2.15, which was the best among all batsmen who scored 750-plus Test runs in 2014. Sangakkara had an index of only 0.95, because along with a triple and double-hundred, he also had nine scores of less than 30. Among the batsmen who were more consistent were Joe Root (index 1.50), Misbah-ul-Haq (1.49) and David Warner (1.45).
(cut-off: 30 wickets)
Not only was Herath the highest wicket-taker in Tests in 2014, he also got his wickets at an impressive five-fors were also better than any other bowler in the year. A few others had better averages - Johnson averaged 23.27, Anderson 22.15, and Steyn 19.56 - but the sheer weight of wickets worked in Herath's favour. Herath also bowled 610 overs in Tests in 2014; the next-highest was Nathan Lyon with 405.
(cut-off: 750 runs)
He played only 16 ODIs in 2014, but made them count, scoring 879 runs at an average of 73.25, and a strike rate of 114.45. He scored two hundreds - against Australia and Sri Lanka - and six fifties, and each of these 50-plus scores were made at faster than a run a ball. Of the four times he was dismissed for under 25, three were against Zimbabwe in the tri-series in which were the other side - against them de Villiers scored unbeaten knocks of 136 and 57 in the same tournament.
(cut-off: 20 wickets)
Shakib's stats with the ball were outstanding in 2014 - 21 wickets at an average of 16.80, and an economy rate of 3.72. Eleven of those wickets came in five ODIs against Zimbabwe, but even against other teams he was excellent - ten wickets in seven games at an average of 21.70 and an economy rate of 4.10. There were two bowlers who took 38 wickets - Ajantha Mendis and Mohammed Shami - but both had high economy rates: 5.76 for Mendis, 6.16 for Shami. That meant their overall index (which is calculated by multiplying the average by runs conceded per ball, and then weighting the score by their wickets tally) was slightly poorer than Shakib's (20.76 for Mendis, 23.55 for Shami) despite them taking so many wickets.
****
Other awards
(Cut-off: 750 runs, unless mentioned otherwise)
(Cut-off: eight innings)
Among pairs that batted together at least eight times at the top of the order in Tests, Sri Lanka's Dimuth Karunaratne and Kaushal Silva had the best average partnership, of 49.21. In 14 innings, they added 689 runs, with two century stands, with a highest of 124 against Pakistan in Dubai. (They added 642 in 13 partnerships in Tests that began in 2014, and 47 in the second innings of the Test in Abu Dhabi, which began on December 31, 2013.) More than big partnerships, a feature of their stands in 2014 was the fact that they almost always got starts: in 11 out of 14 innings, they added at least 30 for the opening wicket. The only other opening pair that ran them close was Australia's David Warner and Chris Rogers, who added 808 runs in 18 stands at an average of 44.88.
(Cut-off: eight innings)
In nine partnerships in Tests in 2014, Younis Khan and Misbahul-Haq put together 923 runs, at an exceptional average of 115.37. They started the year with a partnership of 218 against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi, and had two other 150-plus stands, also at the same venue - 181 against Australia, and an undefeated 193 against New Zealand. In nine stands they had five which exceeded 100. There were a couple of other hugely prolific batting pairs in Tests in 2014: Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson averaged 107.85 in seven stands, with a highest of 297 against Pakistan in Sharjah, and Azhar Ali and Younis, who averaged 80.66 from nine partnerships.
Zimbabwe played four Tests in 2014, and Hamilton Masakadza contributed significantly, scoring one century and two fifties in eight innings. His tally of 420 runs was 22.46% of the total runs that Zimbabwe's batsmen scored (1870) in Tests in 2014. The next-highest percentage belonged to West Indies' Craig Brathwaite, who scored 701 runs, which was 21.79% of his team's bat runs in the year.
Four batsmen scored between 702 and 721 runs in Test wins in 2014, but the leader of the pack was David Warner, whose 721 runs came in ten innings at an average of 72.10. Steven Smith scored 717 at an outstanding average of 119.50, while two New Zealanders rounded off the list: Kane Williamson made 712 at 101.71, while Brendon McCullum scored 702 runs at 87.75.
For the second year in a row, Warner took the prize for the best scoring rate (among batsmen with at least 750 runs), making his runs at 81.90 per 100 balls. No other batsman touched 75; the next best was McCullum, who scored 1164 runs at a strike rate of 72.56. Only two others touched 60, both from India - Kohli (60.54) and Ajinkya Rahane (60.01).
