Oddsworth

An Oddsworth Opinion

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  1. Jacques Kallis, Sachin Tendulkar and the price of a double shift

    Kallis bowled 1,646 Test overs to Tendulkar's 217 from the early 2000s on, and still finished those years with the higher batting average.

  2. What Angkrish Raghuvanshi's first hundred says about Mumbai's top order

    Mumbai's new opener has never made a T20 hundred, and in the IPL he rates as almost exactly average. Then he batted long enough to make 114 in the Ranji Trophy.

  3. How did Pakistan win with Haris Rauf as Shadab Khan's last partner?

    Pakistan's leg-spinner made his first ODI hundred from number eight, beside a partner who averages under eight with the bat.

    The Times of IndiaShadab, Rauf pull off miracle with record 89-run stand for last wicket as PAK stun ENG

  1. What Babar Azam's slow thirties reveal about his missing ODI hundreds

    The century drought is real, yet Babar still outscores most top-order batters. Something else has gone from his one-day game, and it is costing him three figures.

  2. Where our ratings put Shai Hope, the hipster's choice

    An ODI average past 50 and 21 hundreds build the cult case for Hope. Our ratings place him 16th of 118 in the format.

    WisdenShai Hope, the hipster’s choice as the world’s best all-format batter

  1. India's new middle order and the run chases it never got to bat in

    Tilak Varma and Naman Dhir are being hailed as heirs to Suresh Raina. India's last two big ODI chases never needed them.

  2. What Arshdeep Singh's record year for India is really counting

    Arshdeep Singh now has more T20I wickets in a calendar year than any Indian bowler. The runs he gave away to get them tell a quieter story.

  3. What Travis Head's own scores say about Australia's partnership problem

    Australia's best batter of the last two years is also the clearest example of the one-man-at-a-time habit he wants his side to break.

    ESPNcricinfoTravis Head hopes under-fire Australia find 'that collective batting day'

  1. Is a target of 198 enough to make India sweat against Zimbabwe?

    Zimbabwe have lost nine of their last ten ODIs, yet India arrive at this chase carrying three straight defeats of their own.

  2. Can Rashid Khan and Ibrahim Zadran sink Zimbabwe again?

    Atal, Zadran and Rashid ran through Zimbabwe in the league stage. The long records of Zadran and Rashid tell two very different stories about a repeat.

  3. The Sri Lanka chase that left Harry Brook's 202 without a curtain call

    Brook made the highest score of his ODI career and lost. The side that beat him had been bowled out for 132 by England a month earlier.

    CricTrackerSri Lanka complete second-highest chase in ODI history to upstage record-breaking Brook in tri-series

  1. Can Sri Lanka keep the lights on after chasing 430?

    A chase of 430 has fans hailing history. Sri Lanka's results before it tell a far less flattering story about the side that pulled it off.

  2. What Sanju Samson's 67 at Hagley Oval says about his feast-or-famine run

    A match-winning knock in a record chase, from a batter whose last ten India innings swung between fifties and single figures.

  3. How much is Temba Bavuma's 179 worth to South Africa?

    At Kingsmead the captain made 3 and 1. Now he has put South Africa in charge, and the draw is the opponent they should fear.

    ESPNcricinfo'We obviously want to go for the win' - Bavuma's 179 gives South Africa a chance to dream

  1. Marnus Labuschagne's golden years and the gap in the cordon

    Marnus Labuschagne's critics say his best years were luck. Every edge and miss behind his runs from 2019 to 2022 puts that charge to the test.

  2. Joe Root, the Dukes ball and the medium-pacers who keep hitting his pad

    Everyone has been lbw more often this English summer. Root has been lbw far more often again, and mostly against bowlers under 135 kph.

  3. What lifted Pakistan above Australia in the ODI rankings?

    The usual reading says a points-table quirk put Pakistan past Australia. Pakistan's results this year and Australia's bad run say otherwise.

  4. What Mohammed Shami's last ten Tests say about his claim to be at his peak

    Shami says he's fit, in rhythm and as good as ever. His Test scorecards show the wickets kept coming, but some of them cost a lot of runs.

    ESPNcricinfoShami: 'I'm still at my peak, why would I give up hope of playing for India?'

