No Indian batters manage 1,000-plus runs in WTC 2021-23: Stats
India's drought for an ICC trophy continues as they lost the World Test Championship final against Australia by 209 runs. Rohit Sharma's men were humbled in the summit clash as they struggled across all departments. Meanwhile, not even one Indian batter could touch the 1,000-run mark in this cycle. Here we decode the numbers of Indian batters in the cycle.
The struggle of Indian batters
While four of the top six run-getters in the cycle are Australians, there is not even a single Indian in the top 15. Virat Kohli (932 at 32.13) and Cheteshwar Pujara (928 at 32) are India's leading run-getters. Rishabh Pant (868) is the only other Indian batter with 800-plus runs in the cycle. The dasher garnered runs at 43.4 in the cycle.
India's centurions in the cycle
A total of four batters scored five or more tons in the cycle. However, no Indian could touch the mark even thrice. Pant, KL Rahul, Rohit, Ravindra Jadeja, and Shubman Gill are the ones with two centuries apiece. Pant and Rahul scored both their centuries in overseas Tests. Mayank Agarwal, Shreyas Iyer, Kohli, and Pujara scored one century apiece in the cycle.
Who owns the highest average?
Surprisingly, Axar Patel, who scored 458 runs, owns the highest batting average by an Indian in this cycle (45.8). Pant (43.4), Rohit (758 runs at 42.11), and Iyer (666 runs at 44.4) are the other Indians with 40-plus averages in this cycle (Minimum: 100 runs). The likes of Jadeja and Gill averaged 36.05 and 33.80, respectively.
Struggles in overseas Tests
Many Indian batters could not turn up in overseas Tests in this cycle. Pant (683 runs at 40.17) and Rohit (426 runs at 47.33) are the only Indians with 40-plus averages in Tests away from home (Minimum: 300 runs). The likes of Rahul, Kohli, and Pujara averaged 33.22, 28.77, and 34.65 in this regard. Jadeja smothered 335 runs at 30.45.
Pant's brilliance with the bat
It must be noted that Pant's strike rate of 80.81 in the 2021-23 cycle is the second-highest among batters with at least 500 runs. Only Australian dasher Travis Head is ahead of him in this regard with a strike rate of 81.91. Last year, Pant smoked the fastest fifty in WTC history, off 28 balls against Sri Lanka.
