5 Instances when a triple century was denied by declaration

Declarations in cricket are always done keeping in mind the team’s interest. But sometimes a declaration has placed the captain in a spot of uncertainty and he had to receive flak from the fans. Such as Rahul Dravid’s declaration when Sachin Tendulkar was on 194*, and Tim Paine’s when David Warner was batting at 335*- with Warner’s quick scoring ability, people believed he could have crossed Brian Lara’s 400*.

There have been 194 different players scoring double hundreds, and 27 of them went on to score a triple hundred. Sir Don Bradman, Brian Lara, Virender Sehwag and Chris Gayle form the elite list of notching up two triple centuries.

While most batsmen lose their wicket after reaching 200 in a quest to up the run-rate, there have been some who remained not-out, yet couldn’t reach the elusive 300 run mark. Either the batsman ran out of partners or the captain declared the innings. In the second case, it would be more hurtful to the batsman if he was nearing a triple ton and the captain declared- which has happened on multiple occasions.

Here we look at 5 batsmen who were denied a Triple Century by the declaration:

1. Javed Miandad- 280* vs India

Javed Miandad is Pakistan’s second-highest run-scorer in Tests and defined Pakistan cricket along with Imran Khan in the 1980s. With over 8000 Test runs and over 7000 runs in ODIs, Miandad is one of the greatest to play the game. Miandad had a penchant of scoring against arch-rivals India- he amassed 2228 runs at an average of 67 against his neighbours.

On India’s tour to Pakistan in 1983, the right-hander scored heavily in the six-match Test series. He amassed 594 runs at a stupendous average of 118. In the fourth Test match at Sind, Miandad registered his highest Test score of 280*, but captain Imran Khan surprisingly declared the innings.

Batting first, Pakistan scored 581/3 with the help of a marathon partnership between Javed Miandad and Mudassar Nazar, who scored 231. Imran Khan declared by the end of the second day, leaving Miandad 20 runs short of a triple hundred. This incident created a huge furore between the two players, and their rivalry continued for about a decade, which Miandad vociferously describes in his autobiography.

2. AB de Villiers- 278* vs Pakistan

There are very few batters in the world who make batting look as easy as AB de Villiers does. AB has shown his class against all oppositions in different trying conditions. The right-hander has piled over 8000 Test runs and 9000 ODI runs, showcasing his elegance for 14 years at the international arena before retiring in 2018.

De Villiers holds the record for the second-highest Test score by a South African, bettered only by former teammate Hashim Amla- who is the only triple centurion for South Africa. While Amla scored 311* in 2012 in England, AB came centimetres close to achieving this feat in 2010. Batting first against Pakistan, AB crafted out a masterpiece in Pakistan’s adopted home, UAE, where they are a force to reckon with.

He scored 278 including a partnership of 107 runs with the number eleven batsman, Morne Morkel. Skipper Graeme Smith declared the innings at the score 584/9, with AB in touching distance of the triple ton. However, Smith’s decision of declaring seemed explicable by the end of the game, as Pakistan managed to prise out a draw.

3. Daryll Cullinan- 275* vs New Zealand

Daryll Cullinan’s incident dates way back to the 20th century when power-hitting, especially in Test match cricket, wasn’t in vogue. Cullinan was the pillar of the South African middle-order in the 90s. In his eight-year Test career, the right-hander accumulated 4554 runs at an average of 44 to go with 14 centuries, including a doubleton.

In the first Test of South Africa’s tour to New Zealand in 1999, Cullinan notched up the then highest Test score by a South African. Batting first, he played a splendid inning of 275* against the likes of Simon Doull, Geoff Allott, Daniel Vettori and Chris Harris on a spicy Auckland pitch. At the score of 621, the Proteas skipper Hansie Cronje declared their innings.

Cronje ceased the innings on the morning of day three, with Cullinan 25 runs away from a triple century. New Zealand in return scored 352 in their first innings, conceding a follow on. But half-centuries from Matt Horne, Roger Twose and Nathan Astle ensured that the Kiwis saved the Test match. Cullinan recorded another century in the third Test match and finished the three-match series with 427 runs, getting dismissed just once.

4. Adam Voges- 269* vs West Indies

Minimum of 20 Test matches as a criterion, Adam Voges is third at the list of all-time averages, behind Sir Bradman and Steve Smith. Voges was a late bloomer as he made his Test debut at the age of 35 in 2015. He grabbed the opportunity with both hands by scoring 130* on debut.

After a few low scores, Voges hit an outrageous purple patch- a form most batters could only dream of. Couple of half-centuries to end an away Ashes tour, then scores of 119, 269*, 106* in the home season, and ended it with another double ton in New Zealand with the score of 239*. He even crossed the average of 100 temporarily in course of his 239* in New Zealand.

Voges, in his fabulous form, could have also notched up his maiden triple century if not for the declaration by Steve Smith. Batting first against West Indies in Hobart, Australia posted a gigantic 583/4 thanks to 269* by Adam Voges.

Australian cricket has been known to put the team above individual- even with the unlikeliest possibility of things to not go their way- as in the case of Tim Paine’s declaration with David Warner on 335*. Smith declared the Aussie innings on lunch of Day 2, leaving the right-hander 31 runs short of a triple. After low scores in Sri Lanka and home series against South Africa, Voges called his time, ending a fairytale period of 18 months.

5. Stephen Fleming- 274* vs Sri Lanka

Stephen Fleming was arguably the greatest Kiwi batsman. The records concur with it, as he is the second-highest run-scorer for the Kiwis both in Test and ODIs, only recently outscored by Ross Taylor. Fleming was also a successful captain who set an example for the team to look upon.

Fleming’s selfless declaration at his personal score of 274* is a specimen for a captain. Batting first against Sri Lanka in Colombo, he led the charge with an inning of 274 runs to take New Zealand to 515/7. The southpaw declared the innings before the end of day 2 and sacrificed his opportunity to become the first Kiwi batsman to score a triple hundred.

Eventually, the match ended in a draw with Sri Lanka scoring 483 and New Zealand 161/5 in their second innings. Fleming hoarded over 7000 Test runs and over 8000 ODI runs. The left-hander was New Zealand’s youngest captain and led the Black Caps for 80 Tests- winning 28, losing 27 and drawing 25 with a win percentage of 35.