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World Cup group phase, round 3: in numbers

June 25, 2010 Leave a comment

Group A

1 – Out of a total of 20 host nations, South Africa are the first to fail to qualify from the opening phase of the tournament.

3 – France have played a World Cup host nation three times – and lost all three (previously England 1966 and Argentina 1978).

6 – Yoan Gourcuff became the sixth France player to be sent off at the World Cup since 1998 (three in 1998, one at each tournament since then).

363 – Florent Malouda‘s goal brought to an end a barren spell of 363 minutes since France’s previous World Cup goal (Zinedine Zidane‘s seventh-minute penalty in the 2006 final.)

3 – Uruguay‘s 1-0 win over Mexico came after the previous three games played at Rustenburg had been drawn 1-1.

53 – Uruguay striker Luis Suárez has now scored 53 goals in 60 appearances for club and country this season.

11 – Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Rafael Marquez have now both played in 11 World Cup games for Mexico, the joint-highest number for their country alongside former goalkeeper Antonio Carbajal.

Group B

153 – Number of passes attempted by Juan Sebastián Verón in Argentina’s 2-0 victory over against Greece. He completed 131. No player has ever attempted or completed more in a World Cup game since detailed records started in 1966.

0 – Greece were the first team not to attempt a single shot in the first half of a game during this tournament.

8 – Nigeria have now failed to win any of their last eight World Cup matches after their 2-2 draw with South Korea.

Group C

4 – Referee Wolfgang Stark has now taken charge of four England games, all wins.

1 – Jermain Defoe‘s goal was the first time either he or Wayne Rooney have scored while both of them have been on the pitch for England.

42 – He lasted 86 minutes on Wednesday, but Defoe has still not completed a full 90 minutes for England after 42 caps.

4 – Defoe made just 4 passes in 86 minutes.

729 – Minutes played by Wayne Rooney since his last England goal.

18 – USA‘s 1-0 win over Algeria ended a run of 18 World Cup games in which the Americans had failed to keep a clean sheet.

14 – Landon Donovan‘s goal came late, but we should have known it was coming. The USA have now not drawn any of their last 14 matches in which the half-time score has been 0-0 (8 wins, 6 defeats).

481 – It is now 481 minutes since Algeria’s last World Cup goal, dating back to their opening match of the 1986 tournament.

Group D

7 – Australia‘s Tim Cahill scored with a header against Serbia. Seven of Cahill’s eight Premier League goals last season were scored with his head.

14 – Germany‘s 1-0 win over Ghana was their 14th in total at the World Cup, more than any other country.

6 – This is the sixth World Cup tournament in succession (dating back to 1990) that Germany have won their group.

5 – And it is the fifth successive tournament in which they have won their final group game.

Group E

750 – Paraguay v New Zealand was the 750th match in World Cup history.

0 – New Zealand were eliminated from the tournament despite being unbeaten in their three group games (all draws).

3 – New Zealand managed only three shots on target in their three group games – but scored from two of them.

3 – In losing 3-2 to Slovakia, Italy conceded more goals than they did in the entire 2006 tournament (two).

6 – Total number of shots on target conceded by Italy in their three group games.

5 – Total number of goals conceded by Italy in their three group games.

4 – Robert Vittek has scored four goals in his last four games for Slovakia.

Group F

3 – By beating Denmark 3-1, Japan became the first Asian team to score three times in a World Cup game since North Korea lost 5-3 to Portugal in 1966.

1 – This was the first time in four trips to the World Cup that Denmark have failed to qualify from the group stage (previously 1986, 1998 and 2002).

4 – Cameroon‘s Rigobert Song is the only African player to have featured in four World Cups (1994, 1998, 2002 and 2010).

4 – Holland have now faced African opponents four times at the World Cup, and on each occasion they have conceded exactly one goal.

Group G

32 – Total number of shots in the goalless draw between Portugal and Brazil.

7 – There were seven yellow cards shown in the first half of Portugal v Brazil – but none in the second.

9 – Prior to their draw with Portugal, Brazil had won all nine games they had ever played in South Africa.

0-0 – Brazil’s last goalless draw at the World Cup was the 1994 final, which they won on penalties.

28 – Ivory Coast had a total of 28 shots in their 3-0 win over North Korea, including 15 on target.

12 – North Korea have conceded 12 goals in their three games, more than any other team.

Group H

5 – David Villa has now been directly involved in Spain‘s last five goals at the World Cup (four goals, one assist).

9 – Chile have now scored in their last nine games at the World Cup finals.

