The unstoppable Ellyse Perry

Since the start of 2014, the Australian allrounder has made 17 fifty-plus scores in 23 ODI innings. No other player – male or female – has ever had such an incredible run

Since the start of 2014, Australian allrounder Ellyse Perry‘s ODI scores read as follows: 65*, 0, 90*, 53, 72, 64*, 74*, 78, 48, 67, 90, 31, 50, 51, 64*, 35, 4, 17, 77*, 93*, 95*, 69, 56. In 23 innings, she averages 89.53, with 17 scores of 50 or more. From these numbers, it’s clear that she finds scoring fifties three times as easy as not scoring them.

These stats are incredible for any player in any format, but even more so for Perry, who has been on a stunning spree in the last three years. Before 2014, in 37 ODI innings, mostly at Nos. 7 and 8, she had scored just 555 runs at 23.12, with a single half-century.

Since 2014, though, her game has moved to another level. The average of 89.53 is easily the best for any player with at least 150 runs during this period. With a 750-run cut-off, the next best is Meg Lanning’s average of 58.20.

BEST BATTING AVERAGES IN ODIS SINCE JAN 2014 (MIN 750 RUNS)

Player	Innings	Runs	Average	Strike Rate	50+ Scores
Ellyse Perry	23	1343	89.53	80.32	17
Meg Lanning	29	1455	58.20	94.05	11
Mithali Raj	20	785	56.07	66.41	5
Amy Satterthwaite	31	1246	51.91	82.68	9
Suzie Bates	34	1452	48.40	81.80	14

Perry’s average during this period is the highest for any batsman over three calendar years in women’s ODIs (with a 1000-run cut-off). The next highest is Karen Rolton’s 76.64 between 2002 and 2004; Rolton also takes the third and fourth spots in this list, with averages of 73.66 between 2000 and 2002, and 66.43 between 2004 and 2006. Perry’s 17 fifty-plus scores is a record too in a three-year period, with two others on 15 coming in next – Debbie Hockley, between 1995 and 1997, and Rolton (2003-05).

In terms of runs scored, Perry’s 1393 in her last 25 innings is the second-highest in women’s ODIs. Belinda Clark had scored 1508 at 75.40 between November 1997 and February 2000. However, Clark was an opener, which gave her more opportunities to play long innings. In terms of averages, Perry’s 87.80 is the best for any player over 25 successive ODI innings, marginally ahead of Rolton’s 87.73 between July 2001 and December 2004. Both batsmen had ten nots in those 25 innings, though, with Perry scoring only one run more than Rolton (1317 to 1316). Clark’s average of 75.40 is third in the list.

What is more incredible than the average is the number of 50-plus scores Perry has notched up in the last three years – 17 in 23 innings is scarcely believable, and something that has never been achieved in ODIs, by men or women. Even when taking a 25-innings stretch, the next best is 15, by five of the top men in ODI batting – Kane Williamson, Javed Miandad, Hashim Amla, Viv Richards and Dean Jones. Among the women, 13 is the next highest, by four players – Hockley, Rolton, Clark and Mithali Raj.

MOST 50+ SCORES IN 25 SUCCESSIVE ODI INNGS

Player	50+ Scores	Period
Ellyse Perry	17	Aug ’13 – Nov ’16
Kane Williamson	15	Jun ’13 – Feb ’15
Hashim Amla	15	Jan ’09 – Jan ’11
Dean Jones	15	Oct ’89 – Dec ’90
Javed Miandad	15	Mar ’87 – Oct ’88
Viv Richards	15	Jan ’85 – Mar ’86

During this amazing run, Perry has two separate streaks of five or more successive fifties: from January 2014 to July 2015 she had six in a row, while she is currently on an streak of five in a row. The only other player to have two separate streaks or five or more 50-plus scores in women’s ODIs is the former England captain, Charlotte Edwards. In fact, only three players in this format have six successive scores of 50 or more – Perry, Edwards, and Australia’s Lindsay Reeler.

All these numbers don’t even take into account Perry the bowler: in the 24 matches since the start of 2014, she has taken 33 wickets – sixth-highest during this period – at an average of 26.54. Six other women have achieved the double of 25 wickets and 500 runs during this period, but Perry’s numbers stand out because the difference between her batting and bowling averages is a whopping 62.98; the next highest difference among this group is 21.32, for Suzie Bates.

PLAYERS WITH 500+ RUNS AND 25+ WKTS IN WOMEN’S ODIS SINCE JAN 2014

Player	Mat	Runs	Bat Ave	Wkts	Bowl Ave	Ave Diff
Ellyse Perry (Aus)	24	1343	89.53	33	26.54	62.98
Suzie Bates (NZ)	36	1452	48.40	26	27.07	21.32
Heather Knight (Eng)	27	839	38.13	32	22.18	15.94
Deandra Dottin (WI)	27	784	34.08	27	23.33	10.75
Dane Van Niekerk (SA)	31	677	33.85	32	24.25	9.60
Marizanne Kapp (SA)	29	580	29.00	32	25.31	3.68
Hayley Matthews (WI)	23	570	24.78	26	22.61	2.16

With an overall ODI career aggregate of 1898 to go with 112 wickets, Perry is within touching distance of becoming only the third woman to achieve the double of 2000 runs and 100 wickets. The two who have achieved this so far are Australia’s Lisa Sthalekar and West Indies’ Stafanie Taylor. Perry’s numbers aren’t very different to those of Taylor’s in terms of the difference between the batting and bowling averages: the difference for Taylor, over her entire career, is 25.65, compared to Perry’s 24.51. They are also currently Nos. 1 and 2 in the ICC ratings for ODI allrounders, while Perry is No. 2 in batting and No. 7 in bowling. In 2013, Taylor became the only player in ODI history, men or women, to simultaneously be ranked No. 1 in both batting and bowling. That is probably the gold standard that Perry would be aspiring towards.

PLAYERS WITH 2000+ RUNS AND 100+ WKTS IN WOMEN’S ODIS

Player	Mat	Runs	Bat Ave	Wickets	Bowl Ave	Ave Diff
Stafanie Taylor (WI)	98	3732	44.42	114	18.77	25.65
Lisa Sthalekar (Aus)	125	2728	30.65	146	24.97	5.67

ELLYSE PERRY’S ODI CAREER

Player	Mat	Runs	Bat Ave	Wickets	Bowl Ave	Ave Diff
Ellyse Perry (Aus)	81	1898	48.66	112	24.15	24.51

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/1071553.html