The bowler had dominated this contest for a long time, but the batsman hit back thanks to a few risky plans and a lot of self belief

Karthik Krishnaswamy in Visakhapatnam04-Oct-2019It was only the third over of the day’s play, and South Africa were three down and 453 runs behind India’s first-innings total, but Dean Elgar wasn’t going to let those details come in the way of how he wanted to bat.Watch cricket on ESPN+

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He would later explain that he didn’t want to let India’s spinners settle and bowl the way they wanted to. “It was me putting my stamp on my innings.”The ball from R Ashwin was floated onto a good length, and drifting in from around the wicket. Elgar got his front leg out of the way and lifted the ball over mid-on, not quite middling it but meeting it well enough to clear the fielder comfortably and get four runs.In all, Elgar would played 15 lofted shots against India’s spinners and scored 50 of his 160 runs in that manner. He would do what Mayank Agarwal (57 runs via lofted hits) and Rohit Sharma (52) had done to South Africa’s spinners, but he would do it his way, muscling the ball from the crease rather than dancing down the pitch.It takes outstanding judgment for a batsman to play an innings as long as Elgar’s while hitting the ball in the air as often as he did, against spinners of the quality of Ashwin and Jadeja. You have to be selective about the balls you go after, but you can’t just wait for outright hit-me balls, because you won’t get many at this level. You’ll have to commit fully to the shot and play it knowing fully well the risk involved and being prepared for the worst-case scenario, that you’ll hole out when your side is already in trouble, as the case was for Elgar for much of his innings. Imagine the headlines.Imagine the headlines if he’d been out in this manner, early in his innings, to Ashwin, who’s already dismissed him five times in Test cricket.What’s happened instead is that he’s now scored 73 runs off his last 157 balls against Ashwin, over their last two meetings in Test cricket, without being dismissed. This was their head-to-head before that: 158 balls, 63 runs, five dismissals.Dean Elgar acknowledges the applause upon reaching 150•BCCIThe turnaround happened during the Centurion Test in January 2018, where, after getting out to Ashwin in the first innings, he made a scratchy but invaluable 61 in the second, getting beaten multiple times by Ashwin but not getting out to him.In his end-of-day press conference on Friday, Elgar said he hadn’t made any major changes in his approach to facing Ashwin during or around the Centurion Test.”No. I remember it was a spinning wicket as well in Centurion that they produced. It was like playing in Mumbai,” he said. “I can’t say I changed much. I’ve faced a lot of spin. In county cricket you face a lot of spin. The ball actually spins in England now because it’s so dry, which is a good experience.”It’s maybe my mindset going into batting now. I’d like to think I have grown a lot as a player since that Test in Centurion. There’s been a lot of cricket played. I don’t just sit around and do nothing; I actually go and play cricket, which obviously leaves me in good stead for experiences like this.”The mindset could well be what’s changed. Take some of the early meetings with Ashwin, when Elgar lost his wicket in moments where he seemed to lose his composure. In the infamous 2015 Nagpur Test, for instance, he snatched too eagerly at a wide one and chopped on, right after being beaten four times in a row.

It was quite revealing to see the ball begin to turn and spit after Elgar’s dismissal in the third session, but the pitch hadn’t changed; it was just that Senuran Muthusamy, new to the crease, hadn’t yet begun moving his feet properly.

In the first innings at Centurion, having looked uncomfortable against Ashwin for 14 balls, he stepped out too early at the 15th, and sent a panicked jab towards silly point, who competed the catch after the ball lodged itself between his elbow and midriff.During his second-innings 61, Elgar seemed to show a lot more belief in his own game, and didn’t let the plays-and-misses cause him to loosen his approach to the next ball. All the experience he’s had since then facing spin in other conditions – including getting out to Ashwin twice in a county game this July – has probably strengthened that belief.On Friday, the risks Elgar took were all on his own terms; they weren’t forced by Ashwin, or Jadeja, making him try things outside of his gameplan or comfort zone. His footwork was decisive, and his shots, both attacking and defensive, were full of authority.Elgar would have realised fairly early on that the pitch would be his ally once he got his eye in. It was one of those tracks that are tricky to start an innings on, but which become easier once batsmen get their eye in. It was quite revealing to see the ball begin to turn and spit after Elgar’s dismissal in the third session, but the pitch hadn’t changed; it was just that Senuran Muthusamy, new to the crease, hadn’t yet begun moving his feet properly.By then, Elgar and the two other senior pros, Faf du Plessis and Quinton de Kock, had announced that the South Africa of 2019-20 would be a different batting unit to the one that came to India four years ago. All three followed variations on the same template. They trusted their defence, they backed their respective attacking strengths, and made sure they didn’t let the bowlers settle into a rhythm. Elgar, du Plessis and de Kock began this tour with averages of 24.29, 22.38 and 19.66 in Asia; they put all that behind them at the first possible opportunity and put on a masterclass of batting against spin.

