The ICC men’s cricket World Cup is set to begin from October 5 with the biggest prize in the game on stake in India. England are the defending champions and start as favorites again but hosts India are looking as strong as the 'Three Lions', if not more. Five times champions Australia can never be taken lightly while teams like South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan can also create ripples.
In this piece we will look at what numbers say about how all 10 teams have fared in this World Cup cycle, i.e. since the end of the last ICC men’s cricket World Cup till the start of this edition of the mega event.
Overall numbers
India lead the list of most wins in ODIs since the end of the 2019 World Cup with 40 wins, 10 more than the second-placed Sri Lanka. However, India have also played the most ODIs, 66, in this period which is more than double the number of games Afghanistan (29) have played while almost double of what the Netherlands (34) have participated in.
Pakistan are the best team when it comes to win/loss record with 2.4 wins for every loss in this World Cup cycle. They are followed by India, New Zealand and South Africa. Defending champions England are sixth in this list while Australia are only better than Afghanistan and the Netherlands.
Some teams did not regularly play their best players in this format after the last World Cup, so these numbers have to be seen in that context also.
Batting numbers
As the graph suggests, India, England and South Africa have been among the best batting sides in this World Cup cycle. While Indian batters have the best batting average, it is England who have carried on their aggressive brand of cricket from the last World Cup. England are comfortably ahead of any other team in terms of runs per over.
On the other hand, the Netherlands remain not just the slowest batting side but also they average the least.
Best batters
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam’s numbers in the last four years show why he is the top-ranked ODI batter right now. He is the only player to score 2000 ODI runs since the last World Cup. India’s Shubman Gill (1901), KL Rahul (1587), Shreyas Iyer (1591) and Virat Kohli (1797) along with Azam (2196) form the list of top 5 run scorers since the last World Cup.
Again, Indian players populating the list is because of them playing a lot more than others.
For players with more than 1,000 runs in this cycle, Gill (70.4) and Babar (66.54) have the best average followed by Dawid Malan (63.87), David Miller (60.70) and Steve Smith (56.54).
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has hit the most, 62, sixes in this period while his opening partner Gill has hit the most, 211, boundaries.
In terms of aggressive batting, the in-form South African batter Heinrich Klassen is at the top with a strike rate – runs per 100 balls – of 120 for batters with at least 700 runs since the last World Cup.
Bowling numbers
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan have the best bowling average – runs per wicket – in this World Cup cycle among the teams that will be seen in the competition. The other two teams from the subcontinent, India and Pakistan, are fourth and fifth respectively on the list.
These numbers have to be seen in the context that pitches in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are slower and more spin-friendly than, say, England where pitches have been batsmen friendly of late.
Best bowlers
In terms of wickets, Australian leg spinner Adam Zampa remains a cut above the rest. Since the last World Cup, he has taken 77 wickets, 18 more than the second-placed Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav while playing two games less.
Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga (58), who will be missing this World Cup due to injury, was the third most successful bowler while India’s Shardul Thakur (57) and Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan Miraz (56) followed him at fourth and fifth positions.
For bowlers with more than 30 wickets in this period, New Zealand’s Trent Boult had the best runs per wicket at 16.09. Injured Pakistani pacer Naseem Shah was the only other bowler to average less than 17 in this period. Mohammed Siraj (18.61), David Willey (22.35) and Adam Zampa (22.89) form the top five.
Bangladesh’s Shakib Ul Hasan (4.18), Trent Boult (4.24) and Rashid Khan (4.39) remain the most economical bowlers with over 30 wickets since the last World Cup.
Hasaranga also is the only bowler with three five-wicket hauls in this World Cup cycle.
What the numbers mean
The numbers clearly show that India remains the strongest contender to win the trophy. It shows that England's batting lineup is the most aggressive and South Africans are not far behind.
The numbers also reveal that smaller teams from the subcontinent, i.e. Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh will pose tough challenges for the non-Asian sides.
The Netherlands, meanwhile, will need a few miracles to have a lasting impact in the event.
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