How many players have achieved the feat?
Steven Lynch27-Feb-2018I know that Shane Warne took the most Test wickets against England. But who holds the records against the other countries? asked Ghulam Lalchand from India
Shane Warne finished with a remarkable 195 wickets against England, in 36 Tests. Next come Dennis Lillee (167) and Curtly Ambrose (164); in all, 18 bowlers have taken 100 or more against England in Tests. Warne also dismissed 130 South Africans, ahead of Muttiah Muralitharan (104) and James Anderson and Anil Kumble (both 84). A special mention here for Sydney Barnes, the great English bowler of the pre-Great War era, who took 83 wickets in just seven Tests against South Africa, at the remarkable average of 9.86. Warne also took 103 wickets against New Zealand; Murali comes next with 82.Murali, with 105, is the only bowler to reach three figures against India; Imran Khan is next with 94, while Anderson currently has 86. Murali also tops the lists against Bangladesh (89 wickets; Daniel Vettori next with 51) and Zimbabwe (87; Waqar Younis 62).Ian Botham leads the way against Australia, with 148, ahead of Courtney Walsh (135) and Richard Hadlee (130); ten others have reached 100. Glenn McGrath took 110 against West Indies, Kapil Dev 89, and Fred Trueman 86.Rangana Herath has so far taken 106 wickets against Pakistan; he recently overtook Kapil Dev, who claimed 99. Kumble took 74 against Sri Lanka, ahead of Saeed Ajmal (66) and Wasim Akram (63).I noticed that although Geoff Griffin took a hat-trick, he ended up with only eight Test wickets. Is this a record? asked John Maitland from England
The South African fast bowler Geoff Griffin’s hat-trick came in his second Test, against England at Lord’s in 1960. It was a controversial match for Griffin, who had a noticeably bent-armed action: he was also no-balled for throwing in that match (a unique double), and never played another Test.Rather surprisingly, perhaps, there is one other taker of a Test hat-trick who ended his career with fewer wickets than Griffin’s eight. Legspinning allrounder Alok Kapali took a hat-trick for Bangladesh against Pakistan in Peshawar in 2003. These turned out to be the last three victims of his Test career, which brought him only six wickets in all. For the full list of Test hat-tricks, click here.As mentioned in a recent question, Gordon Greenidge scored a century in his 100th one-day international. He also scored one in his 100th Test: has anyone else managed this double? asked Jamie Stewart from Canada
Gordon Greenidge is the only man so far to complete this particular double. He scored 102 not out for West Indies against Pakistan in Sharjah in his 100th ODI, in October 1988, and later added 149 in his 100th Test, against England in Antigua in April 1990.Gordon Greenidge made 102 against Pakistan in his 100th ODI and 149 in his 100th Test, against England•Getty ImagesDavid Warner and Shikhar Dhawan, who are among the nine men to have scored a century in their 100th ODIs, have not yet reached the landmark of 100 Tests, so still have a chance to join Greenidge (Warner has currently won 71 caps and Dhawan 29). For the list of those who made centuries in their 100th Test, click here: Ricky Ponting uniquely marked his 100th cap – against South Africa in Sydney in 2005-06 – with two centuries.Is it true that no one has ever been run out after scoring a triple-century in a Test? If so, what’s the highest individual innings that ended in a run-out? asked Ian Hugo from Nigeria
It is indeed true: the highest individual Test score that ended with the batsman being run out was Brian Lara’s memorable 277 against Australia at the SCG in 1992-93. Lara later named his daughter Sydney, to commemorate the innings. The next highest was also by a West Indian, Conrad Hunte’s 260 against Pakistan in Kingston in 1957-58, an innings somewhat overshadowed by Garry Sobers’ unbeaten 365, a new Test record (later overtaken by Lara). Next comes Ben Stokes’ 258 for England v South Africa in Cape Town in 2015-16. Only seven other Test double-centuries have been ended by a run-out; for the full list, click here.Chris Read, who retired recently, made his Test debut in 1999. Is there anyone left who played a Test in the previous century? asked George Conrad from England
The sole playing survivor from among those who played Test cricket in the 1990s is Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka’s durable slow left-armer. He won his first cap against Australia, in Galle in September 1999, taking four wickets in a rain-affected draw. Herath, who turns 40 in March, didn’t really claim a regular place until Muttiah Muralitharan retired, but has now taken 415 Test wickets, second for Sri Lanka behind Murali’s 800. He has taken more wickets than any other left-arm bowler in Test cricket, having recently surpassed Wasim Akram’s 414.Leave your questions in the comments
