Walsh towers over all others

MOHANDAS MENONFebruary

** Aravinda de Silva's 106 against England at Galle made him the oldest Sri Lankan, at 35 years and 129 days to register a Test hundred.

March

** Australia's victory against India in Mumbai, was its 16th in a row since October 1999 - the maximum such victories by any team in Test cricket history.

** South African wicket-keeper Mark Boucher claimed his 150th dismissal at Georgetown against the West Indies. In reaching the landmark in his 38th match he became the quickest to do so in Tests.

** Harbhajan Singh became the first Indian bowler to take a Test hat-trick - against Australia in Kolkata.

** V.V.S. Laxman's 281 against Australia in Kolkata was the highest by an Indian batsman in Test cricket. He went past the previous Indian record of 236 not out by Sunil Gavaskar against the West Indies in Madras in December 1983.

** Laxman's 44 "fours" in the above innings, were the maximum scored by any Indian batsman in Tests.

** Rahul Dravid's 180 in Kolkata was the highest score made by a batsman against Australia, while batting at number six. Former Indian batsman Sandeep Patil's 174 at Adelaide in January 1981 was the previous highest.

** India's 171-run win against Australia in Kolkata put an end to Australia's record winning streak of 16 Test matches in a row since its first win on October 17, 1999 against Zimbabwe at Harare.

** India became only the second team (for the third occasion) besides England, to win a Test match after being made to follow-on. In all the three instances the losing team was Australia. Further, India's win margin by 171 runs was by far the largest in such circumstances since England had won by just 10 and 18 runs respectively in 1894 (at Sydney) and 1981 (at Leeds).

** West Indian pace bowler Courtney Walsh claimed the 500th Test wicket of his distinguished career, which spanned 129 matches since 1984 when he made his debut in international cricket. He achieved this milestone when he claimed the wicket of South African Jacques Kallis leg-before in the second innings of the second Test at Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain.

** Harbhajan Singh's 15-217 against Australia in Chennai, occupied the second position among Indian bowlers and the 12th among Test bowlers with maximum wickets in a Test match. Only leg-spinner Narendra Hirwani (16-137), against West Indies, in January 1988 at this very ground had taken more wickets in a Test match for India.

** Harbhajan Singh's 32 victims out of the 50 Australian wickets that fell during the India-Australia Test series, represented 64 per cent of the total wickets taken by the Indian bowlers. This was Test cricket's most dominating performance by an individual bowler in a series. The previous record of 62.50 per cent was held by Australian left-arm spinner Ray Bright when he claimed 15 wickets out of 24 in Pakistan in 1979-80.

** New Zealand batsman Craig McMillan hit part time Pakistani bowler Younis Khan for a record 26 runs (4 4 4 4 4 6) in an over at Hamilton. This was the maximum scored in an over by a batsman in Test history.

April

** Zimbabwean Andy Flower's 73 against Bangladesh at Bulawayo, was his seventh 50-plus score in a row. He equalled the Test record of West Indian Everton Weekes who from 1948 to 1949, also had seven scores of fifty-plus in a row.

July

** Australian Mark Waugh became the fielder with the most number of catches in Test history when he took the 158th catch of his career in his 113th match against England at Lord's. It took him past the previous Test record of 157 catches (in 104 matches) by former Australian Mark Taylor.

August

** Five Pakistani batsmen (Saeed Anwar 101, Taufeeq Umar 104, Inzamam-ul-Haq 105 retd ill, Yousuf Youhana 102* and Abdur Razzaq 110*) registered hundreds in one innings against Bangladesh at Multan. This equalled the Test record of Australia, which against West Indies at Kingston in June 1955, had five hundreds in the same innings.

September

** Sri Lankan Marvan Atapattu's 201 against Bangladesh at Colombo (SSC) was his fifth Test double hundred. Only Australian Don Bradman (12 double-hundreds), Englishman Walter Hammond (7) and Pakistani Javed Miandad (6) have scored more Test double hundreds than Atapattu.

