Allan Border achieved fame as a cricketer. He holds the record for the most number of test matches ever played, 156, as well as the most number of test runs ever scored, 11,174. His batting average was 50.56.
Born on 27 July, 1955, and raised in Mosman, a suburb of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia, Border was a batting prodigy as a youth. He broke into the New South Wales team in the 1976/77 season as a left-handed batsman and occasional left-arm slow orthodox bowler, and then quickly made his way into the Australian team in the 1978/79 season.
Allan Border took over the captaincy of the Australian test team in January 1985 after Kim Hughes' tearful resignation. This was a particularly low point in Australian cricket - three great players in Greg Chappell, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh had recently retired, and new captain Kim Hughes had proven himself incapable of leading the team. Although Border did not seem to have the personality required for a captain, he was the only batsman on the team who had the talent and consistency to ensure his continued selection, and for this reason the job was his.
The early years of Border's captaincy established his legend. Although the team was weak, and lost to just about everybody, Border's reputation grew as a defensive batsman who could be relied upon to single-handedly save his team from ignominious defeat.
In later years, Border began to have more success as a captain. His batting remained strong, although whatever style he had possessed evaporated, and he became a patient batsman who waited for bowlers to bowl at his strengths - his cut and pull.
Border's bowling was an underrated feature of his game, and he holds the record for the best return of an Australian captain in a test match, 11-96 against the West Indies in 1989.
Border played his last test match in 1993/94. He currently works as a selector for the Australian cricket team.
His career statistics are:
TESTS
M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 156 265 44 11174 205 50.56 27 63 156 0
Balls M R W Ave BBI 5 10 SR Econ
Bowling 4009 197 1525 39 39.10 7-46 2 1 102.7 2.28
ONE-DAY INTERNATIONALS
M I NO Runs HS Ave SR 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 273 252 39 6524 127* 30.62 71.40 3 39 127 0
Balls M R W Ave BBI 4w 5w SR Econ
Bowling 2661 11 2071 73 28.36 3-20 0 0 36.4 4.66
FIRST-CLASS
(career: 1976/77 - 1995/96)
M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 385 625 97 27131 205 51.38 70 142 379 0
Balls M R W Ave BBI 5 10 SR Econ
Bowling 9750 412 4161 106 39.25 7-46 3 1 91.9 2.56
LIST A LIMITED OVERS
(career: 1977/78 - 1995/96)
M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St
Batting & Fielding 382 353 58 9355 127* 31.71 3 62 183 0
Balls R W Ave BBI 4w 5w SR Econ
Bowling 3703 2905 90 32.27 3-20 0 0 41.1 4.70
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