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In December of 2012, a two-way high school star named Shohei Ohtani shocked Japan by announcing he was signing with the Nippon Ham Fighters, the team that drafted him, rather than signing with a Major League Baseball team as an international free agent.

“When they first selected me, there was zero chance of me signing with them,” Ohtani said then.

Hideki Kuriyama, the Fighters manager, challenged Ohtani to establish himself as a two-way professional in Japan, rather than accept the specialization that likely awaited the teenager in the states.

“He told me that he wanted me to travel down a path no one else walked down,” Ohtani said then.

Since then, Ohtani has spent his entire professional life taking the road not taken. He did it again Saturday with career home run No. 250.

Another milestone, another new path.

Having swiped his 150th career base in April, Ohtani reached 250 home runs and 150 stolen bases faster than any player in history: 945 games, or 929 games if you don’t count the games in which he pitched but did not hit.

He leads his league in home runs, slugging, total bases and OPS for a third straight year while on pace to become the first player in 94 years to score 160 runs—and, oh, by the way, while throwing simulated games as he recovers from elbow surgery so he can join the Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation … which will happen Monday night!

That’s right, on Sunday night the team suddenly announced the National League home run leader and Dodgers’ leadoff hitter will make his Dodgers pitching debut at Dodger Stadium against the San Diego Padres on Monday. Two-way Shohei is back. It will be his first time pitching in any kind of competitive game in 662 days—no minor league rehab starts for The Unicorn!—and he will do it against the NL West rival Padres.

The vibe will be electric. We have never seen a greater all-round talent in baseball. And now Ohtani is back to what he calls his “norm” as a two-way player. He is not stretched out yet to go more than three or four innings, but the Dodgers are adding a dominant arm at a time when they need one. Let the fun begin.

But for now, let’s use the 250-home run milestone as a marker to take stock of where Ohtani ranks .

Who are the best historical comps for Ohtani?

The home run/stolen base combo is nice, but let’s go full card here, since Ohtani is the rare offensive player who has power and speed at elite levels. Let’s find the only players through 945 games with 200 homers, 150 steals, 150 doubles and 40 triples.

Here is the entire list. I threw in extra-base hits just to reinforce how alike Ohtani is to Willie Mays as a hitter at this point in their careers:

Through 945 games: 200 HR, 150 SB, 150 2B, 40 3B

What kind of pitches does Ohtani hit most for home runs?

Ohtani has hit slightly more than half his 250 home runs off fastballs, 54.4%. That’s not a surprise because he sees 52.6% fastballs (well below the major league average of 57.2% over the course of his career).

The surprise is that Ohtani sees 29% breaking pitches, but hits 32.4% of his home runs off breaking pitches, his biggest difference in power by pitch types.

Ohtani by pitch type, career

Ohtani is a in-zone breaking ball hitter. Over the past three seasons he slugs .834 on in-zone spin. Next best in MLB is Gunnar Henderson, who is nowhere near him at .712 (minimum 5,000 total pitches).

How has Ohtani evolved as a hitter?

Ohtani is only now entering his prime power years. He has become a more dangerous power hitter in recent years by mastering the art of getting the ball airborne to the pull side.

Check out this growth chart when it comes to pull-side power:

Ohtani pulled home runs

How did he pull off this evolution into a pull-side monster?

Let’s compare two pull-side Ohtani home runs, one from 2020, before he began to truly grow into his pull power, and his 250th home run from Saturday:

Arsenal made it six wins from six in the Champions League on Monday night as Mikel Arteta’s men secured a 3-0 win over Club Brugge.

The Gunners tasted defeat against Aston Villa only a few days ago, but a much-changed team responded in emphatic fashion, with Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli both on the scoresheet.

Madueke scored a fierce opening goal, running through the heart of the Brugge team before unleashing a devastating effort from outside of the box that crashed in off the bar.

His second, a header from close range, was a lot simpler but there was nothing simple about Martinelli’s strike.

The Brazilian cut inside from the left and bent the ball into the far corner to cap off a phenomenal 3-0 win on the road in Europe.

Understandably, Arteta was delighted with what he saw from his players.

Arteta raves over Arsenal's attacking performance

Martinelli and Madueke have both struggled with injury this term but certainly made their chance count in Belgium on Wednesday night.

Speaking to the press after the game, Areta waxed lyrical over the two wingers, saying: “Madueke and Martinelli were outstanding today, the level of threat and two finishes spectacular. Jesus back after 11 months, to see him perform in the manner he did was really positive.”

