My Science School

Here, we will sharpen our sports quotient by taking a look at one iconic moment from sporting history. Here's a look at the 2009 edition of the T20 World Cup that was won by Pakistan...

After losing against India in the final hurdle of the 2007 T20 World Cup. Pakistan went on to win the next edition that was held in England in 2009.

The 12 teams in the competition were split into four groups of three, with two teams from each group progressing to the Super 8s.

Pakistan lost their first game against England, but won against the Netherlands to finish second in Group B and qualify for the Super 8s stage. Pakistan were grouped along with Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Ireland in Group F during the Super 8 stage. After losing their first game in this stage against Sri Lanka, Pakistan notched up victories against New Zealand and Ireland to finish second behind Sri Lanka in the group and qualify for the semis. Pakistan defeated South Africa by seven runs in the semi-final to set up a final against Sri Lanka, who defeated West Indies convincingly in their last four clash.

Chasing 139 for victory, Pakistan lost just two wickets, reaching the target with eight balls to spare to become just the second side to lift the T20 World Cup title.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Pakistan were the losing finalist in the inaugural T20 World Cup held in 2007 that was won by India.
• With 13 wickets in the tournament, Pakistan's Umar Gul was the highest wicket taker of the 2009 T20 World Cup.
• Runners-up Sri Lanka had the top-scorer of the tournament. Tillakaratne Dilshan, who notched up 317 runs, was also named the player of the series.

Picture Credit : Google 

Behind the title-winning or record-breaking kick, hit, home run, or throw, we can uncover the mystery of maths in sports.

Sprinter Usain Bolt's world record of completing a 100-mt race in 9.58 seconds; cricketer Don Bradman's batting average of 99.94; and swimmer Michael Phelps' overall tally of 28 Olympic medals are a few statistics that indicate athletic brilliance. However, if you think about it, statistics is just one mathematical topic used in sports. For athletes, timing is everything. From finding the right corner of the goal to identifying the perfect arm angle to create history, most successful sportspeople are secret mathematicians at heart.

Let's look at five interesting aids that maths provides in sports:

1. Geometry of angle and elevation: What did David Beckham do to bend a ball? Well, timing and probably his foot staying at the perfect angle to execute that shot. If you observe his old videos, and understand the angle and the timing of the perfect free kick, then you too can bend it like Beckham!

2. The art of gaining body agility: It is important to preserve balance when you jump, spin, and dive in a pool or flip and spin effectively while performing gymnastics. The athletes must learn to be symmetrically aligned and distribute body mass. Olympics 2020's javelin throw gold medallist Neeraj Chopra's speed of projectile was calculated to be 105.52 kmph. This was a result of years of practice to acquire the posture and position to throw the javelin with the right force in the right direction and at the right angle.

3. Assess the teams and schedule tournaments: Graph theory uses geometrical diagrams to come up with the number of people or teams in a tournament along with the permutation and combination of teams that will compete with each other. For example, the FIFA World Cup based on the number of teams, the match schedule is decided such that all teams play a certain number of matches and each team gets an evenly distributed resting period.

4. Collecting data and keeping scores: You can calculate the trajectory of a running course by taking into consideration the distance of the race, lung capacity, energy intake, propulsion force, and friction. Maths is part of statistical information-from collecting data for analysis and monitoring the ongoing game to measuring the world records, which impact practice, performance, and - results in the sports world.

5. Player selection vis-a-vis budget management: Heard of Moneyball or The Art of Winning an Unfair Game? The book-turned-movie is based on the real-life story of the Oakland Athletics baseball team where the club manager and a baseball executive used equations and statistics to determine the value of players. They calculated wins needed for the postseason and runs required by using the Pythagorean theorem. In 2002, the team won the American League West Division, with a record of 103-59.

It's intriguing how maths can flip numbers and change the course of a game-from applying human intelligence or sports tech to planning tactics and predicting upcoming playoffs. Behind every title-winning or record-breaking kick, hit, home run, or throw, we can uncover the mystery of maths in sports!

Picture Credit : Google 

Here, we will sharpen our sports quotient by taking a look at one iconic moment from sporting history. With the league phase action of IPL 2022 coming to a close today, here's a look at one of the last league matches from 2010 which saw Chennai Super Kings qualify for the last four stage...

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) won the first of their four Indian Premier League (IPL) titles so far in 2010. But at one point in the tournament, it looked like they wouldn't even make it to the knock-out stages of the event.

Having finished runners-up in the inaugural edition in 2008 and semi-finalists in 2009, CSK were in a spot of bother in the third season. In match 54, CSK'S last league stage game, they found themselves in a must-win situation to qualify to the last four.

Playing Kings XI Punjab (KXIP, now Punjab Kings) at the picturesque Dharamsala, CSK won the toss and elected to field first. An unbeaten 88 from Australian Shaun Marsh allowed KXIP to post a strong total of 192 for three in their 20 overs.

After losing both their openers, CSK were 27 for 2 after 4 overs. Suresh Raina's 27-ball 46 and S Badrinath's 36-ball 53 paved the way for captain MS Dhoni, who finished the game in style.

Dhoni hit a 29-ball 54 with five fours and two sixes as CSK reached 195 for 4 in 19.4 overs. The end of the match saw one of the few times Dhoni was visibly ecstatic on the playing field.

DID YOU KNOW?

The 2010 IPL was the last season to have semi-finals and finals. The IPL has had a play-off format since 2011, to give the teams finishing top two in the table an added chance to get to the final.

CSK defeated Deccan Chargers in the semi-final and Mumbai Indians in the final to lift their first IPL title in 2010.

Mumbai Indians' Sachin Tendulkar, who was the top run scorer in the tournament with 618 runs, was also named the player of the series. Deccan Chargers Pragyan Ojha finished with the most wickets, 21.

Picture Credit : Google