Part-time pests
The List focuses on part-time bowlers in both forms of the game
Travis Basevi and George Binoy
22-Feb-2006
Some statistics, like Bradman's average and the number of centuries Tendulkar has made are known to pretty much every cricket buff. But The List will bring you facts and figures that aren't so obvious, adding fuel to those fiery debates about the most valuable middle-order bat, and the most useless tailender. If there's a particular List that you would like to see, e-mail us with your comments and suggestions.
 |
|
How often do you see a batsman drop his guard against a dibby-dobbly bowler after seeing off the more `real' threats only to rue his carelessness? This week the List focuses on part-time bowlers in both forms of the game. In order to define a part-timer, we've taken players who, on average, do not bowl more than five overs in an ODI and 15 overs in a Test.
Inzamam-ul-Haq fell twice to Sachin Tendulkar in the recent one-day series in Pakistan, moving Tendulkar up to third place, with seven dismissals, among bowlers who've claimed his wicket on most occasions. Incidentally, Sanath Jayasuriya, certainly not Sri Lanka's most potent weapon, has dismissed Inzamam eight times and Nathan Astle has taken his wicket on six occasions with gentle slow-medium pace. Inzamam, currently the second highest run-scorer in ODIs, has a dismissal percentage of 16.37 by part-timers - the fourth highest.
Having started off as an allrounder, persistent back problems stopped Steve Waugh from bowling regularly but not before he became Carl Hooper's scourge. Waugh snared Hooper 13 times and said he would bring himself on whenever Hooper came in to bat. Waugh's six Test dismissals of Hooper is joint highest with Merv Hughes, and in ODIs, Waugh accounts for seven of the 26 times that Hooper has fallen to a part-timer.
| Batsman | Bowler | Dis |
|---|---|---|
| CL Hooper (WI) | SR Waugh (Aust) | 7 |
| Inzamam-ul-Haq (Asia/Pak) | SR Tendulkar (India) | 7 |
| Inzamam-ul-Haq (Asia/Pak) | NJ Astle (NZ) | 6 |
| MV Boucher (Afr/SAf) | V Sehwag (Asia/ICC/India) | 5 |
| A Ranatunga (SL) | Saleem Malik (Pak) | 5 |
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | Runs | Ave | Dis | PT Dis | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DJ Cullinan (SAf) | 1993-2000 | 138 | 133 | 3860 | 32.99 | 117 | 21 | 17.94 | |
| N Hussain (Eng) | 1989-2003 | 88 | 87 | 2332 | 30.28 | 77 | 13 | 16.88 | |
| AH Jones (NZ) | 1987-1995 | 87 | 87 | 2784 | 35.69 | 78 | 13 | 16.66 | |
| Inzamam-ul-Haq (Asia/Pak) | 1991-2006 | 355 | 330 | 11230 | 39.96 | 281 | 46 | 16.37 | |
| CL Hooper (WI) | 1987-2003 | 227 | 206 | 5761 | 35.34 | 163 | 26 | 15.95 |
Among part-timers, Tendulkar currently has 142 one-day wickets and is behind Waugh who has 195. The first glimpse of Tendulkar's bowling ability was on show in the Hero Cup semi-final against South Africa in 1992. South Africa needed six off the last over and Tendulkar, bowling his first over of the game, conceded just three. Used primarily as a partnership breaker, he's had his moments with five-wicket hauls against Australia and Pakistan at Kochi. Tendulkar hasn't bowled as much in Tests, averaging less than five overs per match. Few will remember his three-wicket burst adding to Harbhajan Singh's mayhem as Waugh's final frontier held its ground at Kolkata.
| Player | Span | Mat | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SJ Snooke (SAf) | 1906-1923 | 26 | 1620 | 702 | 35 | 8/70 | 20.05 | 1 |
| MG Bevan (Aust) | 1994-1998 | 18 | 1285 | 703 | 29 | 6/82 | 24.24 | 1 |
| AJY Hopkins (Aust) | 1902-1909 | 20 | 1327 | 696 | 26 | 4/81 | 26.76 | 0 |
| Asif Iqbal (Pak) | 1964-1980 | 58 | 3864 | 1502 | 53 | 5/48 | 28.33 | 2 |
| KD Walters (Aust) | 1965-1981 | 74 | 3295 | 1425 | 49 | 5/66 | 29.08 | 1 |
While Michael Bevan will be remembered for being awesome with the bat in the one-day game and ordinary in Tests, he was a handy fill-in bowler during his 18-Test career. He bowled just over 214 overs for his 29 wickets at a startling average of 24.24. He even picked up a ten-wicket haul against West Indies at Adelaide in 1997.
Two West Indian spinners, Larry Gomes and Keith Arthurton, are first and third on the list of best ODI averages by a part-timer. Gomes's offspin came as a relief to the batsmen after a battering at the hands of Michael Holding and Co. but a lowering of the guard enabled Gomes to take wickets. He averages just 25.48, less than Shane Warne, at a better strike rate than Wasim Akram.
| Player | Span | Mat | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HA Gomes (WI) | 1978-1987 | 83 | 1345 | 1045 | 41 | 4/31 | 25.48 | 0 |
| K Srikkanth (India) | 1981-1992 | 146 | 712 | 641 | 25 | 5/27 | 25.64 | 2 |
| KLT Arthurton (WI) | 1988-1999 | 105 | 1384 | 1159 | 42 | 4/31 | 27.59 | 0 |
| WW Hinds (WI) | 1999-2005 | 98 | 801 | 693 | 25 | 3/24 | 27.71 | 0 |
| DS Lehmann (Aust) | 1996-2005 | 117 | 1793 | 1445 | 52 | 4/7 | 27.78 | 0 |
If there's a particular List that you would like to see, e-mail us with your comments and suggestions.
George Binoy is editorial assistant of Cricinfo