Alan Gardner, Andrew Miller and Vish Ehantharajah get together to discuss James Anderson’s (enforced) Test farewell and preview the series with West Indies

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jul-2024The start of the England Men’s Test summer has been accompanied by an unusual news event, with James Anderson preparing to retire after a 21-year Test career. After Anderson spoke candidly about signing off at Lord’s, where it all began, the pod assembled: Alan Gardner, Andrew Miller and Vish Ehantharajah discussing the reluctant goodbye for England’s greatest wicket-taker, whether the team management have made the right call, impending debuts for Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith, and how West Indies can spoil the party.

Hosts left the door ajar handing everything that could go wrong free rein in Multan

Danyal Rasool10-Oct-2024Ollie Pope stood on the balcony, looking fresh and ready. He should have been, after all; he’d spent all but eight balls of the past 150 overs in the air-conditioned comfort of the dressing room. Chris Woakes had just taken a couple that took Saim Ayub past 100 conceded runs. He was the sixth bowler this innings to get there, a feat that has just one precedent in Test history. England had racked up 823-7; at this point, there was more interest in the post-match pitch report than the match report.Pope signalled them in, and ten minutes later, Abdullah Shafique came out to face the first ball. He was coming off a first innings hundred, and England had demonstrated there was little to fear from the surface as the Test dragged on. There is, in truth, little to fear from Chris Woakes away from home at this stage of his career, or from the first delivery he sent down. A polite enquiry of a half-volley, just asking the new ball if it would take early swing. As it headed straight down the line it was released, the answer was definitive: it would not.No matter, though, Shafique would play down the wrong line, anyway. The ball whispered through the unlocked gate, uprooting the off stump. After three-and-a-half days of the surface looking like it was offering nothing, England were repeatedly breaking in. It may look like a magic trick, but even the most impenetrable safe can be broken into if the door’s been left ajar.Related

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And Pakistan have left that door ajar up front a fair bit. Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique’s opening stands read like a phone number: 0, 0, 5, 3, 7, 0, 8 and 0, at a combined average of 2.87. No specialist batting pairing has ever managed to go as many innings without cracking into double figures, and if two innings on this surface don’t break that streak, you wonder what will.It says something about a year that saw Pakistan lose a home Test series to Bangladesh 2-0 that this day in Multan might be the nadir. The jarring contrast between the feast of wicket-taking in the second half of the day and the famine that preceded it, the broken spirits of Pakistan as they wilted in the heat, and the sheer inevitability of the disintegration with the bat. How often do you get 823 for 7 and 82 for 6 on the same day, and how do you justify it? It took England 73 balls to take Pakistan’s first four wickets; Pakistan had earlier needed 817 to get there.In that ignominious second half of the day, Pakistan’s fragility, both mental and tactical, was left as nakedly exposed as the pitch prepared in Multan. Shan Masood lasted all of 22 balls in a galling struggle of an innings, and was fortunate to survive that long, reprieved twice when Woakes and Atkinson each put him down. Babar Azam’s nick through to the keeper was reminiscent of the way he kept getting dismissed in Australia, except this was Multan rather than Perth and Atkinson, for all his promise, isn’t exactly Josh Hazlewood or Pat Cummins.Babar Azam’s woes continued in Multan•Associated PressBut with confidence approaching subterranean levels, there isn’t a situation pressing enough to drag him out of the rut he seems irrevocably trapped in, or a pitch flat enough to prevent Pakistan’s now customary third-innings collapse. It is how they’ve lost every other Test match this year, a streak that will be extended when England wrap up the formalities on the final day tomorrow.”Everyone’s a bit disappointed,” Pakistan high-performance coach Tim Nielsen said after the day. “If the players learning anything, it’s that Test cricket is hard. And that’s not a bad lesson to learn because it doesn’t get easier. They need to be resilient and strong and tough.”It hadn’t seemed quite so hard when England, batted, though. In 49 overs, England amassed 331 runs, Pakistan setting the tone when Babar generously put Joe Root down at midwicket off the luckless Naseem Shah. More spilled chances would follow, more boundaries would accumulate, and more records would tumble. The highest away partnership in Test cricket, the highest total Pakistan have ever conceded, the highest individual score against Pakistan? You got them all, and then some.ESPNcricinfo LtdBut little of this is new, and even less is surprising. The only evidence we have of Masood and Abdullah’s return to form is day one of a surface England did on, while the jury on the Saim Ayub experiment remains out. Babar’s now approaching the longest run without a half-century by any specialist Pakistan batter in history. The whack-a-mole Pakistan play with injuries shows no signs of abating, with the struggling Abrar Ahmed the latest fitness doubt.Pakistan’s options to replace him are underwhelming, exacerbated by no obvious replacements from the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. You know why? Because three Tests into the biggest red-ball summer in a generation, this year’s edition is yet to begin. September saw them play the Champions One-Day Cup instead, and while its merits or otherwise remain disputed, white-ball spinners are of little use to Pakistan without any evidence their skills are transferrable to this format against a batting line-up of England’s class.But while it’s hard to blame individuals for a broken structure, losing six wickets in a session on this deck lies at the feet of the individuals in this side. Aamer Jamal and Salman Ali Agha – two of Pakistan’s brighter spots over the last year – demonstrated exactly that in an unbeaten 70-run partnership that closed out the day. Pakistan may have dragged out the inevitable overnight in Multan, but the agony is merely being prolonged. And as far as many in this particular Test side are concerned, it’s perhaps an appropriate metaphor.

