Cricket is a sport that generates a variety of statistics. Statistics are recorded for each player during a match and aggregated over a career. At the professional level, statistics for Test cricket, one-day internationals, and first-class cricket are recorded separately. Cricket records are also maintained for List A and Twenty20 limited over matches. These matches are normally limited-over games played domestically at the national level by leading Test nations.
As Cricket is a game that generates new records and stats in almost every match, it is quite difficult for the fans to keep track of them. So, here we take a look at some of the best cricket records.
Fastest fifty in cricket
Former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq leads the list for the fastest 50 in cricket in the longest form of the game, with his record of a 21-ball half-century against Australia in an Abu Dhabi Test in 2014. In the ODI format, the fastest 50 in cricket was scored by AB de Villiers against the West Indies in 2015, when he passed 50 in 16 balls.
Coming into the shortest form of the game, Yuvraj Singh’s iconic knock against England still holds strong. Yuvraj Singh scored a 12-ball fifty against in the 2007 T20 World Cup to record the fastest 50 in cricket.
Fastest ball in cricket
Nicknamed Rawalpindi Express, Shoaib Akhtar bowled the fastest ball in cricket – 161.3 km/hr (100.2 mph) – in a One-Day International (ODI) game against England during the 2003 Cricket World Cup at Cape Town in South Africa.
Highest runs in Test cricket
India’s Sachin Tendulkar has scored the highest runs in Test cricket. Nicknamed “The Little Master,” Tendulkar scored 15,921 in his test match career spanning from 1989 to 2013, which puts him at the top of the list of most runs in test cricket.
Longest six in cricket
Shahid Afridi holds the record for the longest six in cricket. This six he hit off Ryan McLaren is one of the most talked-about sixes in cricket history, for the distance it covered. Although many say it did not go that far and don’t consider it as the highest six in cricket.
Most centuries in cricket
Often regarded as the best cricket player in the world, Sachin Tendulkar remains the cricketer having hit the most centuries in cricket with 100. He also holds the test cricket record for the most centuries in the longest format of the game with 51 centuries, while 49 have come in the ODI format.
Most double centuries in Test cricket
Don Bradman, who is the best cricket player in the world ever, tops this record tally. He scored 6996 runs in 52 Tests at an extraordinary average of 99.94. The legendary batsman slammed 12 double tons in his playing days, claiming the record for the most double centuries in Test cricket. He has also hit 29 centuries and 13 half-centuries with a high score of 334.
Most runs in cricket
Sachin Tendulkar, who is considered a run-machine in cricket, holds the record for the most runs in international cricket at 34357 runs. He has played a total of 664 games to get those runs at an average of 48.52 with the highest score of 248. Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara scored the 2nd highest runs in Test cricket with 28016 runs.
Most sixes in international cricket
Hitting a six is widely considered to be one of the biggest game-changing abilities that a batter could possess in modern-day cricket. Making his international debut in 1999, the towering West Indies opener has mostly dealt in sixes. Chris Gayle holds the record for the most sixes in international cricket with 553 from 483 matches across all three formats. This means that the Universe Boss has scored 3,318 runs out of his 19,594-run tally in sixes alone.
Most wickets in international cricket
Former Sri Lanka spinner Muthiah Muralitharan has claimed the most wickets in international cricket. Having made his international debut against Australia in a Test match in 1992, Muralitharan ended his career as the all-time highest wicket-taker in international cricket with 1347 scalps in 495 matches at an average of 22.86. He recorded 77 five-wicket hauls and 22 10-wicket hauls in his international career.
Most wickets in Test cricket
Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan picked up the most wickets in Test cricket history. He picked up a record 800 wickets in 133 Test matches at an average of 22.72 and a strike rate of 55. Muralitharan also holds the record for taking the most fifers (67) and the most ten-wicket hauls (22) in the longest format. He was part of the Sri Lanka Test team for over 18 years from 1992 to 2010.