  5. How long can Australia keep waiting on Marnus Labuschagne?

    Two years of Test cricket without a hundred, and the world's top-rated side keeps picking Marnus Labuschagne at the top of the order.

  1. Is Jack Leach still the spinner England need in Bangladesh?

    England have left a spinner with 142 Test wickets off their contract list, and his record in long, slow Tests is a reason to think again.

  2. What the second new ball hides about Scott Boland

    His latest five-for is being put down to a fresh ball. Two years of Test wickets point to a bowler who hardly needs one.

  3. Salman Ali Agha's ODI feasts, and the lean days in between

    A Pakistan record at No. 5 puts him on a list with Dhoni and Yuvraj. His hundreds are big. The innings between them are much harder to read.

    The Times of IndiaSalman Ali Agha joins elite list featuring Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh with record ODI feat

  1. The trouble with calling New Zealand v India a T20 rivalry

    The ICC table has the sides two places apart. Our ratings have a gap wide enough to make all five matches look much the same.

  2. Dhir and the gap Bumrah has left in India's T20 puzzle

    India made 249 against West Indies and still lost. The Hindu thinks Dhir could be the man to stop that happening again.

    The HinduIs fast-rising all-rounder Dhir the missing piece in India’s T20 puzzle?

  1. Is the short ball really what stands between Pakistan and a World Cup in South Africa?

    Everyone has settled on bounce as Pakistan's weakness. Our ratings suggest the trouble runs deeper than any one length.

  2. Is Matt Renshaw's Durban 190 the start of something at No. 5?

    One Test turned a stop-start career into a captain's backing. Matt Renshaw's record before Kingsmead tells a quieter story.

    SportstarSA vs AUS, 2nd Test: Renshaw likely to stay at No. 5 after Durban Test heroics, says Cummins

  3. Is a home tri-series against Sri Lanka the place to blood Pakistan's next seamer?

    Pakistan keep winning at home and keep naming the same seamers, and our ratings suggest that is exactly why the attack needed testing this week.

  1. Is running between the wickets really what holds Bangladesh back?

    A run-out is the one dismissal a fan can referee from the sofa; the figure that takes in everything else is bleaker for Bangladesh than the jibe.

  2. Does Josh Hazlewood actually need reverse swing in Gqeberha?

    Australia's quicks credit Durban's abrasive square for Hazlewood's eight wickets, yet he has been taking big hauls for a year and a half against anyone.

    ESPNcricinfoHazlewood backs reverse swing to remain a key factor in Gqeberha

  1. Who has been bowling to Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana?

    India's openers have just had the fastest 15 innings of their careers, in a September that included Hong Kong and Japan and one bad day against Pakistan.

    The HinduWhat 107 innings reveal about the Smriti-Shafali opening pair | Data

  1. The Vaibhav debate has missed where India are losing matches

    Two coaches, two public lines on one young batter, and a series in which India have twice scored enough to win and lost anyway.

  2. Does Abhishek Sharma need the powerplay to find his tempo?

    The kind reading of Abhishek Sharma's 29 from 24 balls in Hyderabad rests on one innings, and his record says that evening was the odd one out.

  3. Babar Azam's three-hundred streaks hide a two-year drought

    Twice he made hundreds in three straight ODI innings; over the last two years he has reached three figures once in 26 attempts.

  4. What is the league circuit actually buying in Hassan Nawaz?

    Contracts in four leagues, a PSL MVP award and an innings against India everyone remembers. His rating tells a quieter story.

  5. Mitchell Starc skipped the IPL for a decade, and the fast bowler's fade still hasn't come

    Fast bowlers are meant to fade fifteen seasons in, yet Starc's last two years are his best, and the theory attached to them is the tournament he missed.

  6. Are West Indies really missing Ackeem Auguste in India?

    West Indies have levelled the series without him, and Saturday's decider at the Chinnaswamy asks whether India's seven-year home record can take one more blow.

  7. Which of Herschelle Gibbs' three changes would actually help South Africa?

    Gibbs wants one batter dropped and another moved down the order. Our ratings have the one he wants to keep rated lower.

    CricTrackerHerschelle Gibbs calls for major shake-ups in South Africa's line-up ahead of 2nd Test against Australia

  1. Most underrated cricketer of all time: five Test greats nobody looks up

    Virat Kohli sits four places above him on our all-time Test batting ratings, yet hardly anyone looks him up. Four more Test greats share his fate.

