Stats highlights from the first Test of the two-test series between West Indies and Bangladesh, at St Vincent.

Shiva Jayaraman10-Sep-2014 13 Number of times Bangladesh have been asked to follow-on in Tests including this match. They have lost on all occasions, but this was only the third time they scored enough in their second innings to make the opposition bat. For West Indies, this was the first time since 1995 that they managed to win a Test after asking the opposition to follow-on. Since then, West Indies had asked the opposition to follow-on on three different occasions but let the opposition escape with a draw in each of these Tests. 212 Runs scored by Kraigg Brathwaite in West Indies’ first innings – his highest score in Tests and his second Test hundred. Brathwaite’s double-hundred is the 14th score of 200 or more by a West Indies opener in Tests and the first such score since Chris Gayle’s 333 against Sri Lanka in Galle in 2010. Brathwaite has hit two centuries and one fifty in six innings and aggregates 433 runs at an average of 108.25 in 2014. 116 Runs scored by Mushfiqur Rahim in Bangladesh’s second innings. This was the 18th instance of a captain scoring a hundred after following on. The last such instance was when Alastair Cook got 176 runs against India in Ahmedabad in 2012. Mushfiqur is only the third wicketkeeper-captain to achieve this after England’s Alec Stewart, against South Africa in 1998, and South Africa’s Percy Sherwell, against England in 1907. 47 Number of times Shivnarine Chanderpaul has remained unbeaten in an innings in Tests, including his 85 not out in the first innings; Chanderpaul has now gone past Steve Waugh as the recognised batsman to have remained not out on most occasions in Tests. Overall, Courtney Walsh holds the record with 61 not outs. This was also the 17th time Chanderpaul finished with an unbeaten fifty. Only Allan Border has hit more unbeaten fifties than Chanderpaul in Tests. 157 Number of matches played by Chanderpaul – he has gone past Border to become the left-handed batsman with most Test caps. Among active players, Kumar Sangakkara is closest to Chanderpaul with 128 Test caps. 5 Number of catches taken by Darren Bravo in Bangladesh’s first innings – he becomes only the eighth fielder to take five catches in an innings in Tests. The last fielder to achieve this feat was also from West Indies. Darren Sammy’s five catches in the first innings of the Mumbai Test in 2013 included the catch of Sachin Tendulkar, who was playing his last innings. 6 Number of Bangladesh bowlers to take five-fors on debut, including Taijul Islam in West Indies’ first innings. All of the last-four such instances for Bangladesh have come against West Indies. Sohag Gazi, Elias Sunny and Mahmudullah are the other Bangladesh bowlers to take five-for on debut against West Indies. 5 Five-wicket hauls taken by Sulieman Benn in Tests, including the one he took in this Test. This was his second five-wicket haul in four Tests since making his comeback this year. He has taken 21 wickets at an average of 29.04 in Tests this year. 6 Number of times a Test featured wicketkeeper-captains on both sides, including this one. The last time this happened was in a two-Test series in 2002, involving the same teams, when Khaled Mashud captained Bangladesh and Ridley Jacobs captained West Indies. 4 Wickets by Kemar Roach in Bangladesh’s second innings. This was Roach’s fourth four-wicket haul in his last five innings. Roach has taken four wickets in opposition’s second innings in each of his last-three Tests. His 47 wickets in the second innings of the opposition have come at an average of 21.40. Among fast bowlers, only Vernon Philander and Ryan Harris have averaged better since Roach’s debut. 3 Number of century partnerships West Indies’ first-four wickets put together in their first innings of the Test – only the sixth such occasion for West Indies. The last time this happened was against India in the first innings of the Mumbai Test in 2011. 53 Runs scored by Tamim Iqbal in Bangladesh’s second innings. This was Tamim’s second fifty in 21 international innings this year. He has hit 350 runs at an average of 17.50 in international cricket in 2014. Among 28 openers who have batted in at least ten innings in 2014, Tamim’s average is the lowest.

