Bill Frindall, aka the Bearded Wonder, is poised to solve your cricket queries and teasers.
The Test Match Special statistician will be busy answering your questions throughout the winter season.
Fill in the form on the right-hand side of the page to stump the Bearded Wonder.
Baqar Naqvi, Canada
In the recent Pakistan v India third Test match at Karachi, the first seven batsmen in Pakistan's second innings all scored fifties. Is this a record?
Thank you Baqar. Questions on similar lines have been asked by many others; interestingly most have been submitted from Pakistan and none from India!
Yes, it is a record because, on the only other occasion when seven batsmen scored half-centuries in a Test innings (England v Australia at Manchester in 1934), they were not the first seven batsmen in the order. Three of the 22 instances of six individual fifties in a Test innings, 10 of which were posted by Australia incidentally, have featured the top half-dozen batsmen.
Bill Warner, Kent
Pakistan have just scored a combined total of 1,078 runs in their two innings against India. Is this a record for the most runs in by one team in a Test match?
No, it is the second-highest tally by a Test side. Pakistan, who scored 588 and 490, fell just 43 runs short of the record 1,121 created by England (849 and 272-9 declared) in a timeless Test against West Indies at Kingston, Jamaica, in April 1930.
Chris, UK
Has there ever been a cricketer who made a century and took all 10 wickets in an innings of the same first-class match?
Four cricketers achieved that double but there has been no instance since 1919. The first was V.E.Walker who scored 20* and 108 as well as taking 10-74 and 4-17 for England v Surrey at The Oval in 1859. One of the famous Walker brethren of Middlesex, Vyell Edward was an outstanding amateur all-rounder who captained the county (1864-72) before becoming its president. He subsequently held that office twice for the MCC.
The other three instances were by E.M.Grace (192* and 10-69 in a 12-a-side match for MCC v Gentlemen of Kent at Canterbury in 1862), his more famous brother W.G.Grace (104 and 10-49 for MCC v Oxford University at Oxford in 1886) and F.A.Tarrant (182* and 10-90 for Maharaja of Cooch Behar's XI v Lord Willingdon's XI at Poona in 1918-19).
M.L.Spencer, Thailand
My maternal great grandfather, J.T. Brown, was involved in a record-breaking partnership early in the 20th century with a man called Tunnicliffe. Do you know anything more about this record and his career?
Neat, powerfully built and stylish, John Thomas ('Jack') Brown (1869-1904) was one of Yorkshire's most prolific opening batsmen. He appeared in 346 matches for the county (1889-1904) and in eight Tests, all against Australia.
With the 1894-95 rubber level, Brown scored an astonishing 140 in the final Test at Melbourne to secure a six-wicket win that retained the Ashes. His first fifty took only 28 minutes and remains the fastest in terms of time and his 95-minute hundred was then the quickest in Tests.
Brown is alone in scoring two triple hundreds for Yorkshire, the second of them, 300 against Derbyshire at Chesterfield in 1898, contributing to a then first-class world record partnership for any wicket of 554. It was one of 19 century stands that he shared with John Tunnicliffe.
Brown mastered all conditions to score 1,000 runs in 10 successive seasons, the favourite of his full range of strokes being the late cut. In all first-class matches he scored 17,582 runs (avge 30.46) with 29 hundreds, took 190 wickets (avge 29.61) with his leg-breaks and held 229 catches. Heavy smoking contributed to asthma, heart problems and an early death.
Usman Salim, Pakistan
Sachin Tendulkar no doubt is a class act. But I am very curious to know how many of the 35 Test match centuries have actually accounted for an Indian win?
Twelve of Tendulkar's 35 hundreds (34%) have contributed to Indian victories, eight to defeats and 15 to draws. If this survey shows anything it probably demonstrates that it is bowlers who win Test matches. England provided support for this theory in last summer's Ashes series.
Even the greatest batsmen are rendered impotent if they are not supported by a strong bowling attack. Eight of Sachin's most recent 13 hundreds have come in victories, during a five-year period which has coincided with India fielding an experienced group of bowlers.
Malcolm Cartwright, UK
The length of a cricket pitch always has to be the same, but does the width of a cricket pitch have to be the same?
