When a hundred means you’ve failed

Disclaimer: If you're a Surrey fan, you may want to switch off now.

Mark Ramprakash played 52 tests.

The same as Don Bradman.

Bradman just pipped him in the number of centuries made.

By 27.

Ramprakash made 2 in 52 tests at an average of 27.

For younger readers, this may be confusing, as surely a team as well oiled and professional as England wouldn’t allow a man to dance his way to such a bad record.

But they did.

The thing is everyone knows Ramps can bat, especially Ramps.

One hundred came against Warne, Lee, Dizzy and McGrath (flat pitch not withstanding).

The other against Ambrose, Walsh, Bishop and the great Nixon McClean.

Now he has been stuck on 99 first class hundreds for the last few weeks, English county fans are on the edge of their cups of tea in anticipation.

I have always thought making 100 first class hundreds is a failure.

There have been players like Grace and Gooch who did it while being very good test players.

The last man to do it was Graeme Hick, the man that Merv Hughes ruined, who batted at test level like an undecided lemming.

Had Ramps and Hick had 12 year test careers, like they both had the talent to, they would never had reached 100 first class hundreds mountain top.

Who among us would rather make be a statistical anomaly, than a fixture of their countries middle order?

When Ramps reaches this milestone, there will be a lot of head nodding, back slapping and praise for this dancing man.

But for some of us, we will see this as his ultimate failure.

Ofcourse his wife may think he's had bigger failures.www.cricketwithballs.com

Now with new proper english lady blogger.