Loye's late start, and tales of Warne and CB Fry

I'm just watching Mal Loye top-score in his first international match. Is he the oldest player to make his debut for England in an ODI? asked Neil Smith from Portsmouth

Mal Loye, who is 34, will probably be relieved to discover that he misses out on that record by more than ten years. When Norman Gifford made his one-day debut for England in 1984-85, against Australia at Sharjah, he was 44 years and 359 days old. That was actually a bit of an oddity - England had rested their usual captain, David Gower, and several senior players: Gifford was the Test team's assistant manager/coach at the time, and took over for two one-dayers in Sharjah. The only older debutant for any country was the West Indian-born Nolan Clarke, who made his official ODI debut for Holland in the 1995-96 World Cup, when he was 47. For a list of the oldest players in ODIs, click here.

Has anyone ever scored a century and taken five or more wickets in the same one-day international? asked Ahsan Raja from the United States

Only two people have managed this allround feat. The first was Viv Richards, for West Indies against New Zealand at Dunedin in 1986-87, when he followed an innings of 119 with figures of 5 for 41. Viv's performance was unmatched until June 2005, when England's Paul Collingwood made 112 not out and then took 6 for 31 against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge. For a list of those who have scored a half-century and taken five wickets in the same one-day international, click here.

Who holds the record for scoring the most Test runs without a century? I am sure that former Indian opener Chetan Chauhan must be right up there? asked Siddhartha Banerjee from India

Chetan Chauhan was the first man to complete 2000 runs in Tests without scoring a century, finishing with 2084 and a highest score of 97. Another Indian, Anil Kumble, recently joined him: he currently has 2049 runs. Sri Lanka's Chaminda Vaas has 2554 Test runs at the moment, without reaching three figures. But the leader is Shane Warne, who ended his Test career recently with 3154 runs, and a highest score of 99, against New Zealand at Perth in 2001-02. For a list of all those to have scored 1000 Test runs without making a century, click here.

I believe that Paul Winslow once held the record for the most runs scored in a single over. Can you confirm and give details? asked Monty Zion from Israel

Paul Winslow was a big-hitting batsman who played five Tests for South Africa in the 1950s. The only time he reached 20 in a Test, he went on to a memorable 108 at Old Trafford in 1955. In another match on that tour of England, against Lancashire and also at Old Trafford, Winslow scored 30 runs (446646) off one over from Jack Ikin. It wasn't quite the first-class record, though, which at the time was 32 (664664), by Cyril Smart of Glamorgan off Hampshire's Gerry Hill at Cardiff Arms Park in 1935.

Did England's CB Fry really break the world long-jump record? I've read conflicting reports, asked David Hempsall from Kidderminster

CB Fry was indeed a great sporting allrounder: apart from captaining England in Tests, he also played international football (one cap against Ireland in 1901), played rugby to a high standard, and was an outstanding athlete in his younger days. It's often said that he broke the world long-jump record, but actually he only equalled it, leaping 23 feet 6.5 inches (7.175 metres) in June 1893 while at Oxford University. He did it at the same Iffley Road athletics track in Oxford where Roger Bannister later achieved the first sub-four-minute mile. Fry's jump equalled the world's best at the time, set by the American Charles Reber in July 1891. The joint record lasted until October 1896, when Matthew Roseingrave leapt an inch further (7.20m) in Sydney.

Who is the only man to captain England at cricket and football? asked Jordan Ford

Well, the man mentioned in the previous question - CB Fry - came pretty close: he played for both, but didn't captain England at football. The only one who did was RE "Tip" Foster. After he scored a record 287 on his Test debut, against Australia at Sydney in 1903-04, Foster captained England in three Tests against South Africa in 1907. Five years previously, he skippered the England football team against Wales.