  2. What one heavy defeat at Kingsmead says about South Africa's middle order

    Conrad wants more from his middle order, but a side that had been winning for a year should think twice before rebuilding it on one Test.

    ESPNcricinfoSA's middle order in a muddle and Conrad wants them to 'get bloody better'

  3. Sanju Samson's T20 batting has shifted into a much faster gear

    An 82 off 41 balls against West Indies showed the new tempo. Seven single-figure scores in ten innings for India show what it costs.

  4. Have India really run out of ideas against Shai Hope?

    A hundred off 45 balls made Shai Hope look unstoppable against India. Two days later he made five, and India won.

  5. What Karun Nair's Test ledger says about those 9,537 first-class runs

    A first-class average a shade under 50 is the easy half of the Karun Nair story. The ten Tests, the triple hundred and the 2025 recall are the hard half.

  1. What Abu Dhabi's dead pitch did to Bangladesh's all-or-nothing Test cricket

    Afghanistan's final-hour stand looks heroic. Bangladesh's recent record suggests the pitch may deserve most of the credit.

  2. The Caribbean hundreds behind Maaz Sadaqat's month of T20 runs

    Sunday's 96 caps a dazzling month for Pakistan's opener, yet his two hundreds came in Jamaica and his longer record says more than either.

    Wisden451 runs & nearly a third hundred within a month: Pakistan sensation’s T20 form is hard to ignore

  1. How much of India's T20 bowling attack is really Jasprit Bumrah?

    West Indies chased down 252 in 18.3 overs with Jasprit Bumrah missing from India's attack. How much of that chase belongs to his absence?

    The Times of IndiaOne Bumrah, two very different Indias: Numbers expose bowling dependence

  2. Where Travis Head's away record says he should bat

    Allan Border says Head's runs at the top came against so-so attacks and he belongs back at No. 5. Durban was the first proper look at whether that holds.

  1. The slower ball India has told Mayank Yadav to forget

    Gambhir blames the slower ball. Two years of figures suggest the bill was running long before Mayank Yadav tried to be clever.

    SportstarKeep it simple, keep it fast: Gambhir’s mantra to pacer Mayank Yadav

  2. The number that argues for Jake Weatherald's Test recall

    South Australia have rolled Victoria by an innings with two titles already banked, and the opener they are backing carries a bigger claim than the scoreboard.

    ESPNcricinfoWeatherald backed to return as South Australia thump Victoria

  3. The two low scores behind Sahibzada Farhan's captaincy debut

    An 89 on the first day with the armband looked like a transformation. The two years before it tell a quieter story.

    The Times of IndiaMatch-winner on captaincy debut! Farhan leads Pak to stunning chase vs Sri Lanka

  1. The thin line between an experimental side and a transitional one

    Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by five runs in February. The labels their boards have chosen since would have you believe the gap between them is far wider than that.

    ESPNcricinfoExperimental Pakistan host transitional Sri Lanka in rare home T20Is this season

  2. India A keep failing the same test of pace and bounce

    Twice India A have been beaten by pace and bounce, and the left-arm quick named among the winners arrived with a modest senior record.

    ESPNcricinfoKonstas, Philippe and Johnson secure 2-0 lead for Australia A

  3. The number behind Abhishek Sharma's race to 2,000

    He could take a milestone off Suryakumar Yadav in the second T20I, and the figure that says most about him is one no milestone measures.

    The Times of IndiaAbhishek Sharma on the cusp of breaking Suryakumar Yadav’s unique T20I record

  4. Australia's revolving opening pair has met the first series that can expose it

    Two years of churn at the top of the order, a side still ranked first in the world, and a series in South Africa where our forecasts make them second favourites.

  1. The innings Australia are asking Nic Maddinson to live on

    A one-day hundred has brought fresh attention, but his last Shield season asks a harder question.

  2. How much can a fine Axar Patel spell prove?

    The Sri Lanka spell makes a compelling case for Patel, but England saw a very different four overs.

  3. The extra demand behind Tilak Varma’s finishing tempo

    His scoring rate has risen lower down the order, but the job asks him to make each late arrival count.