Perhaps the biggest positive for the Gunners was Gabriel Jesus’ return to the side. The Brazilian hasn’t been seen in the first team since suffering a horrific ACL injury against Manchester United back in January.

While the striker didn’t score, he managed more touches than the man he replaced, Viktor Gyokeres, despite playing just half an hour.

Arteta was ecstatic to see the forward back in action, saying: “For 11 months, he’s been fighting against another very difficult injury and to see him back with that smile, with that energy and with that quality in his first performance back with us is really impressive and we’re all delighted for him.

“You can see how much we love him! If he continues to perform in that manner, he will bring something else to the team and I am really happy to see that.”

Arteta praises underrated Arsenal star

While the forward line grabbed the headlines in Brugge this week, praise must be handed to the lesser-spotted Christian Norgaard.

The Danish midfielder has barely kicked a ball since signing from Brentford in the summer but more than took his chance on Wednesday, albeit in an unfamiliar role.

Due to injuries to Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Cristhian Mosquera, Norgaard played at centre-back and looked very solid, helping his team keep a clean sheet.

The manager was delighted with his performance, stating: “Christian Norgaard is someone who probably prepares the best out of all of them. He is somebody who makes us better every day. Any position, any condition, his attitude is always immaculate.”

Arsenal star was playing like Saka, now he's being treated like Smith Rowe

The incredible Arsenal talent could end up following Smith Rowe’s trajectory instead of Saka’s.

3

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

5 days ago

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says star midfielder Rodri is "suffering" due to a troublesome hamstring injury. The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner picked up the issue in early October, just months on from returning from a long-term knee problem. And while the Spain international is "getting better", he is "struggling" with this newer setback.

• Rodri wasn't getting carried away

  When Rodri returned to the City team after nine months out with an anterior cruciate ligament injury earlier this year, he knew it would take time to return to the form that earned him the Golden Ball. 

  In late June, he said at the Club World Cup: "I feel very, very strong, to be honest. The process was long, but I was taking my time. The most important thing was to keep focused and be strong. Don't be sad or whatever. One day I'll come back and this day has finally come and I'm very excited to play again. I know it's still going to be months until I reach my level, but I'm so happy."

  At the start of the new season, City did their best to ease Rodri back into action but his injury issues have reared their ugly head again, something Guardiola has bemoaned.

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  Rodri 'struggling' with new injury

  Rodri sustained this hamstring injury against Brentford on October 5, a game he only lasted 22 minutes in. The 29-year-old has played just one minute since then, as he appeared as a late substitute against Bournemouth on November 2. And it seems he will have to be patient for a while yet. 

  Guardiola told reporters on Friday: "Do you know what it means playing without the best player in the world two seasons ago? Our main player, when we won the Treble and playing 70 games. [Then] during one year and a half [years] without him. Do you know what we miss? I want him back now…here. He is suffering, he is struggling because he wants to come back, but I want to protect him. I want to be sure right now that we minimise the risk. This is what we want. I want him desperately right now, in Madrid, or the next one but after that six more weeks he is out? No sense. When you have an injured ACL, your body is completely different."

• Rodri on 'another level'

  City currently sit five points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal and while they haven't been at their best, they are still title contenders. But it seems Guardiola thinks they would be in a much better position if Rodri had been available for much of this campaign.

  He added: "Rodri is another level of the players. If Rodri came on for the last 20 minutes against Fulham, put him in the middle and do you know what is the effect? Just his presence, not even touching the ball? The other 10 players feel safe and they play better. What will you do, you're a football player or you are a journalist, over 18 months you cannot do your job. You want to write, you want inspiration and show how good you are and you cannot do it. How do you feel? It feels bad. Of course, he is strong and in some moments he is sad. I would not be happy if he is not sad or concerned. Ahead of us, we have many nightmare things to live. He has to be there. He will be there."

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  What comes next for Rodri's Man City?

  While Rodri continues his injury rehab, his City side host high-flying Sunderland at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon. If results go their way this weekend, they could close the gap to Mikel Arteta's Arsenal to two points, should the Gunners lose at third-placed Aston Villa. 

  On newly-promoted Sunderland, Guardiola added: "They deserve to be where they are. Momentum can happen after a few games but after 14 fixtures in the Premier League with these opponents? To be in that position, they deserve it."

Umpire Sean Barber has officially accomplished a rare feat. He made Shohei Ohtani angry.

Barber was behind the plate during the Los Angeles Dodgers' matchup with the Milwaukee Brewers and he made a call so egregious that Ohtani argued with him—something the reigning National League MVP almost never does.

