In a recent match between India and South Africa, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were involved in their seventh run-out of a ten-year relationship batting together.
That leaves the Indian pair just one short of equaling the record number of run-outs, of Faf du Plessis and AB de Villers, and Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara. Obviously Du Plessis and De Villers are still active, so they could go higher.
Of the players involved in this bizarre record, all have played cricket together for at least a decade. You would expect the level of communication and understanding between players to improve, having been given time to gauge the strength and weakness of each other.
Also, with knowledge of who in the opposite team has the best arm, and targetting the weaker ones, run-outs between top-order batsmen should be far less frequent.
From the tail-enders, you do expect some miscommunications as they are not trained to work on this aspect of the game.
Perhaps amidst all cheers and boos from the crowd, players are unable to hear each other?
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With the advent of T20, quick running between the wicket is expected, and players have become far less conservative regarding their wicket. They would prefer to go out hitting, instead of defending a ball.
Even in the Test arena, we are starting to see an attitude of ‘hit out or get out’. Hence, expect run-outs to be a crucial part of the game in coming years.
Cricket in all forms is much more aggressive these days, and it’s an aspect the crowd enjoys.
The traditional form of the game ought to be preserved, but it’s impossible to decouple the effects from playing the T20.
Rats
Guest
But I agree with you... As a spectator, I see increase in run outs in test matches.. I remember 10 years back commentators saying its criminal to get run out in test matches..
Saurebh Gandle
Roar Guru
Hey Rats, You are spot on but honestly warm up against low quality side I doubt will do anyone any good.
Rats
Guest
I am a fan of Kohli.. but I am disappointed with his lack of team awareness sometimes.. he said before the SA tour that he doesn't think tour games are needed. But we all know what happened... Really the likes of Vijay, pujara, Rahane, Saha would have benefitted from couple of tour games. The frequent run out incidents involving Kohli is also an example of his lack of understanding of his teammates' abilities... Kohli is a great athlete and s cricketer. But unfortunately cricket is a team game... So for me, this is more of an Indian issue.. not seen in many other teams yet..
Linphoma
Guest
I don't necessarily agree. Fielding standards appear cyclical in those teams with a good fielding reputation. And we are restricting ourselves to two aspects of fielding, not one. We discount catching. But infielding and outfielding are two separate disciplines in my nuanced baseball experience. And then the chances have to come the way of the fielder. You could have a team with a couple of gun infielders and absolute duffers running the fences. Or vice versa. Over the course of a season or two who is to say, with current cricket statistics woefully short of the formulae to devise meaningful figures for individual and team fielding we have any way of predicting the frequency of run outs. One instance in baseball - batter is taken stretching for two or three bases instead of holing up at first. He is still credited with a safe hit. How do we equate the run out on the risky third run against the bang-bang play of a run out on an attempted single to a ball bunted at the batsmen feet to a pace bowler and the keeper standing back? Discuss?
DingoGray
Roar Guru
I can understand T20 run-outs and even last couple of overs of ODI, but there should never be a run out in Test Cricket and Sheffield Shield Cricket. Nothing frustrates me more in my own amateur cricket journey then a run out in the Two Day Cricket format. You've got 90 overs. What's the hurry. I've played Grade Cricket for 22 seasons now. I've been runout twice in that time. Once by a bloke about 70 years old and was being a smart&rse and the second at the non strikers end when my batting partner belted one back at the bowler who deflected it onto the stumps.... Runouts are unforgivable.
Matt H
Roar Guru
I don't know about this. There are more T20 metrics coming out that fro top order batsmen at least the value of the quick single has been overstated and the value of eliminating run out risk and waiting for thew boundary ball understated. It's still different in ODI's (e.g. Kohli's dot ball % is very low) but eventually it may go this way too. West Indies are the premier T20 team of the past 5 years and they do it in boundaries, not fast running between wickets.
Paul D
Roar Guru
Sometimes it’s just a matter of longevity and probability – Allan Border holds the record for most times run out in tests with 12, but he played like 250+ innings so you’d expect a few. Sharma from what I recall is a pretty ordinary runner, and Kohli doesn’t seem like the sort of guy who’d willingly sacrifice himself if he made a duff call between the wickets. I’m sure there is a rising trend, but I think it’s also personalities involved.