Numbers reveal more than they hide; or do numbers hide more than what they reveal? Whatever maybe the case, sports is surrounded by numbers - numbers govern sports. In cricket, the team with the maximum numbers (read as runs here) wins and in golf, the person with the minimum number (read as shots here) is declared the winner.
So, here is a look at the 'numbers game' of year - some numbers that defined sporting glories of 2012 and some numbers that were as useless as a cricket bat in Mohammed Ashraful's hand.
Cricket
4- Australia captain Michael Clarke became the first batsman to score four double centuries in a calendar year. Michael Clarke scored 259 not out and 230 against South Africa in November - which followed 329 not out and 210 against India in January.
69- Australia's David Warner rewrote the record books by scoring the fastest century by a Test opener in his 69-ball ton against India in Perth.
10- Abul Hasan of Bangladesh scored a century on debut batting at number 10, thus becoming the first player to achieve the feat in more than 100 years against West Indies in November.
73.28- Batting average of Virat Kohli in ODIs in 2012. He scored 1026 in 16 matches and finishes 2012 as the third hihest reun-getter in one-day internationals. Top two are Sri Lankans Kumar Sangakkara (1184) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (1119) but they both played 31 matches.
463 - 18,426 - 200* - 49 - 96 - The biggest numbers in ODIs become static in 2012. The numbers belong to Sachin Tendulkar who retired from one-day internationals on 23rd December, 2012. 463 matches - highest number of matches played by a player in ODIs, 18, 426 runs - highest number of runs scored in ODIs, 200 not out - first player to reach 200 in ODIs, 49 - maximum number of centuries in ODIs, 96 - maximum number of half centuries in ODIs.
Olympics
962- Total number of medals won at the 2012 London Olympics
86- Number of records broken at the London Summer Olympics. At the Beijing Olympics 175 records were broken.
6- Six medallists for India at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Six is the maximum number of medals won by India in any edition of the quadrennial event.
22- Number of medals won by Michael Phelps, including 18 gold, making him the most decorated Olympian ever.
46 - Number of Gold medals won by USA to top the medal tally with 104 medals in total. At the being Olympics.
9.63 sec- Usain Bolt became the first man to defend an Olympic sprint title since Carl Lewis in 1988 winning good at London with an incredible timing of 9.63 seconds.
Football
91- Number of goals scored by Argentine Lionel Messi this year surpassing Gerd Muller's record of 85 goals set in 1972 - to create a new benchmark which includes goals for club and country.
49 - Number of Serie A games the defending champions Juventus went without a loss starting from May 15, 2011 to November 3, 2012. Title rivals Inter Milan ended the streak defeating the Bianconeris 3-1. Juventus equalled the streak of the Arsenal team, The Invincibles, of 2003.
100- Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas has won 100 of his 137 international matches, becoming the first player to reach a century of international wins. He also holds the world record with 79 clean sheets.
4-0- Spain successfully defended their Euro title to add to their World Cup trophy, drawing comparisons with the legendary Pele's invincible Brazil. They beat Italy 4-0 in the final on July 1, which was the biggest margin of victory in a Euro final ever.
1- For the first time ever Chelsea lifted the UEFA Champions League beating Bayern Munich on May 19 in Munich, Germany. Also, Manchester City won the English Premier League for the first time since its inception in 1992. Overall, City have won the title three times, in 1967-68, 1936-37 and 2012.
Tennis
7-The number 7 ruled the roost in Tennis in the 2012. At the French Open 2012 Spanish Matador Rafael Nadal stood at the top biting the La Coupe des the The Musketeers` Trophy for a record 7th time in the Open era beating Novak Djokovic of Serbia. Seven was also the most number of titles won by any male player this year - David Ferrer won three clay courts titles, one grass and three hard court tournaments. Also, Roger Federer won The Championships at Wimbledon, for a record equalling 7th time beating Britain's Andy Murray.
10- Russia's Maria Sharapova won the French Open to become just the 10th woman to complete her collection of grand slam trophies.
76- Andy Murray won the first Grand Slam title of his career and in doing so become the first British man to lay claim an Open title since 1936. 76 years ago, it was Fred Perry, who had won the US Championships, the Open's predecessor.
4- The first time since 2003, the men's singles grand slam - four majors - was won by four different players. Australian Open - Novak Djokovic, French Open - Rafael Nadal, Wimbledon - Roger Federer and US Open.
16- The longest winning streak of 2012 compiled by Roger Federer from 13th February to 27th March. In 2011, the streak was an incredible 41 matches by Novak Djokovic and in 2010 Rafael Nadal had won 24 matches in a row.
Formula One
3 - Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull did it yet again, scoring their third consecutive drivers' and constructors' world titles, but it was far from a foregone conclusion for much of the year.
23,500- The total numbers of tyres used in 2012 was 23,500 (21,400 dry tyres and 2,100 wet tyres), all of which were then recycled.
346 kmph- Highest top speed registered during the F1 2012 season was set by Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus at the Italian GP.
109- Points won by Sahara Force India this year as compared to their previous season's 69. Though, Force India dropped to seventh this time in the points tally.
5- Races won by 2012 champion Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel to clinch the title. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won four followed by three wins by McLaren's Jenson Button and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso.
Other Sports
7 - Ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani notched up his 7th World Billiards Championship title after comprehensively beating defending champion Mike Russell in the final in Leeds, England, on October 29.
$ 8,047,952.- Rory Mcllory's total earning this year. The Irish topped the PGA Tour Money List for 2012 earning USD 8,047,952 entering 16 events.
2- Maimi Heats won their 2nd ever National Basketball Association Finals beating Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder, 4-1. Miami's LeBron James was named the Finals MVP.
10-0-0.- Russia won all their matches in the 2012 IIHF World Championship en route to their 4th title. They became the first team since the Soviet Union in the 1989 World Championships to have and undefeated record at the championships.
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