A University coach was asked to select teams in three sports: Shooting, Cricket (batsmen only) and “Snakes & Ladder”. The honest and keen observer head boy of the school informed the coach that he had observed 100 students playing the three games - shooting, cricket and “Snakes & Ladder”. In shooting, all students were given 100 chances to hit a target. In cricket, a batsman faced a maximum of 100 balls, provided he DID NOT GET OUT.
In “Snakes & Ladder”, every student could play 100 matches, one each with the other students and one against a computer. In shooting, a player got one point for hitting the target and zero point for missing the target. In cricket, a batsman got one point for hitting the ball and zero point for missing it. In “Snakes & Ladder”, a person got one point for winning the game and zero for losing. To the coach’s utter surprise, the distribution of points across all three games was the same. It was as follows:
| Points Scored | Number of Students |
|---|---|
| 0 - 9 | 1 |
| 10 - 19 | 8 |
| 20 - 29 | 5 |
| 30 - 39 | 15 |
| 40 - 49 | 20 |
| 50 - 59 | 20 |
| 60 - 69 | 13 |
| 70 - 79 | 7 |
| 80 - 89 | 9 |
| 90 - 99 | 2 |
Which of the following options is the best way to select the “Snakes & Ladder” team?
Show Hint
- The coach must select all students between 80 and 99.
- The coach must select both the students between 90 and 99.
- The coach must select at least 6 students between 40 and 59.
- The coach must not select students between 0 and 9.
- The coach can ignore the data in the table and randomly pick any 11 players.
The Correct Option is
Solution and Explanation
The problem revolves around the method of team selection. The coach has multiple criteria suggested, some based on specific score ranges and one suggesting random selection. The aim is to decide the \emph{best way} to select the team.
Step 2: Evaluate Each Option
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Option A: Selecting all students between 80–99 severely limits the pool, excludes capable players outside that band, and might not yield the best team.
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Option B: Selecting only two students between 90–99 ignores the rest of the team composition. Too restrictive.
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Option C: Forcing at least 6 students from 40–59 could weaken the team if that segment is not strong overall.
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Option D: Simply excluding 0–9 does not solve the problem of how to select the best possible 11. It is a negative restriction, not a holistic approach.
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Option E: By ignoring the restrictive rules and selecting players freely/randomly (with balance and flexibility), the coach can form a more effective team. Since the given conditions are arbitrary and not optimal, this option is better.
Step 3: Conclusion
The most effective choice is to give the coach freedom to select the best mix of players without artificial restrictions. Hence,
Option E is correct.
\[ \text{Correct Answer: (E)} \]
Top Questions on Statements and Conclusions
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Further, during a training program, the senior trainer takes most of the sessions, if not all, while the apprentice helps the senior trainers to organize their sessions, and occasionally take a few sessions. As the apprentices gain experience, they start getting their own independent projects, but that typically takes quite some time..
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In a university, some students can speak English and German, but not French.
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Some students can speak German and Korean, but not Japanese.
Some students can speak English and Japanese, but not Korean.
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No one who likes to watch baseball likes to watch basketball, and all those who like to watch basketball also like to watch football.
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