There were five centuries in the ODI at Guwahati last week. Was this a record? asked Amal Nasser from India, among others
The short answer is yes: last week’s match between India and West Indies at the Barsapara Stadium was the first one-day international to contain as many as five individual centuries.
The short answer is yes: last week’s match between India and West Indies at the Barsapara Stadium was the first one-day international to contain as many as five individual centuries.
There had been three previous ODIs which featured four hundreds: Pakistan vs Australia in Lahore in 1998, India vs Australia in Nagpur in 2013, and Pakistan vs Sri Lanka at Hyderabad in 2023, during the last World Cup.
The Guwahati match was only the third ODI in which both teams passed 400, following Australia (434 for 4) vs South Africa (438 for 9) in Johannesburg in 2006, and India (414 for 7) vs Sri Lanka (411 for 8) in Rajkot in 2009. Those were also the only two ODIs with a higher run-aggregate than Guwahati’s 811.
Was Abhishek Sharma’s 30-ball hundred the other day the fastest in any T20 international? asked Ramesh Shafayat from India
The Indian left-hander Abhishek Sharma hurtled to three figures in just 30 balls, with ten sixes, against Afghanistan in Delhi last month.
The Indian left-hander Abhishek Sharma hurtled to three figures in just 30 balls, with ten sixes, against Afghanistan in Delhi last month.
Jonny Bairstow played exactly 100 Test matches. How many people have finished with such a round number? asked Michael Bell from Scotland
Barring a surprise recall, Jonny Bairstow will finish his career with 100 Test caps. He’s the fifth to do this, following fellow England players Andrew Strauss and Graham Thorpe, Dimuth Karunaratne of Sri Lanka and West Indies’ Kraigg Brathwaite, who hasn’t announced his retirement yet.
Barring a surprise recall, Jonny Bairstow will finish his career with 100 Test caps. He’s the fifth to do this, following fellow England players Andrew Strauss and Graham Thorpe, Dimuth Karunaratne of Sri Lanka and West Indies’ Kraigg Brathwaite, who hasn’t announced his retirement yet.
You recently talked about the highest scores on ODI debut. But what are the best bowling figures in a player’s first match? asked Kenneth Buckeridge from England
The best figures by a bowler in his first one-day international are 7 for 21, by the Scotland seamer Charlie Cassell as Oman were bowled out for 91 in Dundee in 2024. “The wickets just kept coming,” he said. “Before I knew it, I’d bowled five overs and had six-for, and then to get seven was just crazy, honestly. I was really pumped just to be involved in the squad, and what followed was really rewarding.”
The best figures by a bowler in his first one-day international are 7 for 21, by the Scotland seamer Charlie Cassell as Oman were bowled out for 91 in Dundee in 2024. “The wickets just kept coming,” he said. “Before I knew it, I’d bowled five overs and had six-for, and then to get seven was just crazy, honestly. I was really pumped just to be involved in the squad, and what followed was really rewarding.”
Has any Test cricketer ever played in golf’s British Open? asked Marion Steele from England
Until recently I would have said that no Test cricketers had played in the Open Championship. But by chance I was recently sent a copy of a slim biography of a man who did just that: AJ “Johnnie” Evans was an amateur who played for Oxford University and Hampshire before joining Kent in 1921. That season, he was one of many thrown in at the deep end against the powerful Australian touring team: in all, England used a record 30 players in the series. Evans appeared in the second Test at Lord’s, but was dismissed twice by the tearaway fast bowler Ted McDonald for 4 and 14, and did not feature again.
Until recently I would have said that no Test cricketers had played in the Open Championship. But by chance I was recently sent a copy of a slim biography of a man who did just that: AJ “Johnnie” Evans was an amateur who played for Oxford University and Hampshire before joining Kent in 1921. That season, he was one of many thrown in at the deep end against the powerful Australian touring team: in all, England used a record 30 players in the series. Evans appeared in the second Test at Lord’s, but was dismissed twice by the tearaway fast bowler Ted McDonald for 4 and 14, and did not feature again.
He captained Kent in 1927, but retired after a few more matches the following season. By then he was also a keen golfer, and in 1928 took part in the Open Championship at Royal St George’s in Sandwich. Evans beat the halfway cut, so played all four rounds, but finished well behind the eventual winner, the American Walter Hagen.
Evans was decorated for bravery, and later wrote several books, including The Escaping Club, an account of his wartime exploits.