January 27 down the years

Hello, Harry Potter

A bespectacled New Zealand left-arm spinner is born

Daniel Vettori: handy with the bat and ball  •  AFP

Daniel Vettori: handy with the bat and ball  •  AFP

1979
The birth of New Zealand's best left-arm spinner. His scruffy, studenty appearance suggested the Italian-origin Daniel Vettori (his middle name is Luca) would have been better off studying sociology. But he could play: Nasser Hussain was his first first-class and Test victim, and Vettori became New Zealand's youngest cricketer at 18 years and ten days, after only two first-class matches. He was the youngest spinner to 100 Test wickets (21 years 46 days) and got to 300 Test wickets in his 94th match. He could bat too, and made scored six Test centuries. In 2007 he replaced Stephen Fleming as New Zealand's limited-overs captain, and then took on the role in all formats the next year. He led the side to the Champions Trophy final in 2009 and the World Cup semi-final in 2011 before stepping down from the post. He was plagued by injuries thereafter, an Achilles tendon condition keeping him out for long, but he managed to bow out of international cricket in a pretty special way: after playing in the 2015 World Cup final in Melbourne against Australia.
2024
The fastest first-class triple. Tanmay Agarwal of Hyderabad made a preposterous 366 not out off 181 balls against Arunachal Pradesh in a Ranji Trophy game. Naturally, records were broken like crockery in a TV farce. It was the fastest first-class triple by balls taken - 147. The 26 sixes Agarwal hit were a record for a first-class innings. He took 16 balls apiece to go from 151 to 202 and 203 to 250, and 12 from 251 to 300. Hyderabad's total of 615 for 4 declared came at 10.33 runs an over. Given the circumstances, it was somewhat anticlimactic that Arunachal lost by only an innings and 187 runs.
1981
A bad day for Robin Jackman, the England seamer who was born in India but spent many years playing cricket in South Africa, where his wife was born. He was served with a deportation order by the Guyanese government when England arrived for the second Test in Guyana, owing to his South Africa connection and the fact that South Africa was banned from international cricket for apartheid. England backed their man and the Test was cancelled, but Jackman made his debut in the next Test, in Barbados.
1974
A forgotten man is born. Chaminda Vaas was overshadowed by Muthiah Muralidaran's success, but he was a crucial part of Sri Lanka's side. A brisk, clever left-armer with the ability to cut and swing the ball both ways, he turned in some outstanding performances: 10 for 90 to give Sri Lanka their first overseas win in 32 Tests, in Napier in 1994-95; 6 for 58 in the victory over Australia in Kandy in 1999-2000; and 14 for 191 against West Indies in Colombo. And he has the greatest ODI bowling figures of all time: 8 for 19 against Zimbabwe. After retirement, Vaas was appointed Sri Lanka's bowling coach.
2020
England set the seal on a third Test defeat of South Africa in a row, to take the series 3-1. It was always coming, after England put up 400 in the first innings and South Africa responded with 183, quelled by a fiery Mark Wood, back to his best after yet another injury hiatus, who took five wickets (and nine in the match). Spare a thought for Vernon Philander, who had a dismal last Test - he took just two wickets, was fined 15% of his match fee for an altercation, and tore a hamstring. For South Africa, it was only the second time in 70 years that they lost two series in a row at home.
1970
Birth of Dean Headley, the grandson of the great George and son of the West Indian Test player Ron. Playing for England, Headley generally saved his best for the old enemy: his back-to-back performances in Melbourne, where he bowled England to a famous win, and Sydney (his figures were 6-60, 4-62, 4-60) were truly heroic. As well as taking three hat-tricks for Kent in 1996, he ended with 60 Test wickets at 27, and a strike rate of 50.40 balls per wicket - lower than those of Hadlee, Garner, Holding, Akram, Lillee, Imran, Ambrose - but retired at the age of 30 with a persistent back injury.
2018
On a Johannesburg pitch considered dangerous by many because of its uneven bounce, and eventually rated poor by the ICC, India ground out a 63-run win. Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane weathered blows, excessive seam movement and exaggerated bounce for over two hours each for a pair of 40s in the second innings to set South Africa a target of 241. Dean Elgar tried his best to keep South Africa in the game, but they were bowled out for 177 on day four. Mohammed Shami took 5 for 62. It was the first time in Test history that all all 40 wickets fell in every Test in a series of three of more matches.
1969
After an impressive Test debut against India in Auckland in 1990, Shane Thomson, who was born today, was touted as a real prospect. But his offspin was fairly innocuous at the highest level and he never really delivered in a seven-year, 19-Test career. His finest hour was the thrilling unbeaten 120 in a memorable run-chase against Pakistan in Christchurch in 1993-94. Dropped after the 1996 World Cup, he retired from first-class cricket in 1997, aged just 28.
1964
Vintage stuff from Eddie Barlow and Graeme Pollock, whose partnership of 341 today in Adelaide remained South Africa's highest for any wicket in Tests for nearly 40 years, till Herschelle Gibbs and Graeme Smith broke it. Barlow hit 201 and Pollock, at the age of 19, a glorious 175. With Barlow chipping in with 3 for 6 in the second innings, South Africa won this fourth Test by ten wickets to square, and ultimately draw, the series.
1976
An early blast from the master, Viv Richards. His 101 was not enough to stop Australia crushing West Indies in this fifth Test, in Adelaide - this was the series where West Indies were routed 5-1 - but it was a marker nonetheless for an amazing year: in 1976, Richards made a staggering 1710 runs, a record for a calendar year till Mohammad Yousuf broke it in 2006. Less fortunate in this game was Keith Boyce, who got from 65 to 95 with last man Lance Gibbs for company before Gibbs was bowled by Gary Gilmour. It was the closest Boyce got to a Test hundred.
1998
After losing five times to South Africa in the league phase of the Carlton & United Series, Australia beat them 2-1 in the finals. In the third final, in Sydney, they defended a total of 247 despite some lower-order biffing by Lance Klusener. There must have been some nerves in the South African side going by the three run-outs and a hit-wicket.
2018
Fast bowler Shehan Madushanka took a hat-trick on debut to give Sri Lanka a 79-run win in the final of a tri-series in Bangladesh. The hosts needed 81 runs from 62 balls with three wickets in hand when Madushanka got his first international wicket - Mashrafe Mortaza caught at midwicket - off a full toss (that was also very nearly a no-ball). Then Rubel Hossain was bowled off a full delivery, and at the start of his next over, Madushanka finished off top-scorer Mahmudullah and the game with a catch to extra cover. Sri Lanka had wrapped up the previous game inside 36 overs, bowling Bangladesh out for 82 and getting to the target in 11.5 overs.
1991
The day David Gower played one of the most reviled shots in modern English cricket history. With Australia having set a none-too-subtle trap, Gower gently wafted the last ball before lunch down Merv Hughes' throat at deep square leg at a critical juncture of the fourth Test against Australia in Adelaide. His partner and captain Graham Gooch - already less than enamoured with Gower after the Tiger Moth incident - ignored him as the players left the field. Only Mike Gatting's reverse sweep and Mark Ramprakash's charge and heave at Shane Warne in 2001 can compare for vilification.
Other birthdays
1911 George Pope (England)
1950 Milton Pydanna (West Indies)