Talk about numbers and records, the world is no short of it. It’s an every journalist’s delight to discuss about the players records and more importantly it’s the players who are involved in this eternal race of being the best in the world. And the records and numbers are the most appropriate means of calibrating the potential and caliber of the player. But one of the paradoxes about records is that this meter is calibrated in both positive and negative directions. What that means is that record doesn’t just manifest the greatness of the player or team but more often than not it reflects how miserable a team or player is. There are hundreds of records which any cricket player or team would be shameful to own and we will go through few of them.
1. Most ducks by a batsman in ODI career
This is a kind of record which you would associate with a tail ender or a lower order batsman but surprisingly the man who is in charge of this record is none other than iconic Sanath Jayasuria from Sri Lanka. It’s absolutely ironic that the man with over 13000 ODI runs is also the man who clinched 34 ducks in his illustrious career. Not taking anything away from this Legend but with all due respect, this is not the record you would want him to have.
2. Most ducks by a batsman in test career
The lethal and tall fast bowler from Caribbean Courtney Walsh would brag for the rest of his life about how he used to intimidate the batsman with his devastating pace and bounce. But one thing he could not brag about is his batting master class and his record is extremely obnoxious in this regard. He holds the record of most number of ducks in the career and his tally consists of 43 ducks. Something which you certainly not want on your resume.
3. Most Pairs by any batsmen
For the starters, we need to educate our readers about this fancy cricketing terminology called pair. Pair is actually a batsmen getting out on duck in both innings of the test match. It is the ultimate humiliation for anyone batsman if it happens to them. But mostly it’s the bowlers and tail enders who pull out this stunt frequently. New Zealand’s fast bowler Chris Martin had his name in this infamous records book as he has bagged 7 pairs in test cricket and it is a substantial number considering the nature of the record.
4. Lowest Team total in ODIS
A humiliation is usually on the cards when a minnow tries to lock horns with a team that is way too strong for their liking. This calamity happened in 2004 in Harare. Zimbabwe was up against Sri Lanka in their home ground. Zimbabwe is not the strongest team in the world but it is certainly not the team who would get out on the meager total of mere 35 runs at least not in 2004 when they had adequate talent to compete with top cricketing tycoons. But unfortunately this is what happened and the Sri Lankans just rattled the Zimbabwe batting line up and to complete the disaster for them.
5. Most Runs Conceded by a bowler in an ODI innings
Since the arrival of the T20 cricket, cricket has become totally a batsman’s game. And then these modern day cricket bats with shorter boundaries have added to the misery of the bowlers. And this brand of T20 cricket has transformed the other two formats as well. But this instance of bowler called Mick Lewis getting hammered took place in the year 2006 when T20 cricket was not a famous commodity. This torment for Mick Lewis happened in the famous game at Johannesburg where South Africa put 434 runs on the board due to sparkling batting display by Herschel Gibbs and company. And main victim in this assault was Mick Lewis who looked like bowling to a cannon which was bombarding at both ends.
6. Players with most run outs in ODIS
Run out is considered as a cardinal sin in cricket and more often than not, the run outs change the course of the match. And as a batsman you never want to be involved in the blunder that could cost you the game. But there have been numerous player who have been involved in this catastrophic dismissal repetitively. But the ironic part of the story is that the guys who top this embarrassing list happen to be the two greats of the game. One is very athletic guy in the form of a legendary bowler like Wasim Akram and the other one is a great batman but lethargic runner between the wickets. They both have been run out 38 times and jointly hold the record for most number of run outs. Despite of the wonders these guys have done, the fact that they both feature in this list proves the point that nobody can actually achieve perfection.
7. Worst Economy Rate in ODI career
Limited overs cricket is all about restricting the opposition to as lowest total as possible. And for that a captain needs bowlers who are disciplined and can maintain tight line and length to restrict the flow of runs. But what a captain’s nightmare is that he had a bowler in his armory who has a habit of leaking runs like anything. Jade Dernbach happens to be that guy who leaks runs like no one else does.
His economy rate of 6.35 runs per over in ODIS sums up the amount of trouble he causes to his captain. Important thing to note is that this record is considered for only those bowlers who have bowled at least 1000 balls in one day internationals.
8. Worst team total in T20 international
This was again an event when a minnow came head to head with Sri Lanka. And this time it was Netherlands who were at the receiving end. There was absolutely no mercy from the Sri Lankans and the likes of Malinga, Mathews and Mendis were too good for the poor Dutch batsmen. This catastrophic innings is sufficient to make them feature in this list.
9. Most consecutive defeats in test matches
Bangladesh got ratified as a test playing nation in 2000. They were a new addition to the list of Asian brands. They had earlier pulled out a famous win against Pakistan in 1999 world cup. Despite of the jubilation of the nation for getting into the test arena, they had to wait for ages to get things right. They lost 21 games on a trot and they were found wanting in international arena. They were so ordinary that they didn’t even came close to point where they could have caused one or two upsets. This is indeed an embarrassing record given the number of matches this torment continued.
10. Worst Defeat in T20 international in terms of runs
In the inaugural edition of ICC world T20 in 2007, Kenya were up against the Sri Lankans. There was no match on the paper. But everyone wanted it to look better that what it appeared on the paper. But unfortunately for the Kenyans, this turned out even worse than what it actually looked. As it turned out, Sri Lankan were too good for the Africans and they smashed them to all corners and put 260 on the board thanks to brutal hitting from Sanath Jayasuria and delicate play by captain Mahela Jayawardene. In reply, Sri Lankan bowling in the form of Vass and Malinga was too good for the fragile Kenyan batting line up and Kenya lost the game by 172 runs which is the biggest defeat margin till date.