Also: the highest ODI innings totals without individual hundreds, and the Indian who played all ten of his Tests against England
Steven Lynch23-Oct-2017What is the record for Test centuries made at a single venue by a player? asked Allan Alexander from the United States
Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene leads the way here, with 11 Test centuries at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo. Jayawardene scored 2921 runs (another record) in 27 Tests at the SSC, which also happens to be his home club ground. Don Bradman made nine centuries at the MCG – from just 11 Tests, in one of which he was injured and didn’t bat – while Jacques Kallis hit nine at Newlands, in Cape Town, but from twice as many matches.Kumar Sangakkara scored eight Test centuries at the SSC, and also collected seven in Galle, as did Jayawardene. Michael Clarke made seven in Adelaide. For the list of players who have scored five or more Test centuries on a single ground, click here.The record for centuries on a single ground in one-day internationals is seven, by Ricky Ponting at the MCG, and by Saeed Anwar and Sachin Tendulkar in Sharjah.Was South Africa’s 369 for 6 against Bangladesh the other day the highest one-day international total without a hundred? asked Bob Heath
South Africa’s 369 for 6 in East London at the weekend, in which the highest score was Faf du Plessis’s 91, was actually the second-highest ODI total without an individual century. But the record is nonetheless held by South Africa: when they ran up 392 for 6 against Pakistan in Centurion in 2006-07, the top score was Jacques Kallis’ 88. The next highest is England’s 365 for 9 (Eoin Morgan 88) against New Zealand at The Oval in 2015.Virat Kohli played his 200th one-day international the other day. Has he scored more runs and hundreds than anyone else after 200 ODIs? asked Steve Rafferty
Virat Kohli’s century in the first one-day international against New Zealand in Mumbai at the weekend was his 31st, in his 200th match, and took him to a neat-looking total of 8888 runs. Both these figures are records: AB de Villiers had scored 8621 runs and 24 hundreds after his 200th ODI. But Kohli’s figures are nonetheless under threat: Hashim Amla has played 158 ODIs to date, and has so far made 7381 runs and 26 centuries.Ajit Agarkar made a Test hundred at Lord’s and finished with an average of under 17, but eight other players have made hundreds and have lower averages than him•Odd Anderson/AFP/Getty ImagesWhich Indian player figured in ten Tests – all of them against England? asked Bjorn Lindholm from Sweden
The player concerned here is Vijay Merchant, one of India’s first great batsmen. His ten Tests, between 1933-34 (India’s first one at home, in Bombay) and 1951-52 (when he bowed out with his highest score of 154, in Delhi), were all against England: he missed India’s tour of Australia in 1947-48, and West Indies’ visit in 1948-49, apparently because of illness.The overall record dates to before 1928, when West Indies joined the Test-playing club, soon to be joined by New Zealand and India. Back in the days when main protagonists in Test cricket were England and Australia, with occasional appearances from South Africa, Archie MacLaren (England) and Jack Blackham (Australia) both played 35 Tests, all Ashes matches.I noticed that Ajit Agarkar has a Test batting average of 16.79, despite having a century to his name. Is this the lowest Test batting average to include a century? asked Irfan from Pakistan
The Indian fast bowler turned ESPNcricinfo pundit Ajit Agarkar might be relieved to learn that he comes in quite a way down this particular list. Agarkar’s hundred came at Lord’s, no less, in 2002; his next highest score was 48.There are eight players with lower batting averages who also scored a Test century, one of them a current player, the Zimbabwe captain Graeme Cremer (16.27). Top of the list is someone who might also yet reappear in Test cricket: the West Indian fast bowler Jerome Taylor averages only 12.96, despite having slammed 106 against New Zealand in Dunedin in 2008-09. Taylor’s 106 that day is exactly double his next highest score.The other Test centurions with a lower batting average than Agarkar’s 16.79 are Pakistan’s Saqlain Mushtaq (14.48), Xenophon Balaskas of South Africa (14.50), Australia’s Jack Badcock (14.54), Frank Hayes of England (15.25), the West Indian Ivan Barrow (16.23), and Nasim-ul-Ghani of Pakistan (16.60).Leave your questions in the comments
