Not only were both Waughs absolute superstars in their era, few people have any genuine idea of their legitimate genius when actually batting together in partnership in Test cricket. Playing 108 Tests together, they shared six century partnerships – four of them above 150, three of those 190 or higher – with another six passing the 50-barrier. The aforementioned latter six were, in descending order: 94, 92, 86, 85, 71 and 52. Of the entire dozen, most were genuinely high-calibre performances, with only two to be relegated low intensity/zero pressure status.
Within these 12 partnerships, Mark was either top scorer or second top scorer on ten of the occasions, Steve 11. The precise breakdown in order of top score, second top score, or neither reads: Mark 4-6-2, Steve 7-4-1. If we do a legitimate statistical cleanse, or at least an embryonically partial one, and leave out the sole pointless high-scoring draw among the 12, then the numbers realign at Mark 4-6-1, Steve 6-4-1. Additional cleansing of the massively one-sided runaway victory in the dead rubber Oval Test in 2001, in which all seven Australians who batted passed 50, sees the numbers further recalibrated to Mark 4-6-0, Steve 6-3-1, or in other words, omitting outliers of 16.7 per cent, Mark now either top scores or second top scores on all ten occasions, Steve on nine of the ten occasions.
Before ranking these 12 partnerships in order of quality, it is entirely pertinent to point out that the Waughs batted immediately after each other in the order on ten of these occasions: eight times Mark at No.4, Steve at No.5, once Mark at No.5, Steve at No.6 (a nightwatchman was used ahead of Mark on that occasion), and once Steve at No.3, Mark at No.4. Twice they batted two spots apart, both times Mark at No.4, with Steve at No.6. Only openers have a 100 per cent probability of batting together, Mark and Steve’s associate probability was in the 45-50 per cent range.
Mark Waugh. (Credit: Shaun Botterill/Allsport/Getty Images)
So, coming to the desired rankings of these partnerships, the following criteria is to be considered:
– ‘Live’ Tests vs dead rubbers
– The aforementioned sole pointless high-scoring draw among the 12 is automatically relegated to bottom spot, and in fact Australia lost only two of the 11 result Tests on the list to come
– In ‘live’ Tests, deciding Tests are given a slightly higher rating, while actual series deciders are given an even slightly higher rating still.
– The state of the match when they came together at the crease, as well as the state of the match when they were parted
– The strength of the opposition attacks
– The performances of their other specialist batting colleagues in comparison to them during the team innings in which these partnerships occurred
– Inevitably, two or more of the above bullet points will overlap on any number of the 12 occasions
1. 231 vs West Indies in Jamaica 1995
This is a no-brainer for the top spot. Australia had not beaten the West Indies in a Test series since they had risen to such power post-World Series Cricket in 1979 and had only won two non-dead rubber Tests against them across seven series encompassing 31 Tests during that same time period. The West Indies, through the magnificent Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, seemed to have stopped Australia’s momentum this series in its tracks, and remember, the West Indies had gotten out of jail through these two bowlers four times in the previous three years, including out here in Australia barely two years earlier (prior to 1995).
In reply to the West Indies first-up 265, Australia were teetering on the all too familiar brink, yet again, at 3 for 73 when the Waughs were both at the crease. Mark had gone in first, at 2 for 50. Early in their liaison, they took Ambrose for 23 runs off his first two overs against them, and after that, they never looked back. Mark raced to his 50 at a run a ball, and the partnership realised 231 off only 57 overs, and when it ended, Australia were 39 in front.
There was only one sole score above 50 among teammates, Greg Blewett, 69, and this came only after this phenomenal partnership had already taken the sting out of the seemingly invincible opposition.
The West Indies, across both bowled-out innings, were also only able to churn out two individual scores above 50, one of them by one of Australia’s major nemeses from the 1980s and early 90s, Richie Richardson, with an even 100, along with the very dangerous, albeit often underachieving, Brian Lara, 65.
