Sinister strategies succeed at the cricket World Cup

被引:62
作者
Brooks, R [1 ]
Bussière, LF
Jennions, MD
Hunt, J
机构
[1] Univ New S Wales, Sch Biol Earth & Environm Sci, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
[2] Australian Natl Univ, Sch Bot & Zool, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
关键词
handedness; frequency dependence; polymorphism; sport; cricket;
D O I
10.1098/rsbl.2003.0100
中图分类号
Q [生物科学];
学科分类号
07 [理学]; 0710 [生物学]; 09 [农学];
摘要
Left-handers occur at unexpectedly high frequencies at top levels of many interactive sports. This may occur either because left-handed contestants are innately superior or because they enjoy a negatively frequency-dependent strategic advantage when rare relative to right-handers. We analysed the batting records from the 2003 cricket World Cup and showed that left-handed batsmen were more successful than right-handers, and that the most successful teams had close to 50% left-handed batsmen. We demonstrate that this was because left-handed batsmen have a strategic advantage over bowlers, and that this advantage is greatest over bowlers that are unaccustomed to bowling to left-handers. This provides a clear mechanism for negative frequency-dependent success of left-handed batsmen. Our results may also support a historical role for negative frequency-dependent success in fights and other contests in the maintenance of left-handedness by natural selection.
引用
收藏
页码:S64 / S66
页数:3
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