Shan Masood, Follow-Ons, Babar...

More Stats Indulgency...

Pakistan captain, Shan Masood, is a special cricketer but an equally impressive person with the leadership ability and personality to (almost) unify one of the most fractious and divided clubs in the world – Yorkshire County Cricket Club – after his appointment as captain last year. Pakistan cricket, Yorkshire cricket…out of the frying pan and, well, just stay there.

His unbeaten century at the close of the third day contained all the ingredients – poise, power, composure and patience. His captaincy, under extreme pressure, has been exemplary. The loss of his sister to cancer three years ago changed his perspective on life, and certainly on the game. Few cricketers who place bat or ball on the top of their priority list enjoy prolonged success.

Before the brilliant opening stand of 205 Pakistan’s average for the first wicket in the preceding year was 12.93. The average for the 10^th wicket by the opposition was 11.11.

Babar Azam’s 50 in the first Test at Centurion was his first for two years and 19 innings. Now he’s added 58 and 81 at Newlands. London buses, and all that….

Pakistan’s first-innings deficit of 421 was their third highest after 496 against Sri Lanka in Lahore (2009) and 473 against the West Indies at Bridgetown in 1958. They also conceded 408 against Australia in Karachi three years ago. They fought back to draw all three games. History, huh.

Most runs scored in follow-on innings belongs to brilliant Zimbabwean Andy Flower with 635 at an average of 158.75. It helped that he was given more opportunities than most. Second on the list is VVS Laxman with 586 at 146.50 – based on ‘that’ innings in Kolkata in 2001 when India followed on with a deficit of 274, and won. Another record. Alec Stewart (550 @ 68.75) and Gary Kirsten (495 @123.75) are in third and fourth place. Kirsten’s 275 at Kingsmead against England remains the second longest Test innings. The longest remains Hanif Mohammad’s 337 against the West Indies in Bridgetown in 1958, also in a follow-on.

Wiaan Mulder inconsistent and sometimes indifferent returns for South Africa has left many South Africans unconvinced of his international pedigree – fair enough. But impressions can be misleading and memories short. An all rounder’s form cab be gauged by the difference between their batting and bowling averages. In 2024 Mulder averaged 64.5 with the bat and 18.2 with the ball, a differential of 46.3. Only three SA all rounders have had better years – Brian McMillan (46.63) in 1995, Shaun Pollock (50.80) in 2002 and, of course, Jacques Kallis (60.67) in 2007.

Marco Jansen’s current bowling average of 20.74 is bettered by only three current players – Axar Patel’s 19.34, Jasprit Bumrah’s 19.40 and Kyle Jamieson’s 19.73.

Kwena Maphaka had only played three first-class games before his Test debut. More remarkably he had only bowled more than 10 overs in three innings. These things may be hard to measure (including club cricket and net sessions etc) but it’s hard to imagine any bowler having made a Test debut with a ‘lighter’ workload.

Now that the World Test Championship finalists have been confirmed, it may be of interest to note that South Africa have the highest win percentage of Lord’s Tests since their first, post isolation, in 1994. South Africa have won five out of seven while Australia have won five out of nine during the same period. England have won 26 out of 55 in that time. But they won’t be there, of course.

Finally, profuse apologies to Jacques Kallis (and you) for neglecting the great man’s second double century in yesterday’s column, the 224 against Sri Lanka. The error was entirely mine and nothing to do with the immensely brilliant SABC stats man, Rodney Ulyate, who is once again largely responsible for this column.

Here’s to more heroic, back-to-the-wall batting from Shan and his team on day four. But not too much. Khurram Shahzad is the nightwatchman, unbeaten on eight. (The first nightwatchman to score a century was Pakistan’s Nasim-ul-Ghani who scratched out 101 against England at Lord’s in 1962. History, huh.)