Their fourth-innings performances are among the greatest ever in Test cricket. We compare them on the numbers

Andrew Fidel Fernando13-Jan-2020Steven Smith’s consistency was unparalleled, David Warner made a triple-hundred, and Virat Kohli struck a double, but 2019’s best Test innings were fourth-innings miracles, and many months later, it is difficult to believe either happened, let alone both in the same year.Ben Stokes’ 135 not out brought England roaring back into the Ashes, Australia going down in a storm of sixes at Headingley. Kusal Perera (has there ever been a less likely producer of an all-time great innings?) had run the heist against South Africa in Durban a few months earlier, with his magical 153 not out.As ESPNcricinfo’s jury deliberates on the best performances of the year, let’s dive into analysis of two innings that are not just front-runners for the award but contenders for the title of best Test innings ever. In many ways, Perera’s and Stokes’ performances were incredibly similar. Both batsmen came in at No. 5, with more than 200 runs still to get in a chase of over 300. Both made over 60% of the runs scored while they were at the crease. Acquaint yourself with the main numbers from each innings below:ESPNcricinfo LtdThere were differences in how each innings was constructed, the major one being how each batsman started his innings. Perera, who came in at a precarious 52 for 3, started his innings normally, making sure to take the scoring opportunities on offer. Stokes, meanwhile, was a hermit in his first 90 minutes. He got off the mark with a single off his ninth delivery, then didn’t score another run for 30 balls. His first boundary didn’t come until the 74th delivery he faced.And yet in the home stretch Stokes’ innings was gloriously manic. He clobbered seven sixes and four fours in the last 42 balls he faced, hitting 74 through that period. No batsman has ever made such a dramatic transition in an innings. The difference in strike rate between Stokes’ first 60 balls and last 60 is 135 – the highest ever.Perera was more even through the course of his 153, but also likely had a more difficult home stretch to negotiate. Stokes faced the second new ball while in the company of the No. 6, Jonny Bairstow, roughly midway through an 86-run partnership. For Perera, the second new ball arrived while the No. 11, Vishwa Fernando, was at the crease, with 41 runs still to get – a much more fragile point in the chase.The most striking similarity, clearly, is the last-wicket stand. In both instances, the match seemed lost when the penultimate wicket fell. But Perera’s partnership with Fernando was worth 78 unbeaten runs, and Stokes’ stand with Jack Leach grew to 76. In successful chases, no bigger final-wicket partnerships have ever been produced.ESPNcricinfo LtdSo how can we separate these all-time great innings? Whose innings deserves the award? To get closer to the answer, we’ve harnessed a mountain of statistics, and viewed the numbers through five key lenses.Who faced the tougher bowling attack?
In one corner, we have Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, James Pattinson and Nathan Lyon. In the other, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj and Duanne Olivier (although Vernon Philander was part of South Africa’s five-man attack, he was injured early in the innings and did not bowl at Perera). Both are phenomenal line-ups, but going by the numbers since the start of the previous year, South Africa’s bowlers were better, both on average and strike rate, going into the Durban Test.ESPNcricinfo LtdBut what about in the specific conditions they were required to bowl in? In England, Australia’s frontline bowlers averaged 28.6 and struck at 55.4. Good numbers, but not as good as those of the South Africans at Kingsmead and in St George’s Park, where the two Tests of the series were played, and where, although conditions are lower and slower than at many other South African grounds, Steyn, Rabada and Maharaj combined to average 23.2 and struck at 42.5 before the start of the Kingsmead match against Sri Lanka. Olivier had not played a match at either venue, but even taking first-class stats, South Africa’s attack had a record of stronger performances at these venues on the Indian Ocean coast than Australia did in England.

