1998–99 Asian Test Championship

1998-99 Asian Test Championship
Tournament Logo
Administrator(s)Asian Cricket Council
Cricket formatTest
Tournament format(s)Round-robin and final
Host(s) India
 Pakistan
 Sri Lanka
 Bangladesh
Champions Pakistan (1st title)
Runners-up Sri Lanka
Participants3
Matches4
Player of the seriesPakistan Wasim Akram
Most runsSri Lanka M. Jayawardene (297)
Most wicketsPakistan Wasim Akram (15)

The first Asian Test Championship, organized by the Asian Cricket Council was held between 16 February and 16 March 1999.[1] India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka competed in the tournament; Bangladesh could not compete because the ICC had not granted them Test status. This tournament was considered to be the predecessor to the Test Cricket World Cup that the ICC was planning for the nine member nations.[1] The tournament was almost canceled in January 1999 due to tour conflicts, television rights and security concerns.[2][3][4]

Three round-robin tournament matches were played with each team meeting each other once and the top two sides playing a final. A win was worth 12 points, a tie 6 points and no points were awarded for a draw or loss. In addition to this, bonus points were awarded to teams for bowling and batting performances (see Scoring system). The venues of the round robin matches were rotated between the three countries: India (Calcutta), Sri Lanka (Colombo) and Pakistan (Lahore), while the final was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh as a neutral venue.

Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by an innings and 175 in the final to become the first Asian Test Champions and received US$250,000 in prize money. Sri Lanka, the losing finalists, were awarded US$145,000, and India, the losers of the first round, US$100,000.[5] 'Man of the Series', Wasim Akram, won US$20,000, while 'Man of the Match' winners received US$5,000 in prize money.

Squads

 India[6]  Pakistan[7]  Sri Lanka[8]
1st & 2nd Test 1st Test 2nd Test Final 1st Test 2nd Test Final
  • Wasim Akram *
  • +Moin Khan
  • Saeed Anwar
  • Imran Nazir
  • Wajahatullah Wasti
  • Shahid Afridi
  • Ijaz Ahmed
  • Shahid Nazir
  • Yousuf Youhana
  • Azhar Mahmood
  • Inzamam-ul-Haq
  • Shoaib Akhtar
  • Saqlain Mushtaq
  • Arshad Khan
  • Aravinda de Silva
  • Russel Arnold
  • Marvan Atapattu
  • Avishka Gunawardene
  • Mahela Jayawardene
  • Hashan Tillakaratne
  • +Romesh Kaluwitharana
  • Upul Chandana
  • Chaminda Vaas
  • Pramodya Wickramasinghe
  • Sajeewa de Silva
  • Niroshan Bandaratilake
  • Chandika Hathurusingha
  • Ruwan Kalpage

Umpires

The matches were officiated by two independent umpires of the ICC panel. This was the first time that this had occurred, traditionally one ICC umpire and one home umpire stand in Test matches. However, one home umpire was selected as the Third Umpire in each Test match. The ICC Match referee for the entire Championship was Cammie Smith of the West Indies.[5]

Neutral Umpires:

Third umpires:

Scoring system

A scoring system was devised by the Asian Test Championship Technical Committee consisting of Duleep Mendis (tournament director), Ashantha De Mel, Sunil Gavaskar and Majid Khan.[5] It was based on the systems used in the Asian countries' domestic leagues.[9]

Points
Result Points[10]
Win 12
Tie 6
Draw/Loss 0

Bonus points were awarded to teams for good bowling and batting performances (see table below). A maximum of 20 points could be gained in one match (including the 12 match winning points). The bonus bowling and batting points were confined to the first 100 overs of the first innings. The two teams with the highest number of points qualify for the final. If two teams are tied on points, the team with a better run rate in the first 100 overs will go through. If the final ends in a draw, the side with the higher bonus points will win.[11]

Bonus Points1
Runs Scored Bonus Points[10] Wickets Taken Bonus Points[10]
350+ 4 9–10 4
300–349 3 7–8 3
225–299 2 5–6 2
150–224 1 3–4 1
1Assessed on the first 100 overs of the 1st innings

