200* vs 194

[al Furqaan]

in Sachin's corner:

• reproducibility - has hit 186* and 175 before, and against G8 sides

• chancelessness - was never dropped, although he didn't play all along the ground. thats genius. a run out chance and stumping are all part of the game and i don't count them as positive chances for a batter, but as negative chances for the fielding side.

• opposition - steyn may be ordinary in ODIs, but parnell is certainly solid, either way, SA are one of the top sides in the world.

• effort - no runner taken even though the legend cramped up

• misc - carried the bat too

in Anwar's corner:

• era - his 194 was the only instance of anyone getting really close to 200 except for Richards on two, maybe one occaisions. by the time tendulkar hit 200, many players came close, and one (MS Dhoni) could certainly have reached the double first.

• powerplays - SRT carried the bat and batted for all 50 overs, meaning he had the benefit of 5 more overs of restricted fields. given that anwar failed to carry the bat, and was only 6 shy of the record, he likely could have gotten it with 30 additional balls of powerplays when well set.

• conditions - SRT's knock was on a small field with a quick outfield.