Statistical highlights of Nagpur Test (1st day)
Mohandas Menon
** Heath Streak was appearing in his 50th Test match since his debut in 1993. He becomes the fourth Zimbabwean (after the Flower brothers with 60 matches each and Alistair Campbell 57) and the 181st player in Test history to do so.
** Stuart Carlisle (77, when on 13) became the 8th Zimbabwean and the 376th batsman in Test history to reach 1000 career runs. By reaching this landmark in his 26th match, Carlisle took the longest in terms of matches among the six genuine Zimbabwe batsmen. All-rounder Heath Streak however needed 40 matches to reach his landmark.
** The partnership of 106 between Carlisle and Alistair Campbell was
the best for Zimbabwe against India for the second wicket bettering the
previous best of 101 between Carlisle and Guy Whittall at this same
venue in November 2000.
** Carlisle’s 77 was highest of his career bettering 64 he made against Sri Lanka at Galle last month.
** Andy Flower’s score of just three runs was by far his lowest against India in eight matches and 15 innings. His previous lowest was the 30 he made at Harare in October 1998.
** Since June 2000, Andy Flower had made double-digit scores in 23
consecutive innings lasting up to the first Test against Sri Lanka at
Colombo in December last. During this period he made 1724 runs in 15 Test
matches at an average of 95.78 runs per innings, with five hundreds and 8
fifties. However in this calendar year his scores read as: 0, 11; 6, 3;
and now with this paltry score of three he made in this innings, his
run aggregate in 2002 is 31 runs at an average of 6.20 runs per innings!
** Travis Friend’s unbeaten 33 was the highest by a Zimbabwean number nine batsman against India obliterating the previous best of 32 not out by Andy Blignaut at Bulawayo in June last year. For the record the best at this batting position for Zimbabwe against any country is the 81 by Friend himself against Bangladesh at Dhaka last November.
