Rising against the rivals
A look at players with the best records in India-Pakistan clashes
Travis Basevi and George Binoy
31-Oct-2007
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After the high of the World Twenty20, India's wings were clipped during a 2-4 home series defeat against limited-overs champions Australia. India now prepare to face Twenty20 finalists Pakistan, who were also recently beaten 3-2 by South Africa at home. This week the List looks at players with the best records in India-Pakistan clashes.
Both the rival captains, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shoaib Malik, have excellent records in India-Pakistan one-dayers. After poor scores in his first four ODIs, Dhoni burst into the limelight with a coruscating innings at Visakhapatnam in 2005. His 148 came off only 123 balls and was a harbinger for Pakistan. In ten innings against them since, Dhoni has scored four half-centuries, boosting his average to 60.22.
Malik also brings out his A game against the Indians. His average of 47.22 is significantly higher than his overall average of 34.15. In 23 innings against India, Malik has two hundreds and eight half-centuries - nearly a third of his fifties. When India last toured Pakistan in 2005-06, Malik reeled off a couple of nineties and a century in the first three ODIs, but Pakistan eventually lost the series 1-4.
| Player | Span | Mat | Runs | Ave | 100 | IvP | Runs | Ave | 100 | Diff | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 13 | 542 | 60.22 | 1 | 16.730 | ||||||||
| Salman Butt (Pak) | 2004-2006 | 36 | 1072 | 30.62 | 3 | 11 | 457 | 45.70 | 3 | 15.071 | |||
| 0 | 8 | 304 | 38.00 | 0 | 13.487 | ||||||||
| Shoaib Malik (Pak) | 2000-2006 | 145 | 3825 | 34.15 | 5 | 23 | 1039 | 47.22 | 2 | 13.075 | |||
| 2 | 20 | 471 | 42.81 | 0 | 12.278 | ||||||||
| Aamer Sohail (Pak) | 1991-1998 | 156 | 4780 | 31.86 | 5 | 25 | 958 | 41.65 | 1 | 9.785 | |||
| 8 | 35 | 1175 | 51.08 | 3 | 9.386 | ||||||||
| M Prabhakar (India) | 1984-1995 | 130 | 1858 | 24.12 | 2 | 18 | 262 | 32.75 | 1 | 8.620 | |||
| 8 | 23 | 783 | 43.50 | 1 | 7.438 | ||||||||
| IK Pathan (India) | 2004-2006 | 80 | 1065 | 23.66 | 0 | 14 | 243 | 30.37 | 0 | 6.708 | |||
| 20 | 50 | 2002 | 43.52 | 4 | 4.308 | ||||||||
| Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak) | 1992-2006 | 378 | 11739 | 39.52 | 10 | 67 | 2403 | 43.69 | 4 | 4.165 | |||
| 7 | 13 | 612 | 51.00 | 3 | 3.370 | ||||||||
| Ijaz Ahmed (Pak) | 1986-2000 | 250 | 6564 | 32.33 | 10 | 53 | 1533 | 35.65 | 2 | 3.316 | |||
| 0 | 49 | 788 | 26.26 | 0 | 3.266 | ||||||||
| Manzoor Elahi (Pak) | 1984-1988 | 54 | 741 | 22.45 | 0 | 13 | 205 | 25.62 | 0 | 3.170 | |||
| 4 | 53 | 1289 | 25.78 | 2 | 2.509 | ||||||||
| Saleem Malik (Pak) | 1983-1999 | 283 | 7170 | 32.88 | 5 | 52 | 1534 | 34.08 | 2 | 1.198 | |||
| 1 | 25 | 643 | 35.72 | 0 | 0.989 | ||||||||
| V Sehwag (India) | 1999-2006 | 175 | 5153 | 31.61 | 8 | 20 | 651 | 32.55 | 1 | 0.936 |
Click here for the full tables.
Pakistan jettisoned Salman Butt as vice-captain after he couldn't find a spot in the XI for the ODIs against South Africa following a poor run of form. But given their unsettled opening combination, and Butt's splendid record against India, they might want to consider him again. Butt averages 45.70 in 11 ODIs and all three of his one-day hundreds have come against India.