** When Bangladeshi batsman Mohammad Ashraful made 114 against Sri Lanka at Colombo (SSC), he became the youngest batsman in Test history at 16 years and 363 days to do so. He also became the youngest to score a hundred on Test debut.

** Zimbabwean Andy Flower had scores of 142 and 199 not out against South Africa at Harare. His match aggregate of 341 runs was the maximum ever achieved against South Africa in a Test match. Australian Don Bradman's unbeaten 299 (in a single innings) at Adelaide in January 1932 was the previous highest against South Africa in a match.

** Flower's above match aggregate of 341 was also the best by a wicket-keeper in a Test match.

November

** Australia's drawn encounter with New Zealand at Brisbane was a Test record. For the first time in 23 Test matches Australia was involved in a drawn Test. No other team in Test history has been involved in so many result-oriented Test matches. The previous record was held by England, which from December 1884 to March 1892 was involved in 22 Test matches without a draw.

** Hashan Tillekeratne's unbeaten 204 against West Indies at Colombo (SSC), made him the oldest Sri Lankan at 34 years & 141 days to register a Test double hundred.

** Tillekeratne's unbeaten 204 was the highest score made by a batsman against West Indies while batting at number six. India's Polly Umrigar had the previous highest of 172 (not out) at Port of Spain, way back in April 1962.

** West Indian Brian Lara's 221 against Sri Lanka at Colombo (SSC) was the highest Test score made by any batsman for a losing side. The previous highest was the unbeaten 211 by Australian Victor Trumper against South Africa at Adelaide in January 1911.

** Lara's 130 in the second innings against Sri Lanka at Colombo (SSC) took his match aggregate to 351 runs (he had scored 221 in the first innings). He became the first batsman in Test cricket history to aggregate over 350 runs in a Test on two separate occasions. Lara had first achieved this feat when he scored his record 375 (in a single innings) against England at St. John's in April 1994.

** Lara's 688 runs out of 1540 runs in the West Indies-Sri Lanka Test series represented 44.68 per cent of the total runs made by his team. This was Test cricket's most dominating performance by an individual batsman in a three or more Test match series. The previous record of 44.64 per cent was held by Zimbabwean Dave Houghton (466 runs out of 1044) also against Sri Lanka at home in 1994-95.

** Sri Lanka's left-arm pace bowler Chaminda Vaas' match figures of 14-191 runs at Colombo (SSC) against the West Indies, were the best by any left-arm pace bowler in 124 years of Test cricket. The previous best was achieved by Englishman J. J. Ferris, who claimed 13-91 against South Africa at Cape Town, way back in March 1892. Incidentally, Vaas' match figures were the best by any bowler on Sri Lankan soil.

Milestones reached in 2001

1,000 runs (13 players): M. V. Boucher (SA); S. Ramesh (Ind); C. Vaas (SL); R. D. Jacobs (WI); V.V.S. Laxman (Ind); M. L. Hayden (Aus); H. H. Streak (Zim); A. C. Gilchrist (Aus); D. R. Martyn (Aus); M. E. Trescothick (Eng); M. S. Sinclair (NZ); K. Sangakkara (SL); R. R. Sarwan (WI).

2,000 runs (7 players): Yousuf Youhana (Pak); M. Jayawardene (SL); C. D. McMillan (NZ); S. M. Pollock (SA); G. J. Whittall (Zim); M. R. Ramprakash (Eng); H. H. Gibbs (SA).

3,000 runs (6 players): M. S. Atapattu (SL); R. T. Ponting (Aus); S. C. Ganguly (Ind); J. H. Kallis (SA); H. P. Tillekeratne (SL); J. C. Adams (WI).

4,000 runs (5 players): G. P. Thorpe (Eng); R. S. Dravid (Ind); Saeed Anwar (Pak); A. Flower (Zim); S. T. Jayasuriya (SL).

5,000 runs (3 players): M. J. Slater (Aus); Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak); G. Kirsten (SA).

7,000 runs (5 players): M. A. Atherton (Eng); A. J. Stewart (Eng); M. E. Waugh (Aus); S. R. Tendulkar (Ind); B. C. Lara (WI).

