This month in ... 1986

The first few months of 1986 were a busy time in world cricket. Australia travelled to New Zealand, England to the Caribbean, and Pakistan to Sri Lanka, as fans enjoyed high-profile action between February and April.

These Tests only served to reiterate the class of men who would go on to define that era. New Zealand’s Richard Hadlee was pretty much at the height of his abilities, while the Windies pacers hunted in a pack. Viv Richards, David Gower and Allan Border were in a battle at the top of the batting charts, even as their legacies as captains were being written.

Before these Tests, at the end of January after Windies’ tour of Pakistan and India’s tour of Australia, here’s what the rankings for batsmen looked like.

Among bowlers, Hadlee, following a successful tour of Australia, was at what would be his career-best ranking points. And, if any further proof of the Caribbean’s pace riches was needed, three of the Windies bowlers were in the top five.

The three series from February to April caused a slight shake-up in these standings. Hadlee and Richards established their places at the top, while the Windies underlined their all-round dominance.

The men from the Caribbean swept aside England 5-0, with Richards scoring a 56-ball century in the last Test. It was the record for the fastest Test hundred until Misbah-ul-Haq’s effort in 2014, and took him to the top of the charts.

Gower had a tough time of it as captain, both on and off the field. To his credit, he held his own as batsman, finishing with 370 runs and as the third-highest run-getter from either side.

The top-scorer, Desmond Haynes, averaged 78.16 for the series, and broke into the top five.

Top 10 batsmen as on 30 April 1986

The Windies bowlers were fearsome as ever in the series. Mike Gatting, the in-form England batsman coming into the series, had his nose broken by Malcolm Marshall in the first one-day international before the Tests. Joel Garner and Marshall each had 27 wickets, while debutant Patrick Patterson had 19 and Michael Holding 16.

None of them, however, could displace Hadlee, who finished as the highest wicket-taker (16) as New Zealand won their first home series against Australia.

Border’s two centuries in the first Test kept his personal numbers up, even as his side struggled.

New Zealand’s Martin Crowe, who returned to score a century after being hit on the head and going to hospital, rose up the charts, while Jeremy Coney, the top scorer for the series, reached a career-best 702 points and broke into the top 10.

A positive for Australia was the all-round performance of a young Steve Waugh, who broke into the batting charts to be 88th and climbed up the bowling ones to finish April as the 43rd-ranked bowler.

Top 10 bowlers as on 30 April 1986

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s tour of Sri Lanka ended 1-1, with one Test drawn.

Imran Khan stayed at No.4, but added to his points after finishing the series having sent down more overs than any other bowler and having taken more wickets (15) than any one else.

Arjuna Ranatunga broke into the top 10, having dominated the series with the bat. His tally of 316 runs was miles ahead of the second-placed Asanka Gurusinha’s 187 – with whom he shared a then record 240-run stand in the third Test – and won him the Player of the Series award.

Javed Miandad, who managed just 63 runs, fell behind.