Vital century extends stellar record in Pakistan and stands as contrast to collapse that followed

Matt Roller16-Oct-2024Ben Duckett is ideally suited to conditions in Pakistan and England’s collapse against their spinners in Multan on the second evening only highlighted his value. On his return to the top of the order (having slipped down due to injury last week), Duckett scored 114 – his fourth Test hundred – on a recycled pitch. He outscored the other five members of England’s top six combined, who managed just 100 between them.Duckett was the second of four wickets to fall in an 18-ball period as the sun started to set behind the Zaheer Abbas Enclosure, slashing Sajid Khan to slip. This was the seventh day the same pitch had been used, and as the ball got older, it started to misbehave off the surface, with some significant turn and low bounce.The collapse was a particular frustration to Duckett given his own strength against spin, and he threw his head back in frustration when dismissed. England were understandably wary about Pakistan’s ploy to re-use the same surface for this Test but it played into Duckett’s hands, as he swept and reverse-swept prodigiously through his innings.”My theory is that the spinners’ best delivery is where I want the ball [to pitch] to play a sweep shot,” he explained. “It’s also trying to get rid of the fielders around me, especially with a new ball. They want to have a short leg, a slip, a leg slip… then it’s trying to get those fielders out and make it slightly easier where I can rotate and get singles.”Duckett scored nearly half of his runs from sweeps, whether reverse, paddle, slog or conventional, but believes he has become more adaptable in the last two years. “Last time I came to Pakistan, I potentially played too many sweeps and didn’t really change it up, whereas now I’m trying to make the bowlers change their lengths and lines.”Yet it was only fitting that he reached three figures with a flat, hard sweep off Salman Agha for four, having spent 22 balls in the 90s on the way to the slowest of his four Test hundreds. He revealed last week that his failure to convert his half-centuries had started to play on his mind, but, despite the odd scare, he cast those issues aside. “It was more of a relief than anything.”Duckett said he had also been relieved upon learning that Pakistan had picked a single seamer, Aamer Jamal, given he is still recovering from the dislocation of his left thumb during the first Test. He faced only 13 balls from Jamal compared to 113 from the four spinners used, and only the offspinner Sajid – whose stock ball turns away from his outside edge – caused him any real issues.Related