Out of the 1164 runs he scored, 722 were in fours and sixes (131 fours, 33 sixes). The percentage of 62.03 was the highest among all batsmen who scored at least 750 Test runs in 2014. There were four other batsmen who scored more than half their runs in boundaries: Murali Vijay (55.87%), Rahane (55.38), Kaushal Silva of Sri Lanka (51.86) and Warner (51.58). Vijay and Silva were the odd ones out here, as both had overall strike rates of less than 45, and yet had a high boundary percentage.
(cut-off: 30 wickets)
Among bowlers with at least 30 wickets, Steyn's strike rate of 37.6 was easily the best. (Incidentally, the best last year was 37.5, by Mitchell Johnson.) The next best in 2014 was Johnson, at 44.2, while James Anderson was third at 49.5. The bowler with the poorest strike rate among this lot was Nathan Lyon, at 73.6.
(cut-off: 15 wickets)
Among bowlers with at least 15 second-innings wickets, Steyn was the most potent, taking 21 wickets at an average of 15.04, and a strike rate of 27.7. The next best in terms of averages were Yasir Shah of Pakistan (15 wickets at 16.46) and Kemar Roach (15 wickets at 16.53).
(cut-off: 750 runs, unless mentioned otherwise)
Among the 19 batsmen who faced at least 750 deliveries in ODIs in 2014, only one scored at faster than a run a ball: AB de Villiers made 879 runs off just 768 balls - a strike rate of 114.45. Kohli came close, scoring 1054 runs in 1058 balls (strike rate 99.62), while Quinton de Kock was the only other batsman with a 90-plus strike rate (90.36).
Bangladesh's Anamul Haque was the slowest of the lot, scoring at a strike rate of 70.34 - 631 runs in 897 balls. Sri Lanka's Lahiru Thirimanne was next with a rate of 74.01, while Ahmed Shehzad, last year's slowest, was third this time with a rate of 75.87.
(cut-off: minimum 10 innings)
Last year, Shikhar Dhawan's combination with Rohit Sharma was the best among openers - they averaged 55.26 at a run rate of 5.38; this time, Dhawan's combination with Rahane was the best. In ten stands, they put together 773 runs at an average of 77.30, and a scoring rate of 5.71 per over. Among their three century stands was a partnership of 231 against Sri Lanka in Cuttack, and one of 183 against England at Edgbaston. Ian Bell and Alastair Cook did fairly well too, with 478 runs at an average stand of 53.11, while Aaron Finch-David Warner (average 49.09 in 11 stands) and Hashim Amla-Quinton de Kock (47.44 in 18) were the others who averaged more than 45. In terms of partnership index score (the average partnership multiplied by runs scored per ball), Dhawan-Rahane had a score of 73.56, followed by Bell-Cook at 50.19.
(cut-off: minimum 8 innings)
In nine partnerships in ODIs in 2014, Jos Buttler and Joe Root put together 521 runs at an average of 74.42 and a run rate of 6.84, giving them a partnership index score of 84.84. One of their century stands was worth 175, for the fifth wicket against West Indies in North Sound. Next best was Angelo Mathews and Lahiru Thirimanne, who averaged 78.16 at a run rate of 5.21 (partnership index 67.87), while Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson averaged 78.22 at a run rate of 5.16 (index 67.27).
Shikhar Dhawan won this award last year, and repeated the feat this year too. In 2013 he scored 54.91% of his runs in boundaries; this time, his boundary percentage was 54.48 - 90 fours and 14 sixes in a total aggregate of 815. Next in line was Tillakaratne Dilshan, with a boundary percentage of 52.73, while Rahane was the only other batsman with a 50-plus percentage - 50.52.
AB de Villiers made it a hat-trick in this category, winning for the third time, and by a hugely convincing margin. He had a dot-ball percentage of 35.29, well clear of the second-placed Kohli (43.57). Last year, de Villiers had a percentage of 41.40, while the second-best was George Bailey's 46.75. The highest dot percentage was Aaron Finch's 55.85, while Rahane followed closely with 55.45.
Williamson scored 770 out of New Zealand's 3757 bat runs in ODIs in 2014, which works out to a percentage of 20.50. It was the highest percentage among the top ten sides, marginally ahead of Mushfiqur Rahim's 704 out of 3513 runs (20.04%). Hashim Amla was third, scoring 892 runs out of South Africa's 4486 (19.88).
Sangakkara scored 858 runs in 18 Sri Lankan wins that he was a part of in 2014. He averaged 50.47 in wins, at a strike rate of 89. No other batsman scored 700 runs in wins. The next best was Kohli, with 695 in 11 innings, at an average of 77.22, and a strike rate of 101.31.
