Unlike batting records, a bowler taking all opposition wickets is still rare.

Unlike batting records, a bowler taking all opposition wickets is still rare.

Unlike batting records, a bowler taking all opposition wickets is still rare.

One of the beauties of sports is the avenue it provides for constant improvement. Hence, there is certainty that any record that may be today will be broken tomorrow. When Jim Hines finished 100 metres under 10 seconds in Mexico in 1968, many thought it would be a long time before someone bettered it. Similarly, when Bob Beamon cleared a distance of 8.90 metres in long jump, it was hailed as the “leap of the century”. But both these records were broken during the next couple of decades as athletes rose to new heights of excellence to create new benchmarks.

Cricket also has a well-earned reputation for breaking records frequently. Andy Sandham of England, who struck the first-ever triple century in Test cricket (325 against West Indies) in April 1930, hardly had time to savour his achievement, as Don Bradman overtook his score within months with a spectacular 334 against England at Leeds.

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Gary Sobers held the record for the highest-ever score by an individual batsman for 36 years (365 not out against Pakistan in 1958) before Brian Lara erased it by scoring 375 against England in 1994. Matthew Hayden of Australia improved on this by making 380 against Zimbabwe in October 2003. But Lara reclaimed this record within a  few months when he struck an unbeaten 400 against England in April 2004.

However, when it comes to bowling, there is a cap on the number of wickets that a bowler can take in an innings, as only 10 batsmen can be dismissed. Taking all 10 wickets in an innings is an extremely rare phenomenon, right from club-level cricket to international matches. This is because not only should one bowler be having an extremely good day, but others should bowl well and be unfortunate not to pick up any wicket! A confluence of all the factors seldom happens and when it does, this becomes an occasion for much cheer and joy.

Hence it is not surprising that only on three occasions has a bowler taken all 10 wickets in an innings in test cricket, while this has not yet taken place either in One Day Internationals (ODI) or T20 Internationals. The first instance took place at Old Trafford, Manchester, in 1956, when Jim Laker ran through the Aussie batting lineup to return with figures of 10 for 56. The second was at Delhi in February 1999 when Anil Kumble dismissed all 10 Pakistani batters, conceding only 74 runs. The last one also occurred at India in December 2021, at Wankhade stadium in Mumbai, when Ajaz Patel of New Zealand took 10 wickets for 119 runs against the hosts.

Amongst the three, the achievement of Laker will certainly count as the most incredible one. Laker was an off-spinner who played 46 Tests for England between 1948 and 1959. He formed an excellent bowling partnership with Tony Lock, a left-arm spin bowler, who was his contemporary for most part of the 1950s. The fastish off-breaks sent down by Laker were complimented perfectly by the slow left-arm spin of Lock, and the fact that both of them played together for Surrey in the English county league helped their association to blossom further. Laker had shown that Australian batters were susceptible against good quality off spin bowling by picking up all 10 wickets in the first-class match against Surrey before the tests began for the Ashes in 1956.

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After a drawn first Test, Australia won the second test played on a seamer-friendly wicket at Lord’s by a margin of 185 runs. This defeat prompted England to change their strategy and they resorted to preparing a wicket that helped their spin bowlers for the third test at Leeds. The results were immediate as Australia surrendered meekly before the spin duo of Laker and Lock, who picked up 18 wickets amongst themselves, with the former taking 11 wickets for 113 runs while the latter had match figures of 7 for 81. Thus the series was interestingly poised with both sides having won one test each when the fourth test started at Manchester.

England batted first; helped by centuries by Peter Richardson and David Sheppard, put up a total of 459 runs. By the time Aussies batted, the pitch had started crumbling and spinners were brought on early. After the openers put on 48 runs for the first wicket, Laker got into the act, dismissing Colin McDonald and followed by clean bowling Neil Harvey for a “duck”. Lock got the wicket of Peter Burke soon afterwards, following which Laker went on a wicket-taking spree. He took seven wickets on the trot, while Lock kept the other end tight, and the duo succeeded in bundling out the Australians for a paltry score of 84 in the first innings.

Aussies put up a better fight in the second innings, managing to score 205, but this could not save them from the ignominy of a second consecutive innings defeat. When rain played spoilsport for most of the third and fourth days and Australia had managed to reach 114 for 2 wickets by lunch on the final day, it appeared that the visitors might manage a draw. But this was not to be as the wicket dried up after lunch and Laker demolished them taking all the wickets. His match figures of 19 wickets for 95 runs has not been bettered even after more than 68 years have passed since then.

Unlike Laker, Kumble did not have the advantage of bowling on a track prepared solely to help spin bowlers. He bowled on a regular pitch which had started aiding spinners by the fourth day of the match.  India lost the first of a two-Test series (followed by a Test as part of the now-defunct Asian Test Championship) when the two sides met in Delhi in 1999. India batted first and took a lead of 80 runs in the first innings, thus giving the hosts the upper hand. A total of 339 in the second innings meant that Pakistan were set a tough last innings target of 420 runs in the last innings. But the visitors started in great style with the opening pair of Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi putting on 101 runs for the first wicket. At this juncture, India skipper Mohammed Azharuddin changed bowling ends and brought on Kumble, who had bagged 4 wickets in the first innings. 

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Kumble struck straightaway, dismissing Afridi and Ijaz Ahmed off successive balls and did not look back after that. Bowling unchanged, he took all the 10 Pakistani wickets to dismiss the side for 207, leaving India winners by 212 runs. After the ninth wicket fell Azharuddin instructed Javagal Srinath to bowl wide off the stumps and the pace bowler obliged, even sending down a couple of “wide” deliveries.

If Laker and Kumble were acknowledged as amongst the best in the business in the world during their playing days. In that case, Ajaz Patel, the third bowler to pick up all 10 wickets in an innings in tests, does not fall in that category as his 85 wickets from 21 matches indicates. But his achievement stands out on a different plane when compared to the other two, in that he did not run through the side but trundled gamely for 48 overs, conceding 119 runs, to reach this landmark. This happened during the first innings of the match where India scored a total of 325. However, his side disappointed as they were dismissed for just 62 runs. India won the match by 372 runs, even as Patel finished with match figures of 14 wickets for 225 runs. 

Ajaz Patel. File Photo: Manorama

It is quite ironical that only Kumble amongst this trio would qualify for being considered as an “all-time great” in the history of the game. It is even more surprising that other top wicket takers in Test cricket such as Shane Warne, Muthiah Muralitharan, James Anderson, Stuart Broad etc could not achieve this landmark. This is unlike the scenario in batting, where the highest scorers have been prolific with the bat on a regular basis, with Bradman, Sobers and Lara capable of walking into any all-time dream playing eleven. Even Hayden, who though not in the same class as the other three, has done enough to be regarded  amongst the top batsmen from Australia.

Another interesting fact is that all the three who bagged the “perfect 10” are spin bowlers and there is no representation from the side of speedsters this elite club. Does this convey a subtle message that spinners are better than fast bowlers in exploiting favourable conditions and running through batting line ups? This can be food for thought for followers of the game!