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His most anxious moment came on 83, when he missed a reverse-sweep off Sajid which in turn missed his leg stump by no more than millimetres. “It was a different challenge today, facing a good offspinner who eventually got me out in the end,” Duckett said. “But it was nice to back my defence, and play with a straighter bat to him.”That thumb injury forced Duckett down to No. 4 in the first Test, but he was back at the top of the order this week and put on 73 with Zak Crawley in a typically breezy opening stand. It was their first partnership since July, after Crawley missed the Sri Lanka series with a broken finger, and a reminder of their contrasting strengths at 5ft7in and 6ft5in respectively.It was the 13th time out of 36 that Crawley and Duckett have added at least 50 for the first wicket, and their partnership is world-leading in their two years opening together. “It’s so good batting with ‘Creeps’,” Duckett said. “I’ve realised what it’s like not being out there with him in the last few games. We complement each other well.”The importance of Duckett’s contribution became apparent as this second day wore on, with Ollie Pope, Joe Root and Harry Brook dismissed by balls that either turned appreciably out of the footmarks or skidded through lower than anticipated. It is now up to England’s lower order to drag them up towards parity on the third morning.Duckett extended his stellar record in Pakistan, and specifically in Multan: he hit twin half-centuries in England’s tight win here two years ago, then slapped 84 after his thumb injury last week. “I’m obviously facing a lot of spin, and a lot of spin turning into me, which I do enjoy,” he said. “They’re fast-scoring grounds out here, and generally very good to bat on.”Only Brook has scored more Test runs or hundreds for England in Pakistan than Duckett, and already it feels as though his output in the final innings of this match could dictate the result: by the time this surface is into its eighth or ninth day of use, Duckett’s prowess against spin could prove invaluable.

Australia, meanwhile, have plenty to do if they’re to finish in the top two without depending on other results

S Rajesh25-Nov-2024India
India’s emphatic win in Perth takes them back to the top of the WTC points table, and keeps their chances of making it to the final at Lord’s next year very much alive. To be certain of finishing among the top two without depending on other results, India still need to beat Australia 4-0: four wins and a draw would lift India to 65.79, which would be marginally more than New Zealand’s maximum (64.29) if they were to blank England 3-0 at home. India would then at worst be second on the points table, after South Africa, who can finish on a maximum of 69.44 with 2-0 home wins against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.Related