Ohtani was at the plate to open the top of the sixth inning as the Dodgers trailed 7–0. On a 3–2 count, Freddy Peralta threw a changeup that visibly missed low and inside. Barber called it strike three. Ohtani immediately protested, said something, then demonstrably shook his head on the way back to the dugout. It was a rare, justified, outburst.

Video is below.

That's a brutal call, and Ohtani had every right to be upset about it. There is likely some mounting frustration for the star slugger and his teammates. They appear on their way to their fourth loss in a row, and Ohtani entered Monday night with a .136 batting average in July so far.

It's understandable he was upset when he appeared to have worked a walk but was called out.

The four week long period between this international break and the next, containing seven fixtures, could be season-defining for Celtic.

Having yielded just a solitary point from their first two Europa League outings, Brendan Rodgers’ team really need to get some points on the board against Sturm Graz at home and then Midtjylland in Herning, because the fixtures only get tougher after that.

Meantime, on the domestic front, the Hoops will visit current Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts the Sunday after next, an eagerly anticipated clash at Tynecastle, before the small matter of an Old Firm League Cup semi-final at Hampden a week later.

Given their underwhelming form so far, supporters are hoping to see players come to the fore and put their best foot forward, but which summer signing is showing early signs of a certain Tom Rogic?

Tom Rogic's Celtic career in numbers

Few players in modern Celtic history remain as beloved as Rogic.

After arriving from Central Coast Mariners in January 2013, the Australian made 272 appearances in hoops, scoring 46 goals and providing 51 assists.

He netted six times against Rangers, while also scoring, arguably, the most famous goal of the club’s recent history, firing home a stoppage-time winner in the 2017 Scottish Cup Final against Aberdeen to secure the invincible treble that bookended Rodgers’ first season in charge.

Affectionately known as the Wizard of Oz, this nickname encapsulates Rogic’s style of play, possessing the clichéd ‘wand of a left foot’, while Rodgers similarly labelled him a “magician”.

Meantime, then teammate Josip Juranović asserted that the Australian “is little Messi”, adding “he’s one of the best players I have played with”.

When he departed at the end of the 2021/22 campaign, Rogic received an emotional standing ovation from the Celtic faithful as genuine and heartfelt recognition for all the magical moments he had provided.

He cited wanting the move closer to home as the reason for his departure and, technically, he did that by about 280 of the 10,550 miles, joining West Bromwich Albion as a free agent, albeit he made only 23 appearances for the Baggies before retiring at the age of 30.

When Rogic arrived as a 20-year-old from an A-League club very few in Glasgow would ever have heard of, surely no one could’ve foreseen just how impactful he would be at the club, so is a current squad member set for a similar trajectory?

Celtic's next Tom Rogic

Supporters remain generally furious with the board’s inactivity this summer, believing that transfer deals were completed too late, costing Celtic a place in the Champions League.

Well, considering Marcelo Saracchi, Michel-Ange Balikwisha, Sebastian Tounekti and Kelechi Iheanacho all arrived after the play-off defeat to Kairat, they may have a point.

One new recruit who did join all the way back in June, instantaneously establishing himself as a first-choice starter, is Benjamin Nygren, and what an absolute bargain he could prove to be.

Into the final few months of his contract with Nordsjælland, the Hoops managed to sign the Sweden international for a reported fee of £1.7m, while Football Transfers believe his current value to be around £6m, having already increased just 13 appearances into his Celtic career.

The table below emphasises his importance to the team so far this season.

As the table documents, Nygren ranks first for a wide variety of attacking metrics this season, thereby very much part of Rodgers’ first-choice midfield trio, despite the fact many forecast he was joining to replace Nicolas Kühn on the right-wing.

The Swede, who was an unused substitute for both of the Blågult’s World Cup qualifying defeats this week, scored his fourth goal for Celtic against Motherwell last time out, having opened his account for the club against Aberdeen in August.

Following that victory at Pittodrie, Rodgers praised Nygren’s “excellent” performance, noting that “his intuition is to get in the box and score goals”, as Rogic often did, connecting with Kieran Tierney’s low cross to fire past Dimitar Mitov.

Meantime, following a 5-1 dismantling of Northern Ireland in March, international teammate Alexander Isak described Nygren as “fearless”, concluding that “playing with a winger like that who is able to provide good crosses can only be beneficial for someone like me”.

That is high praise from the most-expensive player in British football history, so the £1.7m Celtic paid to secure the 24-year-old’s signature looks like a genuine bargain.

