Bollinger's near-miss, and Test-playing Zambians
The fastest to 50 wickets, lowest team totals yet to be made, most ODIs without a Test, most not-outs in first-class cricket, and more
Steven Lynch
27-Apr-2010
Suresh Raina: 90 ODIs and zero Tests • Associated Press
Doug Bollinger currently has 39 wickets in eight Tests. Does he have a chance of breaking the record for the fewest Tests anyone has needed to take 50 wickets? asked Jack from Australia
Impressive though Doug Bollinger's start in Tests has been, I'm afraid that particular record is already beyond him. An earlier Australian, Charles "Terror" Turner, reached 50 wickets in only his sixth Test, in 1888. His approximate contemporary, Tom Richardson of England, got there in seven matches, while four others reached 50 in their eighth Test: the Australian trio of Terry Alderman, Rodney Hogg and Fred Spofforth, and the West Indian spinner Alf Valentine.
Impressive though Doug Bollinger's start in Tests has been, I'm afraid that particular record is already beyond him. An earlier Australian, Charles "Terror" Turner, reached 50 wickets in only his sixth Test, in 1888. His approximate contemporary, Tom Richardson of England, got there in seven matches, while four others reached 50 in their eighth Test: the Australian trio of Terry Alderman, Rodney Hogg and Fred Spofforth, and the West Indian spinner Alf Valentine.
Has anyone born in Zambia played Test cricket? asked Ryan from Lusaka, Zambia
Henry Olonga, who won 30 caps for Zimbabwe, is the only Test player to have been born in Zambia while it has been called that (since 1964): he was born in Lusaka in 1976. In addition, two England players, Phil Edmonds (1951 in Lusaka) and Neal Radford (1957 in Luanshya), were born in the country when it was known as Northern Rhodesia.
Henry Olonga, who won 30 caps for Zimbabwe, is the only Test player to have been born in Zambia while it has been called that (since 1964): he was born in Lusaka in 1976. In addition, two England players, Phil Edmonds (1951 in Lusaka) and Neal Radford (1957 in Luanshya), were born in the country when it was known as Northern Rhodesia.
What are the lowest team totals that have not yet been made in one-day internationals? asked Suman Patnaik from India
The lowest total yet to be made in a one-day international (starting from a minimum of 100) is 342, followed by 352 and 355. In Tests the missing numbers are higher, as you might expect: the lowest never scored by any team is 525, followed by 557 and 587.
The lowest total yet to be made in a one-day international (starting from a minimum of 100) is 342, followed by 352 and 355. In Tests the missing numbers are higher, as you might expect: the lowest never scored by any team is 525, followed by 557 and 587.
Can you give the list of the people with most runs at each batting position in Tests and ODIs? asked Amitrajit Sett via Facebook
In Tests the leaders are: from No. 1 Sunil Gavaskar (8511 runs), 2 Matthew Hayden (7351), 3 Ricky Ponting (9421), 4 Sachin Tendulkar (11,239), 5 Steve Waugh (6754), 6 Steve Waugh (3165), 7 Adam Gilchrist (3948), 8 Daniel Vettori (2072), 9 Daniel Vettori (1075), 10 Waqar Younis (496), and 11 Muttiah Muralitharan (623). In one-day internationals it's 1 Gilchrist (7720), 2 Tendulkar (12,857), 3 Ponting (11,979), 4 Aravinda de Silva (6870), 5 Arjuna Ranatunga (4675), 6 Michael Bevan (3006), 7 Chris Harris (2130), 8 Wasim Akram (1208), 9 Brett Lee (557), 10 Waqar Younis (478), and 11 Courtney Walsh (165 runs; Murali currently has 163).
In Tests the leaders are: from No. 1 Sunil Gavaskar (8511 runs), 2 Matthew Hayden (7351), 3 Ricky Ponting (9421), 4 Sachin Tendulkar (11,239), 5 Steve Waugh (6754), 6 Steve Waugh (3165), 7 Adam Gilchrist (3948), 8 Daniel Vettori (2072), 9 Daniel Vettori (1075), 10 Waqar Younis (496), and 11 Muttiah Muralitharan (623). In one-day internationals it's 1 Gilchrist (7720), 2 Tendulkar (12,857), 3 Ponting (11,979), 4 Aravinda de Silva (6870), 5 Arjuna Ranatunga (4675), 6 Michael Bevan (3006), 7 Chris Harris (2130), 8 Wasim Akram (1208), 9 Brett Lee (557), 10 Waqar Younis (478), and 11 Courtney Walsh (165 runs; Murali currently has 163).