    Hindustan TimesTilak Varma steps out of his comfort zone to fill India’s finisher void

  4. South Africa’s two-spinner plan begins with Nortje

    Bavuma has picked for a turning wicket, but Rabada’s absence gives the first pace spell particular weight.

    SportstarSouth Africa playing XI for first Australia Test: No Rabada; Nortje, Bedingham return

  5. The number from Tuesday that frames West Indies' five-match problem

    West Indies sit fourth in our T20 ratings, yet our call for Friday gives them one chance in five. The way Tuesday's chase went explains why.

    ESPNcricinfoCan West Indies find a way to halt India's home juggernaut?

  6. The number that argues with Maharaj's top billing

    Durban has Maharaj down as the spinner to fear. Our Test bowling ratings have South Africa's two spinners the other way round.

  1. How much can a selector read into Baloda's 14 wickets?

    A record Youth Test haul finished the series in a hurry, and left the hardest question about the bowler unanswered.

    SportstarTanmay Baloda’s record 14-wicket haul powers India U-19 to 2-0 series sweep over Australia

  2. What lies behind Naman Dhir’s debut haul?

    Three wickets brought his bowling to the fore, though the ball has spent most of his T20 career in the bag.

    SportstarIND vs WI, 1st T20I: Naman Dhir makes his sudden chance count with street-smart bowling display

  3. A hundred for Australia A gets heard only when the Test side starts losing

    His entire Test record was made against India, and now the hundred has come against India A: the selectors have two readings of the same man to choose from.

    Wisden123 and a wicket: Sidelined Australia batter sends reminder to selectors as Australia A crush India A

  1. Naman Dhir and the 52 balls behind a bowling reputation

    India's newest part-time option is being talked up as a bowler, yet across his T20 career the ball has rarely been put in his hand.

  2. What England are getting for Shoaib Bashir's retainer

    England's contracted spinner bowled in one Test in a year, and his record across the last two makes the arrangement harder still to explain.

  3. What the tale of the tape says about Samson and Sooryavanshi

    One of these two has five T20 hundreds in two years and a best of 27 in his last five innings for India. Both belong to Sanju Samson.

    The Times of IndiaSooryavanshi or Samson? India face selection dilemma

  4. What does Harmanpreet Kaur leave behind the captain’s chair?

    The World Cup fixes her place in India’s history, while the matches around it make the handover more complicated.

    SportstarHarmanpreet Kaur resigns as India women’s cricket team captain: India’s record under Harmanpreet in all formats

  5. The batter Shreyas Iyer is really being measured against

    A report has India's T20I captain averaging 25.75 across his last 10 innings. The batter making that look like a crisis shares his name.

    Hindustan TimesIyer vs Iyer: Why India’s T20I captain is struggling to match the Punjab Kings maverick who dominated middle overs

  1. India’s ODI recall debate is turning to experience

    West Indies exposed India’s attack, but Vihari’s two proposed fixes offer different answers to the same problem.

    CricTrackerHanuma Vihari urges India to recall Bhuvneshwar and Shami after bowling collapse vs West Indies

  2. Where Australia really stand a year before the World Cup

    Wisden asks whether Australia belong at fourth a year out from the World Cup. Their results since June suggest a side living on credit.

    WisdenAustralia at fourth place? Power Ranking the top ten teams a year before the 2027 World Cup

  3. Can Bangladesh make Darwin more than a moment?

    Fourth in the World Test Championship, Bangladesh have reason to dream and recent defeats that refuse to fit the story.

    DawnBangladesh Pacer Hasan says Test cricket momentum turning for the Tigers

  4. What one awkward innings can do to an opening race

    Gaikwad's innings looked costly in defeat, yet his recent ODI form makes the opening debate harder to settle.

  1. The Irani Cup case for Mukesh Kumar

    His Test average strengthens the case, but Akash Deep has had more chances to make his.

  2. How much of Marnus Labuschagne's hold on No. 3 rests on the last two years?

    Australia seem settled on their No. 3 for Durban. His recent returns sit well below what a typical top-seven Test batter has managed.

  3. How long can India's batting keep covering for their bowling?

    India chased 405 with overs to spare against West Indies, then failed to defend 351 three days later. Both halves of the story are in that one series.

