What will you get when you pit two high-flyers, who are not-so-strong technically and whose only desire is to entertain the people watching them, against each other, inside a ring? For starters, value for money. Is there even the slightest chance of you, the viewer, leaving the arena disappointed? Absolutely not. During the time they featured in international cricket, Yusuf Pathan and Corey Anderson were just that - two adrenaline junkies who knew no bounds when it came to entertainment and whose sole purpose was to make their team win and to make the audience go home happy. We know that they seldom disappointed with the bat in hand - at least in terms of entertainment - but would they be able to put on a show if they were pit against each other in a fight? Well, let’s find out. 

Pathan - 5   Anderson - 7

Corey Anderson is clearly not in the best of shapes, is rusty, and it shows. The Kiwi fails to back-up his first-round heroics and his stunts, instead, come off as low-key embarrassing as Yusuf’s ‘okayish’ away average of 22.82 ends up destroying Anderson’s 15.90. 

Pathan - 6  Anderson - 4

BOOOOM! The fight has intensified! It has taken three rounds for the players to find their feet, but boy they mean business!  Corey comes up with a right hook, but Yusuf responds with a vicious jab and a monstrous uppercut to make it two in a row. The right-hander’s average at home of 38.33 is conveniently superior to the southpaw’s 36.98. 

Pathan - 8  Anderson - 7

OH COREY IS DIGGING HIS OWN GRAVE!  The Kiwi corners Yusuf and has him where he wants, but flabbergastingly misses his opponent and ends up punching the TURNBUCKLE! Would you believe it? 14.00 is all he has to show for, and he is beaten by Yusuf, who, with a neutral average of 19.25, did not have to even move to win the round. Ah well!

Pathan - 6  Anderson - 4

Well, what happened there? A bit of overconfidence from the Baroda man? He expects the Kiwi to make the same mistake he made in the last round but BOOOOOM, Anderson connects and lands one right on Pathan’s face, making his face go red - literally. Corey is the man for the big stage as his average of 25.36 in ICC tournaments triumphs Pathan’s miserable 13.16.

Pathan - 4  Anderson - 7

THIS IS THE ROUND WE’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR. THIS IS IT! The two players FINALLY get into their comfort zone and BOOM, they put on an instant show. The duo exchange punches back and forth, clean, brutal hits, but BANG, Pathan rocks Anderson with a right hook to momentarily leave the Kiwi grounded. He bulldozes to victory in this round thanks to his SR of 113.6, which is five better than Anderson’s 108.72. 

Pathan - 10  Anderson - 9

Sport is all about capitalizing on starts and openings and Pathan seems to have taken a keen interest in doing so. With his conversion rate of 40%, he proves that he is the man to rely on to go big, as he downs Anderson, who has a 20% number next to his name, with a clean jab.

Pathan - 10  Anderson - 9

Is it possible to have a ‘perfect’ round where you do EVERYTHING right and give your opponent absolutely no chance? HELL YEAH, IT IS!  Look no farther than Corey Anderson to realize that. Pathan throws EVERYTHING he has, to make it three rounds in a row, but Corey activates ‘God mode’, evades all punches and comes up with a brutal rear uppercut to rock the Indian. Yes, New Zealand have won EVERY SINGLE TIME Corey Anderson has scored a fifty!

Pathan - 9  Anderson - 10

Curtis Michael Hennig, we are extremely sorry. ‘Mr. Perfect’ title does not belong to you anymore. ‘Why just restrict them to fifties?’ says Anderson, en route to winning his SECOND CONSECUTIVE PERFECT ROUND. Yusuf is baffled and clueless out there, talking to his manager Irfan, who doesn’t seem to have a clue either. And yes, it’s not just the fifties; every time Corey Anderson has scored a ton, the Kiwis have won. 

Pathan - 9  Anderson - 10

HOLY MOLY!  How often have we seen this in Friday Fights’ history? It’s a tied round, folks! And it has come in the most remarkable way possible. Both men go for viscous jabs, connect and fall to the ground. But remarkably, both men do kip-ups to get to their feet right before the ref rings the bell and thus the round has been adjudged a tie. Two fifties each in successful chases, then! 

Pathan - 10  Anderson - 10

INCREDIBLE! INCREDIBLE SCENES OUT HERE!  Just as the round is headed for a tie, Yusuf pulls a rabbit out of the hat and catches Anderson right on the jaw at the nick of time to STEAL A WIN IN ROUND 11!  His five fifty-plus scores with a strike rate more than 120 is one better than Anderson’s four. Talk about a close fight! Phew! 

Pathan - 10  Anderson - 9

CARNAGE! ABSOLUTE CARNAGE! These two men hold the reputation for being two of the biggest six-hitters in the game’s history and boy are they not doing justice to the tag with their showing in this round. Anderson comes up with a hook/jab combination and Pathan responds with a right cross but BOOOOOOM, it’s the Kiwi who exits the round victorious thanks to a BRUTAL lead hook the body!  

Pathan - 9  Anderson - 10

With 96 points each to their name, Yusuf Pathan and Corey Anderson remain inseparable after 12 rounds, so there we have it - the second tied bout in Friday Fights’ history!

FINAL SCORE:  YUSUF PATHAN 96-96 COREY ANDERSON

Well, that was SOME FIGHT! Of course, it was not the prettiest in terms of grace and technicality, but boy it provided some crazy levels of entertainment! ADRENALINE OVERLOAD, I should say! For now, it remains a tie but who knows, we might just pit these two men against each other once again in the future to see if the outcome differs. A best of three, perhaps|? We’ll see. For now, though, it’s adios from the SC Team. We shall be back with yet another enthralling contest next week! Take care and stay safe!