Plays of the day from the second ODI between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, in Hambantota

Siddarth Ravindran26-Aug-2014Referral of the day
Tillakaratne Dilshan was left puzzled when he was given out by the third umpire•AFPTillakaratne Dilshan had begun the innings in typically flamboyant fashion, hitting three early boundaries before there was a caught-behind appeal off Junaid Khan in the second over. The umpire turned it down, but the wicketkeeper Umar Akmal was absolutely certain, signalling for the referral at least a dozen times as he walked up to discuss with his team-mates. His confidence convinced Misbah-ul-Haq to go for the appeal though neither Snicko nor Hot Spot is available this series. There was a sound as the ball passed the bat, but hardly anything that could be deemed conclusive evidence. The third umpire S Ravi thought otherwise, and sent Dilshan on his way.Double-reprieve of the day
Upul Tharanga was beginning to open up after some moments of discomfort early on. He looked to push down the ground when a thick edge sent the ball towards the boot before lobbing back towards the bowler. Junaid coolly snagged a one-handed catch and appealed. On first look, the ball seemed to have bounced off the boot, but when the third umpire was called in, the replays showed it landed just next to his shoe. The next ball he was given out caught-behind, but with the sketchy DRS not offering much for the third umpire, the decision was overturned and Tharanga survived again. Only for four more overs though.Misleading start of the day
When Ahmed Shehzad was called on to bowl his part-time legspin, he began with a ripping delivery that turned past Angelo Mathews’ bat and nearly got him stumped. If Misbah-ul-Haq expected more of that to control the raging run-rate, he was disappointed. Shehzad showed the trouble with part-time legspinners, and even some full-time legspinners, as he struggled to land the ball for the rest of his spell, and the experiment with his bowling ended after figures of 2-0-15-0.Anticipation of the day
In the first ODI, wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara had seen Misbah shaping for a lap sweep, and immediately shuffled to the leg side to pull off a stunning catch. He was at it again today: this time his victim was a well-set Shehzad, who popped a catch down the leg side to an agile Sangakkara. He tried to do it several other times in the game as well, but there was no more success. He was once struck on the helmet off a Misbah reverse-sweep, and later nearly pulled off a direct-hit run-out that after Fawad Alam stepped out of the crease after making a hash of a slog-sweep.

After bidding farewell to Test cricket in front of his home fans, Mahela Jayawardene will focus his energies on one final tilt at the 50-over World Cup

Andrew Fidel Fernando14-Jul-2014For so much of Mahela Jayawardene’s career, his cricket was ruled foremost by instinct. Where other batsmen would avoid playing the pull with a leg trap set, Jayawardene took the field on. Where other captains would formulate exhaustive plans and stand by them through duress, Jayawardene devised new strategies on his feet, with a finger to the pulse of the match, and a heart to innovate and attack. Unburdened by the captaincy late in his career, he also developed a candid streak, firing barbs at administrators and opposition when he felt he or his team had been wronged.But as his race takes the final corner, Jayawardene has given in to pragmatism. He has never been obsessed with the sport – the loss of his brother in his teenage years has always anchored him to perspective. But cricket has been his life, ever since he was scouted as a precocious talent, for Nalanda College. He walks away from his favourite format having coolly considered the present and the future, and having come to terms with his own limitations. Always the team man, he leaves before anyone thinks to show him the door.The knocks take longer to heal at 37. Injuries wipe Jayawardene out for entire tours, instead of two or three games, and pressure of year-round, high-intensity cricket begins to wear the mind as well. His fingers are always in some state of disrepair. Fielding is perhaps the only discipline where statistics across formats may justifiably be merged, and having taken 418 international catches – by far the highest for a non-wicketkeeper – his hands bear the toll of a life in the slips. His knees are not quite what they were either.Having hit over 11,000 Test runs and 33 hundreds, the one burning desire that casts a shadow on all else is also in another format. Jayawardene has won the World T20 now, top-scoring for his team in that campaign, but two World Cup final appearances have whet his appetite for cricket’s biggest limited-over prize.He has often said the 2015 campaign would be his finish line, but in recent months there have been inklings he might not quite get there. The big shots in ODIs have found fielders instead of the fence. He has been worked over and out-thought, even at home. Where Sri Lanka used to rely on all three senior batsmen, they have lately leant on Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan, who have protected a misfiring middle order with their own improving returns.But if Jayawardene is to play in the World Cup, he would be mortified to do so as a passenger. He knows one hundred and two fifties in his last 23 innings is a streak that is beneath his ability -though important innings have come on big occasions. An exit from the most taxing format frees Jayawardene up to refresh his focus on ODIs.Both he and his fans will also find it fitting he bids farewell to Tests on home soil. Beyond the Pakistan series, Sri Lanka have no home Tests on the schedule for 10 months at least. Among the most impressive figures Jayawardene has accrued – and ironically the numbers for which he attracts most flak – are his records at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground and at Galle. No batsman has scored more heavily in one ground than Jayawardene has at either venue, and he averages over 70 at both. SSC is a notorious featherbed, even if more than half of Jayawardene’s runs at the venue have come in result matches, but Galle is often as great a test of batting technique as Newlands or the WACA ground are.If fit and selected, Jayawardene will play two more Tests at Galle and one at the SSC. His final Test will be at the P Sara Oval – a ground he does not like as much, but which had been the scene of perhaps his finest innings, in 2006. Against an attack featuring Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini and Dale Steyn, Jayawardene hit the only century of the match, and was the backbone of Sri Lanka’s highest successful fourth-innings chase of 352.Beyond the cricket field, another calling has drawn him during the past seven months. Jayawardene did not just fly in and out of home, as many cricketers do for the births of their children; he had almost a month off in December, while his team played limited-overs series in the UAE. His “girls” were among the first people he thanked upon winning the World T20. After what will seem like a lifetime on the road, he will soon be theirs alone.Jayawardene has endured vast upheaval, on and off the field, in his seventeen years at the top level. In that time, he has rarely failed to give all of himself to his team and to the sport on the island. He has only so much cricket left in his veins. He will save what he can for the final stretch home.