Also, have both captains ever bagged golden ducks in the same ODI?

Steven Lynch07-Jan-2020All Pakistan’s top four batsmen made hundreds in the Karachi Test. Has this ever happened before? asked Jamie Stewart from Canada

Pakistan’s innings of 555 for 3 against Sri Lanka in Karachi last month, in which Shan Masood made 135, Abid Ali 174, Azhar Ali 118 and Babar Azam 100 not out, was only the second occasion that the top four all made centuries in the same Test innings. The other instance came in Dhaka in 2007, when Dinesh Karthik hit 129, Wasim Jaffer 118, Rahul Dravid 129 and Sachin Tendulkar 122 not out as India hustled to 610 for 3 against Bangladesh.There was a near miss at Lord’s in 1993, when Australia’s No. 4, Mark Waugh, was out for 99 after the top three – Mark Taylor, Michael Slater and David Boon – all made hundreds.Abid Ali scored a century in his first Test, after making one in his first ODI. Has anyone else done this? asked Ian Hugo from Nigeria

The Pakistan batsman Abid Ali hit an unbeaten 109 on his Test debut, against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi last month, to go with 112 in his first one-day international, against Australia in Dubai in March 2019.Ali is the first man to achieve this double – but a woman did it a few years ago. The England opener Enid Bakewell hit 113 on her Test debut, against Australia in Adelaide in 1968-69, and an unbeaten 101 in her first ODI, against an International XI in Hove during the inaugural women’s World Cup in 1973.After three Test innings, Ali has 321 runs: only two men have made more. Reginald “Tip” Foster of England scored 355 runs (287, 19 and 49 not out) in his first three innings, against Australia in 1903-04, while Lawrence Rowe hit 336 (214, 100 not out and 22) for West Indies against New Zealand in 1971-72.Who scored four Test centuries – and no others in first-class cricket? asked Chris Jackson from Australia

The man with this lopsided record is the former Australian wicketkeeper Ian Healy, who scored four centuries in his 119 Tests. In 112 other first-class matches, 55 of them for Queensland, he reached 50 on 17 further occasions, but never made it past 90. Curiously, however, Healy averaged 27.39 in Tests, but 34.05 in those other matches.Kieron Pollard had Virat Kohli caught out for a first-ball duck, only to bag one himself during West Indies’ innings in the Visakhapatnam ODI•BCCIBoth captains bagged golden ducks in an ODI at Vizag in December. Was this a first? asked Sourabh Vyas from India

Virat Kohli and Kieron Pollard were both out first ball in the match between India and West Indies in Visakhapatnam in December. This was indeed the first time both captains had bagged golden ducks in the same ODI. It hasn’t happened in T20Is either or, as far as I can see, in Test matches, although we don’t have ball-by-ball data for several early Test matches.Rohit Sharma hit ten international centuries during 2019. Was this the most? asked Gary Dockerty from Jamaica

Rohit Sharma’s ten centuries in all forms of international cricket in 2019 was the most; Virat Kohli came next with seven, while Babar Azam and David Warner both made six. Kohli, though, scored more runs overall, with 2455 to Sharma’s 2442. Babar came next with 2082.Helped by his stellar World Cup, Sharma led the way in ODIs, with 1490 runs and seven centuries (Kohli was next, with 1377 and five). Marnus Labuschagne was first in Tests, with 1104 runs and three centuries in 2019; Steve Smith was next with 965 and three. Azam, Sharma, Mayank Agarwal and Tom Latham also made three hundreds. In T20Is, two Irishmen led the way: Paul Stirling hit 748 runs, and Kevin O’Brien 729. Nineteen batsmen made one century apiece.For the bowlers, Pat Cummins finished with 99 wickets in all formats in 2019, well clear of Mohammed Shami and Mitchell Starc, who both took 77. Cummins took 59 in Tests, with Nathan Lyon next on 45; Shami led the way in ODIs, with 42, with Trent Boult next on 38. Brandon Glover of the Netherlands and the Nepal pair of KC Karan and 19-year-old Sandeep Lamichhane all took 28 wickets apiece in T20Is.Use our
feedback form or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

With better options available, the 35-year-old is likely to be dropped for New Zealand’s immediate assignments