  4. What Mohammed Siraj has done with the few ODIs India have given him

    The complaint is that India have ignored a proven wicket-taker before a World Cup. His last seven matches make the selectors' side of it harder to dismiss.

    Hindustan TimesLeft in the dark: Mohammed Siraj’s baffling treatment raises alarming questions over India’s World Cup planning

  5. What does Neil Brand's 152 against Australia say about his Test future?

    A former South Africa captain has just made more runs in one innings against Australia's Test attack than in his whole Test career.

    Wisden152 in 174: Former South Africa captain dominates full-strength Australian Test attack in tour game

  6. What made Shai Hope's record chase so commanding?

    An unbeaten hundred settled the pursuit, but the time Hope spent at the crease tells the richer story.

    ESPNcricinfoHope 162* beats Rahul 129* as West Indies pull off record chase

  7. The number behind Lhuan-dre Pretorius’s 188

    The biggest T20 innings has put a young opener in the spotlight, but another young batter complicates the case for calling him the best.

  8. How much credit has Shivam Dube's batting actually earned?

    His last two years beat the standard for top-seven batters by a distance, yet one part of his record still holds him back.

  1. How much has Babar Azam really slipped?

    A duck ended a Peshawar Zalmi run containing two hundreds, yet the longer trend still gives his critics something to work with.

  2. What does Rehan Ahmed's Test record say about Mason Crane's call-up?

    An expensive spell in India makes England's choice understandable, but Ahmed's wicket-taking complicates the verdict.

  3. How much does Hardik Pandya change India's ODI chances?

    Sourav Ganguly calls Pandya essential to India's World Cup balance, but his two skills make different cases for that claim.

    CricTrackerHardik Pandya is very important to India's balance in the World Cup, says Sourav Ganguly

  4. How far does India’s run against Pakistan reach?

    Six straight wins make India favourites for gold, but their recent results leave room for a contest.

    ESPNcricinfoAsian Games final: India favourites to strike gold against Pakistan

  5. How far outside the ordinary is four wickets for 706 runs?

    West Indies made 405 batting first and still lost by eight wickets. The numbers say the gap was already wide before this series began.

    ESPNcricinfoCan West Indies quell India's batting might in New Chandigarh's ODI debut?

  6. Is a dead rubber the right place to blood Anshul Kamboj?

    West Indies made 405 and still lost by eight wickets. That tells you more about who should bowl on Saturday than any List A column does.

  7. Was keeping Yastika Bhatia really the obvious call?

    Two fifties since May, and a rating near the foot of our top 50 women's T20 batters: the easy retention has a question attached.

  1. The ILT20 auction's winners and losers

    MI Emirates broke the league's record fee and spent the most. The side our forecast likes best spent the least.

  2. Where did Australia's ODI tour really go wrong?

    A failed chase at Kingsmead makes the batting an easy target, but the next match complicates that verdict.

  3. How far does Rohit Sharma’s top-three case go?

    Rohit is still matching his career standards, but India’s top three demands more than present dominance.

  4. The comparison behind New Zealand’s Zimbabwe sweep

    The margins were enormous, but New Zealand’s place among the leading Test sides needs a tougher comparison.

    WisdenZimbabwe v New Zealand in 2025: New Zealand break nine-month Test fast with feast

  5. What does Umran Malik's pace promise actually buy?

    The speed claim groups Umran Malik, Mayank Yadav and Ashok Sharma together. Malik's wicket-taking makes the more interesting argument.

    CricTracker3 Indian pacers who can consistently bowl at 150+ kmph

  6. What does West Indies’ biggest ODI total really change?

    Three centuries gave West Indies a new batting landmark, yet India’s response makes the next step harder to judge.

    CricTrackerWest Indies post highest-ever ODI total of 405/7 against India in Guwahati

  1. Babar Azam, 404 names and three price brackets at the ILT20 auction

    Babar Azam is the biggest name at Thursday's ILT20 auction in Dubai. Our ratings pick out the players who stand out in the $80,000, $40,000 and $10,000 brackets, and one of the best sits in the middle.

  2. How much of Pakistan's T20 shake-up do the numbers justify?

    Farhan has the stronger batting claim, but Rauf's wickets make his exclusion a harder decision to defend.

