Top batter and bowler in the same game, and the old-timers

In the recent Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand, Daniel Vettori just missed out on top-scoring in both innings, as well as having the best bowling performance in both innings. Has anyone ever achieved all four in a Test? asked Peter Borren from the Netherlands
First of all it's nice to get a question from a current international player, although in fairness I should point out that several other people posed the same question. And the answer is that no one has ever managed to be top wicket-taker in both innings and top-score twice in the same Test, so Daniel Vettori's achievement last week - when only Aaron Redmond (79) outscored him by three runs in the second innings in Chittagong - was very close to that unusual thing - a unique feat in Test history. The feat of being the best performer in three out of the four innings in a Test match has now been achieved 68 times, three of the last four by Vettori, who also did it against Australia in Adelaide in 2004-05, and against Sri Lanka in Wellington in 2006-07. Ian Botham did "the treble" on seven occasions, but the only others to manage it even three times are Vettori's fellow New Zealanders John Reid, Richard Hadlee and Chris Cairns (and the New Zealand-born Andy Caddick did it twice for England). These figures include the occasions where the player was the leading or joint-leading wicket-taker in an innings, but do not take into account the runs he may have conceded.

I was just wondering after looking at the youngest players to have played a Test match, who the oldest players are? asked Dale McCarter from New Zealand
Four people have played in a Test match after passing the age of 50 - not surprisingly, perhaps, all of them rather a long time ago! The oldest of all was the Yorkshire and England allrounder Wilfred Rhodes, who was 52 years and 165 days old on the ninth and final day of his last Test, against West Indies in Kingston in 1929-30. Earlier in that match Rhodes had taken a wicket through a catch by George Gunn, one of the other fiftysomethings - he was 50 years 303 days old by the end of that Kingston game. And Rhodes was also around when the first 50-year-old played Test cricket: WG Grace in his final Test for England, against Australia at Trent Bridge in 1899, aged 50 years 320 days; the youthful Rhodes, then just 21, was making his Test debut. The last (and most recent) of the foursome was the Australian spinner Bert Ironmonger, who was 50 years 327 days old when he finished his Test career in the final match of the 1932-33 Bodyline series in Sydney. For a full list of the oldest players to appear in a Test, click here.

A brilliant overall performance from MS Dhoni fetched him the Man of the Match award in the Mohali Test against Australia. Who was the last Indian wicketkeeper to have won one before him, and how many of their keepers have done it overall? asked Rawal Afzal from Germany
As it turns out, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was only the third Indian wicketkeeper to win the Man-of-the-Match award in a Test. The others were Nayan Mongia, against Australia in Delhi in 1996-97, and Ajay Ratra, against West Indies in St John's in 2002-03. Bear in mind that Man-of-the-Match awards are a fairly recent innovation and were not regularly dispensed in Tests until the late 1970s.

New Zealand beat Bangladesh recently by scoring the highest total of the match in the fourth innings to win. How often has this happened in Tests? asked Neil Smith from Worthing
That feat by New Zealand in Chittagong last week was rather surprisingly only the 18th time that a team made the highest total of the match in the fourth innings to win it (there have also been six occasions when a team made the highest total in the fourth innings of a drawn Test, and a further 11 when scoring the highest total in the fourth innings couldn't stave off defeat). The previous instance was also against Bangladesh - by South Africa at Mirpur in February 2008. The list includes the infamous match in Centurion in 1999-2000, which England won after both sides forfeited an innings and South Africa's captain Hansie Cronje earned himself a leather jacket from a bookmaker after preventing a drawn match.

Zimbabwe's Ray Price had figures of 10-5-7-0 in a recent one-day international. Was this any sort of record? asked R Kasthurirangan from India
Slow left-armer Ray Price did indeed take 0 for 7 in 10 overs in Zimbabwe's recent one-day international against Ireland in Nairobi. Only four bowlers have conceded fewer runs in a complete stint of ten or more overs in an ODI: top of the list is a rather surprising name: West Indies' Phil Simmons, who had figures of 10-8-3-4 against Pakistan in Sydney in 1992-93. A more expected West Indian,Curtly Ambrose, returned 10-5-5-1 against Sri Lanka in Sharjah in 1999-2000, while Bishan Bedi actually got through 12 overs for just six runs (12-8-6-1) in India's World Cup match against East Africa at Headingley in 1975. Another Indian slow left-armer, Sunil Joshi, had figures of 10-6-6-5 against South Africa in Nairobi in 1999-2000. Simmons and Bedi are the only bowlers to manage eight maiden overs in an ODI innings. For a full list of the best economy-rates in an ODI innings, click here.

I love cricket trivia, and wondered if you could tell me the highest innings totals with no century-makers, please? asked Nick Burdett
There have been three totals of 500 or more in Tests which did not include an individual century. The highest of them all is India's 524 for 9 declared against New Zealand in Kanpur in 1976-77, when the highest score was only 70, by Mohinder Amarnath (mind you, everyone reached double figures, and even Bishan Bedi made 50). South Africa made 517 against Australia in Adelaide in 1997-98, with a highest individual score of 87 not out, while Pakistan made 500 for 8 declared (highest score 95) against Australia in Melbourne in 1981-82. The highest one-day international total not to include a century is South Africa's 392 for 6 (highest score 88 not out) against Pakistan in Centurion in 2006-07.