The other number 'fours' of Indian cricket
Mumbai Indians have recently announced that they are retiring Tendulkar’s Number 10 jersey. Team India will wish they could retire his Number 4 position in the Test line-up as well. With his impending retirement and a prospective tour of South Africa coming up, we are yet to come up with somebody who can deliver the goods on a frequent basis.
On the other hand, there is another school of thought – is batting at Number 4 easier compared to other positions in the line-up? Most batsmen and statisticians around the world would tend to agree. Number 4 walks out to bat more often than not when the opening batsmen have seen off the new ball, the early morning conditions and the patience of the opening bowlers. Even if one of them hasn’t, it is likely that the Number 3 would have done his job – he is, after all, supposed to the most dour batsman of the line-up. On the other hand, the Number 4 is further cushioned by the presence of proper batsmen/batting all-rounders at Numbers 5 and 6 followed by a wicketkeeper who should be able to bat and a bowling all-rounder/bowler who can hold his bat for quite some time at Number 8. This means that the Number 4’s responsibility is to cash in on the conditions and make as many runs as possible for his team in conditions which suit him – tiring bowlers, helpful batting conditions and batting to follow.
In the 21 years since Tendulkar took up the mantle of Number 4 from Vengsarkar, only three men (apart from nightwatchmen and a single innings each from Gambhir and Raina) have taken his place for a significant number of innings. This also has happened mostly when he was absent from work due to injury or otherwise. The suspects are usual – Laxman, Dravid and Ganguly. Notably all of them have come off with admirable results after the experience. We take a detailed look at their performances at that spot.
V.V.S. Laxman (11 innings, 500 runs @ 50.00, 1 century, 4 fifties) – While Laxman would be remembered forever for his epic 281 from Number 3 and the numerous second innings counter-attacks he launched from number 6, he did make good use of the limited opportunities he got at Number 4. Laxman averages exactly 50 from his 11 knocks batting here as compared to his career average of 45.97 although the figures were buttressed by his last 3 knocks a of 85,87 and 56 at this position against a comparatively weaker West Indies attack in 2011. In his support though, he batted the entire series at Number 4 (barring the last match where Raina was promoted to up the ante in an aborted chase of 180) and ended up with an average of 48. This was the longest stint he got at this position as India contemplated a possible retirement by Tendulkar after a successful World Cup campaign and started preparing itself for the aftermath. A year later, Laxman was out of the game while Sachin was still playing.
Leaving aside a solo innings at Brisbane, the only two other series were Laxman got an extended run at Number 4 was the low-profile away series against Zimbabwe in 2005 and the obscured-by-the-first IPL home series against South Africa in 2008. In the first, he made a stroke-filled 140 at Bulawayo as India thrashed Zimbabwe on its way to its first series victory outside the subcontinent in 18 years. Against South Africa, Laxman came up against a red-hot Steyn in Ahmedabad as India were bowled out for 76 in the first innings. In the second Test however, he scored a crucial first innings 50 which was instrumental in giving India a match-winning first innings lead on a cobra of a pitch in Kanpur.