Leading by example with the bat

Chris Gayle's century in the first Test against England in Jamaica set up a fantastic win for West Indies; Andrew Strauss hit back with a hundred of his own in Antigua, setting up what was so nearly a fitting reply by England; throughout 2008, Graeme Smith was the talismanic leader for South Africa, coming up with a match-winning knock under pressure almost every time his team needed him to. Ricky Ponting, too, has been amazingly prolific, while Mahela Jayawardene, about to begin his last series as captain, set new standards in batting when captain, reaching levels that hadn't been achieved since Don Bradman. All these are leaders who led by example in terms of personal performances. Are the batting captains of today more prolific than their counterparts from earlier eras? Let's dig up some numbers and see what they reveal.

Looking at all stats since 1950, and only for captains who have batted in the top six (to avoid bringing the wicketkeepers and bowlers into the mix), the numbers in this decade are better than in any other. Captains average 43.80 in the 2000s, marginally ahead of the 43.28 they averaged in the 1960s. They also scored 136 centuries from 419 games in the 2000s, which converts to one every three games - much better than in the 1990s (one every four). Compare the non-captains, though, and the difference between the 2000s and the next-best decade is slightly more: 38.49 in the 2000s, and 37.32 in the 1970s.

The difference in averages, though, is much more significant when restricting to captains' performances only in victories. In the 2000s, captains have indeed played the lead role in many of the 282 wins by their teams, with an outstanding average of more than 57, which is much higher than the 50.64 they managed in the 1960s. Their conversion-rate of fifties to hundreds is outstanding too in this decade, with 73 centuries out of 167 scores of over 50. It's also a huge improvement from the earlier decade: in the 1990s, captains batting in the top six averaged 48.39, with only 34 centuries in 202 wins.

So who are the leaders who've been so influential - with the bat at least - in their team's wins this decade? Among those who've scored at least 500 runs in wins, at the top of the heap is West Indies' Brian Lara, who averages 88.33 in four Test wins by West Indies, but both his hundreds came against the lesser teams - he notched up 191 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in 2003, and 120 against Bangladesh in Kingston in June the following year. Inzamam-ul-Haq's four centuries were scored against stiffer opposition - two against India, and one each against Sri Lanka and West Indies - giving him an average of more than 86 in 11 Tests.

Mahela Jayawardene's record is remarkable, especially for his conversion of starts into hundreds - he has scored seven centuries, including that monumental 374 against South Africa, and two fifties in 15 Tests. Smith has notched up his hundreds at an amazing rate too - he has 12, including two doubles, in 33 Test wins for South Africa.

While eight batsmen average more than 50 (with the 500-run qualification) in the 2000s, in the 1990s only five batsmen made the cut. Graham Gooch led the way, averaging 90.43, with a remarkable seven hundreds - including his 333 against India at Lord's in 1990 - and only one half-century. Australia is well represented with three players out of the list of 10, but the one who was the most successful in terms of team wins, Mark Taylor, contributed the least the bat. Plenty has been written about Taylor's inspirational captaincy, but he wasn't one of those whose batting talked the loudest - in 26 Test wins in the 1990s, he averaged only 34.65.

In fact, in the all-time list of most successful captains in Test wins (with a qualification of 1000 runs), four out of the top 10 have led their teams only in the 2000s, which apart from suggesting an ability to lead from the front is also consistent with the general increase in batting averages during this decade. It's again an Aussie-heavy list, with Don Bradman, Bob Simpson, Greg Chappell and Ricky Ponting all up there with the cream of the crop. (Click here for the full list of captains batting in the top six who have scored 1000 or more runs in Test wins.)