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However, these scenarios are based on other teams maximising their points. If that doesn’t happen, India can still make it with far fewer points. If, for example, these results happen from the key upcoming series:India lose to Australia 2-3
New Zealand draw with England 1-1
South Africa draw 1-1 at home in both their remaining series, versus Sri Lanka and Pakistan
Australia draw 0-0 in Sri LankaThen Australia would finish on top at 58.77, but India’s 53.51 would still be enough for second place, ahead of South Africa (52.78), New Zealand (52.38) and Sri Lanka (51.28). Thus, where India finish up also depends on how other results pan out.Australia
The defeat in Perth means Australia have plenty to do to finish in the top two without depending on other results. Given that South Africa and New Zealand can both finish with more than 64%, Australia need five wins in their last six to finish ahead of New Zealand’s maximum of 64.29; in this case only South Africa, with a maximum of 69.44, can finish ahead of them.If India win the ongoing series 3-2, Australia can still finish ahead of them, but only if they sweep the series against Sri Lanka 2-0. In this case, Australia would finish on 60.53, marginally ahead of India’s 58.77, but they would still need help from at least one of South Africa or New Zealand to finish in the top two.ESPNcricinfo LtdSouth Africa
While much of the focus of the cricket world is on Australia and India, there’s another huge series about to start in South Africa. They take on Sri Lanka and then Pakistan at home. If South Africa were to win each of their four remaining Tests, they would finish with 69.44%, which would be enough for qualification as only Australia can go past that number. Three wins and a draw would leave South Africa with 63.89, while three wins and a defeat would lower their percentage marginally to 61.11. If South Africa were to finish on 61.11, it’s possible for three teams to go past them – New Zealand, plus two out of Australia, India and Sri Lanka. That means South Africa can’t afford to drop too many points if they want to make it to Lord’s next year.Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka are in a similar position to South Africa, which is what makes the series doubly interesting – they are on 55.56% with four Tests to go. However, unlike South Africa, only two of those matches are at home, against Australia. If they were to win each of those matches and take home 48 more points, they would finish on 69.23% and assure themselves of a place in the final regardless of other results. If they were to lose one and win three, they would end up on 61.54, which would still leave them with a chance of qualifying. However, as with South Africa above, that would leave them depending on other results, as New Zealand and one of India or Australia could go past them.New Zealand
At the start of the series in India, it seemed highly improbable that New Zealand would still be in contention for a place in the final at the end of the series in India, but three incredible wins have given them the chance to dream. If they were to win each of their three remaining Tests, they would finish on 64.29. It won’t ensure qualification, but it would certainly keep them in the mix. If they lose one of those Tests, though, their percentage would drop to 57.14, which would still keep them in the hunt but heavily dependent on other results.Australia need five wins in their last six to finish ahead of New Zealand’s maximum of 64.29•AFP/Getty ImagesPakistan
Pakistan’s home form has shown some revival, but it’s most likely too late in this cycle. If they win each of their four remaining Tests, they would finish on 52.38. They would still need several results going their way to be in contention. If, for instance, Sri Lanka lose 0-1 in South Africa and draw 1-1 against Australia, India lose 1-2 in Australia, and New Zealand lose 1-2 versus England, then Pakistan’s 52.38 would be enough for second place behind Australia.England
The two defeats in Pakistan means that England can finish with a maximum of 48.86 percent even if they beat New Zealand 3-0 in their last series of the current cycle. It’s almost certain that this won’t be enough for qualification, though there’s a mathematical chance of finishing second on 48.86 if several other results go their way: if India get no more than 13 points from their remaining games, and the upper limits being 18 and 16 respectively for South Africa and Sri Lanka, then England could still finish second to Australia.Bangladesh
The four defeats in their last four Tests against India and South Africa have hurt Bangladesh badly – from 45.83% they have dropped to 27.50. Even if they win each of their two remaining Tests, they would only improve to 39.58, which won’t be enough for a place in the top two.West Indies
West Indies have already played four series and have only scored 20 points out of 108. Even if they win their last four Tests, they can only finish on 43.59%.

His temperament is his greatest gift, and both Sam Konstas and his friends expect him to profit from it if he makes his Test debut come Boxing Day

Alex Malcolm23-Dec-2024Sam Konstas stood in front of a huge media throng on the outfield at the MCG on Monday and looked not a day older than the 19 years and 82 days that he is.It was his third visit to the MCG this summer, having been there for a Sheffield Shield game in late October, and an Australia A game in early November.There was arguably more media peppering him with questions on Monday than patrons in the crowd for those two MCG first-class games combined.Related