Thus, supporters will hope he remains in Glasgow’s East End for nigh on a decade too, as Rogic did, the last player at the club who could boast possessing an equally majestic left foot.

Cost £0, now worth more than Tounekti: Celtic hit gold on "phenomenal" star

Sebastian Tounekti has made an impressive start to life at Celtic, but a “prolific” attacker who arrived for free has a higher estimated market value.

By
Ben Gray

Oct 10, 2025

MLB’s hot stove is about to get cranked up this week, as the 2025 winter meetings begin Monday in Orlando, Fla., where executives from all 30 teams will gather. And with executives, managers and player agents in the same room, the proverbial engines of the free agent and trade markets are being revved up. Some of the offseason’s biggest deals often go down at the winter meetings. This year could be no different. 

The best available position player on the market, Kyle Tucker, met with the reigning American League champion Blue Jays, perhaps a precursor to his market picking up speed this week. Arguably the next best free agent hitter, National League home run king Kyle Schwarber, is a candidate to be the first free agent domino to fall in Orlando. And then there’s the trade market. Will back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal be dealt by the Tigers? All these questions—and more—will be answered in the coming days, making for an exciting time for baseball fans. That said, here are the biggest questions in MLB heading into the winter meetings.

1. Where will Kyle Tucker land? 

The 2025 MLB season has reached its final month and there are still questions that need to be answered, division races to shake out and award races to be decided. Which division leader’s lead is safest? And with a month of games remaining, is the playoff field already set? 

In terms of individual player milestones, will Aaron Judge, who surpassed Yogi Berra on the Yankees’ all-time home run list, one day pass the legendary Babe Ruth as well? And could Justin Verlander, after notching his 265th career win, become just the 25th pitcher to record 300 career victories? 

We’ll answer each of these questions and more in the latest edition of Fact or Fiction. 

The playoff field in MLB is already set

I know I’m being a bit of a party pooper with this answer, but it’s hard to argue with the current playoff landscape in MLB. 

For a brief moment to begin August, the Mets and Yankees, both mired in dreadful slumps, had their fan bases longing for the return of New York football. However, both clubs have emerged from the danger zone and stand on firmer ground as the calendar flips to September. 

As for the other current wild-card holders, it’s difficult to imagine a scenario where the likes of either the Red Sox or Padres, two of baseball’s best teams since the All-Star break, fall out of the playoff race. Likewise for the Cubs, who, even after a middling month of August, still have a firm grasp on the third National League wild card. 

If there’s going to be a shakeup in the postseason landscape, it will happen in the American League, where the Royals, Rangers and even Guardians all could conceivably catch the Mariners for the third wild card. But all three of those clubs have a noticeable Achilles heel—offensive woes for the Royals and Guardians, injuries for the Rangers—that make it tough to envision these teams taking the field come October. 

Of the six division races, one is seemingly decided—the AL Central—and two are trending toward that territory—the NL East and Central. The division-leading Blue Jays, Astros and Dodgers all sport leads of fewer than five games. 

All of this to say, there could be some musical chairs going on in the season’s final month as clubs jockey for positioning. The seeding and playoff bracket could look a bit different come season’s end. But get used to the teams that currently represent the playoff field. 

Of the 12 teams in pole position entering September, 10 of them boast 90 percent or better postseason odds on FanGraphs and nine of them have similar figures in Baseball Reference’s playoff odds. Hopefully, the good folks at FanGraphs and Baseball Reference are wrong and there’s a September surprise or two in store. Just don’t be too crestfallen if that doesn’t happen. 

Verdict: Fact

Aaron Judge will one day top Yankees’ all-time home run list 

A look at how players did in the last 10% of their careers compared to the first 90%

