Ask The Spider ASK THE SPIDER

Ask The Spider #47

Has there ever been an instance of a father and son standing in the same first class match?

MG Vijayasarathy and MV Nagendra, both Test umpires, umpired together in the Mysore v Andhra match in 1960-61. Also Frank Tarrant and his son Louis umpired Southern Punjab v MCC at Amritsar in November 1933.

Has a Test match ever included the opening four batsmen all being out for ducks?

Yes, Australia vs England, second innings at Old Trafford in 1888. Two other batsmen failed to score, and not surprisingly England enjoyed an innings victory.

Mohammad Azharuddin, banned for life for match-fixing, therefore scored a century in his first and last Test innings – has this ever been achieved before?

Yes, by Australia’s Greg Chappell.

Who holds the record for first-class catches?

Overall the record is held by England wicket keeper Bob Taylor with 1,473. For non-WKs, Frank Woolley held most catches, with 1,018.

Who played in most Tests before becoming captain?

Australia’s Steve Waugh, 111 Tests.

What’s the highest total in a Test match to not include a 50?

The record is 315 by England vs West Indies, 2nd innings, Port of Spain, 1985-86 (top score was David Gower with 47). The highest in First-Class cricket is 359 by Middlesex vs Surrey in 1949, with five scores in the 40s, including Sydney Brown on 49.

What is the highest innings total in Test cricket in which the team scored the same number of runs in both innings?

In the second Test between India and Pakistan in 2005, India scored 407 all out followed by 407-9.

Comments

Q: Who played in most Tests before becoming captain?

A. It is not Steve Waugh. But Anil Kumble who played 118 matches before he became captain.

Comment by Prashanth Nottath | 12:00am GMT 18 January 2009

Leave a comment

Comments are moderated, and will not appear until they have been approved

More articles by Dave Wilson