LONDON // Comparisons between Michael Vaughan and Javed Miandad do not instantly spring to mind apart from the obvious fact they were both born in October and were stylish right-handed batsmen.
Cricket statisticians, however, will also tell you they were the only two captains in the last 231 Tests to have enforced the follow on against Australia, who have ruled cricket for the better part of two decades.
Miandad, the Pakistan captain, had no qualms in 1988 when Allan Border's side were rolled over for 165 in response to Pakistan's 469. The decision was vindicated as Pakistan won by an innings and 188 runs.
It took another 17 years for Australia to be asked to bat again, although India turned down several opportunities, mainly because of the prospect of batting last against Shane Warne.
In fact, Warne almost made Vaughan's decision to enforce the follow on at Trent Bridge in 2005 look foolhardy when he took four wickets in 13.5 mesmeric overs to ensure England, having dominated the match for four days, were forced to limp over the line in pursuit of 128 for victory in a nerve-jangling final session.
Yesterday, Andrew Strauss was presented with the chance to join Vaughan and Miandad in an elite band. After much deliberation he decided against it.
It was a bold call and the outcome of the match could not only go a long way to deciding the outcome of the series but also answer many of the question surrounding his tactical acumen. The timing of England's second-innings declaration will be important, but with a huge lead counting going into the fourth day Strauss has the sort of comfort zone he hoped for.
It is hoped Strauss will have learnt the lessons from the third Test of England's tour of the West Indies in February, when he was roundly criticised for his decision to bat on too long and set the Windies an improbable 503 to win. England ended up falling one wicket short of victory.
The fitness of Andrew Flintoff, whose troublesome knee would have been unlikely to withstand two successive innings in the field, would have been a major factor in Strauss's decision yesterday but Ian Botham was leading the argument for enforcing the follow on, believing the unpredictable weather - rain is forecast for today - could yet save the tourists.
History suggests Strauss should have asked Australia to bat again, as the statisticians will also point out that 92 per cent of captains who do end up victorious, as opposed to 69 per cent who don't.
Ironically, only three times in Test history have a team lost after asking the opposition to bat again, and each time the team on the wrong end have been Australia, most famously in 1981 thanks to the heroics of Botham.
kaffleck@thenational.ae
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The End of Loneliness
Benedict Wells
Translated from the German by Charlotte Collins
Sceptre
The specs
Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric
Transmission: n/a
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 659Nm
Price estimate: Dh200,000
On sale: Q3 2022
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
THE BIO:
Favourite holiday destination: Thailand. I go every year and I’m obsessed with the fitness camps there.
Favourite book: Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. It’s an amazing story about barefoot running.
Favourite film: A League of their Own. I used to love watching it in my granny’s house when I was seven.
Personal motto: Believe it and you can achieve it.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The specs
BMW M8 Competition Coupe
Engine 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8
Power 625hp at 6,000rpm
Torque 750Nm from 1,800-5,800rpm
Gearbox Eight-speed paddleshift auto
Acceleration 0-100kph in 3.2 sec
Top speed 305kph
Fuel economy, combined 10.6L / 100km
Price from Dh700,000 (estimate)
On sale Jan/Feb 2020
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20Profile
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World Cup warm-up fixtures
Friday, May 24:
- Pakistan v Afghanistan (Bristol)
- Sri Lanka v South Africa (Cardiff)
Saturday, May 25
- England v Australia (Southampton)
- India v New Zealand (The Oval, London)
Sunday, May 26
- South Africa v West Indies (Bristol)
- Pakistan v Bangladesh (Cardiff)
Monday, May 27
- Australia v Sri Lanka (Southampton)
- England v Afghanistan (The Oval, London)
Tuesday, May 28
- West Indies v New Zealand (Bristol)
- Bangladesh v India (Cardiff)
Factfile on Garbine Muguruza:
Name: Garbine Muguruza (ESP)
World ranking: 15 (will rise to 5 on Monday)
Date of birth: October 8, 1993
Place of birth: Caracas, Venezuela
Place of residence: Geneva, Switzerland
Height: 6ft (1.82m)
Career singles titles: 4
Grand Slam titles: 2 (French Open 2016, Wimbledon 2017)
Career prize money: $13,928,719
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
At a glance - Zayed Sustainability Prize 2020
Launched: 2008
Categories: Health, energy, water, food, global high schools
Prize: Dh2.2 million (Dh360,000 for global high schools category)
Winners’ announcement: Monday, January 13
Impact in numbers
335 million people positively impacted by projects
430,000 jobs created
10 million people given access to clean and affordable drinking water
50 million homes powered by renewable energy
6.5 billion litres of water saved
26 million school children given solar lighting
Glossary of a stock market revolution
Reddit
A discussion website
Redditor
The users of Reddit
Robinhood
A smartphone app for buying and selling shares
Short seller
Selling a stock today in the belief its price will fall in the future
Short squeeze
Traders forced to buy a stock they are shorting
Naked short
An illegal practice
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.