Plays of the day from the CLT20 qualifier between Mumbai Indians and Northern Knights in Raipur

Vishal Dikshit16-Sep-2014Effort of the day
Northern Knights’ fielding went from one end to another in their first two matches, from the five dropped catches in six overs against Southern Express, to Tim Southee’s extraordinary effort at the boundary, against Lahore Lions. In the fifth over today, when Jalaj Saxena tucked one towards short fine leg, Daniel Harris flew to his right, parallel to the ground, and nearly caught one like Jonty Rhodes. He had actually taken it, but the ball popped out of his hands when he landed on the ground, or it would have been one of the catches of the tournament.Over of the day
With all the qualification scenarios, the match was already dramatic enough before the toss. The fifth over, bowled by Scott Kuggeleijn, made it only a bit more theatrical. Harris had nearly taken a stunner on the second delivery and a ball later, Lendl Simmons also survived a chance when he came down the track and nearly dragged one onto his stumps, but luckily got four for that. On the next ball he set off for a quick single and just as he would have thought the spotlight was off him, the throw from mid-off struck him on the left thumb at the non-striker’s end. Jajaj then eased the nerves by finishing the over with a straight six which nearly doubled the run rate.Awkward effort of the day
Scott Styris had already removed Jalaj Saxena and Lendl Simmons in successive overs, getting them as they tried to make room against his dibbly-dobblies. Aditya Tare didn’t learn anything from those dismissals when he also made room in Styris’ next over, tried a late cut but the extra bounce got the top edge of the bat and BJ Watling was already moving to his left for the in-cutter. He got into an awkward position for the catch, but had done enough to pouch the ball into his gloves and somehow held on to it.Swap of the day
During Southee’s effort against Lions on Sunday, the bowler had thrown the ball back inside the boundary while diving out, and Daryl Mitchell had taken the catch to get his name on the scoreboard. Today, however, Mitchell switched places – he was at long-on when Kieron Pollard rocketed the ball over the bowler’s head in the 15th over, forcing the fielder to run to his left. He reached on time, threw the ball inside after catching it as he went over the rope, just like Southee had. The only difference was that the ball had bounced once before reaching Mitchell.

Both batsmen seemingly have buckets of talent at their disposal and the backing of their captains, but soft dismissals relentlessly follow both around the Test arena

