Lest we forget... what the cricketing stars did....

By A.C. De Silva

FLASHBACK: The game of cricket has many interesting stories connected to it and that's one of the reasons why so many people are attracted to the game. There are some interesting anecdotes that keeps one glued to the game and also has the general public interested.

There are many forms of a batsman getting out and one of the common forms is getting bowled.

The longest recorded distance for a bail to travel from the stumps after a batsman has been bowled takes interesting reading. Getting bowled is where the ball hits the wickets and thereby the batsman has got marching orders to leave the field.

It is interesting to note that the longest recorded distance for a bail to travel from the stumps after a batsman has been bowled is 67 yards 6 inches. This record occurred at Old Trafford, Manchester, on 29th June 1911 when Robert Burrows of Worcestershire bowled William Huddleston of Lancashire and one of the bails flew as far as the boundary.

In the game of cricket a much appreciable player is the allrounder and the most stunning performance of a cricketer to score a century and take all ten wickets in an innings in a first-class match in Britain since 1869... is W.G. Grace.

Playing for the MCC against Oxford University at Oxford Parks on June 21 and 22 in 1886, "The champion" scored 104 in his only innings, before taking all ten Oxford second innings wickets for 49 runs in 36.2 four-ball overs.

The longest match

Cricket has branched out to many forms. There are Test matches of five days duration these days - that's the normal form in the present day set-up, but in the years gone by Test matches have gone on for the sixth day. The longest match in England in terms of hours of play is the drawn six-day Fourth Test between England and Australia at The Oval in 1975.

Actual playing time, excluding 187 minutes lost and breaks between innings, totalled 32 hours 17 minutes. Two other six-day matches have been staged in England, both Test matches against Australia at The Oval.

In 1930, Australia won at 3.50 p.m. on the last day after rain had prevented play on the penultimate one - 42 years later Australia repeated their victory at 2,49 p.m. on the sixth day.

Lowest innings total 26

The lowest innings total in Test cricket is 26 by New Zealand at Eden Park, Auckland on 28th March 1955. Playing the second of two Tests against Hutton's England team which had just retained the Ashes in Australia, New Zealand had contained the tourists to a first innings lead of 46.

A crowd of 14,000 saw the home side reduced to 14 for 5 and eventually dismissed in 27 overs by Tyson (2 for 10), Statham (3 for 9), Appleyard (4 for 7) and Wardle (1 for 0).

Opening batsman Bert Sutcliffe (11) achieved the only double-figure score of an innings which lasted 106 minutes either side of the tea interval on the third day.

Appleyard took 3 wickets in four balls and narrowly missed the hat-trick. It was Hutton's last Test.

Lowest declared total

In cricket, be it Test matches or otherwise,the accepted norm is to make a declaration when the side batting is in a favourable position. However, this doesn't seem to have been followed in the good old days. In 1950 Australia declared their first innings at an unbelievable score of 32 for 7 wickets at Woolloonagabba, Brisbane on 4th December 1950. Caught on a 'sticky' wicket, Australia declared their innings when only 192 runs ahead, took 6 England second innings wickets for 30 runs before the close, and went on to win by 70 runs.

Generally in cricket, Test matches to speak of, the trend is to hit up a sizeable score when batting first.

This is usually done with victory foremost in he mind of the side batting first. England achieved this at the Oval on August 24 in 1938 when they defeated Australia by an innings and 579 runs on the fourth day.

After amassing the record total then of 903 for 7 wickets in 15 hours 17 minutes when Hammond declared at tea on the third day.

England dismissed Australia twice in 4 and 3/4 hours of play. With Fingleton and Donald Bradman both injured and unable to bat, Australia were out for 201 and 123.

An Asian had come into the cricket scene and it is from India that the news has come that Kapil Dev playing his 50th Test celebrated the occasion in grand style by completing the double - 200 wickets at the relatively young age of 24 years and 68 days on March 15 in 1983 playing in his 50th Test match against the West Indies at Port of Spain. Then going over to England, there was England's Fred Trueman who became the first bowler to collect 300 Test wickets. He reached that impressive haul at The Oval in his 65th Test on 15th August 1964 when he had Neil Hawke of Australia caught at slip by Colin Cowdrey.

Marsh- the leading wicket-keeper

There has been a lot said about batsmen and bowlers, and it is nothing but right we also consider the wicket-keepers who have done yeomen service behind the stumps.

The most dismissals by a wicket-keeper in Test cricket is 355 by Rodney Marsh, who between 27th November 1970 and January 6th 1984, held a record 343 catches and made 12 stumpings in 96 matches for Australia.

Marsh gained the record on 18th July 1981 when he caught Botham in England's first innings of the Third Test at Headingley, Leeds to overtake Alan Knott's total of 263 dismissals. Although Knott recalled for the last two Tests of that series and held six more catches he was unable to regain the record.Marsh also holds the record for taking most catches off one bowler - 95 of his victims being caught off his fellow West Australian Dennis Lillee.