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While India and England prepare for the final Test of what has been an unusually gripping and competitive one-sided clobbering, here is your next batch of pre-Christmas stats. This series has certainly been one of the most closely fought clobberings I can remember, involving, last week in Mumbai, a fascinating match that began with three days of classic, momentum-shifting, undulating cricketing tug of war, and ended with rampant, high-skilled Indian dominance, and a baffling display of white-flag English batting. Should anyone ever write an instruction manual entitled How to Lose a Test Match After Scoring 400 Batting First on a Turning Pitch, this match would be Example A. Further examples would not be required.Four years ago at the Wankhede, as India subsided rapidly to defeat against Englands spinners, Virat Kohli had clonked a filthy Graeme Swann full toss straight to mid-off in what will always remain a compelling challenger for Worst Shot of the Third Millennium, a shot of such complete mistiming that it made a noise reminiscent of a catapulted tortoise landing on the roof of a cheap wooden shed. If memory serves. This time, he created a masterpiece of the art of batsmanship, a performance of such near-flawless technical and tactical brilliance that England could have bowled him a hand grenade disguised as a Rubiks Cube and he would have defused it, solved it, signed it, and deposited it effortlessly to the extra-cover boundary. R Ashwins gradual hypnosis of Englands batsmen completed the Tests transformation: from level pegging on the judges scorecards to Rocky Marciano pummelling the daylights out of a stuffed toy penguin.Stats time.15 December It has been another odd year for England in the Test arena, a cocktail of personal and collective successes and failures. In their intensive 31-Test deluge since April 2015, they have (a) won an Ashes, (b) drawn three series in which they had held a lead, (c) triumphed in South Africa, and (d) failed to construct a sequence of more than three matches without defeat. This constitutes Englands longest period without a four-match unbeaten run since 1997-2000.[PS: It was on this day in 2008 that India chased down 380 to beat England in Chennai, despite Andrew Strauss two centuries. I have powerful memories of that day. Not entirely related to that Test match.]16 December As has been widely noted, England were only the third side to lose by an innings after scoring at least 400 batting first. There have only been three more instances of a team scoring 375 or more and losing by an innings. Mumbai illustrated how a first-innings score of around 400 is no longer the platform for success (or at least, the platform for avoiding failure) that it once was.This millennium, teams batting first and scoring between 380 and 420 (inclusive) have won 26, lost 23, and drawn 16. Before the year 2000, such a first-innings score led to 54 victories, only ten defeats, and 59 draws.A 400-ish opening innings has become sub-par in Asia, where since December 2009, teams batting first and scoring between 380 and 430 have won two, lost nine and drawn five; against India in their home conditions, the record is: played six, lost six.17 December Today is Ashwin day. The Chennai Conjurors fifth wicket in Mumbai made him the first player to achieve a 200-run, 20-wicket series double since Andrew Flintoff and Shane Warne in the 2005 Ashes.Ravindra Jadeja needs 27 runs and four wickets in Chennai to join the list, and provide the fourth instance of two players on the same side registering a 200-20 double series (after Jacques Kallis and Shaun Pollock for South Africa in West Indies, 2001; Ian Botham and Geoff Miller, England in Australia 1978-79; and Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller, Australia v West Indies 1951-52). (If you want another impending potential stat to keep an eye out for during the fifth Test, if Jadeja scores those 27 runs, and Jayant Yadav takes one more wicket, India will become only the third team in Test history to have three players score 200 runs and take ten wickets in a series, after Australia in the 1907-08 [Warwick Armstrong, Charlie Macartney, Monty Noble], and Australia again in the West Indies in 1955 [Ron Archer, Richie Benaud, Keith Miller].)Ashwin needs 11 runs to register the eighth 250-run-25-wicket double in a series, and the first since Botham in the 1985 Ashes. (There have been some near-misses. Warne fell short by one run in 2005, and Flintoff by one wicket; Imran Khan was three runs away against India in 1982-83; Malcolm Marshall needed six more runs in India in 1983-84; and Tony Greig took 24 wickets to go with his 430 runs in the West Indies in 1973-74.)Ashwin is also 61 runs and three wickets away from the fourth ever 300-30 series double. He would follow Botham in 1981 against Australia, Benaud for Australia in South Africa in 1957-58, and Benauds baggy-green predecessor George Giffen, in the 1894-95 Ashes.His two six-wicket innings in Mumbai made Ashwin only the fourth player ever, and the second since the First World War, with three 50-plus scores and three five-wicket hauls in a series. Giffens 1894-95 Ashes was the first instance; Englands Frank Foster achieved the feat in the 