Brisbane, Jan 13 (IANS) Matthew Hayden played just six matches in the six years after an inauspicious 1994 debut in South Africa, but the left-hander then went on a record-breaking spree in the next eight years.
A player who physically towered over his opponents, Hayden's statistics cast a similar shadow over the game.
After an unforgettable debut, Hayden became a regular member of the Test team in 2001 with a dominant series against India where he scored 549 at an average of 109.80.
The following summer, he scored a century in four consecutive Tests against South Africa, and narrowly missed making it five, falling for 96 in Cape Town.
After an extraordinary 12 months - in which he scored 1,509 Test runs at 71.85 - he was awarded the Allan Border Medal in Feb 2002. His tally of 1,391 Test runs in the 2001 calendar year was an Australian record.
Named the Wisden cricketer of the year in 2003, the big Queenslander's high-water mark came later that year.
Playing at the WACA in October, Hayden scored highest individual innings in Test history -- 380 that came againt Zimbabwe. But he hold that mark for just six months until Brian Lara posted the first quadruple-century in Test history.
In 2005, he repeated the feat of four centuries in four Tests, notching tons against England, the West Indies (twice) and the World XI.
After two years in the one-day wilderness, Hayden hammered the highest ODI score by an Australian, an unbeaten 181 against New Zealand.
The big left-hander led all scorers at the 2007 World Cup as Australia defended its crown, scoring 659 runs at 73.22. During that tournament, he scored the fastest century in World Cup history (66 balls) and became the third person to score three centuries in a single World Cup.
TEST CAREER
Tests: 103, Innings: 184, Runs: 8,625, 100s: 30, 50s: 29, Highest score: 380.
Average: 50.73.
ONE-DAY: Matches: 161, Innings: 155, Runs: 6,133, 100s: 10, 50s: 36, Highest score: 181 not out. Average: 43.80.
AWARDS
Allan Border Medal - 2002
Australian Test Player of the Year - 2002
Wisden Cricketer of the Year 2003
ICC One-Day Player of the Year 2007
Australian One-Day International Player of the Year - 2008
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