10 lesser-known cricket trivia
Sourav Ganguly
1. Man-of-the-Match – In September 1997, Sourav Ganguly clinched 4 consecutive Man-of-the-Match titles, thereby becoming the only player in the history to achieve the feat. Despite ending his Test career with an average of 42, Ganguly never averaged below 40 during his entire career. Nayan Mongia, another Indian, is the only player to have played 140 international games without ever achieving a MOM award.
2. Baggy Green cap – Two players in the Australian team have an interesting story to tell.
In the last 100 years of Australian cricket, only one player has donned the Australian national cap without playing a single first-class match: David Warner.
George Bailey is not the first Australian to play under that name. He is the second George Bailey to wear the baggy green. In the 1870′s, a certain George Bailey played for Australia, the great-great-grandfather of the current Australian ODI vice-captain.
3. Laws of cricket – The only rule to have remain unchanged since the cricketing laws were framed in 1744 is the length of the pitch (22 yards).
4. 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup – 9 years from now, in 2023, the ICC cricket world Cup will return to the Indian shores. India will play hosts for the fourth time.
5. King Pair – When a batsman gets dismissed for a nought in 2 innings, it’s simply called a pair. But when a batsman is dismissed in the first ball of both the innings, it is called a King Pair. Surprisingly the only two batsmen to have actually done that are two of the greatest batting stalwarts of last decade: Adam Gilchrist and Virender Sehwag.
6.Stumps and Wicket – The shepherds used to bat in front of a tree stump and hence the name ‘stumps’ came into existence. Initially there were only 2 wickets with a bail over them; but as years progressed, it became 3 with 2 bails. The game was played in front of a wicket-gate, hence the term.
7. Marriage vs. Record – Bhausaheb Nimbalkar was just 9 runs short of emulating Donald Bradman’s then highest first-class world record of 452*, but he had to leave after day 2 of the match to get married the next day.
8. Chinaman – The word was first used in a Test match played between the West Indies and England at Old Trafford, Manchester, in 1933. Eliss “Puss” Achong, a player of Chinese origin, was a left-arm orthodox spinner, who represented West Indies in that match. Achong is said to have had Walter Robins stumped off a surprise delivery that spun into the right-hander from outside the off stump. A frustrated Robins on his walk back to the pavilion said to the umpire, “fancy being done by a bloody Chinaman”. Some of the popular Chinaman bowlers are – Paul Adams, Inshan Ali, Michael Bevan, Brad Hogg, Simon Katich, Garfield Sobers and the recent India U-19 sensation Kuldeep Yadav.
9. Lady’s influence on bowling style – Overarm bowling was initially illegal in cricket. History tells us that the bowlers used to bowl only underarm in the earlier days. Kent cricketer John Willes is said to have introduced the modern day overarm bowling. He learnt it from his sister, who had complaints of her skirt getting in the way when she tried bowling underarm.
10. Fastest T20 century – Deandra Dottin, a batsman from the West Indies women’s cricket team, holds the record for the fastest T20 international hundred (38 balls).