About

Welcome to Stats Life, the new home of cricket stats and anoraks. We deal in stats that nobody in their right mind should want to know, and yet do.

Feel free to get in touch with any comments or ideas!

Like Loading...

December 30 – Stat of the day

Today is Joe Root's 26th birthday.

Root has scored 4,594 runs in 53 Tests at 52.80. He has scored 11 centuries with 27 fifties.

His ODI record is no shabbier, with 3,017 runs in 78 matches at 45.71.

December 12 – Stat of the day

A day for disputes.

In 1987, the infamous Gatting/Rana Test match finally came to a conclusion.

In 1884, the First Test at the Adelaide Oval between England and Australia almost did not take place due to an argument between Billy Murdoch and the ground authorities, and then due to James Lillywhite's role as umpire.

Reportedly, the replacement umpire knew nothing about cricket. Nothing new there, cynical wags might say.

December 11 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1979, Geoffrey Boycott smashed his only ODI century, scoring 105 (124) against Australia at Sydney.

In his 36-match career, Boycott also scored nine half-centuries including a 99.

He ended his short-form career with 1,082 runs at 36.06 at a strike-rate of 53.56.

December 10 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1995, Stuart Law scored 54* in his only Test innings.

Only one person has scored more Test runs without ever being dismissed.

In two Tests played in 1961 and 1964, the bowler Afaq Hussain scored 10* and 35* against England at Lahore, then 8* and 13* against Australia at Melbourne.

December 9 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1993, Glenn McGrath registered a golden duck on his ODI debut, as he had done on his Test debut.

Renowned both for removing batsmen for ducks and scoring them himself, McGrath scored 35 ducks in his Test career, placing him third in the all-time list behind Chris Martin's 36 (he of the 2.36 average) and Courtney Walsh's 43.

December 8 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1941, Sir Geoff Hurst was born.

Why are we mentioning England's 1966 football hero on a cricket blog?

On 30 May 1962, Hurst played a First-Class match for Essex against Lancashire at Aigburth, Liverpool.

He scored 0 in the second innings, but had fared slightly better in the first innings, registering 0*.

Hurst did however take a catch off the bowling of Jim Laker (yes, that one) to dismiss Thomas Greenhough.

Essex won by 28 runs.

December 7 – Stat of the day

On this day last year, South Africa battled their way to 143 off 143.1 overs in their failed attempt to salvage a final-day draw against India in Delhi. It is only the second instance in Test cricket where a completed innings has had an average of under 1.00. The other was New Zealand's 26 in 27 overs against England at Auckland in Test #402. This remains the lowest team score in Tests.

December 6 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1914, Cyril Washbrook was born.

In 37 Tests for England, he scored 2,569 runs at 42.81.

His partnership of 359 with Len Hutton against South Africa at Johannesburg in Test #307 is England's highest-ever opening partnership.

Washbrook scored 34,101 FC runs during a career lasting over 30 years.

December 5 – Stat of the day

Happy 30th birthday to Enamul Haque Jr.

In Test #1735, he took 12/200 for Bangladesh against Zimbabwe at Dhaka.

This was his nation's best Test figures until 19-year-old Mehedi Hasan took England by storm when he took 12/159 to win the 2nd Test in October.

Shakib Al Hasan is the only other Bangladeshi to have taken 10 wickets or more in a Test.

Haque has taken 44 wickets in 15 Tests at 40.61.

December 4 – Stat of the day

On this day, literally today, Martin Guptill became the fastest New Zealander to pass 5,000 ODI runs.

In his 135th match, Guptill began the innings on 4,955 runs but went on to score 114 (102) as the Blackcaps came up 68 runs short of Australia's 324.

His strike-rate was 111.76.
(See December 2 for NZ comparison)

December 3 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1765, Lord John Philip Sackville died in Switzerland.

The son of the 1st Duke of Dorset, Lord Sackville was not only the MP for Tamworth between 1734 and 1747 but also a cricketer for Kent.

The scorecard for the match between Kent and England, played on 18 June 1744, can be found at http://b1.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/0/1.html.

December 2 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1992, John Wright became the first New Zealander to pass 5,000 Test runs.

Wright scored a fourth-innings 42 (222) to help salvage a draw in the 1st Test against Sri Lanka at Moratuwa - a strike-rate of 18.91.

His 5,000th run came when he reached 25.

December 1 – Stat of the day

Today is the 115th anniversary of the death of George Lohmann.

In an 18-Test career, Lohmann took 112 wickets at 10.75.

Statistical GOAT.

November 30 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1928, Sir Don Bradman made his test debut. He then scored lots of runs.

November 29 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1970, Colin Cowdrey became the leading run-scorer in Tests when he scored his 7,250th run, surpassing Wally Hammond who had held the record for 33 years.

Finishing on 7,624 runs, he remained at the top of the England list for 11 years before Geoffrey Boycott overtook him.

Since then, the England record has been held by David Gower, Graham Gooch and Alastair Cook.

November 28 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1975, Michael Holding made his Test debut. In 60 Tests, 'Whispering Death' took 249 wickets at 23.68.

