Hayden brands subcontinental batsmen as selfish

Matthew Hayden feels that subcontinental teams suffer as a result of their batsmen hunting down personal landmarks instead of thinking of their team's targets. This, according to Hayden, is in direct contrast to the Australian approach.

Hayden, speaking to Melbourne's Age newspaper, explained: "In one-day cricket, if you get to 70 or 80, you can obviously get a hundred by just batting carefully. But we just don't do that. It affects a batsman's statistics, but we just don't go for those personal marks.

"But countries like India suffer from that. We back ourselves against those countries because they'll get two or three players in the seventiesand beyond, and they'll be eyeing off that personal landmark and it'll cost their side 40 or 50 runs as a result. Pretty much all the subcontinental sides are like that. They really can waste a lot of time, and there's no time to waste. Every ball has got to have a priority stamp on it."

Hayden made this comparison while looking back on his one-day career since cementing his place in the Australian side in the start of the 2002 season. Though his average in one-day internationals (42.08) is nearly 16 below his fantastic average in Tests, Hayden has made important contrubutions in big matches. "In one-day cricket," he continued, "the so-called landmarks like fifties and hundreds are not achieved at the same rate as in Tests, particularly in our side. In one-day cricket, it's partnerships that can really hurt a side and set up the other."

While on the topic of partnerships, Hayden reflected on the 110-run stand that he shared with Adam Gilchrist in the World Cup final at Johannesburg, which set the launching pad for Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn. "Our partnership was 110 in just a bit over 10 overs. The batting awards would have gone to Punter and Marto, and deservedly so, but Gilly and I were really pleased to have built the foundations at real good pace. That helps us a lot more than the statistic of someone getting a hundred."

However, Hayden has squandered several chances against lesser teams like Zimbabwe and Kenya, and that remains his main regret with regard to his one-day career. Australia played four games in the World Cup against lower-ranked teams but Hayden managed just one half-century. He intends to make up for that in the forthcoming ICC Champions Trophy.