India rule roost when it comes to statistics

Port of Spain, Mar 20 (UNI) There are lies, there are damned lies and then there are statistics. Even on the verge of being knocked out of the World Cup, a cornered Team India seem strongest of them all when it comes to numbers.

India became the first team in the 32-year-old World Cup history to cross the magical 400-run mark. Their 413 for five in 50 overs against minnows Bermuda yesterday bettered Sri Lanka's 11-year-old 398-run record set against Kenya in the 1996 edition of the event.

In fact, India feature twice among the top three slots when it comes to piling up huge totals at the showpiece event. Remember 1999 WC in Taunton. Helped Rahul Dravid's 145 and Sourav Ganguly's 183, India slaughtered the Lankan bowling attack to amass 373 for six.

The 257-run winning margin is also the highest ever clocked in the history of One Day Internationals, tantalisingly ahead of Australia's 256-run margin against Namibia in the 2003 WC match in Potchefstroom. The former World champions had bundled out Namibia for 45 after posting a mammoth 301.

Till now, four of the five biggest winning margins have been registered in this World Cup. Sri Lanka's 243-run win margin against Bermuda on the third day of the ongoing World Cup comes a close third, followed by Australia's 229-run winning margin against the Netherlands and South Africa's 221-runs margin against the same opposition in Basseterre.

In fact, the ongoing world cup is turning out to be huge when it comes to record totals. Four out of top-10 world cup scores have been made in the Caribbean edition of the extravaganza.

Big socres in World Cups: India - 413/5 (50 overs) v Bermuda, March 2007 Sri Lanka - 398/5 (50 overs) v Kenya, Kandy, March 1996 India- 373/6 (50 overs) v Sri Lanka, Taunton, May 1999 West Indies - 360/4 (50 overs) v Sri Lanka, Karachi, Oct. 1987 Australia - 359/2 (50 overs) v India, Johannesburg, March 2003 Australia - 358/5 (50 overs) v Netherlands, Basseterre, March 2007 South Africa - 353/3 (40 overs) v Netherlands, Basseterre, March 2007 Zimbabwe - 340/2 (50 overs) v Namibia, Harare, February 2003 Pakistan - 338/5 (60 overs) v Sri Lanka, Swansea, June 1983 Australia - 334/6 (50 overs) v Scotland, Basseterre, March 2007 UNI