Anantha Narayanan12-Sep-2020A few years ago I analysed the careers of players in two different ways. In the first, I split a career into thirds and looked at how players started, consolidated and finished, focusing on how careers progressed but not so much how they ended. In the second, I also analysed how players finished. But because I took a fixed length of ten Tests as the last stage, it was not very conclusive: ten Tests represent 37% of Sydney Barnes’ career, 27% of Clarrie Grimmett’s, and 5% of Sachin Tendulkar’s. In earlier eras, a player might have taken four years to play ten Tests, but now that could happen in six months – albeit in a Covid-free world. I also used the batting average, with all its shortcomings, in those analyses, which resulted in distortions because the not-out patterns vary drastically across career stages. And finally, the analyses included all players who were active back then.I look to address these problems in this definitive analysis. I have used the weighted batting average (WBA) instead of the conventional batting average to appraise long careers fairly. To ensure that active players are not part of this study, I have excluded any player who has played a Test since the start of 2019. I have worked out a flexible end-stage determination based on the number of Tests played by the player, so that players across all cricket eras are treated fairly and equally.What is the end stage? I have analysed the careers of many players, whose careers range from 30 to 200 Tests. For one player, ten Tests are too many and for another too few. Maybe for the middle lot, ten is fine, but the method should be fair to Barnes and Tendulkar and everyone in between.Anything above 10% seemed to be too long a winding-down period for recent players. Anything below 10% seemed to be too short a period for the earlier players. So I decided on 10% as the end stage for a player, subject to a minimum of five Tests. This tweak will take care of bowlers like Barnes and Grimmett. I also want to set the bar high so that we only have players who have played in a significant number of Tests. So I have set 6000 runs as the minimum cut-off, with one exception – Jack Hobbs, who had 5471 runs. I have also set 189 wickets as the cut-off for bowlers, so I can get Barnes in. There are very good reasons why these two all-time greats should be included. In a near-symmetry, I have 61 batsmen and 65 bowlers who qualify.The batsman end-stage ratio is computed by comparing the end-stage WBA to the WBA at the 90% stage. The 90% stage bowling average for the bowlers is compared to the end-stage bowling average. I have an additional set of graphs for the WpT (Wickets per Test) metric. For this, I divide the end-stage WpT by the 90% stage WpT.I have decided that any end-stage ratio below 75% represents a poor finish, between 75 and 100% a good finish, and above 100% a very good finish. I feel these are fair values since it is expected that players tend to slow down as they approach the end of their careers and performing at, say, 80% is fine and par.Let us now move on to the graphs. I will cover only the key players and readers should peruse the graphs carefully to derive their insights. The graphs contain all required information.Anantha NarayananOne of the all-time great cricketers, an opening batsman par excellence, has had the worst end of all batting careers. Len Hutton’s last eight Tests were a nightmare and he had a WBA of 22, bringing down an excellent 55-plus WBA to 52. His sequence of scores was 0, 14, 5, 4, 13, 30, 28, 12, 42, 80, 5, 6, 11, 3 and 53. Sanath Jayasuriya, Matthew Hayden, Hobbs and Virender Sehwag all had very poor endings, hovering at WBA values around 50%. The shrewd reader might have noticed that these are all openers. Dilip Vengsarkar scored four fifties in his last 25 innings. Jayasuriya scored two fifties in his last 28 innings – one of which was in his final innings, 78.What follows is a who’s who of top batsmen – Gundappa Viswanath, Garry Sobers, Tendulkar, Don Bradman, Viv Richards, Wally Hammond, Ricky Ponting, Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen. The mind boggles. All these players had end-stage ratios of around 60-70%. Tendulkar’s WBA dropped from 51.4 to 49.5; he scored seven fifties in 33 innings. Bradman’s WBA fell from 93 to 89.6; he scored two hundreds in his last five Tests. His penultimate innings was 173 not out, one of the greatest chasing innings ever. But his stratospheric WBA value puts him, somewhat unfairly, in this group. Richards moved from 49.3 to 47.5.But let me give credit to Bradman, who had an end-stage WBA of 60.7 and Hammond, who ended with 38.5. These are excellent values for anyone else, but fall sort when compared to these players’ own high performance figures.Anantha NarayananGeoff Boycott, Younis Khan, Rahul Dravid and Shivnarine Chanderpaul are in the 75-85% group. Their WBAs dropped by around 1. Brian Lara, Mahela Jayawardene, VVS Laxman, Allan Border and Jacques Kallis are the leading batsmen in the next segment – those who performed at around 85-95%. Their WBA values did not drop a lot – maybe by fractions of a run. They ended their careers in a reasonable manner. Lara scored a double-hundred and a century in his last three Tests.Lara, Jayawardene, Kallis, Clive