November 27 – Stat of the day

There have been 102 instances of a player scoring a century on their Test debut.

November 26 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1932, Sir Don Bradman passed 10,000 First-Class runs in his 126th inning.

In total, Bradman scored 28,067 FC runs at an average of 95.14 in 234 matches.

If his career had lasted as long as that of Sir Jack Hobbs, the top FC run-scorer in history, he would have scored 100,034 FC runs. Hobbs scored 61,760.

November 25 – Stat of the day

Test bowling five-wicket hauls where the number of wickets exceeds the runs conceded:

8/7 (9.4 overs*)
George Lohmann (Test #47 - England vs South Africa)

6/3 (6.5 overs)
Jermaine Lawson (Test #1630 - West Indies vs Bangladesh)

5/2 (2.3 overs**)
Ernie Toshack (Test #290 - Australia vs India)

*5-ball overs
**8-ball overs

November 24 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1989, Sachin Tendulkar hit his first Test fifty in only his second Test, scoring 59 (172) against Pakistan at Faisalabad.

He was 16 years and 214 days old.

At the age of 17 years and 107 days, he became the second youngest Test centurion behind Mushtaq Mohammad, though Mohammad Ashraful would go top in 2001.

November 23 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1990, Saeed Anwar was dismissed for a fifth-ball duck on his Test debut. In the second-innings, he was dismissed for a third-ball duck.

The opener had failed to survive past the first over in both of his first two Test innings.

There have been 42 instances of a pair on debut in Tests.

Among those to have failed to trouble the scorers are Fred Grace (youngest of the brothers, playing in his only Test), Percy Twentyman-Jones, Graham Gooch and Marvan Atapattu.

November 22 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1974, Viv Richards and Gordon Greenidge both made their debuts for the West Indies against India in Bangalore.

Factception: Gordon's first name is Cuthbert and Viv's first name is Isaac.

Richards is one of only 25 players to have scored more than 100 First-Class centuries. Graeme Hick, Graham Gooch and Mark Ramprakash are the only men to have achieved this feat since Richards did.

Greenidge came close with 92 FC tons, but he did carry his bat three times in Tests, a feat no other player has managed.

November 21 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2012, Abul Hasan scored the second-highest score in Tests by a no.10 batsman.

In Test #2060 for Bangladesh against West Indies at Khulna, Hasan scored 113 (123), second only to Walter Read's 117 (155) for England against Australia in Test #16 back in 1884.

It is Hasan's only First-Class century and leaves him with a Test batting average of 82.50.

Only four men have scored Test centuries from no.10, the other two being Pat Symcox and Reggie Duff.

November 20 – Stat of the day

England are in the midst of a rearguard action to save the 2nd Test against India. This is not uncharted territory for a touring team in India.

In the 4th Test against India in December 2015, Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers inspired their side to 143 in 143.1 overs, lasting over 70 overs into the final day but not quite salvaging a famous draw.

Amla's score of 25 (244) is the lowest strike-rate for an innings of 200 balls or more, coming in at 10.24.

At the other end of the scale, New Zealand's Nathan Astle still holds the record for the highest strike-rate in an innings of 200+ balls when he scored 222 (168) against England at Christchurch in March 2002. His strike-rate was 132.14.

November 19 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1978, Sunil Gavaskar completed his second century of the 3rd Test between India and Pakistan at Karachi.

The feat of scoring two centuries in a match has been achieved on 81 occasions.

While a number of players have done so twice, three batsmen have achieved the feat on three occasions: David Warner, Ricky Ponting and Gavaskar himself.

Sir Don Bradman only scored two centuries in a match on one occasion, when he scored 132 and 127* against India at Melbourne in January 1948.

November 18 – Stat of the day

On the 18th day of the month, it's only fitting to remember that only two men have ever taken 18 wickets in a first-class match.

In 1837, William Lillywhite took 18 wickets in a match for Players vs Gentlemen at Lord's. Sadly we will never know how many runs he conceded.

There were however XVI players in the Gentlemen side, so it's a disgrace Lillywhite didn't take more.

24 years later, Henry Arkwright took 18-96 for the MCC vs the Gentlemen of Kent.

No one has taken 18 wickets in a Test match.

November 17 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2008, India beat England in the 2nd ODI by 54 runs at Indore thanks to 118 from Yuvraj Singh.

In pursuit of 293, Owais Shah top-scored for England with 58 while captain Kevin Pietersen could only muster 33.

November 16 – Stat of the day

Happy 45th birthday to Waqar Younis!

Waqar took 373 wickets in 87 Tests at 23.56, and 416 wickets in 262 ODIs at 23.84.

November 15 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2002, Shaun Pollock finished on 99* in the first innings of Test #1626 for South Africa against Sir Lanka at Centurion.

He is one of only five batsmen to have been left stranded on 99* in Tests, the others being Andrew Hall, Alex Tudor, Steve Waugh and Sir Geoffrey Boycott.

Kumar Sangakkara and Andy Flower are the only two men to have finished on 199* in Tests, while Sir Don Bradman is currently the only man to have scored 299*.

Had Bradman passed 300 in that innings, he would be the only man to have scored three triple-centuries in Test cricket.

