After the third instalment of the Twenty20 World Cup, England emerged victorious, perhaps surprising even the most ardent of English cricket followers. Who could have written a better script? Kevin Pietersen back to his dominating best, fireworks at the top of the order provided by recent recruit Craig Kieswetter, a steady, variable bowling attack and England even had the audacity to win their first ever global limited overs tournament by beating the Aussies in the final.
In a format that induces cheeky innovations, mystery bowling, impudent hitting and intense fielding, while expanding the ideal sculpt of an elite cricketer, who were the key men? Which teams embarrassed themselves on the big stage? Who hit the most sixes and which side had the most penetrative bowling unit? Here, Sport.co.uk plucks the key figures from the 2010 ICC World Twenty20.
20
Australia, who arguably possessed the strongest bowling unit, surprisingly conceded 20 extras in their 20-over innings against Pakistan - the most extras conceded in an innings in the competition. There were nine wides, which were shared around, while Australia wicket-keeper Brad Haddin will be disappointed that he managed to concede ten byes.
12
Cameron White managed to biff 12 sixes in the tournament, which were accompanied by 10 fours. Mahela Jayawardene’s accumulation was more impressive however, scoring one less six than White but also notching an incredible 29 boundaries. White will represent Somerset in the domestic Twenty20 tournament this summer and he has previously scored a 55-ball Twenty20 century for the county - a record at the time. He is one of Australia’s middle-order players who have a complete license to a thrill. A capable leg-spinner but a lack of control means his tweakers are rarely trusted in this form.
250.00
The highest strike-rate in the tournament was achieved by Australia’s immaculate Mike Hussey. ‘Mr Cricket’ also had the best batting average of 94.00, hitting 188 runs in six innings. His position at number seven in the batting order allowed the hitters that were allocated a loftier place in the line-up to play their shots with more freedom, in the knowledge that they still had a reliable force to arrive at the crease if they were to fail. Hussey also took the joint highest amount of catches, matching team-mate David Warner’s eight grabs.
302
Mahela Jayawardene notched the most runs in the tournament. He also has three innings listed under the highest scoring knocks of the tournament, including a century versus Zimbabwe, 98 not out against the West Indies and 81 against New Zealand. The 32-year-old had a superb tournament, but his dazzling displays were not enough for Sri Lanka to threaten to win the competition. Sri Lanka also stole this accolade in the 2009 ICC World Twenty20, when Tillakaratne Dilshan finished as leading run-scorer with 317 runs.
81
Australia secured the most emphatic of victories against Sri Lanka, winning by 81 runs - the biggest winning margin (in runs) in the tournament. Despite the obvious prowess of the Aussie side, such a substantial victory against a respectable Sri Lanka outfit still came as a relative surprise, conveying to all that Australia meant business. Mitchell Johnson was the pick of the Aussie bowlers at Bridgetown, claiming three for 15 in three overs, while Cameron White smashed a 67-ball 85. West Indies secured an eight-wicket victory against England in the group stages after Duckworth-Lewis controversially had its say, while India beat Afghanistan with 31 balls (5.1 overs) remaining.
17
Admittedly, one of Ireland’s two games was a no result and only three batsmen managed two spells at the crease, but Ireland’s top run-scorer finished with 17 runs - Gary Wilson, who batted in one innings. It is fair to say that they could have done with England’s Irish-born innovative batsman Eoin Morgan. Ireland were bowled out within 16.4 overs for 68 runs against a modest West Indies attack in Guyana.
166
Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakarra notched the highest partnership of the tournament, together hitting the West Indies attack for 166 runs - a tally that would be respectable as an overall team score. Wicket-keeper-batsman Sangakarra eventually fell for 68, while Jayawardene - the tournament’s most prolific batsman - was left unscathed with 98 not out. Sangakarra failed to replicate this form during the rest of the tournament and Jayawardene is one of a minority of Sri Lanka players who will be happy with their tournament output.
44
Australia’s four specialist bowlers collected a total of 44 scalps. Australia had a blend of power, penetration and guile among their bowling unit, but above all, they possessed mystery and variation. In Mitchell Johnson and Dirk Nannes, they had two left-arm speedsters, while Shaun Tait’s wide-armed delivery and Steven Smith’s leg-breaks instilled further unorthodoxy. The quartet all found themselves in the top ten highest wicket-takers in the tournament. Nannes was the competition’s chief wicket-taker with 14, while Smith (11), Johnson (10) and Tait (9) all had impressive tournaments. Tait’s economy rate was also highly commendable, with his overs going for an average of 5.53 runs.
2.0
South Africa’s Dale Steyn proved the gap in class between the Proteas and Afghanistan, as a number of Steyn bullets flew past the outside edge before two were snicked behind into Mark Boucher’s welcoming mitts. The fiery fast bowler claimed the best economy rate in an innings with his spell at Bridgetown - three overs, two wickets for six runs - with an economy rate of a mere two runs an over. South Africa’s premier fast bowler - rated the pinnacle Test match cherry chucker in the land - proved a tough test for Afghanistan, although their very inclusion in the tournament will be considered a major success.
388
The encounter between Australia and Pakistan at Gros Islet, St Lucia, yielded the highest match aggregate of 388 runs. The match between the Aussies, who finished as the tournament’s runners-up behind champions England, and the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 champions, Pakistan, produced some thrilling batting performance. Kamran Akmal and Umar Akmal both made half-centuries for Pakistan, before Mike Hussey stole the show with a blistering 60 from just 24 balls - the most audacious knock of the competition.