Warner races to 3000 Test runs

1125 – Number of days taken by David Warner to complete 3000 runs in Tests, the fastest by an Australian and joint-third quickest overall to complete 3000 in terms of days. Warner made his debut on 1 December, 2011 against New Zealand and on day four (29 Dec, 2014) reached the milestone. The world record is held by England’s Kevin Pietersen, who is the only batsman to score 3000 Test runs in less than 1000 days. The previous Australian record belonged to Allan Border (1132 days).

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36 – Number of batsmen from Australia who have scored 3000 runs in Tests. David Warner is latest induction in the list. The previous Aussie to reach this mark was Brad Haddin, also this year during the New Year’s Test against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The first ever Australian to 3000 Test runs was Clem Hill in 1911. 

1136 – Number of runs David Warner scored in 2014, most by any opening batsman this year. Sri Lanka’s Kaushal Silva (887) and India’s Murali Vijay (841), round out the top three. Only three other opening batsmen have scored as many centuries, six, in a calendar year – Matthew Hayden and Michael Vaughan in 2002, and Graeme Smith in 2008. 

10 – Number of innings taken by Shaun Marsh to score his first half-century in Australia. Marsh has the distinction of scoring a century on Test debut (against Sri Lanka at Pallekele in 2011), but needed 10 innings and six Tests to score his maiden fifty at home. 

231 – The highest successful chase at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in last 50 years, which happened in the previous Boxing Day Test when Australia chased 231 against England in the 2013-14 Ashes. Even in the MCG’s 107-Test history, only once has a team chased 300+ target with success, but that was 86 years ago by England (332) against Australia in 1928. 

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0 – Number of times India have scored 300 runs on fifth day of Test in winning cause. The highest they have managed was 272 runs was in 1976 at Port of Spain, when Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath each scored centuries to successfully chase down 403 against the West Indies. 

7 – Number of times Shane Watson has been dismissed by Ishant Sharma in 11 Tests. Only James Anderson (eight dismissals in 18 Tests) has dismissed Watson more often than Sharma. Watson has also been a victim of Stuart Broad on seven occasions in 15 Tests. 

27 – Number of no balls Ishant Sharma has bowled in three Tests so far in this series. He has trespassed five times in each innings of this Test. He conceded 11 no balls in the previous Test in Brisbane and six before that in Adelaide. Apart from the first innings at the Adelaide Oval, he has conceded at least five no balls in every innings of the series. Overall, Indian bowlers have been guilty of such extras 36 times – 27 by Ishant Sharma and nine by Varun Aaron. On the contrary, Australia has bowled only five no balls in this series – three by Mitchell Johnson and one each by David Warner and Josh Hazlewood.