Citation

Brooks R, Bussière LF, Jennions MD, Hunt J. Proc. Biol. Sci. 2004; 271(Suppl 3): S64-6.

Affiliation

School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia. rob.brooks@unsw.edu.au

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Royal Society of London)

DOI

10.1098/rsbl.2003.0100

PMID

15101421

PMCID

PMC1809987

Abstract

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.

Language: en