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If he were to make his Test debut on Boxing Day against India, he would become the fourth-youngest Australian to do so behind Ian Craig, current captain Pat Cummins, and Tom Garrett.And he would do so in front of 90,000 or more fans.You could have heard a pin drop in the MCC Members’ when he faced his first ball from Scott Boland in the Shield game back in October. On Boxing Day, if the crowd is anything like that India-Pakistan 2022 T20 World Cup game at the MCG, the first ball he could face from Jasprit Bumrah might sound like a sonic boom.”I think it’s just another day for me,” Konstas said while acknowledging his debut is yet to be confirmed. “Obviously, it’s a bit more special. Got my parents coming. Pretty simple, just back myself and see-ball-hit-ball really.”That clarity of mind is part of the reason he stands on the precipice of debuting for Australia at such a young age. The naivety and brashness of youth are seen as a strength, not a weakness.”The way he approaches the game, it does not bother him who he’s coming up against,” New South Wales and Australia team-mate Sean Abbott said of Konstas. “He’s pretty unfazed. And I’d imagine, should he get the opportunity, it’d be pretty similar. From what I’ve seen so far, I’d probably say it’s his most admirable attribute.”Sam Konstas is the third-youngest player in Sheffield Shield history to score twin hundreds in a match•AFPPart of it also comes from his relationship with former Australia allrounder Shane Watson. Konstas counts Watson as an idol and a mentor. The entire Watson family is set to fly down to Melbourne should he make his debut.Konstas is a disciple of Watson’s mental skills teachings. The former Australia allrounder has written a book called and has turned it into an online course to help young cricketers hone their mental skills. It is the story of his own mental journey from being paralysed by an intense focus on results during his Test career to discovering and implementing a simple process-driven mindset in his successful late-career renaissance in T20 franchise cricket. He has worked with New South Wales as a mental skills consultant, having already been a mentor to Konstas since he was 16.In that sense, Konstas might be the best mentally prepared 19-year-old to have ever been thrust into such a scenario given what he understands.Konstas was asked if he had been studying videos of Bumrah in preparation for a possible face-off. “Nah, not really,” he said. “I’ve watched him quite a bit, but [I am] just trying to be in the moment. Hopefully, I get the opportunity on Boxing Day.”How he got here is even more remarkable. As late as October 7, barely anyone in Australian cricket had given a thought to Konstas playing Test cricket this summer. By October 11, after becoming the third-youngest player in Sheffield Shield history to score twin hundreds in a match, he was being compared to Ricky Ponting and there were demands for him to be picked immediately.

“The way he approaches the game, it does not bother him who he’s coming up against. He’s pretty unfazed”Sean Abbott on Sam Konstas

