Rewind to

The showdown between Allan Donald and Michael Atherton at Trent Bridge in 1998 was brutal and engrossing

It seems extraordinary to recall now, given all the seismic scandals that have clawed away at the integrity of cricket over the past decade, but at the start of the 1990s, there was no issue more emotive than ball-tampering

In the Test Trial of 1950 Jim Laker, who had been rejected by Yorkshire, returned to his home of Bradford and took the remarkable figures of 8 for 2

Until Joe Root came along, the last time England could boast about having the world's best batsman in their ranks was in 2002, the year of Michael Vaughan

The summer of 1947 was the zenith for the County Championship, and of Denis Compton and Bill Edrich

Brian Close and John Edrich won plenty of admirers - and took as many hits - on a brutal evening in Manchester in 1976

Had India pulled off a remarkable victory at The Oval in 1979, Sunil Gavaskar's 221 would be up there as the greatest Test innings

Playing a Test to the finish, however long that might take, seemed a good idea once upon a time. But a 900-plus total showed why that wasn't the case

Australia's 1972 tourists were fuming after the pitch at Leeds was left bare, slow and perfectly suited to the bowling of England's Derek Underwood

Ian Botham had had a quiet match at Edgbaston in 1981, until he was summoned into the attack for one last burst at the Australians

Jim Laker's 19 wickets at Old Trafford in 1956 came close to being overshadowed by a row over the Old Trafford pitch

The player who many thought was a better batsman than the greatest of them all

The 16-year-old WG Grace made an impact in his very first match 150 years ago

The England allrounder who missed a summer after being sent down

The story of Harry Lee, an England batsman who played a Test match after being declared officially dead

Many people can recall outstanding deliveries, such as Shane Warne's'ball of the century' to Mike Gatting at Old Trafford in 1993

Within days of World War II ending, England and Australia were meeting at Lord's

When Gordon Greenidge smashed a last-day double-hundred to win a Lord's Test

When the selection of Derek Pringle ruffled feathers

When Andrew Flintoff ended up in the ocean after a late-night drinking session