Two of the great allrounders, Imran Khan and Kapil Dev, have had poor batting records against their traditional rivals. Kapil managed only one fifty in 27 innings , was dismissed for less than 20 on 21 occasions, and averaged only 15.28 against Pakistan. Imran Khan, too, scored just one fifty against India - 73 at Nagpur, in the same series in which Kapil scored his fifty against Pakistan - in 25 innings and his average of 21.65 is his lowest against any opposition.
| Player | Span | Mat | Runs | Ave | 100 | IvP | Runs | Ave | 100 | Diff | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imran Khan (Pak) | 1978-1992 | 175 | 3709 | 33.41 | 1 | 29 | 433 | 21.65 | 0 | -11.764 | |||
| M Kaif (India) | 2003-2006 | 125 | 2753 | 32.01 | 2 | 21 | 369 | 21.70 | 0 | -10.305 | |||
| 2 | 19 | 354 | 23.60 | 0 | -8.992 | ||||||||
| A Jadeja (India) | 1992-2000 | 196 | 5359 | 37.47 | 6 | 40 | 892 | 28.77 | 0 | -8.701 | |||
| 1 | 32 | 382 | 15.28 | 0 | -8.512 | ||||||||
| Mohammad Yousuf (Pak) | 1999-2006 | 247 | 8367 | 41.62 | 13 | 34 | 998 | 33.26 | 1 | -8.360 | |||
| 9 | 29 | 666 | 23.78 | 0 | -8.307 | ||||||||
| VVS Laxman (India) | 2000-2004 | 86 | 2338 | 30.76 | 6 | 10 | 234 | 23.40 | 1 | -7.363 | |||
| 41 | 61 | 2122 | 38.58 | 5 | -5.651 | ||||||||
| Mohsin Khan (Pak) | 1978-1986 | 75 | 1877 | 26.81 | 2 | 14 | 276 | 21.23 | 1 | -5.583 | |||
| 7 | 64 | 1657 | 31.86 | 2 | -5.055 | ||||||||
| SC Ganguly (India) | 1996-2005 | 307 | 11274 | 41.29 | 22 | 49 | 1563 | 36.34 | 2 | -4.947 | |||
| 2 | 33 | 621 | 25.87 | 0 | -4.091 | ||||||||
| R Dravid (India) | 1996-2006 | 333 | 10585 | 39.49 | 12 | 57 | 1823 | 35.74 | 2 | -3.751 | |||
| 0 | 29 | 346 | 17.30 | 0 | -2.890 | ||||||||
| NS Sidhu (India) | 1988-1998 | 136 | 4413 | 37.08 | 6 | 28 | 862 | 34.48 | 2 | -2.604 | |||
| 0 | 48 | 425 | 14.16 | 0 | -2.353 | ||||||||
| Mudassar Nazar (Pak) | 1978-1988 | 122 | 2653 | 25.26 | 0 | 20 | 345 | 23.00 | 0 | -2.266 | |||
| 3 | 14 | 230 | 23.00 | 0 | -1.814 | ||||||||
| SM Gavaskar (India) | 1978-1987 | 108 | 3092 | 35.13 | 1 | 20 | 600 | 33.33 | 0 | -1.803 |
Click here for the full tables.
Who has the best bowling average in India-Pakistan matches? Not Wasim Akram, not Waqar Younis, not Saqlain Mushtaq nor Aaqib Javed.
Remember Harvinder Singh? He played 16 ODIs for India between 1997 and 1998, and took 17 wickets at an average of 21.05 in ten matches against Pakistan. There are bowlers such as Sarfraz Nawaz, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and RP Singh who do have better bowling averages but don't fulfill our cut-off, of having bowled at least 300 balls.
| Player | Span | Mat | Wkts | Ave | 5 | IvP | Wkts | Ave | 5 | Diff | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RK Chauhan (India) | 1994-1997 | 35 | 29 | 41.93 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 25.60 | 0 | -16.331 | |||
| Arshad Khan (Pak) | 1997-2006 | 58 | 56 | 34.78 | 0 | 14 | 19 | 22.78 | 0 | -11.996 | |||
| 1 | 12 | 24 | 22.66 | 1 | -10.631 | ||||||||
| SC Ganguly (India) | 1996-2005 | 307 | 99 | 38.03 | 2 | 49 | 28 | 27.78 | 1 | -10.244 | |||
| 0 | 10 | 12 | 21.08 | 0 | -8.267 | ||||||||
| Tauseef Ahmed (Pak) | 1984-1988 | 70 | 55 | 40.85 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 32.60 | 0 | -8.254 | |||
| 3 | 33 | 32 | 31.75 | 1 | -7.380 | ||||||||
| Aaqib Javed (Pak) | 1989-1998 | 163 | 182 | 31.43 | 4 | 39 | 54 | 24.64 | 3 | -6.785 | |||
| 2 | 34 | 54 | 24.25 | 0 | -6.636 | ||||||||
| Maninder Singh (India) | 1983-1989 | 59 | 66 | 31.30 | 0 | 17 | 21 | 24.80 | 0 | -6.493 | |||
| 0 | 9 | 11 | 28.09 | 0 | -6.459 | ||||||||
| Saleem Malik (Pak) | 1983-1999 | 283 | 89 | 33.24 | 1 | 52 | 16 | 26.93 | 0 | -6.309 | |||
| 0 | 25 | 13 | 38.46 | 0 | -5.103 | ||||||||
| Imran Khan (Pak) | 1978-1992 | 175 | 182 | 26.61 | 1 | 29 | 35 | 22.25 | 1 | -4.358 | |||
| 0 | 10 | 17 | 21.05 | 0 | -4.316 | ||||||||
| Naved-ul-Hasan (Pak) | 2004-2006 | 62 | 95 | 27.68 | 1 | 15 | 31 | 23.67 | 1 | -4.006 | |||
| 1 | 29 | 43 | 28.90 | 1 | -3.399 | ||||||||
| BS Sandhu (India) | 1982-1984 | 22 | 16 | 47.68 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 45.16 | 0 | -2.520 | |||
| 1 | 14 | 26 | 25.07 | 0 | -1.660 | ||||||||
| Shabbir Ahmed (Pak) | 2004-2004 | 32 | 33 | 36.12 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 34.50 | 0 | -1.621 |
Click here for the full tables.