1911-12 Ashes; and Botham in the 1981 Ashes, when he also crammed in 12 catches, three ducks, a resignation/sacking from the captaincy, and a heroic beard, into his hectic schedule.With his half-century in the third Test, in Mohali, Ashwin had already become only the second player to make five 50-plus scores and take five five-wicket hauls in a year. Daniel Vettori had five of each in 2008. Ashwin has eight five-fors, and needs one more five-for to equal the record for a year of nine (jointly held by Malcolm Marshall in 1984, and Muttiah Muralitharan in 2006). His two six-fors in Mumbai tied Muralis 2006 record of six six-wicket hauls in a year.Enough Ashwin stats. He has had, unquestionably, a good year. A better year than, for example, David Cameron or Hillary Clinton. Albeit in rather different circumstances.18 December In Mumbai, Moeen Ali (2 for 174) and Adil Rashid (4 for 192) provided only the 11th instance of two bowlers conceding 170 or more in the same innings, and the first in which the bowlers have been English. The last six of these 11 have all taken place in Asia. None of the previous ten had featured an attack with six front-line bowlers.It was also:(a) The first time for 23 years that two England bowlers have bowled 50 overs in an innings. Mark Ilott, in his second Test, and Martin Bicknell, on debut, were the victims on the previous occasion, at Headingley in 1993, as Australia piled up 653 for 4 declared, which, at the time, was considered a slightly disappointing score for the baggy greens in an Ashes Test. If I remember correctly. Some measure of vengeance for Ashwin, one of the two Indians to bowl 50 overs in Kolkata four years ago, along with Pragyan Ojha. And…(b) The third time since 1965, and the eighth time ever, that seven England bowlers have bowled ten or more overs in an innings.19 December India, from 307 for 6, added 324 more runs before England could finally leave the field and start thinking about how nice it would have been to take a couple more catches. This was the 13th time a team has added 300 or more for its last four wickets, and the first either by India or in India.20 DecemberCheteshwar Pujara and Kohli, batting behind an unsettled opening partnership, and ahead of a malfunctioning five and six, have combined for 845 first-innings runs at an average of 105 (Pujara has made 341, Kohli 504). This is the most first-innings runs ever scored by Indias three and four in a Test series. The all-time record Most First-Innings Series Runs by a Teams Numbers Three and Four - 1095, by the 1930 Australians in England (Don Bradman 842, Alan Kippax 239, Alan Fairfax 14) - is just about within sight. 21 December Kohli Day. If Kohli makes 40 in either innings in Chennai, he will be the first player to make seven scores of 40 or more in a series since Nasser Hussain in the 1998-99 Ashes, since when there have been 18 other instances of a player scoring 40 six times.In 2016, Kohli currently has 1200 Test runs at an average of 80.0, 739 ODI runs at 92.3, and 641 T20I runs at 106.8. Only one player has ever returned a year tally of 600 or more runs at an average of at least 70 in two formats - Hashim Amla, who in 2010 made 1249 at 78.0 in Tests and 1058 at 75.5 in ODIs, and in 2012, 1064 at 70.9 in Tests and 678 at 84.7 in one-dayers. Even a pair in Chennai will leave Kohli averaging over 70 in all three formats this year.His overall all-format international tally for 2016 is currently 2580 at 88.9. Kohli could deliberately smash his stumps down first ball in both innings in the final Test and still finish the year as the only player to have made more than 2000 international runs in a year at an average of more than 80. Only three others have made even 1250 runs at 80-plus in a year - Garry Sobers (1299 at 144.3 in 1958), Sachin Tendulkar (1766 at 84.0 in 2010) and Viv Richards (1926 at 91.7 in 1976). Illustrious company.22 December This Asian winter, Alastair Cook has faced 580 balls of spin in six Tests, been dismissed 11 times - once every 53 balls - and scored 265 runs, for an average against spin of 24.1. In his previous 21 Tests in Asia, spaced over seven separate winters, Cook had scored 1422 for 21 against spin, averaging 67.7.On his previous three tours of India, he made 592 for 6 against spin, and was dismissed once every 222 balls. Between them, Muttiah Muralitharan, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, the three leading wicket-takers in Tests on the worlds largest continent, with more than 1300 wickets on their home landmass between them, dismissed him once in 112 overs in Asia. The old certainties have been chipped away from his batting, for now at least, by two months of unrelenting high-class tweakery.23 DecemberDiscover your own stat, and write it indelible ink on your screen in the space provided below.24 December Invent your own stat. This is the post-truth world of 2016. Make something up about a player you like whose numbers do not quite stack up, or insert yourself into a list of all-time greats.Happy Cricketstmas.Nike Vapormax Herren Deutschland . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. Nike Air Vapormax Damen Billig .