Liam Durkin
WITH the majority of senior winter sport not going ahead, many clubs in the Sale-Maffra Cricket Association may have used the downtime of late to begin plotting their approach for the 2020-21 season.
Taking an in-depth look at SMCA historical evidence from recent seasons, the Gippsland Times has crunched the numbers to see if there is anything from a statistical point of view that could prove insightful.
Given that cricket is a problem-solving game, there may be a few interesting returns that come to light in the next few weeks as we analyse different SMCA venues and the clubs that call those venues home.
This week it is Colin Wrigglesworth Oval, home of the Bundalaguah Bulls:
Ground dimensions: 150 metres long by 115m wide.
Average score for teams batting first at Colin Wrigglesworth Oval in the past five seasons: one-day: 174; two-day: 188.
Much riding on the toss? Winning the toss at Bundalaguah has led to victory in nearly two-thirds (59.37 per cent) of games played at the venue since 2015-16.
Home ground advantage? Bundalaguah has won 10 of its past 13 matches at home.
Finals: In the last three finals played at Colin Wrigglesworth Oval, a team has twice posted scores around the 160 mark and lost. Collegians’ winning score of 334 is the outlier.
Percentage of wickets taken at Colin Wrigglesworth Oval in 2019-20: with pace, 50.00; with spin, 37.90.
Stats that matter playing against Bundalaguah:
Verdict: Bulls can’t be milked, but bowlers can.