    CricTrackerReports: Major shake-up hits Pakistan T20 squad ahead of Sri Lanka series

  3. How far does Sam Harper's Australia case stretch?

    An unbeaten century commands attention, but Harper's recent scoring and his BBL standing make different demands on selectors.

    SportstarAfter Big Bash and Sheffield exploits, Sam Harper aims to stake claim for Australia

  4. How far does Campbell's fifty take the Gayle comparison?

    Campbell has taken Gayle's speed record against India; turning that pace into sustained pressure is a bigger assignment.

    CricTrackerJohn Campbell breaks Chris Gayle's record, smashes fastest fifty for West Indies vs India in ODIs

  5. What separates Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja?

    India have time to settle their World Cup plans, but the contest already has a leader in both disciplines.

  1. How far can Cummins shift the balance against South Africa?

    South Africa have already shown they can absorb a major Cummins performance and still beat Australia.

  2. What sits behind Shree Charani's record peak?

    A historic individual rating sits alongside an India side whose biggest wins tell only part of the story.

    ESPNcricinfoShree Charani stays No. 1 T20I bowler, breaks all-time record for rating points

  3. The hurdle in the case for releasing Grace Harris

    A frustrating run of innings makes the decision tempting, but Harris sets a demanding standard for any replacement.

  4. What sits behind Abhishek Sharma’s extraordinary strike rate?

    The pace deserves the attention. The cheap dismissals deserve a more careful verdict.

    The Times of IndiaAbhishek's 30-ball ton hid the number that should really worry T20 bowlers

  5. The standard behind Kohli's 55th ODI hundred

    The milestones draw the attention, while Kohli's recent scoring makes a more immediate demand on India.

    The Times of IndiaKohli's record-breaking night: 15,000 ODI runs, 55th century and more

  1. How far does Kohli’s ODI acceleration go?

    His latest hundred makes the aggression argument compelling; calling it unprecedented demands a tougher comparison.

  2. Virat Kohli at 37: a new batter or a purple patch?

    Nine sixes, a day after he named his last World Cup. Kohli's ODI batting has never looked like this.

    Al JazeeraVirat Kohli passes 15,000 ODI runs as India beat West Indies

  3. Is Harry Brook already better than Kevin Pietersen?

    Seventy innings into both careers, the record has something to say to Ben Stokes and to Harsha Bhogle.

    The NationalStokes believes Pietersen couldn’t ‘come close’ to Harry Brook’s talent … but KP will always have 2005 Ashes

  4. What 15 defeats in 20 Tests hide about Pakistan

    A captain dropped, coaches sacked and 15 defeats in 20 Tests. Is Pakistan's Test side really that bad?

  5. What makes Maharaj such a difficult problem for Australia?

    The destructive spells demand attention, but Australia's problem extends beyond South Africa's left-arm spinner.

    cricket.com.auHow Maharaj has emerged as Australia's biggest threat

  6. What do Bavuma and Miller’s hundreds tell us about South Africa?

    The centuries share a billing, but their career benchmarks give them very different meanings.

    Hindustan TimesTemba Bavuma, David Miller tons power South Africa past Australia to seal sixth straight ODI series win

  7. What does Kohli’s quicker route to 15,000 tell us about Tendulkar?

    The milestone invites a historical verdict, while Kohli’s recent batting makes a more immediate demand.

    Hindustan TimesVirat Kohli vs Sachin Tendulkar after 15000 ODI runs: Why the gap between them is more complex than it looks

  1. What does Tom Banton's maiden ODI century promise England?

    Banton's early scoring rate already cleared a useful benchmark. His century raises the harder question of how often he can make that tempo count.

    Hindustan TimesTom Banton's maiden ton powers England to record Sri Lanka rout as hosts seal ODI series with crushing 223-run win

  2. Does Kuldeep Yadav's ODI record demand an automatic place?

    The West Indies spell strengthens his case, but the gap between his career record and recent returns deserves attention.

    Hindustan TimesToo good to ignore, too easy to drop: Kuldeep Yadav's West Indies spell exposes India's recurring selection paradox

  3. How far does South Africa's hold over Australia really reach?

    The rivalry looks increasingly lopsided, and the familiar international pecking order offers Australia little comfort.

    SportstarMiller, Bavuma bash Australia as South Africa win ODI series

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