The man with a higher Test average than Bradman

Which Test batsman has the best average, apart from Don Bradman? asks Chris Sutton

There are some players with freak averages that are even higher than Bradman's 99.94. The West Indian Andy Ganteaume, for example, was called up for his Test debut in 1947-48, scored 112 - and was never chosen again, so retired with an average of 112.00. But normally when talking about records like this we impose a qualification of a certain number of innings, to weed out the statistical oddities. On Cricinfo that qualification is 20 innings, and using that yardstick then Graeme Pollock of South Africa comes next to Bradman, with 60.97, ahead of George Headley (60.83) and Herbert Sutcliffe (60.73). Adam Gilchrist leads the way for the present day, with 60.25. Click here for the full table.

What was the oldest combination (fielder and bowler) to claim a wicket in a Test? asks John Canning

There have been a few reasonably geriatric combinations over the years - at Brisbane in 1994-95 Michael Slater was caught by Mike Gatting off the bowling of Graham Gooch for 176. Gatting was 37 and Gooch 41 at the time. But their combined 78 years is a long way off the record. In the fourth Test of 1929-30, against West Indies at Kingston, England fielded two 50-year-olds - Wilfred Rhodes, who at 52 was the oldest Test player of them all, and George Gunn, who was two months shy of his 51st birthday and lies fourth on that particular list. Obligingly, West Indies' opener Clifford Roach popped up a catch to Gunn off Rhodes's bowling - a grand total of well over 103 years for the two - on the sixth day of a supposedly timeless Test which nonetheless ended in a draw because the England team had to leave to catch their boat home. England's team in that match also included Ewart Astill and Nigel Haig (both 42), and Patsy Hendren, who was 41.

Last week you talked about successive centuries in Tests. Who has scored the most successive hundreds in one-day internationals? asks Bhaskar Narayan

Three batsmen have made three centuries in successive ODI innings - the Pakistan pair of Zaheer Abbas (1982-83) and Saeed Anwar (1993-94), and Herschelle Gibbs of South Africa, who made three in a row in 2002-03, two in Colombo and one at home in South Africa. Arguably Zaheer's was the most impressive performance: in a four-match series against India he scored 10 at Gujranwala, 118 from 86 balls at Multan, 105 from 82 balls at Lahore, and 113 from 99 balls at Karachi. In his next ODI, against Sri Lanka in the 1983 World Cup at Swansea, he made 82. For a full list of the batsmen who have made two or three centuries in successive ODIs, click here.

How long did it take Zimbabwe to win a Test match? And do you think Bangladesh will beat them in their Test series in February? asks Anwar Khan

Zimbabwe played their first Test in October 1992, and completed their first victory around 27 months later, on Feb 4, 1995. They beat Pakistan by an innings and 64 runs at Harare, with Grant Flower scoring 201 not out and his brother Andy making 156. It's tough on Zimbabwe, but there have been questions since about the propriety of their win - Pakistan's captain in that match, Salim Malik, was banned for involvement in match-fixing. Pakistan won the remaining two games to take the series 2-1.

And as for the crystal ball ... it's clear that Bangladesh have improved under the guidance of their new coach, Dav Whatmore. They came close to beating both Pakistan and England recently, and the series in Zimbabwe in February (there are two Tests, in Harare and Bulawayo) must give them a great chance of breaking their duck, as Zimbabwe are struggling in the wake of the retirements of several senior players.

Whose idea was the Centenary Test at Melbourne in 1977? asks Bryce Robinson

The Centenary Test between Australia and England was played at the MCG in March 1977 to mark the 100th anniversary of the first-ever Test, which was played there in 1877. The original idea was the brainchild of Hans Ebeling, a Melbourne Cricket Club committee-man who played one Test as a fast-medium bowler for Australia on tour in England in 1934. His vision was rewarded with a wonderful occasion and a memorable match which remarkably ended with exactly the same result - Australia won by 45 runs - as the inaugural Test 100 years before.

Does Bill Frindall intend to update The Wisden Book of Test Cricket, and if so, when is the new edition likely to be published? asks Chris Slack

The fifth edition of Bill Frindall's invaluable books containing all the Test scorecards came out at the end of 2000, and the three-volume set included all the Test matches (and all the women's Tests) played up till the end of the 2000 season in England. The first edition appeared in 1978, and updates have come out every five or six years since. We weren't sure quite when the next one was due, so went straight to the horse's beard and asked Bill. He says: "A sixth edition will certainly not appear before 2006. We have only tentatively discussed a contract for it." But Bill's fans won't have quite so long to wait before his next tome: "My publishers are planning a book in 2005 to mark my 40th year with Test Match Special."