Sidharth Monga at the Gabba18-Dec-20142:53

MacGill: Watson must bat lower in the order

If every batsman in Test cricket made bowlers earn his wicket, almost every match would end in a draw. If the new ball, good balls, pressure, fatigue, a break, a new innings, sensational catches etc. were the only ones bringing wickets, hardly anyone would get out after crossing the score of 20 and after the first 15 minutes of a new session. There’s a reason why even the most sensible of opinion polls offers the option of “others”, even after exhausting every other possible option. However, if the same batsmen keep ticking the “others” box too regularly, it can be frustrating.Surely their team-mates, their mates and their fans have expressed this frustration to Rohit Sharma and Shane Watson? There is too much batting skill in there to not inspire a feeling of reliability. We should give up on them really. But then again, when we are just about to, Watson starts to take crucial wickets and lovely catches, and Rohit scores double-centuries in ODIs. We give them another chance, and we get another set of soft dismissals.When India are in a position to bat Australia out at their fortress, when others are making the bowlers come up with unplayable deliveries to get them out, Rohit keeps up for a bit, but gets stuck. He sees Ajinkya Rahane dink into gaps the same balls which he is defending straight to fielders. Ian Chappell says it seems like he is batting in a dream, or in the nets, where just the connection matters, not the runs. He has scored six off 19, but India have seen off the first threat, Josh Hazlewood, who has bowled a ripper to get Rahane out.On comes Watson – oh, him again – and Rohit can’t stop himself from having a lazy push at a wide outswinger. He has had to stretch to even reach it. And this is not a full-blooded drive, which can at least give him a chance of the edge’s flying over or wide of the slips. This is totally premeditated. As if the first-change bowler to go. Just like in Durban last year, when he came out with his mind seemingly made up that he was going to leave the first ball alone. He was bowled middle stump by an inswinger.India manage just 6 for 87 on the day, giving Australia a chance to fight their way back in. Only Rohit can be blamed for a poor shot. Before the start of the match, captain MS Dhoni spoke about the persistence with Rohit.”If you see Rohit, he has been criticised for not making the most of the chances he has got,” Dhoni said. “Even in the ODIs. But we kept giving him chances because we believe that he’s an excellent cricketer. Once he crosses that phase, he’ll be really good for the Indian cricket team. Now you can really see that kind of performance from him in the ODI circuit. We feel he can contribute in Test cricket also. We’ll have to give him ample opportunity. Not to forget in the Test matches like in England we tried a five-bowler combination, which meant Rohit had to be left out. It becomes slightly tough for batsmen when you give them couple of games and they’re out for four or five games.”It makes perfect sense, and Rohit hasn’t had a long, persistent run in Tests, but here is a sobering thought: he made his international debut before Rahane, and there is a reason why Rohit now bats at No. 6 in Tests and not Rahane, why he is the first man left out to suit the team’s needs and not Rahane.Watson possibly can’t even be left out, such is the phase Australian cricket is going through with injuries and ordinary form of various batsmen. He comes in to bat at No. 3 after a strong foundation has been laid: 47 runs in 8.3 overs. Chris Rogers is going solidly at the other end. Watson has seen the early jitters through. Now he is creaming it, punishing every little error in line or in length. India have resorted to spin with his score 25 off 25.Four balls later, R Ashwin tosses one up. It is a decent delivery, but it hasn’t dipped alarmingly on Watson. Before reading the description of the shot, you have to keep in mind mid-on is up. Watson goes at it with hard hands, making an attempt neither to keep it along the ground nor to clear the mid-on. Almost as if he just wants to hit the man at mid-on as powerfully as he can: Shikhar Dhawan, his old mate. This is just before tea, and Australia go on to lose another before the break. Forget about dominating the last session now. This is an absolute brain freeze, the kind Watson is no stranger to.Rohit might have beaten Watson in terms of outrageous innings in ODIs, but Watson – on a day that he got Rohit out – has outdone Rohit when it comes to a poor dismissal. A hybrid of Rohit and Watson will score quadruple-centuries in ODIs, and will keep finding new, softer ways of getting out in Tests.Why is it always these two? That they are too talented is a lazy explanation. Uttering the word “talented” in Rohit’s presence is like a red rag to a bull. He is proud of the hard work he has put into his game, and hates being called laidback and talented. Watson has had to go through a lot just to be on the park, so fragile has his body been. It is hard to imagine them taking the chances given to them for granted.Surely they get just as frustrated? They need to keep finding ways to stay alert through their Test innings, because even the most patient, and the most desperate, captains give up some day.

Backed by the bigger boundaries in Australia, he has tossed the ball up more often, relied on the offbreak and has used his variations wisely