Who has played the most one-day internationals without playing in a Test? asked David Grace from Horsham
The leader on this rather bittersweet list is India's Suresh Raina, who has currently played 90 one-day internationals without so far appearing in a Test match. He took the record from Australia's Ian Harvey, who played 73 ODIs - but no Tests. Two Kenyans have played more ODIs than this, obviously without playing a Test: Steve Tikolo 120 and Thomas Odoyo 115, while Kennedy Otieno has also played 90.
The leader on this rather bittersweet list is India's Suresh Raina, who has currently played 90 one-day internationals without so far appearing in a Test match. He took the record from Australia's Ian Harvey, who played 73 ODIs - but no Tests. Two Kenyans have played more ODIs than this, obviously without playing a Test: Steve Tikolo 120 and Thomas Odoyo 115, while Kennedy Otieno has also played 90.
Does anyone have more not-outs in first-class cricket than JT Hearne's 318? asked Matt Cottle
Jack Hearne of Middlesex and England had 919 innings in a long first-class career that stretched from 1888 to 1923, and 318 of them - over a third - were not-outs. I thought that was going to be the most - but actually the record is held by someone Hearne would often have played against... David Hunter, the little Yorkshire wicketkeeper, who was undefeated in no fewer than 351 of his 728 innings (48.21%) between 1888 and 1909. Hearne is next, then come Eric Hollies (282) and Norman Gifford (263). It's safe to say it's unlikely this record will ever be seriously threatened, given the reduced amount of first-class cricket played these days.
Jack Hearne of Middlesex and England had 919 innings in a long first-class career that stretched from 1888 to 1923, and 318 of them - over a third - were not-outs. I thought that was going to be the most - but actually the record is held by someone Hearne would often have played against... David Hunter, the little Yorkshire wicketkeeper, who was undefeated in no fewer than 351 of his 728 innings (48.21%) between 1888 and 1909. Hearne is next, then come Eric Hollies (282) and Norman Gifford (263). It's safe to say it's unlikely this record will ever be seriously threatened, given the reduced amount of first-class cricket played these days.
And there's an update on last week's question about people being dismissed in Tests by balls that bounced more than once:
"This happened to Anil Kumble in a one-day international against New Zealand in Wellington in 2002-03," writes Dunga from Australia. The Cricinfo bulletin says, "The dismissal of the season had to go to Andre Adams, who had Anil Kumble out hit-wicket to a ball that bounced twice. It may be the easiest wicket Adams ever takes; certainly it will be difficult to bowl a worse delivery. He seemed to lose his grip in his delivery and the ball bounced almost at his own feet and flew high in the air and the parabola of the ball took Kumble completely by surprise. He went back to cover his stumps then saw the ball dropping in front of him. He moved forward to play the ball, but in the process knocked the wickets with his bat." And David Liney from Australia adds: "I think the first googly ever bowled in a Test match got a wicket (Trumper) and bounced multiple times (from memory the article I read wondered if it spun on the third or fourth bounce!)."
"This happened to Anil Kumble in a one-day international against New Zealand in Wellington in 2002-03," writes Dunga from Australia. The Cricinfo bulletin says, "The dismissal of the season had to go to Andre Adams, who had Anil Kumble out hit-wicket to a ball that bounced twice. It may be the easiest wicket Adams ever takes; certainly it will be difficult to bowl a worse delivery. He seemed to lose his grip in his delivery and the ball bounced almost at his own feet and flew high in the air and the parabola of the ball took Kumble completely by surprise. He went back to cover his stumps then saw the ball dropping in front of him. He moved forward to play the ball, but in the process knocked the wickets with his bat." And David Liney from Australia adds: "I think the first googly ever bowled in a Test match got a wicket (Trumper) and bounced multiple times (from memory the article I read wondered if it spun on the third or fourth bounce!)."
Steven Lynch is the editor of the Cricinfo Guide to International Cricket. If you want to ask Steven a question, use our feedback form. The most interesting questions will be answered here each week. Ask Steven is now on Facebook