November 14 – Stat of the day

Today is the 319th day of the year.

Virender Sehwag scored 319 for India against South Africa at Chennai in March 2008.

It is the only test triple century scored at faster than a run-a-ball (though Hanif Mohammad, Sir Garfield Sobers and Wally Hammond scored triple tons where the number of balls are unknown - Hammond's took only 318 minutes).

Kumar Sangakkara then scored 319 in February 2014 for Sri Lanka against Bangladesh - one of 11 double-hundreds Sangakkara scored in Tests, second only to Sir Don Bradman's 12.

November 13 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2014, Rohit Sharma hit 264 in an ODI for India against Sri Lanka - the highest ODI score in history.

November 12 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1985, Richard Hadlee completed match figures of 15/123 for New Zealand against Australia in Brisbane.

Hadlee took 9/52 to limit the home side's first-innings score to 179, before taking 6/71 as Australia could only muster 333in reply to New Zealand's 553/7 dec.

Hadlee's first-innings figures are the sixth best in Tests, and it is the 10th best match haul in Tests.

November 11 – Stat of the day

Test #1111 was played between India and New Zealand at Hyderabad on December 2-6 1988.

India won by 10 wickets. No-one scored a century or registered a five-wicket haul.

November 10 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1984, West Indies bowled out Australia for 76 at the WACA, with Michael Holding taking 6/21.

The away side enforced the follow-on before bowling out Australia for 228, securing the win by an innings and 112 runs.

Courtney Walsh made his debut for West Indies, though he had to wait until the second innings to bowl his first ball after Kim Hughes' men had capitulated so quickly.

November 9 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2011, Nathan Lyon top-scored with 14 runs from no.11 during Australia's second-innings score of 47 against South Africa at Cape Town.

Having bowled out the home side for 96 (giving Australia a lead of 188), South Africa chased down 235 for the loss of two wickets, with Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla posting centuries.

November 8 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1902, the marvellously named Percy Twentyman-Jones made his debut for South Africa against Australia.

He was dismissed for a pair and never played Test cricket again.

He had however represented his country at rugby football, playing three tests during the British Isles tour of South Africa in 1896.

November 7 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1996, Wasim Jaffer scored 314* (501) in only his second first-class match, at the age of 18.

Playing for Mumbai against Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy, he put on 459 with Sulakshan Kulkarni in the process of helping his side to 647/4 dec. in response to Saurashtra's 595/4 dec.

The match ended in a draw.

Jaffer has scored 17,229 first-class runs at 49.65 with 51 centuries, though he found runs harder to come by during his brief India career, amassing 1,944 at 34.10.

November 6 – Stat of the day

Devendra Bishoo was born on November 6 1985.

He had to wait until his 14th birthday for there to be Test cricket on November 6 when Australia took on Pakistan at Brisbane.

Before Bishoo took 8/49 in the 1st Test for West Indies against Pakistan at Dubai in October, he had only two five-wicket hauls in Tests.

November 5 – Stat of the day

On this day in 2003, Heath Streak scored 127* batting at number eight for Zimbabwe against West Indies at Harare.

Coming to the crease at 233/6 towards the end of day one, he ended the day at 16* before marshalling his side to 507/9 declared, aided and abetted by Tatenda Taibu's 83 and Andy Blignaut's 91.

It is the 13th highest Test innings by a number eight in Test cricket, and the 21st highest by a Zimbabwean from any position in the batting order.

Streak played 65 Tests for his country, taking 216 wickets at 28.14 and scoring 1,990 runs at 22.35.

November 4 – Stat of the day

Today is the 309th day of the year.

Don Bradman scored 309 runs on day 1 of the 3rd Test between England and Australia at Headingley on July 11 1930 - a record for the most runs scored in a day of a Test match.

Coming to the crease at 2/1, He was finally out the following morning for 334 in 383 minutes, with Australia now on 508/6.

The Don would go on to score 974 runs in seven innings during the five-Test series (another record).

His innings of 334 remained the highest by an Australian until Matthew Hayden plundered 380 from Zimbabwe in 2003 - though Mark Taylor had equalled the record with 334* against Pakistan in 1998.

November 3 – Stat of the day

November 3 2016 is the 308th day of the year, but no batsman has ever scored 308 in a Test innings, though Bob Cowper managed 307 in 1996, and Virender Sehwag hit 309 against Pakistan in 2004.

November 2 – Stat of the day

On this day in 1877, Victor Trumper was born.

Trumper scored 3,163 runs in 48 Tests for Australia.

He died at just 37, but will be remembered as one of Australia's greatest batsmen.

November 1 – Stat of the day

Four Test matches have started on November 1.

Zimbabwe vs NZ
(Test #1198)
Pakistan vs Australia
(Test #1273)
Zimbabwe vs NZ
(Test #2013)
England vs Pakistan
(Test #2184)

Search

Search for:

India vs England

1st Test: 9-13 Nov (DRAW)
2nd Test: 17-21 Nov
3rd Test: 26-30 Nov
4th Test: 8-12 Dec
5th Test: 16-20 Dec

STATS LIFE

Talking about the stats you didn't know you didn't know

About