The triumph of willow
The contenders for the Batting Performance of the Year award
Wisden Cricinfo staff
29-Oct-2003
The results for the Batting Performance of the Year award are:
The winner
Michael Vaughan
183 v Australia at Sydney (second innings)
England won by 225 runs
After ending up on the losing side at Brisbane despite having scored 177, Michael Vaughan went one better at Sydney, scoring 183. It was an innings of beauty, poise and technical rectitude and, most relevantly, it helped England to a rare Test win against Australia.
Michael Vaughan
183 v Australia at Sydney (second innings)
England won by 225 runs
After ending up on the losing side at Brisbane despite having scored 177, Michael Vaughan went one better at Sydney, scoring 183. It was an innings of beauty, poise and technical rectitude and, most relevantly, it helped England to a rare Test win against Australia.
The other nominees
Matthew Hayden
119 v Pakistan at Sharjah (first innings)
Australia won by an innings and 198 runs
In oven-like conditions under which Pakistan wilted for 59 and 53, and no other batsman crossed 50, Matthew Hayden gave a masterclass on batting and physical endurance both. The slow Sharjah wicket inhibited strokeplay, but Hayden dug deep, scoring 119 out of 310 in Australia's only innings of the game.
Matthew Hayden
119 v Pakistan at Sharjah (first innings)
Australia won by an innings and 198 runs
In oven-like conditions under which Pakistan wilted for 59 and 53, and no other batsman crossed 50, Matthew Hayden gave a masterclass on batting and physical endurance both. The slow Sharjah wicket inhibited strokeplay, but Hayden dug deep, scoring 119 out of 310 in Australia's only innings of the game.
Stephen Fleming
274* v Sri Lanka at Colombo (first innings)
Match drawn
Sometimes, not losing can be equal to winning. The pundits didn't give New Zealand much of a chance against Muttiah Muralitharan on home pitches. Yet, by the second day of the first Test, Stephen Fleming hadn't only conquered Murali but ground him to dust. It was an innings epic in concentration, focus, perseverance and technical adjustment. Thanks to it, New Zealand returned home undefeated in the series - and that itself was a victory.
274* v Sri Lanka at Colombo (first innings)
Match drawn
Sometimes, not losing can be equal to winning. The pundits didn't give New Zealand much of a chance against Muttiah Muralitharan on home pitches. Yet, by the second day of the first Test, Stephen Fleming hadn't only conquered Murali but ground him to dust. It was an innings epic in concentration, focus, perseverance and technical adjustment. Thanks to it, New Zealand returned home undefeated in the series - and that itself was a victory.
Ramnaresh Sarwan
105 v Australia at Antigua (second innings)
West Indies won by three wickets
Classics are made of this. Chasing history (418 to get in the last innings), West Indies looked headed for a familiar collapse at 74 for 3 when Sarwan joined Brian Lara at the crease. He lost Lara's company at 165, but crafted a stirring partnership with Shivnarine Chanderpaul (105), which took West Indies to the doorstep of a famous victory.
105 v Australia at Antigua (second innings)
West Indies won by three wickets
Classics are made of this. Chasing history (418 to get in the last innings), West Indies looked headed for a familiar collapse at 74 for 3 when Sarwan joined Brian Lara at the crease. He lost Lara's company at 165, but crafted a stirring partnership with Shivnarine Chanderpaul (105), which took West Indies to the doorstep of a famous victory.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul
100 v Australia at Georgetown (first innings)
Australia won by nine wickets
It was the unlikeliest of quick hundreds. Chanderpaul, he of limpet fame, launched an assault so severe that the world's best bowling attack was found wanting for an answer. The hundred came off 72 balls, the third-fastest in the history of Test cricket. Peter Roebuck described it as "breathtaking in its audacity and inspired in its execution". West Indies lost the match, though, and Chanderpaul had to wait till the last Test to score a hundred that proved matchwinning.
100 v Australia at Georgetown (first innings)
Australia won by nine wickets
It was the unlikeliest of quick hundreds. Chanderpaul, he of limpet fame, launched an assault so severe that the world's best bowling attack was found wanting for an answer. The hundred came off 72 balls, the third-fastest in the history of Test cricket. Peter Roebuck described it as "breathtaking in its audacity and inspired in its execution". West Indies lost the match, though, and Chanderpaul had to wait till the last Test to score a hundred that proved matchwinning.