Deivarayan Muthu14-Sep-2021Colin de Grandhomme was an unsung stalwart of New Zealand’s 2019 World Cup campaign, but his form and fitness have plummeted drastically since. Form-wise, it has never been as poor as in the recent Bangladesh tour, where he scrounged scores of 1, 8, 0, 0 and 9 in the five T20Is. Left-arm fingerspinner Nasum Ahmed alone dismissed de Grandhomme four times while conceding one run off nine balls to him.In the series opener, he attempted to slog his way out of trouble, but holed out to deep square-leg – the only fielder in the outfield on the leg side in the powerplay. He was caught at the same position in the second game and was then pinned by a slower offcutter from Mohammad Saifuddin in the third. In the last two games of the series, he was clueless against the turning ball on the grippy Dhaka tracks.In the absence of a number of regulars, de Grandhomme was given the extra responsibility to bat up the order as the senior-most member in the side, but the returns were disappointing, to say the least.Related

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He didn’t have much to do with the ball either, bowling merely 3.4 overs across the five games. He belatedly came to bowl four of those balls after fast bowler Scott Kuggeleijn felt some discomfort in the third match. And on the field, de Grandhomme wasn’t too sharp either, dropping a simple catch offered by Liton Das when he was on 0 in the second game. The Bangladesh opener went on to make 33 off 29 balls, setting the tone for their narrow victory.Former New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter and commentator Ian Smith was critical of de Grandomme’s form – or the lack thereof – in the lead-up to the final T20I. “I don’t think he’s adding anything to the mix, particularly in these conditions,” Smith said on a podcast with Mike Hesson. “He doesn’t bowl spin, he’s not scoring any runs; he’s a handy fieldsman we know that, but can I risk him on the fact that he will come off one time out of ten? I don’t think so.”Every now and then, players are not suited to conditions and when they’re not playing well enough, you give them a spell [out of the XI]. If I think on that side, I’m probably thinking Colin de Grandhomme is not going to win me a game and that’s what you want to do in limited-overs cricket – win you a game. Those scores reflect he’s not doing that, so the all-round side of the game is negated by the fact that they don’t need his type of bowling in these conditions. I’d leave him out, to be brutally honest.”ESPNcricinfo LtdHesson reasoned that de Grandhomme was someone who thrived on game-time, which he missed in the last international summer because of an ankle surgery. He did have some game-time with Southern Brave in the inaugural Hundred and got all five matches against Bangladesh, but hasn’t been able to break out of the funk yet.With Daryl Mitchell back in the side for the T20I leg of the Pakistan tour, de Grandhomme could potentially be dropped from the XI in conditions that are unlikely to be too different from those in Bangladesh. In the absence of de Grandhomme, Mitchell became New Zealand’s frontline allrounder, alongside Jimmy Neesham, in the past home summer, his vital contributions culminating in a first central contract and a T20 World Cup spot.So, is there really a way back for de Grandhomme after the ODIs in Pakistan? Probably not in the near future, with New Zealand set to fly out to India after the T20 World Cup. Batters with much tighter techniques have been ruthlessly exposed by R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel in Indian conditions, after all.It helps New Zealand that they aren’t short of all-round options. Mitchell showcased his finishing skills on his first overseas tour in 2019 in Sri Lanka and now left-arm fingerspin-bowling allrounder Rachin Ravindra is slowly bedding into the set-up. Mitchell Santner’s Test stocks are weary at the moment, but the team management sees him as a future leader in white-ball cricket. de Grandhomme would still have a role to play on the green pitches in red-ball cricket in New Zealand, but the clock is ticking for the 35-year-old.

The Scottish Premiership season has perhaps gone as expected. Celtic are top of the pile after an excellent start to the season, and they look on track for a fourth league title in a row.

Glasgow Rangers are second despite some shoddy domestic form which cost Philippe Clement his job, while the chase for third is between Aberdeen, Hibernian and Dundee United.

The likes of Hearts, St Mirren and Motherwell are battling it out for a place in the top six ahead of the split, while St Johnstone look doomed at the bottom of the table.

Doing well in Scotland could see a manager secure a bigger job elsewhere – one that offers a great financial package, along with opportunities in better leagues.

As such, just how much are the managers paid in the Scottish top flight? Here, we rank each Premiership manager by their annual wage.