Abhishek Purohit01-Mar-2015There was a phase in 2013-14 when R Ashwin went close to 80 overs and seven weeks without taking a wicket across formats. India failed to win a single game on their tours to South Africa and New Zealand. Ignored for the Test matches after a fruitless showing in Johannesburg, Ashwin averaged 169 for a lone wicket in the three South Africa ODIs. In the five New Zealand games, another solitary wicket cost him 227 runs.After the fourth ODI in Hamilton, Ashwin said that he could not keep taking wickets all the time. That it had become difficult to contain batsmen with only four fielders allowed in the deep. That the default mode was to stop the boundaries and concede only singles. “It is easy to say wickets are not coming so I will look for wickets, but you end up giving 20-30 runs extra and you have to get it back at the end of the day,” Ashwin had said then.A year later in neighbouring Australia, Ashwin is India’s leading wicket-taker halfway through the group stage of their World Cup campaign, with eight strikes from three games at an average of 13.37 and an economy-rate of 3.82.Defending successive targets of 300 or more against Pakistan and South Africa has definitely helped. The batsmen were not getting that amount of runs on the tours of South Africa and New Zealand. In the third match, having a UAE line-up unsure about how to handle the bounce in the WACA pitch also helped.Whatever help he may have received, there can be no contesting the fact that Ashwin has gone looking for wickets this World Cup. Backed by the bigger boundaries in Australia, he has tossed the ball up more often than not. He has relied on the offbreak that, with extra flight, has spun and bounced more. He has used his variations – there have even been seam-up away swingers – but he has used them sparingly. The extra bounce in Australia means that even his flatter ones have been harder to put away. He has worked on his angles and on using the width of the crease better. And he has preferred going over the wicket more than round it.In looking for wickets, he has also not conceded any extra runs, the risk he had talked about in New Zealand. As a result, India have looked a different side in the middle overs. They have used the extra fielder available inside the circle in catching positions. Runs have been throttled by spin, and importantly, partnerships have been broken. Slip. Leg slip. They have all come into play.”When we were losing quite a few games outside the subcontinent, it was an area of concern that we were not getting wickets in the middle overs,” MS Dhoni said after the UAE game. “Now we are getting wickets with the new ball and the spinners are able to put more pressure on the batsmen in the middle overs.”Three of Ashwin’s eight overs against Pakistan were maidens, and Virat Kohli said that had changed the course of the match. That also requires a high degree of accuracy, something Ashwin has always had. It is what has made him a favoured limited-overs spinner for India, who use him regularly in the batting Powerplay.Ashwin has understood that over time, and made peace with the fact that he will have to bowl unglamorously round the wicket into the pads to a leg-side field to try and restrict scoring with limited protection in the deep. That line brings its own set of criticisms, but it has to be kept in mind just how hard it has become for slow bowlers. Often nowadays, there is no sweeper on the off side for the offspinner. There is almost no margin for error.”I bowl at such phases of the game, it’s more of cutting the runs out,” Ashwin said after taking his first ODI four-for, against UAE. “It can get a little difficult. When it comes to this format, I’m pretty much unselfish, it doesn’t matter if I get the numbers or not as long as I put in the effort required.”Which is why it has been pleasing to see Ashwin go about it a bit differently this World Cup. And so far, he has also had the numbers to show for that effort.

From Pakistan’s sloppy work in the field to West Indies’ struggle in the Powerplay – the plays of the day from Christchurch

Brydon Coverdale21-Feb-2015Contrast of the day
In the fifth over of the West Indies innings, Dwayne Smith got a thick edge off Mohammad Irfan that flew high to third man, where the sliding Nasir Jamshed put down the chance. On the very next ball there was a similar opportunity in almost exactly the same spot on the ground, when Chris Gayle’s top-edged pull flew high to fine leg. Wahab Riaz though made no mistake, holding on with a tumbling catch.Catch of the day
On a day full of dropped chances, Sulieman Benn’s catch to get rid of Sohaib Maqsood stood out. Maqsood miscued a Darren Sammy full toss and lobbed it up over the bowler’s head; Benn ran around from mid-on and dived full length to take the catch, clinging on even as his arms and the rest of his body hit the ground.Wides of the day
Pakistan’s fielding was abysmal throughout the West Indies innings, but as if to prove that it was not only the players who could make mistakes, umpire Nigel Llong chipped in during the 15th over. Darren Bravo went for a sweep of Shahid Afridi and the ball flew off his thigh pad and away to the boundary. But Llong had missed the deflection and called wides. Afridi not surprisingly was upset – five runs instead of four, an extra ball to be bowled, and the runs went on his tally – and wanted a review. Alas, only wickets or appeals can be reviewed, and the wides stood.Powerplay Dourplay of the day
Batting teams often take the Powerplay at the latest possible time, but with Darren Bravo and Denesh Ramdin well set, West Indies decided to take it after 31 overs with the score at 151 for 3. But two balls in, Bravo was forced to retire with a hamstring injury, Lendl Simmons made a slow start and, the runs dried up. The only boundary in the Powerplay came from its fourth-last ball, and West Indies scored 16 runs for no loss in the five overs.Bronx cheer of the day
The first 26 balls of Pakistan’s innings broke down as such: four wickets, one run, 21 dots. At 1 for 4 in the fifth over, spectators were starting to wonder where Pakistan’s next run was going to come from. The answer came from the captain, Misbah-ul-Haq, who worked a single towards square leg off Jerome Taylor from the 27th ball of the innings. Not surprisingly, the Hagley Oval crowd cheered in unison. Bronx cheered, that is.Blow of the day
Bravo ended up retiring hurt due to a hamstring injury, but earlier it was a hit to the head that had the West Indies camp worried. Bravo took off for a single after Marlon Samuels played the ball to cover and was struck on the side of the helmet by a Younis Khan throw, while making his ground at the striker’s end. He appeared to be in considerable pain, and sat on the ground for several minutes being assessed by the physio. Eventually, it was decided he would bat on. Younis was the first to check on Bravo, and the last to leave.