50 wickets (4 players): S. T. Jayasuriya (SL); Harbhajan (Ind); M. Dillon (WI); B. Lee (Aus).

100 wickets (3 players): J. N. Gillespie (Aus); J. H. Kallis (SA); C. L. Hooper (WI).

150 wickets (4 players): A. R. Caddick (Eng); Saqlain Mushtaq (Pak); H. H. Streak (Zim); C. Vaas (SL).

200 wickets (2 players): D. Gough (Eng); J. Srinath (Ind).

250 wickets (1 player): S. M. Pollock (SA).

300 wickets (2 players): G. D. McGrath (Aus); M. Muralitharan (SL).

350 wickets (2 players): G. D. McGrath (Aus); M. Muralitharan (SL).

400 wickets (1 player): S. K. Warne (Aus).500 wickets (1 player): C. A. Walsh (WI).

Walsh became the first bowler to take 500 Test wickets.

50 catches (4 players): R. S. Dravid (Ind); A.D.R. Campbell (Zim); R. T. Ponting (Aus); M. Jayawardene (SL).

100 catches (3 players): B. C. Lara (WI); C. L. Hooper (WI); S. R. Waugh (Aus).

150 catches (1 player): M. E. Waugh (Aus).

Waugh went on to become the fielder with maximum Test catches - 163.

100 dismissals (2 wicket-keepers): R. D. Jacobs (WI); A. C. Gilchrist (Aus).

150 dismissals (1 wicket-keeper): M. V. Boucher (SA).

Boucher reached the milestone in 38 matches - the quickest by a keeper to do so in Tests.

1,000 runs & 100 wickets (4 players): C. Vaas (SL); H. H. Streak (Zim); J. H. Kallis (SA); C. L. Hooper (WI).

LOIs

March 3: Tendulkar became the first batsman in LOI history to reach the milestone of 10,000 runs - against Australia at Indore.

March 23: The two stumpings by Sri Lankan wicket-keeper Romesh Kaluwitharana, against England at Dambulla, claimed the 67th stumping of his career in his 154th match. This made him the keeper with maximum stumpings in LOI history. He went past the previous tally of 66 by Pakistani Moin Khan.

April 8: Bangladeshi opening batsman Javed Omar carried his bat through his team's innings of 103 runs in 30.4 overs, while scoring an unbeaten 33. Although seven other batsmen have carried their bat through their sides' innings, Omar's score was the lowest ever recorded by a batsman while carrying his bat.

April 10: Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya hit Kiwi bowler Chris Harris for 30 (6 6 6 6 4 2) runs in an over at Sharjah, which was the maximum scored off the bat in LOI history.

April 12: New Zealand off-spinner Grant Bradburn set a new LOI record when he made a "come-back" to the side against Pakistan at Sharjah after missing 184 matches in a gap of eight years and 121 days. He last appeared for New Zealand against Sri Lanka at Colombo (Premadasa Stadium) on 13-12-1992. He obliterated the previous record of 157 matches held by Indian Aashish Kapoor.

October 7: The partnership of 130 runs between Zimbabweans Andy Flower and Heath Streak against England at Harare was the best for the seventh wicket in LOIs. The previous best was also recorded earlier this year on 9-6-2001 at Cardiff when Pakistanis Yousuf Youhana and Rashid Latif put on 124 against Australia.

October 24:

** Sourav Ganguly reached 7,000 runs - against Kenya at Paarl. By reaching this landmark in 180 matches and 174 innings, he became the quickest to do so in LOIs among the 14 who have achieved this feat so far.

** The partnership of 258 runs between Indians Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar against Kenya at Paarl was the best for first wicket in LOIs. The pair bettered its own record of 252 runs, which was against Sri Lanka at Colombo (Premadasa) on 7-7-1998.

** Incidentally, the above partnership was the 16th 100-plus stand recorded by this pair in LOIs - the most by any opening pair. The West Indian pair of Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes had 15 such partnerships.

