New Delhi. Cricket is a game of uncertainties. On one hand, there is rain of centuries and runs, on the other hand, batsmen returning to the pavilion without opening their account is also a bitter truth of this game. In the history of Test cricket, being out on zero i.e. becoming the victim of a ‘duck’ is one of the most disappointing moments for any player. But the surprising thing is that in this longest and difficult format of the game, there have been some great players who not only took a lot of wickets but also registered their name at the top in a unique and unwanted record of zero while batting. An Indian batsman is also included in the list of 5 batsmen who have been out on ‘Duck’ the most number of times in the history of Test cricket.
Great West Indies fast bowler Courtney Walsh created fear in the minds of batsmen around the world during his career. Walsh, who witnessed the golden and declining phase of West Indies cricket between 1984 and 2001, created many records with bowling in 185 innings of 132 Test matches, but in batting, he made a record in his name which no one would like to remember. Walsh was out on a score of zero a record 43 times in his entire Test career.
5 batsmen who were out on zero the most number of times in test matches.
However, coming down the order, he also tried to support his team by remaining unbeaten 61 times and scored a total of 936 runs, in which his highest score was 30 not out. His batting average was 7.54, which makes it clear that his real job was to destroy the stumps of the opposition team and not to set foot on the crease. He also hit 77 fours and 19 sixes in his career, which shows that whenever his bat hit the ball, there was a lot of entertainment.
Stuart Broad included in unwanted list despite batting skills
The story of England’s legendary fast bowler Stuart Broad is the most interesting in this list. Broad, who was the pivot of England’s fast bowling from 2007 to 2023, was not just a tail batsman. In his career, he played 167 Test matches and scored 3662 runs, which included 13 half-centuries and a memorable century of 169 runs against Pakistan. Despite this, due to his long career and consistent batting, he has the second highest ‘duck’ record in Test history.
Broad was out on zero 39 times in 244 innings of his Test career. Broad, who scored runs at a batting average of 18.03, also hit 438 fours and 55 sixes with his aggressive batting. A painful incident happened with Broad, who had the image of an excellent all-rounder in his early career, in the year 2014, when a bouncer from Varun Aaron went straight through his helmet and hit him on the face. After this injury, his fear against short-pitched balls became apparent, resulting in a rapid increase in the number of zeroes in the latter half of his career.
Chris Martin is more famous for zero than batting
Whenever it comes to New Zealand fast bowler Chris Martin, cricket fans remember his very weak batting more than his deadly in-swing balls. Martin, who played 71 Tests for New Zealand between 2000 and 2013, batted in 104 innings and could not even open his account 36 times. Martin’s batting statistics are so unique that he took more wickets than he scored in his entire career.
Martin scored only 123 runs in his career, in which his highest score was 12 not out. His Test batting average was only 2.36, which is counted among the lowest averages in Test cricket history. Interestingly, he returned unbeaten 52 times, which meant that wickets would often fall at the other end or Martin would return to the pavilion without scoring any runs. Only 15 fours have been recorded in his entire career and he never hit any six.
Glenn McGrath batting struggle amid Australian greatness
Glenn McGrath, one of Australia’s greatest fast bowlers of all time, was known for his precise line and length. McGrath, who was a part of Australia’s invincible team between 1993 and 2007, batted in 138 innings of 124 Test matches. McGrath, who used to make the batsmen dance on his fingers while bowling, was seen struggling while batting and was out on zero a total of 35 times in his career.
McGrath scored 641 runs at an average of 7.36 in his career. However, the most beautiful moment of his batting career came in the year 2004 when he surprised everyone by playing a half-century of 61 runs in the Brisbane Test against New Zealand. This was the only half-century of his career. He also hit 51 fours and 1 six in his career, and also showed fighting spirit by remaining unbeaten 51 times at the crease.
Ishant Sharma is at fifth position
Ishant Sharma, who held the charge of fast bowling for the longest period in the history of Indian cricket, is also included in this list. Ishant, who played 105 Tests for India between 2007 and 2021, batted in 142 innings and was out on a score of zero 34 times. Ishant Sharma scored a total of 785 runs in his Test career at an average of 8.26. Like McGrath, there was a memorable batting moment in Ishant’s career too, when he played a brilliant half-century of 57 runs against West Indies in Kingston in the year 2019. Batting in the lower order, he hit 88 fours and 1 six, and also remained unbeaten 47 times. Even though this figure of zero looks a bit uncomfortable in front of his name, but his fighting spirit on many occasions helped Team India in adding valuable runs along with the tail batsmen.