Like de Villiers in the dot-ball factor, Kohli made it a hat-trick of wins in this category, scoring 722 runs in 12 such innings, at an average of 72.20, and a strike rate of 102.26. Again, he was well clear of everyone else in this category, demonstrating how good he is when batting second: the next highest was Dhawan, with 551 runs in 12 innings at 50.09.
(cut-off: min 125 overs)
Among bowlers who bowled at least 125 ODI overs in 2014, Imran Tahir's economy rate of 4.31 was the best, closely followed by Sachithra Senanayake (4.38), James Tredwell (4.53) and Angelo Mathews (4.59). Of the 13 bowlers who made the 125-over cut, seven had economy rates of less than five.
Shami was the only one, among the bowlers who bowled 125 overs in 2014, to go at more than six runs per over. He conceded 872 runs in 141.3 overs, for an economy rate of 6.16. Shami was also the joint leading wicket-taker for the year, along with Ajantha Mendis, with 38, but neither could keep the runs down: Mendis' economy rate was 5.76, third from the bottom. Shami's strike rate of 22.3 was the best, though, followed by Mendis' 22.5.
Among those who bowled 125 overs, Bhuvneshwar had the best dot-ball percentage, of 62.74, easily the best. Next on the list was Angelo Mathews with a percentage of 56.12, followed by Mohammed Shami with 55.48.
Tahir conceded only 32 fours and nine sixes in the 763 balls he bowled, a percentage of 5.37. The next-lowest percentage was Senanayake's (5.65), with Shahid Afridi coming in third at 6.03. Spinners dominated the top section of this list as they bowl mostly in the middle overs, a period when batsmen aren't looking for boundaries as aggressively, and there's more protection for the bowlers in the deep. The bowler with the highest percentage of boundary balls was Shami: he conceded 99 fours and 22 sixes in 849 balls, a percentage of 14.25.
(cut-off: 180 balls faced)
Kohli was far and away the best batsman in the format. He played only seven innings in T20 internationals, and his scores read thus: 36*, 54, 57*, 23, 72*, 77, 66 - 385 runs at an average of 96.25 and a strike rate of 133.68. Even if the runs-per-innings stat is calculated, to do away with the effect of not-outs, his numbers are still impressive - his runs per innings is 55, which was much higher than for all other batsmen.
In the 12 T20I matches that Samuel Badree played in 2014, only three times did he concede more than a run a ball, while seven times his economy rate was less than five an over. His overall economy rate was 5.00, and he also took 19 wickets at an average of 12.36. Multiplying his bowling average with the runs conceded per ball, with a 1.1 factor for economy rate, Badree's overall bowling score was 10.11, which was well clear of the second-placed Imran Tahir, who had a score of 15.13 (average 13.40, economy rate 6.70).
(cut-off: six partnerships)
In seven partnerships, the Australian pair of Aaron Finch and Cameron White added 318 runs at an average of 53, and a run rate of 8.79 per over. Four of their seven partnerships were in excess of 40. Multiplying their average stand by the run rate, with a 1.1 weightage for the run rate, the partnership score for Finch and White was 80.67. In second place was West Indies' Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith: in eight innings they averaged 44.50 at a run rate of 7.71, giving them a score of 58.73.
New Zealand won five Tests in 2014, the most they have ever done in a calendar year, and lost only two, giving them a win-loss ratio of 2.50, the best among all teams in the year. Australia and Sri Lanka won five as well, but lost three games, while South Africa had a 4-2 win-loss record. Apart from Zimbabwe, who didn't win a Test in 2014, the team with the worst record was India: they won one Test and lost six, which is exactly the reverse of their 2013 Test record, when they won six and lost one.
Australia had a 13-5 win-loss record in ODIs in 2014, the best among all teams. South Africa were almost as good, winning 12 and losing six, while New Zealand won nine and lost five. Pakistan had a surprisingly poor ODI year, winning six and losing ten, while England were disappointing as well, with a 9-16 win-loss record.
In 16 ODIs, in 2014, New Zealand conceded only 90 wides and seven no-balls, an average of 6.06 per match, the least among all teams that played at least ten ODIs in the year. England, the winners in this category for the last two years, were a close second this time, with an average of 6.12 per game. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, were the least disciplined, giving away 9.81 wides and no-balls per game.
For the second time in succession, Sri Lanka were the most dominant T20I team, winning eight games - including the World Twenty20 tournament in Bangladesh - and losing only one, to England. India were next with a 5-2 record, while Australia had a 9-4 win-loss ratio in 2014.
S Rajesh is stats editor of ESPNcricinfo. @rajeshstats