December 8:

** Zimbabwe was dismissed for a paltry 38 in 15.4 overs by Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground at Colombo. It was the lowest total ever recorded by a team in LOI history. The previous lowest was the 43 in 19.5 overs by Pakistan against West Indies at Cape Town on 25-2-1993.

** Sri Lanka's left-arm pace bowler Chaminda Vaas recorded the best bowling figures of 8-19 runs in eight overs to become the first bowler to capture eight wickets in a LOI match. He improved the previous best figures of 7-30 by teammate Muttiah Muralitharan against India at Sharjah on 27-10-2000.

** Vaas, in the above match, also became the first Sri Lankan bowler to claim a hat-trick in LOIs.

** The Zimbabwe innings was also the shortest in LOI history - in terms of overs. The team was dismissed in just 15.4 overs. The previous record was held by Pakistan when it was dismissed by the West Indies for 43 in 19.5 overs at Cape Town on 25-2-1993.

** It was also the shortest LOI match in history in terms of minutes and overs - it was all over in 108 minutes and just 20 overs.

** With Sri Lanka needing just 4.2 overs to reach the target of 39 - it was the quickest win while chasing a target in LOIs.

** The match aggregate of 78 runs for 11 wickets was the lowest in LOI history.

Milestones reached in 2001

1,000 runs (7 players): R. D. Jacobs (WI); W. W. Hinds (WI); C. Vaas (SL); K. Dharmasena (SL); S. O. Tikolo (Ken); C. B. Wishart (Zim); M. V. Boucher (SA).

2,000 runs (6 players): G. P. Thorpe (Eng); H. H. Gibbs (SA); N. V. Knight (Eng); C. D. McMillan (NZ); M. Jayawardene (SL); S. V. Carlisle (Zim).

3,000 runs (5 players): C. Z. Harris (NZ); A. C. Parore (NZ); R. S. Kaluwitharana (SL); S. Chanderpaul (WI); Shahid Afridi (Pak).

4,000 runs (7 players): A. D. R. Campbell (Zim); N. J. Astle (NZ); J. H. Kallis (SA); R. T. Ponting (Aus); M. S. Atapattu (SL); S. P. Fleming (NZ); A. J. Stewart (Eng).

5,000 runs (5 players): A. Flower (Zim); M. G. Bevan (Aus); C. L. Hooper (WI); G. W. Flower (Zim); R. S. Dravid (Ind).

6,000 runs (1 player): G. Kirsten (SA).

7,000 runs (4 players): S. R. Waugh (Aus); B. C. Lara (WI); S. C. Ganguly (Ind); S. T. Jayasuriya (SL).

8,000 runs (4 players): M. E. Waugh (Aus); Saeed Anwar (Pak); Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak).

10,000 runs (1 player): S. R. Tendulkar (Ind).

Tendulkar became the first batsman in LOI history to reach this landmark.

50 wickets (2 players): N. Zoysa (SL); B. Lee (Aus).

100 wickets (two players): Abdur Razzaq (Pak); A. B. Agarkar (Ind); K. Dharmasena (SL); S. R. Tendulkar (Ind).

150 wickets (1 player): H. H. Streak (Zim).

200 wickets (4 players): G. D. McGrath (Aus); S. T. Jayasuriya (SL); C. Vaas (SL); S. M. Pollock (SA).

250 wickets (3 players): S. K. Warne (Aus); Saqlain Mushtaq (Pak); M. Muralitharan (SL).

350 wickets (1 player): Waqar Younis (Pak).

50 catches (7 players): M. G. Bevan (Aus); N. J. Astle (NZ); S. C. Ganguly (Ind); G. Kirsten (SA); Shahid Afridi (Pak); J. H. Kallis (SA); S. M. Pollock (SA).

100 catches (1 player): M. E. Waugh (Aus).

150 dismissals (3 wicket-keepers): A. C. Gilchrist (Aus); A. Flower (Zim); M. V. Boucher (SA).

Note: All records are updated upto 10-12-2001.