No salary information is currently available for Motherwell’s Michael Wimmer or Hearts boss Neil Critchley, with both managers joining their current clubs mid-season. The same applies to interim Rangers boss Barry Ferguson, with predecessor Clement thought to be on a salary of £1.5m per year.

Rank

Manager

Club

Salary per year

Brendan Rodgers

Celtic

David Gray

Hibernian

Jimmy Thelin

Aberdeen

Simo Valakari

St Johnstone

Stephen Robinson

St Mirren

Derek McInnes

Kilmarnock

Don Cowie

Ross County

Tony Docherty

Dundee

Jim Goodwin

Dundee United

9 Jim Goodwin (Dundee United) £180k per year

Dundee United have been the surprise package in the Premiership this season. Jim Goodwin was hounded out of Aberdeen after a dismal loss to Darvel in the Scottish Cup back in 2023, but he has proved everyone wrong so far at Tannadice.

The Arabs are still in with a shout of European qualification and have taken points off both Celtic and Rangers this term.

Goodwin earns £180k per year, which is perhaps undervaluing him compared to his counterparts.

8 Tony Docherty (Dundee) £180k per year

Tony Docherty is doing a solid job at Dundee since taking over the club ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

He led the Dens Park outfit to a wonderful top-six finish in the top flight last season, allowing them to play against the likes of Rangers and Celtic after the split, giving them a chance of qualifying for Europe.

Docherty developed players such as Luke McCowan and Lyall Cameron. The former joined Celtic last summer while Cameron has signed a pre-contact deal with Rangers.

Docherty is paid £180k per year at Dundee.

7 Don Cowie (Ross County) £200k per year

Ross County manager Don Cowie has a fight on his hands if he is to avoid another relegation playoff with the club.

Last season, the Highland side defeated Raith Rovers to maintain their top-flight status and hopes were high that they could move towards the top six. Instead, they are in the thick of another relegation battle.

Cowie has been in charge of County since 2024 and is thought to earn £200k per year at the club.

6 Derek McInnes (Kilmarnock) £200k per year

Derek McInnes led Aberdeen to their first trophy in nearly 20 years back in 2014, but things later turned sour, leading to his departure in 2021.

He has revitalised Kilmarnock during his spell in Ayr. He led the club back into the Premiership in 2022 before securing a superb fourth-place finish in 2023/24, including a victory over Rangers in the process.

For his troubles, McInnes takes home £200k per year.

5 Stephen Robinson (St Mirren) £225k per year

Stephen Robinson has done an excellent job since moving to St Mirren in 2022. He led the club to back-to-back top-six finishes in the top flight for the first time in the club’s history.

The Buddies have an outside chance of another placing in the top six at the time of writing, but they did enjoy European football at the start of the season. Robinson earns £225k per year at St Mirren.

4 Simo Valakari (St Johnstone) £250k-per-year

St Johnstone manager Simo Valakari has a huge job on his hands preventing the Saints from slipping out of the top flight this season.

They are stranded at the bottom of the table and it looks like a matter of time before their demotion is confirmed. It will take a remarkable recovery to move up the league table from here.

Valakari earns £250k per year in Perth, though that may not be the case in a few weeks’ time.

3 Jimmy Thelin (Aberdeen) £250k per year

Jimmy Thelin led Aberdeen to a stunning start in the 2024/25 season, earning a draw with Celtic while also securing three points against a disjointed Rangers side in October to threaten a top-two finish.

However, since a hammering in the League Cup semi-final by Celtic at the start of November, the Dons have been wildly out of sorts. Aberdeen remain in the race for third, but they will be frustrated to have taken advantage of their superb start.

The Swede earns £250k per year in the north-east.

2 David Gray (Hibernian) £275k per year

David Gray endured a difficult start as Hibs boss, but he was backed by the board and has since taken the club to the cusp of third place after some excellent results.

More positive results between now and May will see the Easter Road outfit secure a European spot. He earns £275k per year – the highest-paid manager outside the Old Firm.

1 Brendan Rodgers (Celtic) £2.5m per year

Brendan Rodgers is on the cusp of leading Celtic to yet another treble. He claimed all three trophies during the first two seasons of his initial spell at Parkhead.

The club’s narrow defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League proves that he is finally adapting to European football, evidenced by the fact the club secured qualification for the play-off round.

He currently earns £2.5m per year at the club, and if he does win all three domestic trophies, he could yet demand more.