Nine days later he was at the MCG under the microscope. Not one, but two Australian selectors – coach Andrew McDonald and Tony Dodemaide – watched him face Boland and Victoria at the MCG after chairman of selectors George Bailey had been in Sydney for his twin centuries.He made 2 and 43, sawn off by a dubious lbw in the first innings and undone by some immaturity in the second. There were glimpses that he was a player for the future, but it looked like he wasn’t quite ready for the here and now.Scores of 0 and 16 against India A in Mackay served to further consolidate that view. On his return to the MCG on November 7, he did not open the batting in the second A game, a further sign he was not likely to be chosen for the first Test. But his second innings of 73 not out batting at No. 4 showed a different set of gears. He struck seven fours and a six and played some outrageous shots in a tricky, pressurized chase.Nathan McSweeney’s temperament, his consistency of method, and his early-season form saw him get the Test nod over Konstas. But ironically the consistency of method across a brutal series so far has now gone against McSweeney and for Konstas.McSweeney’s struggles have been clear. He is 4 for 15 from 66 balls against Bumrah in the series. He is not alone there, with Usman Khawaja (4 for 17 in 71 balls), Marnus Labuschange (2 for 6 in 72 balls), and Steven Smith (3 for 20 in 54 balls) also having problems against Bumrah.But McSweeney is 57 off 146 against the rest of India’s attack, striking at just 39.04. It is the lowest strike rate of all of Australia’s top nine against Indian bowlers not named Bumrah. McSweeney has paid a price for being too similar to Khawaja and Labuschagne in method, and they have survived because they are doing more damage at the other end.Sam Konstas scored 107 off 97 balls against the Indians late last month•AFP/Getty ImagesKonstas over the last month has proved he can be the “different look” that Bailey and the selectors want to throw at India. His 107 off 97 in Canberra against all of India’s bowlers bar Bumrah backed up his last innings in the A series. He added 88 off 146 against a good Western Australia attack that featured Australia ODI quick Lance Morris and A spinner Corey Rocchiccioli, with his first 55 coming off just 64 deliveries. He then smashed a 20-ball half-century on debut for Sydney Thunder in the BBL, albeit against an Adelaide Strikers attack that McSweeney himself made 78 not out off 49 on Sunday night.It is understood a decision had been made to add Konstas regardless of the BBL scores, as they are no indicator of anything in relation to facing Bumrah on Boxing Day.There’s no guarantee Konstas will play either, as a decision is still to be made. But even at his first Australia training session on Monday, he looked completely unfazed. He kept his net session short, not trying to impress or over-exert facing deliveries that he didn’t need to face. It was eye-opening compared to the hour-plus nets that Khawaja, Smith and Labuschagne had. He was one of the few Australian players to help his team-mates out by flinging balls to Labuschagne before leaving the optional net early, joking with a couple of team-mates on the way out with the air of a 30-year-old veteran.He was asked about being compared to his mentor Watson on social media. “I don’t look through too much on social media, but I’ll take it as a compliment,” Konstas said. “I like to take the game on and put pressure on the bowlers. I think he’s [Watson] a legend of the game, and hopefully I can do that this week if I debut.”

