Lara's unique triple, and some late starters

Is Brian Lara the first batsman to hold the record for the highest Test and first-class score, and the most runs in Tests? asked Nikhil Sengupta from Chennai

He is indeed: no-one has ever held those three records before, not even Don Bradman, who did simultaneously hold the record for the highest score in first-class cricket (452 not out for New South Wales v Queensland at Sydney in 1929-30) and Tests (334 for Australia against England at Headingley in 1930) for a short time, until Wally Hammond broke his Test record in 1932-33, but rather surprisingly The Don never held the Test-aggregate record. Garry Sobers did, and he also held the record for the highest Test score - 365 not out for West Indies v Pakistan at Kingston in 1957-58 - but he never quite managed the first-class record. So Brian Lara stands unique, for his 501 not out, his Test 400 not out, and his current tally of 11,204 Test runs.

Was Bert Ironmonger of Australia the oldest Test debutant ever? asked Andrew Martin from England

Bert "Dainty" Ironmonger was Australia's oldest Test debutant - for less than a month. Ironmonger was 46 years 237 days old when he made his first appearance - alongside his fellow new cap Don Bradman, just 20 - in the first Test of the 1928-29 Ashes series in Brisbane. In the next Test, at Sydney, Australia gave a Test debut to Ironmonger's St Kilda spinning partner Don Blackie, who was even older - 46 years 253 days. But there have been two debutants who were even more elderly than this venerable pair. Miran Bux was 47 when he first played for Pakistan against India at Lahore in 1954-55, but the grand-daddy of them all started in the very first Test: James Southerton was 49 years 119 days old when he played for England against Australia at Melbourne in 1876-77. For a full list of the oldest Test debutants, click here. And if you want to find out more about Ironmonger's fascinating and remarkable career, try this article, by the leading Australian journalist Gideon Haigh, from Cricinfo earlier this year.

In the VB Series second final, was Muttiah Muralitharan's the most expensive 10-over spell in ODI history? asked Dinesh Puppala from the United States

The quick answer is yes: Muralitharan's figures of 0 for 99 in the recent match at Sydney are the most expensive by any bowler in 10 overs in ODIs. Martin Snedden of New Zealand conceded 105 runs against England at The Oval in the 1983 World Cup, but that came from 12 overs. For a full list of the most expensive ODI analyses, click here.

I remember a young player who had a sensational ODI debut for Sri Lanka, taking five wickets and scoring a few runs - but he never quite made it. Do you know who it was? asked Chad Candappa from Australia

I think you must be talking about Uvais Karnain, who took 5 for 26 and scored 28 on his debut for Sri Lanka, against New Zealand at Moratuwa in 1983-84. Karnain played 19 ODIs in all, but never improved on that bowling analysis - and he never did win a Test cap. The other Sri Lankan to take a five-for on one-day debut is Charitha Buddhika, with 5 for 67 against Zimbabwe at Sharjah in 2000-01 - but he didn't bat in that game. He has so far played nine Tests in addition to 17 ODIs.

Has cricket ever been played in the Olympics? asked Chakri from India
It has, but it was a long time ago. In 1900 a team called the Devon and Somerset Wanderers, representing Great Britain, beat a French team in the one and only Olympic cricket final, in Paris. Most of the runners-up were from the British Embassy in Paris, and there was only one actual Frenchman in the team (a Monsieur Roques). In a 12-a-side game, the British team scored 117 and 145 for 5 declared, and bowled the expats (and M Roques) out for 78 and 26. Cricket hasn't been played at the Olympics since, although it was included in the 1998 Commonwealth Games, when South Africa beat Australia in the final at Kuala Lumpur.

I was born on February 29, so only have a real birthday every four years. Are there any prominent cricketers who share my birthday? asked Steve Mills from Peterborough

The most famous player who shared your birthday is Alf Gover, the Surrey and England fast bowler who later ran a renowned cricket school. He was born on February 29, 1908. Before his death in 2001 he was the world's oldest Test cricketer: when he died he was 93 - or 23, if you count his actual birthdays! The only other Test cricketer born on that date is Gavin Stevens, the former Australian opener, in 1932. Leap Year Day's main cricketing claim to fame is that it was on that day in 1996 when Kenya beat West Indies in the World Cup at Pune.