0 – Spain are the only team at the World Cup 2010 who did not pick up any cards in the group phase. They are the first team to achieve this since Hungary in 1986.

4 – Honduras had two shots on target against Switzerland, bringing their total for the tournament to four. Only New Zealand (three) had fewer.

1 - Switzerland have only conceded one goal in their seven games in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments – and none when they have had all 11 men on the pitch.

General statistics

1 – This is the first time in World Cup history that both the previous winner (Italy) and runner-up (France) have been eliminated in the first round.

5 – All five South American teams qualified for the knockout phase.

6 – Only six European teams have qualified for the last 16, the fewest ever.

2 – Number of teams who finished the group phase with 100% records (Argentina, Holland).

2- Number of teams who failed to score a point (Cameroon, North Korea).

2 -Number of teams who conceded no goals (Uruguay, Portugal).

64 – Argentina attempted more shots than any other team in the group phase, and also had the most shots on target (30).

15 – New Zealand had both the fewest goal attempts (15) and the fewest shots on target (three).

60% – Japan were the most accurate shooters, with 18 of their 30 shots being on target. (Algeria and Honduras were joint-bottom with an accuracy rate of just 17% – it was no coincidence these were the only teams who failed to score at all.)

2 – Algeria and Australia were the only countries to have two players sent off. In the case of Australia (Tim Cahill and Harry Kewell), they were both straight reds.

62 – Australia committed 62 fouls in their three games, more than any other team.

84% - Brazil had the highest rate of successful pass completions, with 84% of passes finding a teammate.

337.69 – Australian players covered a total distance of 337.69 km in their three games, making them the hardest-working team. Nigeria were the laziest team, with their players covering over 59 km less.

113 – Total goals in the 48 matches comprising the group phase (an average of 2.35 per game). The tournament has picked up pace distinctly since the cagey opening round of games: a meagre 25 goals were scored in the first round, 42 in the second, and 46 in the final round.

3 – Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina), Robert Vittek (Slovakia) and David Villa (Spain) were the top goalscorers in the group phase, having scored three each.

11 – Lionel Messi had 11 shots on target, more than any other player.

10 – Cristiano Ronaldo and Fernando Torres had the joint-highest total of shots off target, with ten apiece.

15 – New Zealand’s Rory Fallon committed more fouls (15) than any other player.

211 – Brazil’s Gilberto Silva completed more passes than any other player. Indeed, three of the top four successful passers were Brazilian (Gilberto Silva, Maicon, Felipe Melo) – the other being Spain’s Xavi.

27.4% – Percentage of shots on target (448 out of 1,637). Jabulani, anyone?

14 – Red cards shown (202 yellow).

4,038 – Total number of times a whistle has been blown by the referee.

400 – Total number of saves.

(Some stats courtesy of FIFA statistics, Castrol Live Tracker, @optajoe, @optajean, @StatManJohn and @castrolfootball.)

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Filed under Features, Football, In numbers, World Cup Tagged with ,

Isner and Mahut think it’s all over: it is now

June 25, 2010 2 Comments

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. And so, at 4.48pm yesterday, the record-breaking and fitness-shattering first round men’s singles match between American John Isner and France’s Nicolas Mahut finally drew to a close, with Isner emerging triumphant, 70-68 in the final set.

The label of ‘epic’ is one which is too easily used in sport, but it is entirely fitting here. Over the course of three days, the match had covered 11 hours and five minutes of playing time encompassing a total of 183 games (138 of them in the deciding set).

To put that into some kind of context, consider that the average Wimbledon five-setter will take three to four hours and require 55-60 games. In other words, Isner and Mahut played the equivalent of three five-set matches back-to-back-to-back.

Serena Williams played 146 games in total in winning last year’s ladies’ singles. And Roger Federer required 273 – equivalent to one and a half Isner-Mahut-style matches – in his seven matches in the men’s singles, despite having to play the longest Grand Slam final in history (a mere 77 games) to overcome Andy Roddick.

A few facts and figures:

  • 183 total games – exactly 100 games more than the previous longest match since the introduction of the tie break (Andy Roddick’s 2003 Australian Open quarter-final win over Younes El Aynaoui, which finished 21-19 in the fifth set).
  • The fifth set alone lasted eight hours and 11 minutes, 98 minutes longer than the previous longest official match at the 2004 French Open, when Fabrice Santoro defeated Arnaud Clement after 6 hours and 33 minutes.
  • Isner served 112 aces, Mahut 103 (previous all-time record: Ivo Karlovic, 78).
  • 168 consecutive service holds, from 2-0 in the second set to the final game of the match.
  • 490 total winners.