Yes, it does. Law 7 (1) specifies the dimensions of the pitch as being 'a rectangular area of the ground, 22 yards/20.12m in length and 10ft/3.05m in width.' Note 5 to that Law decrees that non-turf pitches should be a minimum of 58ft/17.68m long and a minimum of 6ft/1.83m wide.
Mike Battrum, UK
Who has had the most 'not out' scores in Test cricket?
Courtney Walsh, the first man to take 500 Test wickets, holds that record with 61 not outs in 185 innings during 132 appearances for West Indies. He surpassed the record 55 of a fellow fast-bowler, England's Bob Willis, from 128 innings in 90 Tests. The current leading 'not outer' is another new ball specialist, Glenn McGrath, who has been stranded 49 times in 131 innings during 118 international Tests for Australia.
Michael Rowe, Switzerland
At school in the UK I was taught by the late J.N.Stevens, who played a few first-class matches for Northants (1937) and Free Foresters (1953). I remember him saying that he had also played for Minor Counties teams. Can you please tell me which ones and how he fared?
The school was in Suffolk so that might have been one of them. In WWII he was in the RAF. Did he represent the Air Force?
James Norman Stevens was born at Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex, in 1910 and died at Ipswich, Suffolk, in 1993. Right-handed, he was a fast-medium new ball bowler and lower-order batsman.
He didn't make a tremendous impact at first-class level. In seven matches, including five for Northamptonshire in August 1937 (a season in which they failed to win a match and finished last) and two for the Free Foresters in 1953, he took nine wickets (avge 63.44), scored 76 runs (avge 6.90) and held one catch.
His highest score of 19 and best analysis 3-85 were both achieved for Northants. He represented Wiltshire briefly in 1936 and, as you surmised, Suffolk from 1949-55. The latter finished third in 1951, his best season, when he contributed 26 wickets (avge 21.26) and scored 136 runs (avge 27.20), including a career-best undefeated 51.
Your query about the RAF allowed me a rare survey of the wartime Wisdens but Stevens appears to have eluded their selectors, perhaps by being despatched on missions overseas. His brief obituary appears in the 1995 Wisden.
Rich, England
Has a bowler ever bowled consecutive overs in an innings during a Test match? My mate reckons there has been an instance.
Your mate is absolutely right. It certainly happened during the Old Trafford Ashes Test in July 1921. The bowler was Warwick Armstrong, Australia's captain, and he did it deliberately. The opening day of the three-day match having been lost, England attempted to declare their innings at 5.50pm on the second evening.
Armstrong objected because, under two-day regulations, a declaration was not permitted unless 100 minutes batting time was available to the fielding side. The players left the field, 25 minutes were lost, England were forced to resume their innings and Armstrong delivered his illegal over.
Sam, England
What is the highest number of hundreds in a single innings?
In Test cricket the record is five. It was established by Australia when they scored 758-8 declared against West Indies at Kingston in June 1955. Their record was equalled by Pakistan when they scored 546-3 declared against Bangladesh at Multan in August 2001.
The first-class record is six by Holkar (912-8 declared) v Mysore at Indore in 1945-46.
Andrew Orme, Australia
What is the lowest first innings total ever to have won a Test match?
The lowest first innings winning total is a mere 45, Andrew, the third-lowest first-innings tally in all Test cricket. In a remarkable match at Sydney Cricket Ground on 28, 29, 31 January 1887, England (45 and 184) beat Australia (119 and 97) by 13 runs.
It was a match of firsts and oddities. It began at 1.45pm after the completion of a Sheffield Shield game, the only instance of an Australian ground staging two first-class fixtures on the same day.
Although a fresh pitch was used for each innings, no batsmen scored 50 for the first time in a Test in Australia. P.S. (Percy) McDonnell became the first toss-winning Test captain to elect to field. C.T.B. (Charles) Turner (6-15) and J.J. (John) Ferris (4-27) bowled unchanged throughout England's first innings.
Brian Wardle, Germany
At a recent indoor tournament that you attended in Dortmund a batsman was given out stumped off a no-ball. Was that decision correct?
No, Brian, it was not. Although you can be stumped off a wide, Law 24, note 15, excludes stumping from the four dismissals possible off a no-ball. They are handled the ball, hit the ball twice, obstructing the field and run out.
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