It all began at the now-iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground on March 15, 1877, when Australia took on England for the first-ever officially recognized Test match. This was the birth of cricket and the sport has come a long way ever since.
When people throw stone at you, turn them into milestones
-Sachin Tendulkar
With over 140 years of history, the game has seen many legends come and go and records have been broken over, again and again, taking the sport to unbelievable heights.
Today we take a look at the fastest players to reach the most prominent milestones in cricket.
10,000 runs
The Indian skipper and run machine are some of the most talented batsmen the world has ever seen. Scoring over 10K runs in ODI cricket, Virat Kohli is the fastest ever to achieve this feat, reaching the milestone in mere 205 innings.
While the Caribbean legend Brian Lara is the fastest to do the same in Tests in 195 innings. But he is tied along with legends Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara who also reached the 10K mark in 195 innings.
100 wickets
Moving on to the bowlers, It's Afghanistan’s spin wizard Rashid Khan who managed to bag 100 wickets the fastest, reaching the record in just 44 matches. While George Lohmann of England holds the record in Test matches, achieving the feat in 16 matches.
However, the competition for the fastest is close in Test matches with many players tying in second and third with 17 and 18 matches, the next best in ODI is Mitchell Starc who did it in 52 matches.
Fastest to 100 Test catches
Coming to wicket-keepers, Bob Simpson of Australia holds the record for the fastest to 100 Test catches, claiming the feat in his 54th Test Match. While the second fastest in his neighboring islander Ross Taylor of New Zealand who reached the milestone in 60 matches.
The 37-year old is only the second fielder from New Zealand to take 100 or more Test catches, the only other one being Stephen Fleming.
Fastest 100
Mr 360, AB de Villers set the world ablaze in South Africa’s match between West Indies in Johannesburg in 2015, when the then South African skippers blasted the world’s fastest century in 31 balls. An innings consisting of 16 sixes and 9 fours as he ended his score on 149. The Test honors go to Kiwi legend Brendon Mcculum, who attained the feat in 54 balls.
Fastest to hit 200 Sixes in ODIs
Fans adore maximums around the park and wait upon with excitement for that magic shot. Some players brought firepower regularly and one of those batsmen is Rohit Sharma. Who holds the record for the fastest to hit 200 sixes in ODI cricket playing just 187 matches.
The next best won't come as a surprise as their name stands Shahid Afridi who reached the milestone in 195 matches and AB de Villers in 214 matches.
Fastest to 500 wickets in Tests and ODIs
Bagging 500 wickets is no small feat in any format for any bowler, and then there is Muttiah Muralitharan who claimed the magic 500 in both Tests and ODI cricket. Such was the wizardry of the mystery spinner, pulling off the feat in 87 matches in Test and 324 matches in ODI.
Only two bowlers have achieved the feat of picking up 500 wickets in ODI, the other one is Wasim Akram of Pakistan who did it in 354 matches.
Fastest to 1000 fours in ODIs
Scoring boundaries is no small feat as it comes only through greater precision and timing. Such mastery is found within none other than Virat Kohli who took the fewest innings to hit 1000 boundaries, claiming the feat in just 216 innings. The next best is former Indian opener Virender Sehwag who took 221 innings.
With more cricket yet to be played, the world awaits for new superstars to rise who can raise the standards of crickets even higher and do one better. Though some of these records look to be set by generational talents, this is the world of cricket and you can never say never. Let us know which milestone you think is the hardest to be broken.