Lloyd and Greg Chappell had very good WBA values of 42-plus.Anantha NarayananNow we come to those who ended their careers in varying levels of glory – all of them outperforming their 90%-stage values; Sunil Gavaskar and David Gower, just about. Everyone knows what a good ending Gavaskar had. His end period included two hundreds and two nineties. Aravinda de Silva, Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Kumar Sangakkara outperformed their 90%-stage values by around 110-120%. Readers might remember that in my article on ODI streaks, I talked about how Sangakkara ended his ODI career with four hundreds in five innings. In the Test arena, Sangakkara’s last few Tests had a triple, two doubles and two hundreds. Some ending in both formats!Stephen Fleming ended in a blaze – 139%, and Gary Kirsten with 144%. Fleming was helped by his 262 against South Africa while Kirsten had three hundreds in his last ten Tests (but finished with scores of 1, 1 and 1).Anantha NarayananThree bowlers – Graham McKenzie, Ian Botham and Erapalli Prasanna – ended their careers with end-stage bowling averages that were twice those of the ones at the 90% stage. That is some fall. McKenzie’s average was an unbelievable 85. Graeme Swann, Wes Hall, Waqar Younis, Bishan Bedi, Allan Donald, Ray Lindwall, all them finished with averages well over 150% of their 90% stage values. Muttiah Muralitharan also did not end that well, although one must say that his end-stage average of 31 is not too bad.This drastic drop in form does not seem to have any pattern. It affects spinners and fast bowlers alike. However, one country seems disproportionately affected – India. All the Indian bowlers who meet the qualification, barring one, have finished poorly. Maybe Indian bowlers do not quit when they are still doing well.Anantha NarayananIn the middle group, the prominent names are Imran Khan (only from the average point of view), Fred Trueman, Michael Holding, Wasim Akram, Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne. All these bowlers were at the 75% to 90% level. Reasonable but still below par. Impressively, the values for Trueman and Holding are below 80% despite their end-stage averages being under 30.Richard Hadlee, Andy Roberts, John Snow, Jim Laker and Malcolm Marshall are in the second half of this group, all performing at nearly their 90% stage values. Their ratios are well in excess of 90%. Of these, look at Marshall, ending with an average of 21.3 and Hadlee with 24.5.Anantha NarayananThe bowlers in the graphic above ended very well, outperforming their 90% stage values. Grimmett’s finish, at the age of 44, is mind-boggling – nearly nine wickets per Test at 14.6. Barnes was even better – just under 11 wickets per Test at 10.8. He finished with 49 wickets in his last four Tests (a still-standing series record) and would have continued but for World War I.Morne Morkel finished his career with an outstanding 150% performance level. It is a tragedy that his services were lost to South Africa when he was still doing so well. Curtly Ambrose and Joel Garner finished very well. The surprise is Kapil Dev, who everyone tend to think finished very poorly. Kapil found it hard to get wickets (as the next analysis will show) but he managed to keep his economy rate low. And his end-stage average is better than his 90%-stage average.Kallis and Sobers had end-stage averages above 30 but find themselves in this group because of their relatively poor overall averages.Now we move on to the next group of graphs for the bowlers – this time taking the Wickets per Test (WpT) as the base.Anantha NarayananImran Khan ended his career with poor bowling returns. He averaged less than a wicket per Test. However, we know that he played as a batsman in four of these nine Tests and bowled very little. McKenzie, Abdul Qadir, Prasanna and Botham averaged fewer than two wickets per Test and were performing at sub-50% levels. Kapil, in this analysis, has moved into this classification, averaging a mere two wickets per Test. This time, without a single exception, all the Indian bowlers are in the “poor” category.Anantha NarayananMurali moves into the middle category on the WpT parameter, indicating that while he was good in terms of getting wickets, they cost him more runs toward the end. Murali’s overall performance is so good that the WpT of 5 only keeps him in the middle group. Bob Willis, Richie Benaud, Laker, McGrath and Murali are in the 75% to 85% range. Ambrose, Hadlee and Marshall are in the 85% to 100% range. It can be seen that most of these bowlers took well in excess of three wickets per Test.Anantha NarayananThe most important bowler in the top category is Shane Warne, who took nearly five wickets per Test – ironically, below Murali’s WpT value, but Warne is in the top category because of a lower rate of taking wickets in the first 90% of his Tests. Courtney Walsh, Jeff Thomson and Garner have all taken well over 100% of their 90%-stage values. Finally, Morkel, Barnes and Grimmett. We have already seen how these bowlers ended their careers. Barnes’ last eight spells were 7 for 88, 7 for 56, 5 for 102, 3 for 26, 9 for 103, 8 for 56, 5 for 48 and 5 for 57. Grimmett finished with 6 for 73, 7 for 100, 7 for 40, 3 for 70, 5 for 56, 5 for 32, 3 for 11 and 3 for 29.

