Allan Border

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Allan Border Australia (Aus)
Batting style	Left-handed batsman (LHB)
Bowling type	Left-arm orthodox spin (SLA)
	Tests	ODIs
Matches	156	273
Runs scored	11174	6524
Batting average	50.56	30.62
100s/50s	27/63	3/39
Top score	205	127*
Overs bowled	668.1	443.3
Wickets	39	73
Bowling average	39.10	28.36
5 wickets in innings	2	0
10 wickets in match	1	n/a
Best bowling	7/46	3/20
Catches/stumpings	156/0	127/0
As of 19 July 2005 Source: Cricinfo.com

Allan Robert Border AO (born July 27, 1955 in Sydney, New South Wales) is a former Australian cricket captain. His playing nickname was "A.B.". He was the first batsman to score 11,000 runs in Tests. He played 156 Tests in his career, a record until it was passed by fellow Australian (and in some senses protégé of Border), Steve Waugh. Border still retains the world record for the number of consecutive Test appearances and the number of Tests as captain.

He was a primarily a left hand batsman but also achieved success as a slow left arm orthodox bowler. In his 156 Tests Border amassed 11,174 runs (a world record until it was surpassed by Brian Lara in 2005) at an average of 50.56. His best bowling was 11/96 against the West Indies in 1989. He hit 27 centuries in his Test career.

His debut for Australia was against England in 1978. He retired from international cricket in April 1994.

Border was a member of the Australian side in the famous 1981 Ashes series against England, when they were seemingly defeated single-handedly by Ian Botham (and on one occasion Bob Willis). Border subsequently cited the agony of losing that series as a major spur for the rest of his career.

As a batsman, Border's finest hour possibly came in a 1983/4 tour of West Indies, then the world's leading Test side, with a formidable array of fast bowlers. Australia were hopelessly outclassed in the Test matches, losing 3-0 and staggeringly going through a five-Test series without taking a single second innings wicket. Nevertheless, Border averaged 74 with the bat, head and shoulders above his teammates, and batted undefeated through the second Test, with 98* and 100* to stave off defeat for his side. Of his contemporaries, perhaps only Sunil Gavaskar could claim a similar record against West Indies, although he enjoyed several years before the likes of Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Colin Croft and Malcolm Marshall took West Indies to the position of the world's leading Test side.

Border's legacy as a captain remains of a piece with his legacy as batsman. Taking over from Kim Hughes when the side had lost experienced players and was performing poorly, he rebuilt the Australian side in partnership with innovative coach Bob Simpson. Early on in his tenure, Border received a severe blow when members of what he considered a promising young side announced they would tour South Africa as a rebel Australian side, despite knowing that this would lead to a ban from international cricket.

Nevertheless, Border and Simpson would go on to mould a formidable side including such future players as Steve Waugh and, towards the end of Border's career, Shane Warne. Their first notable success was winning the 1987 World Cup, and in Test cricket the 1989 Ashes series, won by Australia 4-0 (Australia also won most of the One-Day cricket matches during the tour). Border gained a reputation as a gruff yet effective leader (he was referred to as "Captain Grumpy" in the English press).

Ultimately, Border left his successor Mark Taylor with a side that would go on to be the best in the world under Taylor's captaincy. Border's chief regret as captain was said to be his failure to beat West Indies, something Taylor remedied early in his time as captain.

Allan Border wrote an autobiography entitled "Beyond Ten Thousand: My Life Story", which was published in 1993.

[edit] World records held at the time of his retirement

• top run scorer at 11,174 runs, a record held until November 2005, when it was passed by the West Indian Brian Lara (see: List of Test cricket records)
• most Test matches played (156) and most consecutive Test matches played (153). Border still holds the record for most consecutive matches.
• scored more fifties (63) and more scores of at least 50 (93) than anybody else
• captained Australia 93 times (all consecutive).
• most Test catches by a fieldsman (156); record since passed by the Australian Mark Waugh.
• The only player to have scored 150 in each innings of a Test, a record which still stands at the end of 2006.[1]

He was one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1982.

[edit] Post-retirement Honours

After he retired from Test cricket he played in Queensland's maiden Sheffield Shield win, was named 12th man in Australia's Team of the Century, and became an Australian selector.^{[citation needed]} The Australian Player of the Year now receives the Allan Border Medal with the inaugural Allan Border Medal being won by Glenn McGrath in 2000.

Two cricket fields have been renamed in Border's honour.^{[citation needed]} The first is in Mosman, a suburb of Sydney, and is the home ground of the Mosman District Cricket Club for whom Border played club cricket before his move to Queensland. The second Allan Border Oval is in his adopted home state of Queensland and has hosted numerous domestic first class and limited over matches.

In the year 2000 he was inducted into the prestigious Australian Cricket Hall of Fame.^{[citation needed]}

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Preceded by Kim Hughes	Australian Test cricket captains 1984/5-1993/4	Succeeded by Mark Taylor
Preceded by David Hookes	Australian One-day International cricket captains 1984/5-1993/4	Succeeded by Ray Bright
Preceded by Kay Cottee	Australian of the Year 1989	Succeeded by Fred Hollows

Batsmen with 10,000 Runs in Test Cricket or more
Brian Lara (WI) | Allan Border (AUS) | Steve Waugh (AUS) Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | Sunil Gavaskar (IND)

Australian batsmen with a Test batting average above 50
Allan Border | Donald Bradman | Greg Chappell | Matthew Hayden | Michael Hussey | Ricky Ponting | Jack Ryder | Steve Waugh

[edit] External links

• CricInfo Player Profile : Allan Border

Persondata
NAME	Border, Allan Robert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Cricketer
DATE OF BIRTH	July 27, 1955
PLACE OF BIRTH	Sydney, New South Wales
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH