5 cricketers and the unlikely records they hold
There is an old saying that records are meant to be broken. Every year we witness players smashing the old records and making new ones. When one hears about a record for the first time, one starts thinking of certain players who are most likely to hold that particular distinction. But some records belong to players you wouldn’t have even considered at first guess. Here's a list of 5 such records.
#1 Mahela Jayawardene
Only batsman to score tons in the World Cup semi-final and final
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the biggest event in the sport. The pressure of the occassion is enormous, which cranks up a notch in the knockout games. This is evident from the fact that only one batsman has managed to score hundreds in both semi-final and the finals of the World Cup. The feat is so stellar that no one has done it in a single edition.
Mahela Jayawardene scored a century against New Zealand in the semi-final fixture of the 2007 World Cup. He helped his side reach the final where they lost to Australia. He then scored a century in the final of the 2011 World Cup against co-hosts India. His brilliant innings of 103* off just 88 balls however could not stop India from winning the trophy after 28 years.
#2 Ajit Agarkar
Fastest half-century by an Indian in ODIs
India has produced many attacking batsmen over the years who could easily be holding this record. However the record for the fastest ODI fifty for India belongs to Ajit Agarkar. He achieved this feat in a match against Zimbabwe in Rajkot in 2000. Agarkar raced to his half-century in just 21 balls.
The right-handed batsman known for his bowling remained not out on 67 off 25 balls and helped India cross the 300-run mark. He hit 7 fours and 4 sixes in his blistering cameo. Agarkar later took 3 wickets and helped India towards a comfortable win. He received the man-of-the-match award for his all-round performance.
Even after 20 years, no Indian has managed to break Agarkar's record, although the country has had extremely attacking batsmen like Virat Kohli and KL Rahul. Kapil Dev, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, and Rahul Dravid have all scored a half-century off 22 balls.
#3 Sanath Jayasuriya
Most ducks in ODI history
This unwanted record belongs to one of the most destructive batsmen of his era - Sanath Jayasuriya. The southpaw changed the norms of opening the innings during the fielding restrictions (first 15 overs) with his attacking style and was a bowler’s nightmare. The man with 28 ODI centuries has managed to get out without troubling the scorers 34 times. 10 out of those 34 have been golden ducks.
#4 James Anderson
Most runs conceded in a single over in Test cricket
James Anderson is considered to be among the best red ball bowlers of his generation. If the ball is moving around, he can trouble the best in the business (has nabbed Sachin Tendulkar's wicket on 9 occasions). The Englishman has 584 scalps to his name from just 151 Test matches. With such great numbers, he shares an unwanted record with South African left-arm spinner Robin Peterson. They both have conceded 28 runs in a single over.
During the third Test of the 2013 Ashes, Australian batsman George Bailey took the attack to Anderson. The former Aussie ODI skipper smashed 3 sixes and 2 fours apart from running a couple in his over. Anderson is often criticised for not being effective on dry pitches. But conceding 28 runs in an over in a Test is still something one won’t associate with a bowler of his caliber.
#5 Rahul Dravid
Batsman to get clean bowled the most times in Test cricket
The man with arguably the most compact defense in the history of the game holds this unwanted record. Rahul Dravid who is also termed as 'The Wall' holds the record for facing most number of deliveries in Test cricket. Getting out clean bowled for a record 55 times seems highly unexpected of him.
Dravid got bowled out quite often in his early days. He worked on his technique and was able to become one of the best Test batsmen ever. However, during the fag end of his career, probably his reflexes got a little too slow and he was troubled by incoming deliveries. It is evident from the fact that he was bowled 9 times in his last 13 innings.
Interestingly in ODI cricket, his ex team-mate Tendulkar holds this unwanted record with 68 clean bowled dismissals. Even in Test cricket, he has got out bowled 54 times, one less than Dravid.
#Note: All statistics are as of March 19, 2020
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