Raucous win over Trent Rockets puts Sam Billings’ side on the cusp of a third consecutive title

Matt Roller22-Aug-2025Can anyone stop Oval Invincibles? They gunned down a target of 172 inside 89 balls against Trent Rockets, their nearest challengers, at The Oval on Thursday night, all but confirming their progress to the knockout stage. One win in their last two group games should be enough to take Invincibles straight through to next Sunday’s final at Lord’s, as they chase a third title in a row.This was an exhilarating game decided by two extraordinary innings: Sam Curran belted 52 off 24 balls, including six sixes in an eight-ball stretch, and Jordan Cox smoked 58 not out off 32. Invincibles needed 102 off the last 40 balls when David Willey took the Rockets’ strategic time out; it took them just 29 more to finish the chase. It was stunning ball-striking under the pressure of a run chase.Cox made the first play, hauling Willey over the short boundary towards the dugouts, before Curran went on a rampage. He had scored just 7 off 12 balls at the time out, but resolved that every ball had to go thereafter: “I knew it was six or out for me, because I was struggling a bit.” Ten balls and six sixes later, he raised his bat to acknowledge the applause for an outrageous fifty.Invincibles still needed 38 off 24 when Curran was dismissed. Cox took the baton, hoisting Marcus Stoinis over wide long-on, and then reverse-ramping him for four. Donovan Ferreira cracked his third and fourth balls for sixes before Cox finished things off with consecutive boundaries, punching the air in celebration.Sam Curran and Jordan Cox’s ten-ball charge put Invincibles in control•Alex Davidson/Getty Images”It felt like we were in a really strong position, but you have to give credit to the opposition sometimes,” Joe Root, who had scored 76 in 41 balls for Rockets, said. “There was great ball-striking and that phase of ten balls in the middle really changed the momentum and made it very difficult for us to get a hold back on the game… Clearly, [Invincibles] have got a formula that works, with some extremely good players.”The Oval was raucous. “It’s our first midweek game: a lot of people come in from the city and enjoyed the evening. You get a couple out of the middle, and the fans kept going and going,” Curran beamed. “It almost felt like one of those games in India, where there’s so much energy… You forgot about the situation, and you just remember how cool this is.”Since England left Cox and Curran out of their white-ball squads last Friday, they have scored 338 runs off 173 balls between them, including 26 sixes. Rob Key, England’s managing director, told the podcast on Thursday morning that Curran had to force his way back in through weight of runs. This knock was as clear a message as he could have ever hoped to send.”They’ve been pretty clear with me what I need to do,” Curran said. “I’m chasing three trophies at the moment: the Hundred, the Championship, and the T20 Blast for Surrey… Normally guys come into September with an end-of-season feeling, so to be able to say I’m pushing for three trophies and enjoying my cricket is a nice place to be.”Invincibles sealed back-to-back titles last year•ECB/Getty ImagesA three-peat would be a phenomenal achievement. The Hundred – like most short-form leagues – is designed to ensure competitive balance, with its strict salary bands and annual drafts devised to uphold the theory that anyone can beat anyone. In practice, Invincibles have beaten everyone: across the last three seasons, they have won 19 games and lost only four.The secret is an open one: continuity is key. They identified a core of local players ahead of the first season and have tried to minimise squad turnover. Will Jacks, the Curran brothers, and Sam Billings have generally been the stars, but Cox, Nathan Sowter and Saqib Mahmood have all been retained throughout the tournament’s short history.”Our roles are so consistent,” Curran said. “We’ve been very smart with the way we’ve signed players… Guys like Rashid Khan comes in for [Adam] Zampa last year, and then [Jason] Behrendorff comes in for Spencer Johnson. It’s pretty smooth planning. We turned up two days before the tournament and there weren’t too many meetings, because we knew our roles.”They have actively avoided speaking about the prospect of a third successive title. “We know it’s quite a dangerous thing to do,” Curran warned. “We know there are a lot of teams that are playing really well and are a lot more settled. The Hundred’s into its fifth season, so guys know how to play the format, and we’ve kept our side pretty solid as well. One game at a time.”Rashid Khan is done for the season with Invincibles•ECB via Getty ImagesThursday’s win was Rashid Khan’s final appearance of the season – he is heading to Sharjah for Afghanistan’s tri-series with UAE and Pakistan – and he will clearly be missed. He was the game’s standout bowler, taking 2 for 19 from 20 balls, and his googly to clean up Root with the final ball of his spell was a turning point.Rashid had one off-night, conceding 59 runs against Birmingham Phoenix when Liam Livingstone took him down; in his other five appearances, he has combined figures of 12 for 105 from 100 balls. Invincibles will go into their final two group games with two overseas players, with Zampa – last season’s leading wicket-taker – set to return for the knockouts.It should be another seamless transition, for which Tom Moody and Billings – as coach and captain – deserve substantial credit. The Hundred may only be in its infancy, but a third consecutive trophy would be an achievement that only a handful of teams in the history of short-form cricket can match.