2. 190 vs England in Sydney 1998-99
This choice for second top spot may be of surprise to some, given how we had been dominating England for so long (beginning all but a decade earlier), but it was a series decider. While the Ashes themselves had already been retained two Tests earlier, Australia had, inexplicably, snatched defeat from the jaws of elementary victory in the Test in between, so England now had a real chance of squaring the series. They had a genuinely world-class bowler of outstanding pedigree in Dean Headley, whose grandfather was none other than the great George from Bradman’s era. To double up with him, they also had Darren Gough, who not only was not very far at all below world class, but who also took a hat-trick late on the first day to restrict Australia’s first innings to 322, when it had looked on a certain 400 trajectory.
Steve Waugh. (Clive Mason /Allsport)
Steve joined Mark at 3 for 52 on the first day, not long after Mark himself had gone in, at the exact same score. The runs came at almost four per over, and in a match in which all 40 wickets fell, and that was decided by a margin of less than 100 runs, Australia only had one other 50-plus score across their 20 wickets lost – Michael Slater in the team’s second innings, 123. There was only one 50-plus score for the opposition across their 20 wickets lost, Nasser Hussain, 53.
Finally, had the 190-partnership ended on 93 or less, Australia’s record run of eight successive series victories against the Poms – on which we pride ourselves so much – would have ended on five.
3. 116 vs South Africa in Sydney 1997-98
Having wriggled free with a surprising, nonetheless honourable, draw in the series opener in Melbourne only days earlier, South Africa fought hard to post 287 first up. The momentum in the series was there to be seized, and Australia were in a little trouble already when Mark went in at 2 for 60, which didn’t significantly improve before Steve joined him with the score at 103.
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Confronted with a rampaging Allan Donald, ably supported by an emerging Shaun Pollock, and wily seasoned pro Brian McMillan, by the time they were separated, Australia were within 70 runs of South Africa’s score. The only other score beyond 50 for the team was rookie Ricky Ponting, 62, although Keeper Ian Healy did make it to 47 before he ran out of tail-end support. For South Africa, there were only two individual scores beyond 50 across two completed innings, Hansie Cronje, 88, and Herschelle Gibbs, 54.
4. 92 vs England at Old Trafford 1997
During the phenomenal eight successive Ashes series wins in the 1989-2002 period, 1997 was Australia’s most meritorious defence of the urn, as they fell behind in the series – in fact, the first Test of that same series, at Edgbaston, was the one and only Test England won in that same epoch while the destiny of the Ashes was actually still at stake.
After Steve’s 108 runs out of 235 total (all out) on the first day, when Taylor had surprisingly bowled first upon winning the toss, Shane Warne took his first five-wicket haul in 20 months to restrict England’s reply to only 162 – it appeared Taylor’s decision had been vindicated.
However, 0-1 down in the series, second time around, Australia were suddenly genuinely vulnerable when the top three went down for only 39, with the real score sitting on 3 for +112. If either, or both, of the Waughs could be snared cheaply, then England would have been in a great position to go 2-0 up. The England attack included Gough and Headley, and in the prevailing conditions of this particular ground, in this particular Test, even Andy Caddick was not that far off world class.
Mark smashed 55 off 81 deliveries and when he was bowled attempting another commanding pull shot to surge Australia further ahead, Richie Benaud, on air, said “That is the break England had to have!”
However, even when the hopelessly out of his depth Michael Bevan fell for a duck immediately afterwards, at 5 for +205, Australia had already pretty much reached the safety of solid dry land, having weathered the potential storm atop the relatively previous high seas.
Mark Waugh. (Sean Garnsworthy/Getty Images)
5. 112 vs West Indies in Jamaica 1999
At the same ground as their phenomenal aforementioned partnership four years earlier, Australia were 1-0 up as this second Test got underway. Captain Steve erred by batting first, as the previously powerful Windies had been skittled for a pathetic 51 to end the series opener only a few short days earlier. The last thing this opposition would have wanted would have been to front up at the crease so soon afterwards – Colin Croft’s words at the post-match press conference, not mine.
Totalling only 256, the Waughs came together in the first session of the match at a dire 3 for 46. Although obviously still not to be taken lightly, Ambrose and Walsh were comfortably past their prime, so the pitch was clearly not a ‘road’, while also not, by any means, a minefield. Nobody else reached 50 for Australia, neither in this innings, nor their doomed irretrievable third innings lost cause, which began at 0 for -175, while for the West Indies, in their virtual only innings of the match there were only two individual scores past 50, Brian Lara, 213, and Jimmy Adams, 94.