A look-back at memorable Australia-India encounters in World Cups

Deivarayan Muthu25-Mar-2015 1992, Brisbane: Five years later, India again found themselves at the wrong end of a nail-biting World Cup finish with Steve Waugh performing the final rites. Mohammad Azaharuddin neutralised Jones’ 108-ball 90, but his fall triggered a collapse. With 13 required off the final over, Kiran More put away two full tosses to the fine-leg boundary, before being bowled by Tom Moody. Manoj Prabhakhar squirted a single but was run out, leaving India needing a four off the final ball. Javagal Srinath’s almighty swing launched the ball over midwicket where Waugh dropped the catch but managed to recover and fire a throw to acting keeper David Boon; Venkatapathy Raju was caught short on the third.•Getty Images2003, Centurion: A collective bowling effort helped Australia boss India on their way to a nine-wicket victory. Opting to bat, India crashed to 125 all out, their lowest completed-innings total in World Cups, with only four of their batsmen reaching double-figures. Australia made light work of the target and closed out the game inside 23 overs. India pulled themselves together after the loss and strung together eight wins in a row, until they ran into the mighty Aussies again.•Reuters2003 final, Johannesburg: That eight-win run came to a shuddering halt in the final. After having won the toss India, rather surprisingly, chose to bowl and proved to be fodder for Australia. Building on a typically fast start from Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting demonstrated a masterclass with Damien Martyn, who braved a broken finger, to propel Australia to a mammoth 359. Though Virender Sehwag managed 82 off 81, India got nowhere in the chase.•Getty Images 2011 quarter-final, Ahmedabad: Yuvraj Singh’s victory cry and Ricky Ponting’s despair summed up the quarter-final clash in 2011. Even as the Indian bowlers kept things tight, Ponting stepped up and made 104 to help Australia post a challenging 260. Contrasting fifties from Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir set up the chase, but with 74 needed off 75 it was still anybody’s game. Yuvraj put in one of the performances of the tournament with 57 off 65 balls, as India ousted defending champions Australia. Yuvraj found an able ally in Suresh Raina, who was ice-cool under pressure, vindicating his inclusion ahead of Yusuf Pathan.•AFP

ESPNcricinfo picks out the eye-catching stats ahead of the second quarter-final

Bishen Jeswant18-Mar-20150 Number of times Bangladesh have previously reached the knockout stage in World Cups. This is their fifth World Cup. The furthest Bangladesh have progressed was during the 2007 edition, when they reached the Super Eight stage by virtue of a crucial win against India in the group stages.5.4 Bangladesh’s run-rate in ODIs> against India since the last World Cup, their second-best against any team (min. two ODIs). The only team against whom they have a better run-rate (5.59) in this period is New Zealand.0 Number of wickets India have lost during the batting Powerplay in this World Cup, the fewest for any team. Every other team has lost at least one wicket.1-8 Bangladesh’s win-loss record against India in ODIs played outside Bangladesh. Their overall record against India is 3-24.11.8 Average opening stand for Bangladesh at this World Cup, the poorest for any Test nation. India’s openers average 46.33, including one century stand.52.4 The batting average of Bangladesh’s middle order (Nos. 4 to 7) in this tournament, the second-best for any team. Their middle-order batsmen have scored two hundreds and five fifties. India’s middle order has scored one hundred and three fifties at an average of 45.1.60 Number of wickets taken by India in six group matches this World Cup, the most for any team. New Zealand’s bowlers have taken 57 wickets, while South Africa have 56. India bowled out their opposition in six consecutive matches at this World Cup.70 India’s win percentage in World Cup knockout matches, the second-best after Australia. India have won 7 out of 10 knockout games. Australia’s win percentage is 71.4, with 10 wins from 14 games.7 Number of times in the last 10 ODIs in Melbourne that the captain winning the toss has chosen to bat. There were three instances of the captain choosing to field, but the team batting first won each of those three games. The average score batting first in this period is 292.344 Runs scored by Mahmudullah in this World Cup, the most ever by a Bangladesh batsman in any ODI series. Also, he has scored two hundreds. No Bangladesh batsman had previously scored more than one century in any ODI series.12.6 Mohammad Shami’s bowling average at this World Cup, the best for any India bowler in a single World Cup (min. 5 overs). He has taken 15 wickets from five matches at a strike rate of 17.2.

Twitter reactions to AB de Villiers’ incredible 133*, the third-highest score in IPL history

ESPNcricinfo staff10-May-2015AB de Villiers showed off his outrageous array of strokes as he took apart Mumbai Indians in a crunch IPL game. Though he finished with a strike rate of 225, it wasn’t a blaze of manic swiping as he relied more on controlled hits and typical invention. As usual, his batting left fans, pundits and players astonished.David Warner, one of the best batsmen in the world, had his say on who’s the best.

What an innings by @ABdeVilliers17 as I said before best batter in world cricket!!

— David Warner (@davidwarner31) May 10, 2015

As bowlers and commentators wondered how to contain de Villiers, Irfan Pathan had a suggestion.

I'm writing an official complain as a bowler against @ABdeVilliers17. All the bowers please join me @IPL #legend

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) May 10, 2015

Some were just happy that they weren’t in the opposition in Mumbai.

For once I'm not on the receiving end of @ABdeVilliers17 onslaught. @RCBTweets #snipers #playbold #gunsunleashed

— Darren Sammy (@darrensammy88) May 10, 2015

James Neesham underlined his growing reputation as one of the wittiest cricketers on Twitter.

Fear of spiders is arachnophobia. Fear of tight spaces is claustrophobia. Fear of bowling to AB is logic.

— Jimmy Neesham (@JimmyNeesh) May 10, 2015

Has anyone ever seen AB and superman in the same room? Didn't think so.

— Jimmy Neesham (@JimmyNeesh) May 10, 2015

De Villiers’ South Africa team-mate Chris Morris put aside wit and summed up de Villiers in three words.

He's a freak! #AB

— Chris Morris (@Tipo_Morris) May 10, 2015

While others brought up the internet’s favourite superhuman.

Chuck Norris says he refuses to bowl to AB de Villiers.

— Dennis Does Cricket (@DennisCricket_) May 10, 2015

It is de Villiers’ fifth season with Royal Challengers, and it was a bit surprising that it has taken so long for him to score his first century for the team.

Been a long time coming, but @ABdeVilliers17 finally has an #RCB 100!!! WHAT AN INNINGS!!!!!!!! #legend #MIvRCB #IPL

— Sid Mallya (@sidmallya) May 10, 2015

Mumbai Indians would have been relieved to dismiss Chris Gayle – who scored a century in Royal Challengers’ previous game against Kings XI Punjab – early, but today it was de Villiers’ turn.

@KieronPollard55 – you told me to put down my guns…but @ABdeVilliers17 had all the ammunitions! #ABDdaBanng pic.twitter.com/dNVJ6kTNsb

— Chris Gayle (@henrygayle) May 10, 2015

Wonder if the IPL would need a cap on superheroes in a team?

If Gayle is the Hulk, then ABD is surely the Iron Man in the #RCB team. #MIvsRCB

— Sudipto Roy (@sudipto21) May 10, 2015

De Villiers, though, was helped by a generous dose of hit-me full tosses towards the end of the innings.

AB DeVilliers–The Main Show. Full tosses–The Side Show. How many did they bowl in the last 5 overs? Unreal. #IPL #MIvRCB

— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) May 10, 2015

De Villiers is widely seen as the current No. 1 all-format batsman, and his stunning performances have raised comparisons with the game’s greatest limited-overs batsman.

I know different eras and styles etc but how much better could mighty Viv have been than this AB? #PepsiIPL #RCB

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) May 10, 2015