Also, were England and India’s four changes apiece for the fifth Test a record?

Steven Lynch05-Aug-2025Was India’s six-run win at the Oval their closest in a Test? asked Jaswant Mohan, among many others
India’s pulsating victory at The Oval yesterday was indeed their closest by runs in any Test match – previously it was a 13-run win over Australia in Mumbai in 2004 (Australia were set 107, but were bowled out for 93).There have been only seven narrower victories by runs in all Tests, including two by just one run, by West Indies over Australia in Adelaide in 1993, and by New Zealand over England in Wellington in 2023.There have also been 15 victories by one wicket, including India’s over Australia in Mohali in October 2010 (VVS Laxman and Pragyan Ojha scrambled 11 for the last wicket to win that one).Ravi Jadeja passed 1000 Test runs in England during the fourth Test, and he’s also taken more than 30 wickets. How many people have done this double over the years? asked Afzal Burman from India
After his century in the second innings at Old Trafford, the Indian allrounder Ravindra Jadeja had 1096 runs in 16 Tests in England, plus 34 wickets: by the end of the Oval Test, he had increased that to 1158 runs (and still 34 wickets). Only two other visiting players have collected more than 1000 runs and 25 wickets in Tests in England: the durable Australian allrounder Charlie Macartney, with 1118 runs and 26 wickets in 21 Tests between 1909 and 1926, and the great West Indian Garry Sobers, who amassed 1820 runs at 53.52 and took 62 wickets at 31.58 in 21 matches between 1957 and 1973. He also pocketed 28 catches.Nine other overseas players have completed the Test double of 500 runs and 25 wickets in England. Of those, Shane Warne took 129 wickets in 22 matches (to go with 563 runs), while Richard Hadlee (70) and Mitchell Starc (65) both took more than 50 wickets.For the fifth Test, both England and India made four changes from the previous match. How unusual is this number of changes mid-series? asked Alex Baker from Scotland
There was an unusual shuffling of the cards for the fifth Test at The Oval last week. It was the sixth time that both teams had made four changes in a Test in the middle of a series, following Australia and India in November 1956, England and Pakistan in July 1962, England and West Indies in July 1976, and Pakistan and Sri Lanka in March 1982 and also in July 2015.In the middle of the 1994-95 series down under, Australia made four changes and Pakistan five, while in England in July 1959, England made six changes and India five between the second and third Tests. But the record was set in Sri Lanka in July 2002, when the hosts made no fewer than seven changes for the second of two Tests, and Bangladesh five.The most team changes by one team in mid-series is the maximum of 11, back in 1884-85 when Australia selected an entirely new side for the second Ashes Test in Melbourne after a pay dispute. England, however, kept an unchanged team. Australia made another seven changes for the third Test in Sydney: four of the “new” team survived, three of the pay rebels returned from the first Test, and four new players were called up – so Australia used 26 different men in the first three Tests of that series.Australia’s 3-0 thumping of West Indies last month was only the second instance a team losing all 60 wickets and still going on to win a Test series•AFP via Getty ImagesIn the recent Test series in the West Indies, Australia lost all 60 wickets but still won the series 3-0. Has this ever happened before? asked Rawle Agard from Canada
The recent Frank Worrell Trophy series in the Caribbean was a low-scoring one, without an individual century, as this column touched on two weeks ago. Looking into it a little more closely, it seems the recent encounter was only the second three-Test series in which all 120 wickets fell. The other one was South Africa vs India in 2017-18, which the home side won 2-1.Early in 2004, Australia won 3-0 in Sri Lanka, despite losing 58 of their 60 wickets in the series (Sri Lanka lost all 60). There are two other three-Test series in which 118 wickets fell, both resulting in 2-1 wins.I noticed that Paul Allott took 26 Test wickets, all of them in England. What’s the most? asked Jack McConnell from Manchester
You’re right that all of the Lancashire and England fast bowler Paul Allott’s 26 Test wickets came in England. He did play two Tests overseas – one in India and one in Sri Lanka in 1981-82 – but failed to strike. Allott did lead the way for England on this esoteric list – until the fifth Test against India at The Oval last week, in which Josh Tongue took eight wickets, which gave him 31 in Tests to date, all so far at home. So Tongue leads the way for England now, at least until he takes a wicket overseas.The overall leader is the unorthodox left-arm spinner Bert “Dainty” Ironmonger, whose 74 Test wickets all came at home in Australia. There are various theories about why he never toured England, ranging from doubts about his bowling action to worries about whether he had the social graces required for such a trip. England definitely missed out on an interesting character: Ironmonger spun the ball off the stump of a finger mangled in a farm accident, and was almost unplayable on a helpful pitch. Against South Africa in Melbourne in February 1932, he took 5 for 6 and 6 for 18 on a “sticky dog” that was drying after rain. He made his Test debut in 1928-29 at the age of 46, and played in the 1932-33 Bodyline series when he was 50 years old.Two more Australians come next: legspinner Herbert “Ranji” Hordern took 46 Test wickets without playing abroad, while the later fast bowler Alan Hurst collected 43. Like Allott, Hurst played two Tests on the subcontinent without taking a wicket. Also ahead of Allott are a trio of South Africans whose wickets all came at home:Mike Procter (41), Alf Hall (40) and “Goofy” Lawrence (28).Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Valkerie Baynes and Firdose Moonda are joined by Vishal Dikshit, who was on the ground in Indore and caught up exclusively with the centurion as Australia opened their title defence

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2025Australia allrounder Ashleigh Gardner joins Vishal Dikshit to talk about her sensational century against New Zealand in the Women’s World Cup, the thrill of playing in front of loud crowds in India, and much more. Also joining the conversation are Firdose Moonda and Valkerie Baynes.