Ask the Expert: Who has scored most 70s & 80s in Tests and ODIs?

If you have a question relating to cricket and did not know who to ask, bounce them off to Rajneesh Gupta. Each week he will pick questions readers send him and provide answers. Your queries should be addressed to: Ask Rajneesh on Facebook or askrajneesh@rediffmail.com

Rajneesh's answers some questions he received from readers last week:

We all know who has scored maximum centuries and nineties in all formats of cricket. But could you please let me know who has scored the most 70s & 80s in Tests and ODIs? - Sudip Mukherjee

In Tests, West Indies' Shivnarine Chanderpaul has most scores in 70s (19), followed by England's Alec Stewart (15) and Australia's Allan Border (13).

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Allan Border shares the record of most 80s in Tests with England's Mike Atherton, on 11 occasions. India's Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid and West Indies' Brian Lara have 10 such scores.

Pakistan's Inzamam-ul-Haq has 21 scores in the 70s in ODIs -- most for any batsman. Dravid has 17 such scores, while Pakistan's Javed Miandad, Zimbabwe's Andy Flower and Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara have 15 scores between 70 and 79.

South Africa's Jacques Kallis has maximum scores in the 80s in ODIs (19), followed by two Indians -- Sachin Tendulkar (18) and Sourav Ganguly (16).

There have been 19 occasions in ODIs when only two players batted in an innings and both of them reached 50. There are two instances when three players batted in one innings and all three scored a fifty.

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In the South Africa v Kenya game at Kimberley in October 2001, openers Boeta Dippenaar score an unbeaten 74, Herschelle Gibbs 70 and number three Lance Klusener an unbeaten 75.

In the West Indies v Australia game at St.George's in June 2003, Chris Gayle scored 60, Wavell Hinds an unbeaten 103 and Brian Lara an unbeaten 75.

There is only one instance when five bowlers bowled in an innings and took two wickets each. This happened recently, in the World Cup semi-final between India and Pakistan at Mohali, when Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh each took two wickets in Pakistan's innings.

Seven batsmen have been dismissed 'Handled the ball' in Test cricket. They are: South Africa's Russell Endean (v England,Cape Town, 1956-57), Australia's Andrew Hilditch (v Pakistan, Perth, 1978-79), Pakistan's Mohsin Khan (v Australia, Karachi, 1982-83), West Indies' Desmond Haynes (v India, Mumbai WS, 1983-84), England's Graham Gooch (v Australia, Manchester, 1993), Australia's Steve Waugh (v India, Chennai, 2000-01) and England's Michael Vaughan (v India, Bangalore, 2001-02).

The players to suffer this fate in ODIs are: India's Mohinder Amarnath (v Australia, Melbourne, 1985-86) and South Africa's Daryll Cullinan (v West Indies, Durban, 1998-99)

Only one player has been given out 'Obstructing the field' in Test cricket. England's Len Hutton suffered this fate against South Africa at the Oval in 1951. Hutton had scored 27 in England's second innings when a ball from Athol Rowan lifted abruptly and struck Hutton on the glove.

It ran up his arm and it appeared to him that it would fall on to his wicket. Hutton flicked the ball with his bat and missed it, but it fell neither on his stumps nor into Endean's gloves. The wicketkeeper had been obstructed and the South Africans rightly appealed and umpire Dai Davies signalled Hutton out.

Hutton did not willfully obstruct the wicketkeeper, but he had willfully waved his bat, an action that prevented the wicketkeeper from getting to the ball.

Pakistan's Rameez Raja (v England, Karachi, 1987-88), India's Mohinder Amarnath (v Sri Lanka, Ahmedabad, 1989-90) and Pakistan's Inzamam-ul-Haq (v India, Peshawar, 2005-06) have been dismissed in this mode in ODIs. Rameez was given out on 99 when looking for a second run off the final delivery off Pakistan's innings to reach his hundred.

This feat has yet not been achieved in Test cricket. The best performance came from Australia's Allan Border. Playing against Pakistan, at Lahore in 1979-80, Border scored an unbeaten 150 in the first innings and followed it up with 153 in the second.

Name all the bowlers Sachin has hit for a six to bring up his centuries in Test cricket. - Aziz Sayed and Himanshu

Sachin has brought up his century with a six on six occasions -- more than any other batsman in Test chronicles. Here-under is the complete list:

 Can you name the Test players who scored highest career runs for each batting position from 1 to 11, also please give details of runs scored. - Lancy

 The following table lists the leading run scorers in Test cricket from # 1 to # 11: 

How many players have scored runs with a decent average, had catches and run-outs as a fielder, took wickets as a bowler and also did wicketkeeping and got stumping and caught behinds. - Mr Infinity 

The recording of fielders effecting a run-out is a recent phenomenon and we don't have these details for matches from earlier era. If we remove this condition, we are left with nine players who have scored runs, taken catches in the field, have kept wickets, taken catches as a keeper, have effected stumpings and taken wickets.

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The complete list is as under. New Zealand's John Reid is the only player to have taken a five-wicket haul also (apart from fulfilling the other criteria).

Which is the shortest Test played till date in terms of overs bowled? - Ishan Krishna 

The shortest Test match was played between West Indies and England at North Sound in February 2009. The match lasted just 10 minutes as England made 7 for no loss in 1.4 overs.

The match was abandoned because the bowlers were unable to get any solid foothold in an overly sandy outfield.  The Test was moved to the old Antigua Recreation Ground that started two days later. For all statistical purposes these were treated as two different Tests. 

The shortest Test match that produced a result was played between Australia and South Africa at Melbourne in February 1932. The match lasted just 109.2 overs, as Australia thrashed South Africa by an innings and 72 runs.