Also on ESPNcricinfo.
Courtney Kruger made his ODI debut in 2008 against Pakistan. For quite some time, doctors were uncertain whether or not he would so much as survive to see 2008. Less than a year earlier, he was travelling back from the ACC Twenty20 when he complained of vicious headaches. Once he had found that pain relief did not so much as touch the problem, he sought medical advice.
Of course, he wasn't expecting that medical advice to find an abscess in his brain. As numerous options were tried to relieve the pressure, Kruger's condition deteriorated. In the end, the doctors had to choose between letting him die, or performing life-threatening surgery: their, and Kruger's, last hope was to remove half of Kruger's skull to relieve the pressure for as long as it took. Three bedridden months later, they put it back. It was three more before he could get back to training. His chances of reclaiming his place in the national side were thought to be negligible, let alone his chances of doing so in time for the Asia Cup. Forget the scores of nought and three, Courtney Kruger's mere presence in Karachi was far more of an achievement than Suresh Raina's century.
The most important story from this tour took place off the field. I'm not talking about Andy Flower's ousting, I'm talking about Stuart Broad and Matt Prior saving the a man's life in Sydney. Lack of runs be damned, Prior's Ashes tour was a success.
And so was Courtney Kruger's One Day International debut. Sometimes, statistics really do only tell the tiniest, least important part of a story.