Defeat was particularly tough on Mahut, who had defeated Britain’s Alex Bogdanovic 24-22 in the third set of their qualifying match. Serving second throughout the final set, it meant that, from 4-5 onwards, it was always he who faced the sudden-death scenario of serving to stay in the match. The fact he achieved it 64 consecutive times before finally succumbing is testament to an extraordinary ability to deal with pressure and sheer bloody-mindedness.

To add insult to injury (or at least fatigue), Mahut was later back on court in the men’s doubles. His partner? Arnaud Clement, the loser in the previous longest-ever match. Sport never ceases to amaze with the delicious ironies it so frequently serves up.

Immediately after the match, both players were presented with crystal bowls and champagne flutes on behalf of the All-England club – a nice touch, although bath salts and a day pass at a spa might have been more appropriate.

Isner said:

What more can you say? The guy [Mahut] is an absolute warrior. It stinks someone had to lose. To share this with him was an absolute honour. Maybe we’ll meet again somewhere down the road and it won’t be 70-68.

Mahut added:

At this moment I’m just really thankful. It was amazing today. John deserved to win. He served unbelievable. It was really an honour to play the greatest match ever at the greatest place for tennis. It was very long but I think we both enjoyed it.

Spare a thought also for Swedish umpire Mohamed Lahyani, who sat in the chair through the entire 11 hours. Three years ago, he was involved in a car accident while officiating in Shanghai when his Chinese driver fell asleep at the wheel. Lahyani suffered whiplash injuries and still receives requires treatment on his neck – a condition particularly unsuited to the work of a tennis umpire.

After the match, Lahyani said:

It has been quite amazing to be involved with such an extraordinary match. I can’t imagine seeing another one like it in my lifetime. I didn’t get a chance to feel tired, I was gripped by the amazing match and my concentration stayed good – I owed that to the players, their stamina was breath-taking and their behaviour exceptional.

When you are so focussed and every point feels like a match point you just don’t even think about eating or needing the bathroom.

On Wednesday my voice did get a little dry, but I have drunk plenty today and it feels good. I travel economy so seven hours sitting still on court is nothing.

Lahyani’s contribution to this extraordinary match was recognised by a congratulatory letter, a set of cufflinks and a club tie. Only at Wimbledon.

The debate about whether Wimbledon should introduce fifth set tie-breaks will no doubt rage for the rest of the tournament. I understand the arguments in favour of this, with concerns over the well-being of players being at the top of the list, not to mention the potential scheduling nightmare such a long match could have created in a week less blessed by fine weather than this one.

For me, the current system of tie-breaks being played at 6-6 in the first four sets, with the fifth set being played to a resolution works just fine. Long final sets which make it beyond, say, 15-15 occur once or at most twice in an average Grand Slam tournament, and provide a sporting spectacle which draws in both fans and casual viewers alike. If Isner v Mahut had finished 7-6 on a fifth set tie-break, it would have been an ordinary event, an ignored footnote in the day’s coverage. A captive audience watching on TV and at court-side would have been denied one of those legendary, once-in-a-blue-moon experiences which sport specialises in.

How would the 1966 World Cup final have been remembered if it had gone straight to penalties at the end of normal time, denying us the dispute over that goal and Kenneth Wolstenholme‘s memorable commentary, which I have shamelessly paraphrased in the title of this post? Would Federer-Roddick in last year’s final be so fondly regarded if it had been 7-6 – it would have been the third tie-break of the final – rather than 16-14 in the concluding set? Yes, both the above examples were great spectacles, but the extension of playing time at the end of both matches made both truly special.

I particularly liked this comment from the Guardian, which summed it all up for me:

This match in one fell swoop reminded people of what sport is supposed to be; intense and competitive, but also with fair play, respect, class and sportsmanship. Isner and Mahut reminded the world that winning might be important, but how one wins is even more so. Today Isner may have scored one more service break than Mahut, but they both, and sport in general, won a much grander victory. These two gentlemen returned class and respect to the field of competition with their sportsmanship, grit, determination and mutual regard for the abilities of their opponent. They were playing for the love of the game, something almost all professional athletes seem to have long ago forgot. In that sense, they won a far more tremendous victory today than simply a tennis match. In ten years, few will likely remember who won this year’s Championships. However, people will be telling their great grand children, who will tell their great grand children, about the day that sport regained its soul.

Finally, John Isner is scheduled to play Thiemo De Bakker in the second round this afternoon, who won his own first round match 16-14 in the fifth set. Settle in, it could be a long one.

Filed under Tennis, Wimbledon Tagged with , ,

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