Who has collected the most ducks in the IPL? asked Anjum Chopra from India
This record changed hands recently: when Glenn Maxwell was out first ball during Punjab Kings’ match against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad last month, it was his 19th duck in the IPL. That put him (at the time of writing) one ahead of Dinesh Karthik and Rohit Sharma (18), and two clear of Sunil Narine.
Is Neil Wagner’s 64 Tests the most by anyone who never played an ODI or T20 international? asked Nitin Patel from the United States
The recently retired New Zealand seamer Neil Wagner took 260 wickets in his 64 Tests – but never played a white-ball international. That’s the most by anyone who made their debut since the first T20 international, in Auckland in 2005. Next on that list at the moment is England’s Ollie Pope, who has so far played 55 Tests but no white-ball internationals.
Of those who made their debuts after the first official one-day international, in Melbourne in 1971, Wagner is behind another Surrey and England batter, Mark Butcher, who won 71 Test caps without ever appearing in the one-day side.
Overall, the England wicketkeeper Godfrey Evans played 91 Tests but, since the last of them was in 1959, never had the chance to play in ODIs or T20s.
In the first ODI between New Zealand and Pakistan the other day, there were an astonishing 70 extras. Was this a record for a one-day international? asked Taimur Mirza from Australia
You’re right that there were 70 extras in the first one-day international between Pakistan (who conceded 43) and New Zealand (27) in Napier at the end of last month. This puts it joint sixth on the list of men’s ODIs with the most extras.
Clear at the top is a 1999 World Cup match between Pakistan and Scotland at Chester-le-Street, which contained 96 extras, 50 of them wides. There were 90 extras in the match between Pakistan and West Indies in Brisbane in 1989 (again 50 in wides) and in another match in the 1999 World Cup, Zimbabwe’s upset win over India in Leicester.
There are some higher numbers in women’s ODIs: a match between Netherlands and Japan in Schiedam in 2003 contained no fewer than 133 extras, 87 of which came from wides. In all there have been five women’s ODIs with 100 or more, including West Indies vs Sri Lanka in Port-of-Spain in March 2003, which had exactly 100 extras (82 wides).
Who scored the first century of the new English season? And how about the first five-for? asked Roy Harrison from England
The first County Championship hundred of this year’s English season was scored by Durham’s Colin Ackermann, against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge on April 4. Ackermann reached three figures shortly before tea on the first day of the season: the other first-day centuries were all completed after the tea interval.
The first five-wicket haul of the new season was completed by the Somerset seamer Kasey Aldridge, not long after lunch – in the 36th over – against Worcestershire in Taunton.
Tom Banton hit 344 not out for Somerset on April 5. Was this the earliest triple-century in an English season? asked Ryan McLeod from England
Somerset’s Tom Banton started April 5 – the second day of the County Championship match against Worcestershire in Taunton – with 84, and had hurtled to 344 not out by the close (he was out next day for 371).
This was the earliest triple-century ever in an English first-class season, beating a record set on April 6 in… 2024, when Glamorgan’s Sam Northeast took his overnight 186 to 335 against Middlesex>at Lord’s (the highest score ever made at cricket’s most famous ground).
Fellow statistician Andrew Samson tells me that there have been only two other triple-centuries in England in April, both of them coming in Taunton: 303 not out on April 18 by James Hildreth for Somerset vs Warwickshire in 2009, and 315 on April 20 by Justin Langer in Somerset’s 850 for 7 against Middlesex in 2007.
Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.
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Does Glenn Maxwell now have the most ducks in the IPL? – ESPN