Match results

1st Test: India v Pakistan

16–20 February 1999
Scorecard
v
185 (76.2 overs)
Moin Khan 70 (271)
Javagal Srinath 5/46 (19 overs)
223 (76.2 overs)
Sadagoppan Ramesh 79 (176)
Shoaib Akhtar 4/71 (19.2 overs)
316 (99 overs)
Saeed Anwar 188 (259)
Javagal Srinath 8/86 (27 overs)
232 (91 overs)
VVS Laxman 67 (119)
Shoaib Akhtar 4/47 (20.1 overs)
Pakistan won by 46 runs
Eden Gardens, Calcutta, India
Umpires: Steve Bucknor (WI) and Dave Orchard (SA)
Player of the match: Saeed Anwar (PAK) and Javagal Srinath (IND)
Points Table after 1st Test
Team Matches Won Drawn Lost Bonus
Batting 		Bonus
Bowling 		Total Points
Pakistan 1 1 0 0 1 4 17
India 1 0 0 1 1 4 5
Sri Lanka 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2nd Test: Sri Lanka v India

24–28 February 1999
v
518/7 (142.5 overs)
Sadagoppan Ramesh 143 (214)
Russel Arnold 2/94
485 (159.1 overs)
M Jayawardene 242 (465)
Anil Kumble 4/134
306/5 (104 overs)
Sachin Tendulkar 124 (234)
Aravinda de Silva 2/59
Match Drawn
Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Umpires: Rudi Koertzen (SA) and Russell Tiffin (ZIM)
Player of the match: Mahela Jayawardene (SL)
Points Table after 2nd Test
Team Matches Won Drawn Lost Bonus
Batting 		Bonus
Bowling 		Total Points
Pakistan 1 1 0 0 1 4 17
India 2 0 1 1 5 5 10
Sri Lanka 1 0 1 0 2 2 4

3rd Test: Pakistan v Sri Lanka

4–8 March 1999
v
398 (102.1 overs)
Wajahatullah Wasti 133 (238)
Pramodya Wickramasinghe 6/103
328 (84.2 overs)
Russel Arnold 123 (208)
Wasim Akram 4/30
314/8d (96.5 overs)
Wajahatullah Wasti 121 (303)
Niroshan Bandaratilleke 2/54
165/2 (51.1 overs)
Russel Arnold 56 (151)
Shahid Nazir 1/27
Match Drawn
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, Pakistan
Umpires: Rudi Koertzen (SA) and David Shepherd (ENG)
Player of the match: Wajahatullah Wasti (Pak)
Points Table after 3rd Test
Team Matches Won Drawn Lost Bonus
Batting 		Bonus
Bowling 		Total Points
Pakistan 2 1 1 0 5 8 25
Sri Lanka 2 0 2 0 6 5 11
India 2 0 1 1 5 5 10

Final: Pakistan v Sri Lanka

12–15 March 1999
Scorecard
v
231 (78 overs)
Aravinda de Silva 72 (164)
Arshad Khan 5/38
594 (184.5 overs)
Ijaz Ahmed 211 (372)
Upul Chandana 6/179
188 (65.3 overs)
Hashan Tillakaratne 55 (152)
Wasim Akram 3/33
Pakistan won by an innings and 175 runs
Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Umpires: David Shepherd (ENG) and Doug Cowie (NZ)
Player of the match: Ijaz Ahmed (Pak)

References

  1. ^ a b Christie, Peter (24 December 1998). "Asian Test Championship from Feb 14 to March 17". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  2. ^ "Asian Test Championship: Pakistan to opt out if tour is cancelled". ESPNcricinfo. 13 January 1999. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Asian Test championships may be called off". ESPNcricinfo. Agence France-Presse. 27 January 1999. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  4. ^ "Fate of Asian Test event still hangs in balance". ESPNcricinfo. 29 January 1999. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Thawfeeq, Sa'adi (11 February 1999). "Inaugural Asian Test championhips". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 April 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  6. ^ "Asian Test Cricket Championship, February - March 1999: Indian Squad". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  7. ^ "Asian Test Cricket Championship, February - March 1999: Pakistani Squad". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  8. ^ "Asian Test Cricket Championship, February - March 1999: Sri Lankan Squad". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  9. ^ "Asian Test Championships: Committee to suggest playing conditions". ESPNcricinfo. 28 December 1998. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  10. ^ a b c "Asian Test Cricket Championship, February - March 1999: Points Table". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  11. ^ "Points at stake in the Asian Test Championship". ESPNcricinfo. 11 February 1999. Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.