6. 86 vs England at Trent Bridge 1997
After having been 0-1 down, then clawing back to 1-1, then 2-1, Australia could seal the series win by winning this penultimate Test. There were no centuries in the match for either side, but none were needed, as, in the first innings of the match, all five of Australia’s 1-5 batsmen in the order reached 50, with scores of 76, 75 (Steve), 69, 68 (Mark) and 50. On this occasion, Australia were already comfortably placed at 3 for 225 when the Waughs started their partnership, and obviously in a near impregnable position when they parted. Taking a lead of 114 into the third innings, Australia were never going to lose this series-deciding Test which was also never going to end in a draw.
7. 71 vs England in Melbourne 1994-95
After convincingly winning the opening Test, this follow-up encounter served up conditions facilitating a genuinely even contest between bat and ball. On the opening day, Australia were 4 for 100 when the Waugh brothers mounted a response, and their partnership enabled a probably above-par total of 279 for the conditions. No other batsman reached 50 in the team innings, and, taking in a lead of 67, runs at the individual batsman level were superfluous in their second innings. Australia only needed to total in the 200-230 region and England would be zero chance, eventually imploding for 92 the second time around.
8. 153 vs England at Edgbaston 1993
While Australia were reeling at 4 for 80 in reply to England’s competitive 276, this particular Waugh partnership ranks down the list of the dozen because it was a dead rubber, with Australia already 3-0 up in the series, with the Ashes already in the bag, and only one sole Test to play after this one. Also, the opposition attack was not great, by any means. In fact, the 1993 English attack was easily their weakest during my lifetime, which began a little over half a century ago.
9. 52 vs India in Chennai 2001
This is not an especially high partnership, numerically speaking, by any means, but it was a full-on series decider, in a land Australia had not won a series in for 31 years. And Australia were in crisis from the start of this third innings of the match (0 for -110), nevermind when the Waugh’s actually began their partnership, at 4 for only +31.
While Australia lost by a heartbreaking two wickets, there is a rather eerie numerical phenomenon regarding their collective performances: both Waughs faced the exact same number of deliveries in the match, 275, for their respective match aggregates of 127 for Mark (70 off 136 and 57 off 139), and 94 for Steve (47 off 150 and 47 off 125). That aside, despite being a series decider, this particular partnership of theirs rates this far down the list simply because they were unable, on this occasion, to swing the match back Australia’s way before being parted.
10. 85 vs Sri Lanka in Adelaide 1995-96
This was a dead rubber, but Australia found themselves in trouble when Mark went in on the opening morning at 2 for 36. The ship was already steady when Steve joined him 60 runs later, and their subsequent partnership pretty much snuffed out any minute chance that particular minnow opposition may have entertained for pulling off an upset.
11. 197 vs England at the Oval 2001
The pitch was a road, which Australia got first use of, and the match, which was always going to be both Waughs’ last-ever Test in England, was a dead rubber. In fact, the only thing separating this partnership from number 12 to follow was the fact that this particular Test had a result. However, given that a mere four fallen Australian wickets still bettered England’s 20 wickets by 25 runs, even had both Waughs scored ducks, Australia would still have been quite ok; mathematically needing a mere 251 additional runs with 14-16 wickets left in the tank. The reason for the discrepancy is that Justin Langer retired hurt in Australia’s only innings, and I do not know whether he would have either resumed his first innings, if required, or indeed been fit to bat a second time around.
12. 94 vs West Indies in Sydney 1992-93
As indicated earlier, this was a pointless high-scoring draw in which neither team’s bowlers were ever remotely in the contest at any stage, save perhaps for an extremely brief period early on Day 3 when the opposition were 2 for 31 in reply to our (9 declared for) 503. The match was already doomed to be drawn once Brian Lara reached his maiden test Ton, with their follow-on avoidance target barely 100 runs away with no further loss of wickets in sight.
Most grandstands around the SCG being empty on Day 4 to not see Lara go from 121 to 277 really does sum up a match aggregate of 1226 runs for a mere 19 wickets over four and a half days – this average daily score of 4 for 272 does not constitute, in any remote way, the numerical parameters for an even game of Test cricket to keep fans coming through the turnstiles, or indeed even from quitting their television sets and flocking down to Bondi Beach instead.
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