10 most iconic numbers in cricket

Numbers are important. For some, they are everything. Almost everything in life is defined by numbers. Words could be factual or rumours, but numbers are almost always definite.In fact, the whole of this cyber world is a grand representation of 1s and 0s. What we read, listen and watch have 1s and 0s at the hardware level to thank for. Anyways, this article’s intention isn’t to teach binary numbers, this is about the important numbers in the world of cricket.In sports, numbers often define everything. More often than not, the higher the numbers, the better. Cricket is no different in this regard and has some unique numbers that instantly bring to mind the figures affiliated with them.And here are 10 such unique figures:

#1 99.94 - Sir Don Bradman

Anyone who calls himself or herself a cricket fan must already know what this figure means. Sir Don Bradman needed just four runs in his final innings to end his career with an average of 100, but he was out for a duck.

Although fans at the time wished that he had scored those four runs to finish with a three-figure average, an average like that after 52 Tests speaks more than volumes about the type of player our generation missed out on watching.

With an average like that, one could hardly argue the case that he was the greatest batsman Test cricket has ever seen and it is impossible to imagine that anyone will finish their career with an average like that after playing more than 50 games.

#2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - Bombay Duck

Nope. This is not an attempt at teaching the reader about binary numbers. This is – or was – Ajit Agarkar’s batting scores against Australia in seven consecutive innings.

Ajit Agarkar is someone who has done something that not even legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Brian Lara and Sunil Gavaskar couldn’t: He has a century at Lord’s – so he wasn’t exactly a Bambi on ice equivalent when it came to batting.

This infamous run of ducks against Australia earned him the embarrassing ‘Bombay Duck’ nickname. Even though he might not like the nickname, he could thank his fate that he didn’t earn that dubious record in this era of social networks. He surely would have been an internet legend had it been.

#3 800 - Muttiah Muralitharan

Another very unique figure. Even though Bishen Singh Bedi didn’t approve of him and never regarded him as a world-class bowler (or even a bowler, for that matter), Muttiah Muralitharan ended his Test career with the most wickets by any bowler.

It was against India and there was only one wicket to go before they were all out and Murali’s career was almost over. He was stuck on 799 and his teammates were bowling with no intention of bringing down the last pair standing.

In the end, Pragyan Ojha gave into the legend and became the lucky man – he can always proudly say that he was the 800th scalp the legendary took.

#4 400 - Brian Lara

An individual figure which remains the hardest for any batsman to beat. The chances of universal peace is probably more than the chances of a batsman breaking the 400 run margin in Test cricket even with such flat pitches out there.

Brian Charles Lara. The only person who could be termed as the closest rival to Sachin Tendulkar in Tests in the nineties, Lara’s technique and patience could only be matched by a few – if at all anyone.

Tendulkar could never reach even 250 in Tests – that further echoes how epic Lara’s knock of 400* was. The series was dead as England had won it before the final Test had even started, but very few remember that – all they remember was this unreal knock because that, indeed, was the biggest highlight of the series.

#5 264 - Rohit Sharma

It takes 2 minutes to prepare Maggie noodles – or at least that’s what illogical advertisements say. And it used to take 2 minutes for Rohit Sharma to get back to the pavilion after being sent into bat. Hence, he was always affiliated with the noodles brand.

But then he broke all those associations with Maggi when we flabbergasted the world with his mammoth knock of 264. In a One Day International match.

When Sachin Tendulkar struck the magic figure of 200, very few thought that it could be broken. However, Rohit bested them all when he smashed 264 in 173 balls against Sri Lanka and immersed his name in the echoes of eternity.

#6 199 - Sir Jack Hobbs

If Sir Don Bradman was the boss of Test cricket, then Sir Jack Hobbs was the emperor of first-class cricket. Most great batsmen don’t even reach an individual score of 199 in the longest format of the game.

Hobbs, however, scored 199 centuries in first-class cricket – 33 more than his closest competitor. He was one of the earliest legends and shaped the way a batsman played in the toughest and the most endearing format of the game. And for this, he was known as “The Master”..

Ultimately, and deservedly, he was knighted for his exceptional display of talent in the gentleman’s game. To this day, his style of batting and running between the wickets is used as a reference point for aspiring cricketers to follow.

And why not? He was The Original Master after all.

#7 161.3 - Shoaib Akhtar

Hardcore fans will probably know what this figure means.

There was once a time when fans thought that the boundary ropes in front of the side screen were extended so that Shoaib Akhtar didn’t run out of space to complete his long run-up. His run-up was almost as long as the Great Wall of China and when he came running at full speed, fear was induced in the minds of batsmen.

In the end, it was Nick Knight who faced the quickest delivery ever recorded when Akhtar bowled a delivery that clocked 161.3 kmph.

And to this day, no bowler has overcome that landmark.

#8 7/1 - Curtly Ambrose

This was, perhaps, the greatest spell of bowling ever seen.

When Wahab Riaz was embarrassing the Australians with his brutal spell in March, many regarded it as one of the greatest spells of dominance shown by a bowler – even though the wickets column wasn’t in the Pakistani’s favour.

However, Australia have faced much worse. In the early 90s, Curtly Ambrose shredded the Australian batting line-up like wheat when he took 7 wickets in 32 balls and conceded just a single run in the process.

Don’t believe it? Fine. Just take a look at the video above. The Australian batsmen didn’t have a clue at what hit them.

#9 19/90 - Jim Laker

The greatest performance by a bowler in Test cricket. And another old-school classic.

When one hears the term ‘Old Trafford’ the most probably synonym to spring in their head is Manchester United. However, in 1956, something happened at Old Trafford that became synonymous to a cricketer.

Jim Laker made history when he took 19 wickets in a single Test match, including all 10 scalps in an innings, against Australia at Old Trafford. The match, to this day, is known as “Laker’s match”. Without a doubt, this was the most influential game a bowler has ever had.

Anil Kumble is the only other bowler in the history of Test cricket to pick up 10 wickets in an innings.

#10 100 - Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. There are so many records under his name that it was unfathomable as to which one to place here for we would run out of slides. Hence, only one was chosen the best of the lot. The century of centuries centurception.

The soil of Bangladesh was blessed with the grace of the man they call the God of Cricket when he scored his 100th international 100 against Bangladesh. The sacred date was the 16th of March 2012 and it was also his last century.

Indian and Bangladeshi fans might be at cross-hair with each other right now, but Bangladesh fans will be glad about one thing that Tendulkar scored his 100th 100 in their country.