The Jacks of one trade

Some statistics, like Bradman's average and the number of centuries Gavaskar 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.

During the 1990s, cricket witnessed an increasing trend of players who featured prominently in one form of the game. These 'specialists' played a crucial role for their teams: be it Gavin Larsen choking the run-flow in the middle overs or Michael Slater getting Australia off to a galloping start in Tests.

If the specialists need a poster-boy, they wouldn't have to look much further than Chris Harris. A veteran of 250 ODIs, Harris has played in only 23 Tests. His worker bee-like middle-order batting in the one-day game earned him an average of 29 but his touch-nudge-and-push method wasn't successful in Tests where he averaged just 20.44. Similarly, his economical wicket-to-wicket bowling in the limited-overs format resulted in 203 wickets, a New Zealand record, but the lack of a natural wicket-taking ability hampered his Test prospects.

New Zealand spawned several such players who were proficient in one form of the game but mediocre in the other. Roger Twose was a handy one-day bat but never made his mark on the Test circuit. Geoff Allot, the highest wicket-taker in the 1999 World Cup, averaged a very impressive 23.21 in ODIs but leaked 58.47 per wicket in Tests and Chris Pringle's career stats tell a similar tale. Dion Nash, Simon Doull and James Franklin all have respectable Test records that are let down by expensive one-day figures. And now Jacob Oram scores at 43.56 in Tests but his one-day equivalent is a meagre 17.61.

When Michael Bevan burst on to the international ODI stage, he was an instant success. He made an impressive start to his Test career as well but his sensational one-day success tagged him as a limited-overs specialist. Growing concerns about Bevan's ability to counter a short-ball barrage led to his eventual axeing from the Test side. After he played his last game, Bevan had a one-day average of 53.58 and a Test average of 29.07. He now has a first-class average of 58.30 but, at 35, he's unlikely to make a return. Neil Fairbrother, the original Bevan, was a busy middle-order bat and averaged an impressive 39.47 in 75 ODIs. He, however, was a woeful failure in the Test format, making just over 15 runs per innings in ten Tests.

Take an explosive batsman with an unorthodox technique, add a penchant for hitting over the top along with an enviable hand-eye co-ordination and the concoction should result in a one-day giant. But most of Virender Sehwag's exploits have come when clothed in white. Perhaps it's because there are more gaps and fewer boundary riders in a Test field that Sehwag averages 55.32 in Tests and a comparatively pedestrian 32.15 in ODIs when most would have expected his successes to have been reversed. Indian fans must hope that he is not following in the footsteps of one Michael Slater.

Slater was, perhaps, one of the first to influence the pace at which Test cricket was played. His cavalier approach at an average of 42.83 helped produce results in high-scoring contests. But after 42 ODIs, Slater averaged just 24.07 and, with a set opening pair in Mark Taylor and Mark Waugh, his failures ensured a short ODI career.

A bowling attack capable of taking 20 wickets is a bleeding obvious necessity to win a Test but India's opening bowlers in recent years all appear on the ODI specialist list due to their mediocrity in Tests. Ajit Agarkar has an average of 27.26 at a strike rate thats better than Glenn McGrath's in ODIs but goes for 47.20 in Tests, taking a wicket every 14 overs. Ashish Nehra and Zaheer Khan, both not in India's current Test plans, average 42.40 and 36.25 in Tests while going nearly ten runs lesser in the one-day game. Irfan Pathan, India's present spearhead, takes wickets at nearly 25 apiece in both forms of the game. But since most of his Test exploits have come against minnows, it remains to be seen whether he will impress against tougher opposition.

Jeff Thomson, that speedy scourge of batsmen, reveled in times when he wasn't restricted to just two attempts at the batsman's skull. He wasn't so hot in the one-day format, managing just 55 wickets in 50 games at 35.30 while he took wickets at 28 apiece in Tests. Brett Lee appears as a one-day specialist because of a fantastic average of 21.64 and a more generous 31.82 in Tests. But if his performances against West Indies in the recent Test series are an indication of change, he might soon drop off the list.

Trivia

If there's a particular List that you would like to see, e-mail us with your comments and suggestions.