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. http://www.vapormaxschuhe.de/vapormax-weiss-deutschland.html .C. -- Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Bobcats got off to a fast start, and the Sacramento Kings were never quite able to catch up. Vapormax Schwarz Kaufen . Ouellette, from Montreal, already has three Olympic gold medals since joining the team in 1999. Vapormax Weiß Deutsch . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. The Saskatoon Blades entered this season believing they were capable of winning the Memorial Cup on home ice. Despite a first-round exit from the Western Hockey League playoffs, the Blades still have a chance to prove they belong in the 2013 Canadian Hockey League championship. The host Blades will have been idle for 51 days when they open the tournament Friday against the Ontario Hockey Leagues London Knights. Saskatoon experienced an up-and-down season -- including a rocky start, an 18-game winning streak and a television crew filming their every move -- before a stunning sweep at the hands of the Medicine Hat Tigers. Blades head coach and general manager Lorne Molleken says the pressure of hosting major junior hockeys premier tournament hung over his players all season. "It was a different year simply because of the highs and the lows," said Molleken, whose club finished the regular season 44-22-6. "Every time we lost a game it almost seemed like people around us thought it was the end of the world. "The talk at the start of the year, everything was about the Memorial Cup and maybe our focus wasnt where it should have been." As hosts of the tournament, the Blades were followed by a television crew. Molleken says it was an adjustment at first, but adds the presence of the cameras had nothing to do with the teams short run in the playoffs. "In the early going our players just didnt know how to react because there was a camera in the locker-room at all times," he said in a recent phone interview. "But I think when I look back at it and as the season went on, they became a part of our team and they did a tremendous job with it. "I think for the players, it was a real learning experience for them and a positive experience for them." Blades captain Brenden Walker joined Saskatoon prior to the season after three campaigns with the Brandon Wheat Kings. He says having the cameras around was a unique situation. "It was pretty cool for us and a pretty cool experience to be involved in, and a great memory of this year that we can show in the future," Walker said before adding, "with the cameras theyre looking for ups and downs and that kind of stuff ... it was difficult sometimes for sure." The Blades, who automatically earned a bye into the Memorial Cup as the host team, have been swept out of the playoffs in the last three seasons. Despite this years stumble, Molleken still believes his team has what it takes to win the Memorial Cup on home ice. &quuot;We felt we built a team here that could win a championship but for whatever reason we didnt compete as hard as we needed to against a team that was playing extremely well in Medicine Hat," he said.dddddddddddd "They did a great job against us." Added Walker: "Maybe we thought it was going to be easy or we werent prepared for it but now weve got to put that behind us and really not worry about that and instead worry about our readiness for the Memorial Cup." The Blades are led offensively by Josh Nichols (47 goals, 38 assists) and Matej Stransky (40 goals, 45 assists). Walker was next on the scoring list with 33 goals and 43 assists, while Russian world junior goalie Andrey Makarov will be counted on at the other end after posting a 2.62 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. Following a two-week break after their March 27 elimination, Molleken put the Blades through more than a month of hard training. He says theyre in the best shape theyve been all the season. Walker says the players can see the light at the end of the tunnel. "Its been a long journey here for the last little bit but were just chipping at it and its going to be a great thing when the puck drops," Walker said. "(Losing in the first round) was a tough way to go but thats behind us and were just moving forward and weve got a bigger goal ahead of us. Weve just to make sure were ready to go." The Blades are drawing inspiration from last seasons hosts, the Shawinigan Cataracts. The club crashed out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoffs but managed to win the Memorial Cup after a long layoff. Saskatoon will be looking to capture its first CHL title, but the club also knows that there will be detractors. "We are healthy and were anxious to get the puck dropped on the 17th and we know were going to be playing against three league champions that have proven theyre worthy of that," said Molleken, whose team rolls four lines and six defencemen. "Were going to have to take our game to a new level and our players have worked extremely hard at that." The Blades know all they can do is control what happens on the ice going forward. "You never want to think that you get a free bye into the Memorial Cup and instead just come right through the front door," Walker said. "Now this is our last kick at the cat." The Portland Winterhawks and the Halifax Mooseheads round out the field for the MasterCard Memorial Cup, which runs through May 26. ' ' '