****

And now a short aside, if you will. Most of my readers will know that I am an unabashed fan of Roger Federer. But it is now clear that by end of next year, both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will have overtaken Federer’s 20 Grand Slam titles – the single barometer of tennis greatness. Federer has many other unique records, but it seems almost certain that his haul of 20 will find itself in third position by the time the next generation takes over. But I find that I am now perfectly happy with Federer finishing with 20 Grand Slam titles, and in third place on this metric. I am also totally certain that to me Federer is the greatest tennis player who ever swung a racquet, and numbers like 23 and 22 will never ever change this conviction. It all comes down to the many hours of pleasure, happiness and euphoria that Federer has given me over the past decade and a half.I make this point because a similar situation exists in Indian cricket. For many millions of fans, no one can displace Tendulkar in the pantheon of greatness even though it is almost certain that Virat Kohli will finish with a better average in all three formats and score more hundreds. But will he replace Tendulkar in the minds of many as the best Indian cricketer ever? Almost certainly not. It is clear that both Federer and Tendulkar are one-in-a-billion sportsmen and they can never be replaced. Bradman is too far removed from our times to stir such feelings. Maybe Lionel Messi could be the next such.

Team faces questions around captaincy and fast-bowling combination ahead of IPL 2021

Sruthi Ravindranath02-Nov-20203:37

Aakash Chopra: Rajasthan Royals’ bowling attack didn’t have enough

Where did they finish?
They finished last, with six wins in 14 games and a net run rate of -0.569.What went right?
Jofra Archer’s brilliance with the ball – and at times with the bat – throughout the tournament, along with some outstanding individual performances from a few batsmen and spinners.An in-form Sanju Samson got their campaign off to a rollicking start with two big wins. Rahul Tewatia came along and produced the innings to remember from IPL 2020. They were on the top of the table one week into the tournament, and there were questions about whether they were missing Ben Stokes at all.However, their campaign derailed a bit from there, with four consecutive losses, before reviving with a superb chase led by the young Riyan Parag against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Later, there was a masterclass from Stokes against the Mumbai Indians in a tall chase. He played another match-winning innings against the Kings XI in their penultimate fixture.Royals have been a side known for promoting young Indian talent, and there was some of that time around too. Kartik Tyagi – whom they picked in the last auction – and Parag provided a glimpse of a bright futures.What went wrong?For one, they never got their batting order right. The inconsistency in their performances, to a significant degree, could be down to the constant chopping and changing. They never quite settled on an opening combination until the very end, trying five different combinations at the top.A few questionable captaincy decisions also hurt them at crucial moments in a few matches – for instance, bowling Jaydev Unadkat instead of Archer in the penultimate over against the Royal Challengers when the Royals had 35 to defend, and not giving Archer another over in the powerplay against the Delhi Capitals when he had picked up two early wickets. Steven Smith had a dull season with the bat, to boot, so having him as captain meant the other overseas options such as Tom Curran, David Miller and Oshane Thomas got few or no chances at all, especially after Stokes’ arrival.Key numbers

• Archer finished with 20 wickets in the tournament while the other seven fast bowlers in the side tallied just 21
• Tewatia finished the league stage as the only Indian player to score over 200 runs and get 10 wickets in IPL 2020

Star performersNeed early wickets? Want to rattle a set, experienced batsman? Want to keep the opposition quiet in the death overs? Call Jofra.Fast bowlers, in general, had a great tournament, but Archer was on a different level. He carried the team’s bowling load single-handedly, impressing in the powerplay and at the death alike. He bowled regularly in excess of 145kph, used the bouncer to full effect and nailed the yorkers consistently. He conceded just 4.34 runs per over in the powerplay – the best in the period this season; in fact, he has the best economy rate (5.35) for a fast bowler in this phase in the IPL overall (minimum 100 balls bowled).Tewatia was a revelation for the Royals this season. The superb comeback he staged in the match against Kings XI made oppositions wary of him in the games to follow. Still, he was the complete all-round package for the Royals – he was explosive with the bat and also had good returns with his legspin on a few occasions. He racked up 255 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of 139 and finished with 10 wickets. After the Royals crashed out with a loss to the Kolkata Knight Riders, Smith conceded that there was not enough support for Archer and Tewatia, especially from the top-order batsmen.What needs immediate fixing?A change in captaincy – albeit unlikely – could possibly help them. If the mega auction does happen before the next season, they can look to rope in an Indian captain. They have one of the best overseas units in the tournament so having an Indian captain could help rotate and utilise their overseas options more effectively.They are also in need of an experienced Indian or an overseas fast bowler to bowl alongside Archer, especially at the death. Tyagi, although quite impressive at times, is a tad too inexperienced to share the load, while the likes of Unadkat, Ankit Rajpoot and Varun Aaron were expensive.

