Players with misleading averages....

[Avada Kedavra]

Brian lara's average of 52.89 is far less than it should have been mainly because-

1-Less number of not outs(only 6)
2-He faced the worlds best attack of all the other top 7 teams and played only 4 tests versus zim and ban combined.
3-Unluckiest in terms of umpiring decisions i.e (number of times he was given out when he was not out - number of times he was given not out when he was out)

Lara's average is about right. Brilliant player he undoubtedly was, but pretty inconsistent - very like Sehwag in that aspect. And no, I am not trying to imply that Sehwag is as good as Lara. Not yet anyway.

1. He can only blame himself for being dismissed.
3.You have the exact figures? I reckon there were plenty of times when he was out but given not out.

 

[jaideep]

Anyone who followed most of lara's career would know that he is very unlucky in terms of umpiring decisions and he walks.I dont have the exact figures to back it up but i am sure about it.

 

[GuyFromLancs]

Okay, you can give credit to a batsman for scoring not outs in reasonable doses, I just don't rate the stats of players who dine out off them. For example, batsman A and batsman B play 4 innings each-

A: 50. 50. 50. 50

B: 50, 25no, 25no, 50

A has scored 25% more runs but has an average 25% less. If you are coming in at number 6 and spend your time batting with the tail or often come in late on a one-day innings you can hold off a bit, score a few runs and take a not out which boosts your average.

 

[wfdu_ben91]

Okay, not out can give credit to a batsman for scoring not outs in reasonable doses, I just don't rate the stats of players who dine out off them. For example, batsman A and batsman B play 4 innings each-

A: 50. 50. 50. 50

B: 50, 25no, 25no, 50

A has scored 25% more runs but has an average 25% less. If you are coming in at number 6 and spend your time batting with the tail or often come in late on a one-day innings you can hold off a bit, score a few runs and take a not out which boosts your average.

What's to say that if they had've batted higher then the two 25 not outs wouldn't of been converted into 100's?

 

[Migara]

Vettori's bowling average of 33 or some where.

 

[GuyFromLancs]

Brian lara's average of 52.89 is far less than it should have been mainly because-

1-Less number of not outs(only 6)
2-He faced the worlds best attack of all the other top 7 teams and played only 4 tests versus zim and ban combined.
3-Unluckiest in terms of umpiring decisions i.e (number of times he was given out when he was not out - number of times he was given not out when he was out)

I certainly agree with point 1. It is a great credit to Lara that not outs play almost no part in his batting average despite playing well over 100 tests in the middle order.

Proves that his intincts were for runs and not self-preservation. Remarkable record.

 

[Dano.85]

Okay, you can give credit to a batsman for scoring not outs in reasonable doses, I just don't rate the stats of players who dine out off them. For example, batsman A and batsman B play 4 innings each-

A: 50. 50. 50. 50

B: 50, 25no, 25no, 50

A has scored 25% more runs but has an average 25% less. If you are coming in at number 6 and spend your time batting with the tail or often come in late on a one-day innings you can hold off a bit, score a few runs and take a not out which boosts your average.

I agree with you on this, i think more so in odi's, but then i am an opener so i would say that ha ha ha

 

[GuyFromLancs]

What's to say that if they had've batted higher then the two 25 not outs wouldn't of been converted into 100's?

Some would have, no doubt. But I rate runs scored higher than runs that could have been scored. As I am sure you do.

 

[L Trumper]

Lara's average is about right. Brilliant player he undoubtedly was, but pretty inconsistent - very like Sehwag in that aspect. And no, I am not trying to imply that Sehwag is as good as Lara. Not yet anyway.

1. He can only blame himself for being dismissed.
3.You have the exact figures? I reckon there were plenty of times when he was out but given not out.

Not really, there are so many matches where lara was 9th or 10th out in the innings rather than going to other end and exposing very fragile WI tailenders he try to smack the ball. He don't have liberty like hussey or stephen to rotate strike with tailenders.
On top of my head against SA in 05 196 out of 347 and 176 out of 296 both times 10th or 9 th out. So many examples like that. If he look to be notout then he could be but he chose attacking option for more team runs.

 

[L Trumper]

Anyone who followed most of lara's career would know that he is very unlucky in terms of umpiring decisions and he walks.I dont have the exact figures to back it up but i am sure about it.

He was always a walker. I don't know why most people didn't notice it. Probably there ain't any high profile matches where he walked. But if he nicks the ball he generally walks before umpire's decision.

 

[Jarquis]

Nathan Hauritz

 

[jaideep]

not really, there are so many matches where lara was 9th or 10th out in the innings rather than going to other end and exposing very fragile wi tailenders he try to smack the ball. He don't have liberty like hussey or stephen to rotate strike with tailenders.
On top of my head against sa in 05 196 out of 347 and 176 out of 296 both times 10th or 9 th out. So many examples like that. If he look to be notout then he could be but he chose attacking option for more team runs.

+1

 

[Sir Alex]

Lara was all the above, agreed, but he also benefited from playing in an era and a team where batting consecutively for 2.5 days of a test match was allowed.

 

[L Trumper]

Lara was all the above, agreed, but he also benefited from playing in an era and a team where batting consecutively for 2.5 days of a test match was allowed.

In fairness his team don't play more than 2 hours than lara's innings. You can say it is advantage, but I think as an instinctively attacking batsman he should've been a lot better if there are more reliable partners.

 

[GuyFromLancs]

Seeing how few not outs Lara registered in his test career made me appreciate him more as an out-and-out run machine who cared more for destruction than his own stats.

To put it into context-

Brian Lara- 1 not out per 39 innings

Sachin Tendulkar- 1 not out per 9.3 innings

Steve Waugh- 1 not out per 5 innings

Fair enough, there would hae been times were Waugh, for the superior Australia, and SRT for India would have only needed to come in and score a few runs to secure victory or decleration, but the difference between the three stats above is incredible!

 

[G.I.Joe]

Maybe, you know, he just got out a lot?

 

[Shri]

Every innings has its own context.

/richard

 

[L Trumper]

Maybe, you know, he just got out a lot?

As i said before there are so many matches where lara was 9th or 10th out in the innings while attacking beacuse of fragile WI tailenders.

 

[Slifer]

He was always a walker. I don't know why most people didn't notice it. Probably there ain't any high profile matches where he walked. But if he nicks the ball he generally walks before umpire's decision.

Most of the 2005 series in Oz he got some rank poor decisions against him. As far as high profile matches i remember the FW series in 92/93 when Healy claimed a stumping against him when he didnt even have the ball in his glove, and in the return series in 95 i clearly remember S Waugh claiming a catch that he knew he'd grassed and last but not least, the 94 series in India WI were 1-0 down and needed quick runs in the 3rd innings of the 3rd test, Lara opens and makes a quick fire 91 and is adjudged not out to a caught behind decision, but being the man he is he walked. Other examples to follow.

 

[Goughy]

Most of the 2005 series in Oz he got some rank poor decisions against him. As far as high profile matches i remember the FW series in 92/93 when Healy claimed a stumping against him when he didnt even have the ball in his glove, and in the return series in 95 i clearly remember S Waugh claiming a catch that he knew he'd grassed and last but not least, the 94 series in India WI were 1-0 down and needed quick runs in the 3rd innings of the 3rd test, Lara opens and makes a quick fire 91 and is adjudged not out to a caught behind decision, but being the man he is he walked. Other examples to follow.

IMO no. For a long time I thought Waugh claimed a grassed catch but on repeated viewing it is a freak dismissal. The ball never touched the ground. Waugh gets far too much flack for not doing anything wrong.