January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
Sluggo's stats are difficult to match
Bermuda advanced to a record high world ranking of 14 - leapfrogging Canada and staying ahead of Holland - to leave Gus Logie's men with just three more teams to pick off in their quest to be the best of the non-Test playing nations.
They will have their work cut out to catch Scotland, Ireland and Kenya, but some good results against the Africans on the forthcoming tour would certainly further the cause.
It's not just the team that's making headway in the CricInfo stats column.
The players are doing pretty well too.
Cricket statisticians scouring the authoritative world cricket website may be surprised to see the name of Dwayne Leverock nestling just below Aussie seamer Glenn McGrath and just above Zimbabwe's Prosper Utseya as the number two bowling performance (in terms of economy rate) in the world this year.
Leverock's miserly two for nine in eight overs against Canada in the one-day international in Toronto in August is eclipsed only by McGrath's nought for six against the Windies in the DFL Cup last month.
Leverock who's amazingly tight bowling is already the stuff of legend in Bermuda, appears again on the same chart at number nine.
That position comes courtesy of his one for 14 against Canada in 10 overs during Bermuda's first ever one-day international in Port of Spain.
His overall economy rate in one-day-internationals this year is 2.89 - fifth best in the world.
On the batting front Lionel Cann's average of 108 - bolstered by several unbeaten innings - is the third best in the world this year. Dean Minors is 6th in the world with a 67 average while Irving Romaine's 52.75 average is the 12th best in the world.
The stats, for Bermuda's players, are based on the five full one-day-internationals they have played this year, since being granted ODI status.
Only games against other teams with ODI status are included, so the bulk of Bermuda's Americas Championship campaign does not count in the stats.
The three games against Canada and the two against Zimbabwe are included. Bermuda has obviously not been up against the same standard of opposition as some of the other world greats on the CricInfo stats list, but nevertheless the figures are proof that Bermuda is starting to adapt to life at the top level.
Names like Irving Romaine, Lionel Cann and Dwayne Leverock are also starting to creep towards the top 100 in the world player rankings.
And with a schedule of seven one-dayers coming up in Africa against the likes of Kenya, Canada and Holland, Bermuda will have a chance to pad their stats further before the turn of the year.
Leverock said it was an honour to see his name up there with greats like Glenn McGrath.
He said the players liked to keep an eye on their stats and it gave them a kick to see their names and profiles on websites like CricInfo.
"It's good to know that all the hard work is slowly paying off. It's nice to be doing my part to help Bermuda move up the rankings. I think we are now the highest we have ever been. Our goal is to be the best associate nation. We've got the World Cricket League (contested between the six associate countries) coming up at the start of next year and that will help us see how far we've come." n
Bermuda's World Stats:
2006 Best Innings Bowling Economy Rates
2nd Dwayne Leverock (1.12) 8-3-9-2
9th Dwayne Leverock (1.40) 10-5-14-1
2006 ODI Best Bowling Economy Rate
5th Dwayne Leverock 2.89
2006 ODI Best Bowling Averages
10th Delyone Borden 16.00
20th George O'Brien Jr. 19.50
28th Hasan Durham 20.37
2006 ODI Best Bowling Strike Rate
3rd Delyone Borden 18.00
19th George O'Brien Jr. 24.00
20th Hasan Durham 24.10
2006 ODI Highest Batting Averages
3rd Lionel Cann 108.00
6th Dean Minors 87.00
12th Irving Romaine 52.75
2006 ODI Highest Batting Strike Rate
8th Lionel Cann 136.70
16th George O'Brien Jr. 114.28
Source: Cricinfo and Islandstats[[In-content Ad]]
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