Sunrisers Hyderabad are the form team, but Delhi Capitals can create a ripple, if they play it right

Nagraj Gollapudi and Gaurav Sundararaman07-Nov-2020The Capitals’ ideal XI – Plan A
Drop the out-of-form Prithvi Shaw, open with Marcus Stoinis. Drop Daniel Sams, bulk up the middle order with Shimron Hetmyer. Opening with Stoinis and Shikhar Dhawan could allow the Capitals to get off to a quick start, something that has been missing for them after the first half of the league phase.Stoinis was the Capitals’ best batsman in their humbling defeat against the Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 1. He is a proven opening option in T20 cricket, having done it successfully in the Big Bash League since 2018, where he has struck ten half-centuries and a century with an average of 52 and a strike rate of 133.By accommodating Hetmyer, ideally at No. 4 or No. 5, the Capitals can give a bit of freedom to Rishabh Pant, asking him to play game and perform the finisher’s role. Also, bring back Harshal Patel for Shaw, who can be a handful if the Abu Dhabi pitch continues to play slow and low as in the Eliminator.The Capitals’ ideal XI – Plan B
Open with Stoinis, replace Shaw with Harshal Patel, hand legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane his first match of the competition as replacement for Sams. It might be a left-field as suggestions go, but might not be, if you consider that Yuzvendra Chahal and Adam Zampa were the best bowlers, along with Rashid Khan, in the Eliminator between the Sunrisers and the Royal Challengers Bangalore on Friday evening on a slow pitch in Abu Dhabi.The Capitals have sorely missed Amit Mishra, who was forced to return home after breaking his finger in the early half of the tournament. While R Ashwin will remain the key spinner, Lamichhane can operate in the middle overs along with Patel, allowing the fast-bowling pair of Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada to bowl enough overs at the death. It will be a brave call, but the Capitals have to think out of the box.ESPNcricinfo LtdDon’t let Rashid Khan settle down
The Capitals batsmen go quiet when Khan is in front of them, like a bunch of students when the headmaster walks into class. In five matches in IPL 2019 and 2020, the Capitals have scored just 76 runs from 120 deliveries against him. In this period, Khan has taken ten wickets at an economy rate of 3.8. Six of those wickets came this year, in threes, including the 3 for 7, one of the best spells of the tournament so far.Khan will bowl in the middle overs, so it will be the responsibility of Dhawan, Iyer, and Ajinkya Rahane, most likely, to find ways to attack him. It is one of the toughest one-on-one battles in T20 cricket, but it might not hurt the Capitals to get up to a little mischief against Khan.Stir it up for David Warner
In case Wriddhiman Saha does not play, again, Warner will take the lead in making the bold opening statement in the powerplay, as the Sunrisers have in their four successive wins in the last two weeks.Warner will want to attack Rabada and Ashwin in the first six overs. Now, Rabada has got Warner out twice in the IPL, but has conceded 57 runs from 34 deliveries in the process. Ashwin has got Warner out thrice in the IPL, giving away 92 runs from 82 deliveries. Both of them will aim to cramp Warner for any room and prise him out.That said, if the surface remains slow, then the Sunrisers batsmen will play percentage cricket, thereby making it a more even contest.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe Capitals’ openers must stay the course
Dhawan and Shaw were among the best opening pairs at the beginning of the tournament, scoring 226 runs, including three 50-plus partnerships, in the first five matches. Shaw has fallen off miserably after that, while in the Capitals’ last five matches, Dhawan has scored three ducks. In those, the Capitals have lost at least one wicket before getting to double-digits. Since October 20, which is when their slide started, the Capitals have lost eight wickets in the first two overs of a match, the poorest among all teams.Bring Axar Patel on to attack Manish Pandey
Pandey has shown a lot of positive intent in key moments for the Sunrisers this IPL. Luckily, in Patel, the Capitals have the right bowler to challenge Pandey. In the 61 deliveries he has faced from Patel in T20s over the years, Pandey has been conservative, picking only 38 runs at a strike rate of 64, while losing his wicket twice.Getty ImagesBack to the start – what about the toss?
Keep chasing? It is a bigger question for the Capitals. In the two matches in the league phase, which the Sunrisers won, Iyer had elected to chase and that backfired on both occasions. Warner has won three tosses in a row now, and elected to field first. It is not just going by the trend at the venue, which tilts in favour of batting second, but the Sunrisers have been the best bowling unit in their last six matches – since October 20. Warner would want to chase again if he calls the coin right on Sunday, keeping in mind a low-on-confidence opposition and his strong bowling unit.