Harbhajan Singh made his comeback to the Indian ODI squad via Twenty20 after being dropped for the tour of England this year. He performed satisfactorily in the recent defeat against Australia, but Pakistan will be a severe test for he has a poor record against them. Harbhajan has five wickets from ten ODIs against Pakistan and he has never taken more than a wicket a match, his best being 1 for 43. He averages 92 per wicket, has a strike-rate of 115 and economy of 4.81 - figures he'll desperately want to improve upon in the coming month.
Shahid Afridi has been in prime bowling form in 2007 and his hustling legspin has added an extra dimension to Pakistan's bowling attack. In 11 ODIs this year he has taken 17 wickets at an average of 22.35 and economy of 4.13. Whether he can continue that form remains to be seen, for his average shoots up to 56 and his economy-rate rises to 4.88 against India . And when playing in India , Afridi's average rises further to 62 and his economy shoots up to 5.37.
| Player | Span | Mat | Wkts | Ave | 5 | IvP | Wkts | Ave | 5 | Diff | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbhajan Singh (India) | 2004-2006 | 157 | 177 | 33.22 | 2 | 10 | 5 | 92.40 | 0 | 59.179 | |||
| RR Singh (India) | 1997-2000 | 136 | 69 | 43.26 | 2 | 29 | 8 | 84.12 | 0 | 40.864 | |||
| 0 | 20 | 6 | 74.50 | 0 | 31.652 | ||||||||
| Tahir Naqqash (Pak) | 1982-1985 | 40 | 34 | 36.47 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 63.40 | 0 | 26.929 | |||
| 0 | 7 | 6 | 54.50 | 0 | 22.531 | ||||||||
| Shahid Afridi (Pak) | 1997-2006 | 245 | 210 | 35.26 | 2 | 53 | 28 | 56.50 | 0 | 21.233 | |||
| 0 | 10 | 7 | 51.85 | 0 | 16.991 | ||||||||
| Z Khan (India) | 2003-2006 | 140 | 196 | 29.20 | 1 | 17 | 19 | 45.26 | 0 | 16.053 | |||
| 0 | 6 | 5 | 55.80 | 0 | 13.405 | ||||||||
| A Kuruvilla (India) | 1997-1997 | 25 | 25 | 35.60 | 0 | 12 | 9 | 48.77 | 0 | 13.177 | |||
| 1 | 15 | 11 | 49.00 | 0 | 12.637 | ||||||||
| Abdul Qadir (Pak) | 1984-1990 | 104 | 132 | 26.16 | 2 | 19 | 16 | 38.43 | 0 | 12.270 | |||
| 0 | 15 | 14 | 40.21 | 0 | 11.056 | ||||||||
| S Sreesanth (India) | 2006-2006 | 33 | 47 | 33.44 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 44.12 | 0 | 10.678 | |||
| 0 | 15 | 10 | 38.80 | 0 | 9.526 | ||||||||
| Mohammad Sami (Pak) | 2004-2006 | 83 | 118 | 28.44 | 1 | 15 | 21 | 37.85 | 0 | 9.407 | |||
| 3 | 33 | 34 | 40.08 | 1 | 8.958 | ||||||||
| Mohammad Asif (Pak) | 2006-2006 | 29 | 31 | 36.38 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 44.83 | 0 | 8.446 | |||
| 2 | 24 | 32 | 36.15 | 0 | 8.305 | ||||||||
| Shoaib Malik (Pak) | 2000-2006 | 145 | 106 | 34.83 | 0 | 23 | 17 | 41.05 | 0 | 6.228 |
Click here for the full tables.
If there's a particular List that you would like to see, email us with your comments and suggestions.
Travis Basevi is the man who built Statsguru. George Binoy is an editorial assistant on Cricinfo