Cricket celebrates 140th anniversary of first Test match
MELBOURNE: A day before India take on Australia in what has been one of the most fiercely contested rivalries over the years, Test cricket celebrated its 140th anniversary.
The first ever Test match was played on March 15, 1877 between Australia and England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Australia won the four-day affair, which ended on March 19, by 45 runs. The fourth day, March 18, was a rest day.
Australian opener Charles Bannerman was the scorer of the first run and subsequently the first hundred in the longest and most intriguing version of the gentleman’s game.
It was a well-oiled English team that took on a relatively raw Australian squad who defied odds to turn the tables on their more accomplished counterparts.
The match began on 1.05 pm on a Thursday with the hosts batting first. The first ball was bowled by Alfred Shaw to Bannerman, who scored the first run in the history of the game with a single before retiring hurt for 165. He had sustained an injury to the index finger of his right hand.
The Aussies posted a first innings total of 245 as their other batsmen collapsed around Bannerman whose score was the highest of the match.
For England, Shaw and James Southerton returned best bowling figures of 3/51 and 3/61, respectively. Southerton is still the oldest Test debutant at 49 years and 119 days.
In reply, England failed to live up to their billing, managing only 196 with Billy Midwinter (5/78) running through their batting lineup. Opener Harry Jupp topscored for the visitors with a 241-ball 63.
Taking a 49-run lead, the Aussies struggled in the second innings and were dismissed for a meagre 104. England’s Shaw turned on the heat with innings figures of 5/38.
Chasing a target of 153, England took the Aussie route in their second essay, bundling out for just 108. Australian bowler Tom Kendall returned best figures of the match with 7/55.
This match saw attendance surging to nearly 12,000.
In the second Test, England came back to level the series. Later this rivalry between England and Australia came to be known as the Ashes with the competition beginning 1882.
There is previous history of cricket too involving USA, Canada and New Zealand but the contest between USA and Canada was never considered an official Test match. NEW DELHI: Continuing the professional boxing boom in India, the first ever Pro Boxing India Championship will be held in association with the Asian Boxing Council later this year.
The event will bring together boxers from across the globe. Royal Sports Promotion had earlier organised the first ever AIBA Pro Boxing Night in India last year where Vikas Krishan earned himself an extra shot at Olympic qualification.
The upcoming league format championship will see eight teams battling for the title in five weeks of action. The championship will offer a total of 6 winning titles for 6 weight categories.
Speaking about the conceptualisation of PBIC, Jai Singh Shekhawat (Director Royal Sports Promotions) said, “We are here to bring back that anticipation and anxiety among the young boxers with the Pro Boxing India Championship.”
A total of 48 boxers will be seen participating in the inaugural edition of PBIC wherein there would be a total of 32 male pugilists and 16 female pugilists.
“India has had a long history with boxing. We see a great potential in PBIC to bring talent from across the world in the ring and give professional boxing community a stage to showcase their prowess,” said Kiate Sirigul, Executive Secretary (Asian Boxing Council).