5 records broken by Louis Kimber in his 127-ball 243 for Leicestershire in County Championship 2024 clash
Louis Kimber played a magnificent knock of 243 runs for Leicestershire on Wednesday in the County Championship Division Two match against Sussex. It is rare to see a number eight batter score 243 runs off just 127 balls, and still end up on the losing side. However, it happened in the Leicestershire vs Sussex game.
Sussex batted first and scored 442 in the first innings. In reply, Leicestershire managed only 275. Sussex added 296 runs to their lead and set a mammoth 464-run target for their opponents. When Leicestershire were down to 175/7 in the fourth innings, it looked like Sussex would register an easy win.
Louis Kimber then played one of the greatest knocks in County Cricket history. He smashed 243 runs off 127 balls, hitting 20 fours and 21 sixes. He scored 43 runs off a single over bowled by capped English bowler Ollie Robinson. Here's a list of some of the major records broken by Kimber during his knock.
#1 Louis Kimber broke Ben Stokes' record
England Test captain Ben Stokes held the record for the most sixes by a batter in a single innings of any County Championship match. Back in 2022, Stokes smashed 17 maximums while playing for Durham against Worcestershire in Worcester.
Stokes held the record for two years, but Kimber is the new owner of the record now. The Leicestershire batter hit 21 sixes, becoming the first batter in county cricket history to smack 20 or more maximums in a single innings.
#2 Louis Kimber scored most runs in an over by a batter in county cricket
Kimber went all-out in the 59th over of the Leicestershire innings bowled by Ollie Robinson. He hit two sixes and six fours before ending the over with a single. Robinson bowled three no-balls, and there is a penalty of two runs for each no ball in county cricket.
Thus, Robinson ended up leaking 43 runs in an over, which is now the most expensive over in the tournament's history. Also, Kimber scored 37, the most by a batter in an over in county cricket.
#3 Louis Kimber smashed the most sixes by a batter in a first-class match's run-chase
Batters are usually under pressure and avoid taking risks in a run-chase of first-class games, but Kimber showed different intent. The previous record for the most sixes by a batter in a first-class match's run-chase was 11, but Kimber hit 21 yesterday.
It seems unlikely that Kimber's record will ever be broken. Also, he hit a total of 41 boundaries (20 fours and 21 sixes), another record which seems unbreakable.
#4 Highest score by a batter at number 8 or lower in first-class match's run-chase
When a team is down 175/7 in a chase of 464, not many expect a fightback from the lower-order. Kimber was on a mission, though, as he raced to 243 runs off 127 balls after coming out to bat at number eight.
With this knock, Kimber has set a new record for the highest individual score by a batter at number eight or lower in a run-chase of a first-class game.
#5 Louis Kimber now has the fastest 200 in county cricket history
Kimber took only 100 deliveries to complete his double-century in the match against Sussex. He has now become the owner of the record for the fastest double ton in a county game.
Unfortunately for Kimber, his knock ended in a losing cause. Sussex bowled Leicestershire out for 445 runs and won by 18 runs. Kimber was the last batter to be dismissed as he lost his stumps to Nathan McAndrew.