Some of the more intriguing Test records cannot be found by looking at traditional scorecards. Hat-tricks are a prime example, but there are endless possibilities. I recently came across a case, at The Oval in 1886, of WG Grace scoring 60 runs while his batting partner, W Scotton, remained scoreless, stuck on 21. I wondered, what is the greatest number of runs scored while one batsman remained scoreless? I knew of one example greater than Grace: in his legendary 232 at Trent Bridge in 1938, Stan McCabe scored the last 66 runs of the Australian innings, while batting with Chuck Fleetwood-Smith.
Are there any modern parallels? This is where Cricinfo’s ball-by-ball archive, with more than 400 Tests since 1999, comes in. Make a suitable database out this archive and it can be searched for feats like this.
It’s not as simple as it sounds, but some results are in. Bear in mind also that the archive was set up more as a detailed commentary than an “official” statistical source, and contains gaps. Anyway, here are some results for extreme domination of scoring.
Monopolising scoring in Tests since 1999
Batsman (Total score)
Runs
Incl extras
Scoreless partner (s)
Versus
Venue & year
Mohammad Yousuf (112)
67
74
Moin Khan, Mohammad Sami, Saqlain Mushtaq, Shoaib Akhtar
India
Multan, 2004
Adam Gilchrist (138*)
65
69
Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Jason Gillespie, Glenn McGrath
Mohammad Yousuf went from 23 to 90 in 22 overs in that Multan Test, and saw three wickets fall while his partners added nothing, so that edges out McCabe as the most extreme case. McCabe, though, totally monopolised the scoring; there were no extras. Fleetwood-Smith still holds the record for watching his partner score while not scoring himself, although the total of 66 runs was exceeded by Dilhara Fernando if you include extras.
Perhaps the most remarkable example is the Langer-Hayden case, given that Hayden is normally such a heavy hitter. To find a more extreme example of one recognised batsman outscoring another, you have to go back to WG in that Oval Test of 1886. (Langer, incidentally, was the first batsman to reach a half-century in the first 10 overs of a Test match, a feat since emulated by Marcus Trescothick).
Readers who know of (or suspect) other extreme cases are invited to suggest them.
Posted by: Thirucumaran at December 18, 2007 3:08 PM
Wow, nice analysis Mr. Dave. This blog is really serving me useful in my quest to become a cricket journalist
Posted by: Isam at December 18, 2007 4:17 PM
There was a match in Singapore where Sanath Jayasuriya scored 67; Romesh Kaluwitharana didn't score a single run as far as i remember.
Posted by: Vinay Vasan at December 18, 2007 4:46 PM
Good work Mr. Dave. If my memory serves me right one such case in recent time would be a partnership between Sanath Jayasuirya and Kaluwitharana in a finals against Pakistan where of the 70 runs, Jayasuriya managed 66 and extras 4 when Kalu got out.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 18, 2007 4:57 PM
In the case of Sanath and Dilhara... I think they put on 113 while Dilhara only contributed 1.
Posted by: Bbz at December 18, 2007 6:07 PM
Isam: I remember that match in which Jayasuria actually scored 75. But it was an ODI..... final of some cup. It was also the match in which Jayasuria hit the fastest 50 in ODIs.
Posted by: Abdullah at December 18, 2007 8:01 PM
The match that is being referred above is the Final of the Triangular Cup in Singapore in 1996. This is the tournament in which Sanath Jayasuria broke the record for the fastest fifty and hundred (which was later broken by Shahid Afridi).
Another test match which i can recall involved New Zealand in which the No. 11 Geoff Allott made 0 but I cant recall whether it was the longest 0 or the highest partnership in which the other batsman had not scored (i reckon its the former)
Posted by: poroto dean at December 18, 2007 11:44 PM
This one might help: the first test of the 2001 Ashes series. Gilchrist went nuts at the end of Australia's first innings, when Mark Butcher started taking a few wickets. He hit out, and Glenn McGrath at the other end, hardly faced a ball.
Posted by: Marcus at December 19, 2007 12:17 AM
Wasn't there this one game where the New Zealand no. 11 (Geoff Allott?) faced 100 balls without scoring a run? Surely his partner at the other end must have done something!
Posted by: Charles D at December 19, 2007 12:33 AM
Dean Illot has pointed out one from Adam Gilchrist that I missed. At Edgbaston 2001, Gilchrist added 55 out of 56 runs while his partners, Warne, Lee and McGrath did not score. There was one leg bye.
Posted by: ashish at December 19, 2007 4:38 AM
there was a test involving new zealand and england (i think!) where nathan astle and danny morrison saved it with a huge partnership...danny went scoreless throughout...
Posted by: Shafiq at December 19, 2007 6:35 AM
Well done, Rajesh! You are a fantastic writer, i admire you in stats as i admire Osman for his analysis. Keep it up!
Posted by: David Barry at December 19, 2007 7:12 AM
In the first Ashes Test of 2001, Adam Gilchrist went from 86 an over before Shane Warne's dismissal, to 141 when Glenn McGrath scored a single. Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie both made ducks along the way. So 55 monopolised runs to Gilchrist, with three extras.
Posted by: SBI at December 19, 2007 7:57 AM
During the first wicket stand between Srikkanth and Gavaskar at SCG 1985-86, Srikkanth went from 27 to 77 while Gavaskar remained on 28. This included the famous sequence when Srikkanth hit Bob Holland for 22 in an over.
Posted by: Arul at December 19, 2007 8:11 AM
In ODI # 1499
DMC Cup, 1999, 3rd One-Day International
India v West Indies
Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club
14 September 1999 we have a domonating partnership. Ricordo Powell and Collymore were the involved in it. In the 84 runs partnership, Collymore scored 2 and Powell scored more than 70 (73 if i am correct), remaining were extras.
Posted by: Kezzy at December 19, 2007 8:13 AM
I had actually been wondering about this; since AB de Villiers managed about 30 with scoreless partners in Pakistan in September.
Posted by: Ben at December 19, 2007 8:57 AM
Danny Morrison ended up on 10-20 not out in that game (his last test) I think.
Geoff Allott did definitely have the longest duck though, and I'm pretty sure he batted at number 11, meaning whoever he was with (Astle again? Can't remember) must have made a few to his none.
Posted by: jay at December 19, 2007 12:27 PM
During a county match, Javed Miandad famously took his team's score from 222 to 270 in eight overs - 48 runs - without his partner Ray East facing a single delivery. Coming in at 222, East was out for a first ball duck with the score at 270.
Posted by: waqas Abdullah at December 19, 2007 1:32 PM
good job man... as for the one-days, i think once Romesh Kaluwitharna got out for a duck (bold by Aaqib Javed) when Srilanka had scored 70 for the first wicket against pakistan. can you kindly check if thats a record
Posted by: VIJAYSRIVATSAN at December 19, 2007 5:25 PM
what about the one day match (pak vs Srilanka, Apr 7,1996)in which kaluwitharana was scoreless while jayasuriya scoered 69 with one 1 extra.
Posted by: Alward at December 19, 2007 6:19 PM
I remember one match, Pakistan in Autralia, in late seventies or early eighties where Asif Iqbal scored a century in last wicket parnership of more than hundred with Iqbal Qasim scoring only 4.
Posted by: Paul Torkington at December 19, 2007 9:56 PM
The game with Geoff Allotts duck is not on here because Harry only managed to score about 30. The partnership lasted a touch over 27 overs but they only scored 32 runs.
Posted by: Arjun Shivanand at December 20, 2007 4:20 AM
Cool blog...this isn't exactly the case you mention above but I remember that in the 1st ODI of the 2004 Ind-Pak series,the Sehwag-Ganguly partnership had Sehwag scoring 47 runs before Ganguly even faced a ball...wouldn't that qualify as domination too? ..I know it's not the exact same case but I haven't found that happening anywhere else..by the way,excelllent work..we always support cricinfo..
Posted by: stephan at January 9, 2008 10:51 AM
Bit late, sorry, but re jay's point on Dec 19, are you sure? The only county East played for was Essex, and assuming you mean Javed Miandad, he never played for them.?
Posted by: nk at March 15, 2008 5:28 AM
please check if kapil's 175 and viv's 189 (especially the last wicket stand) were one sided? i think the total was about 250 in those cases..
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