Steven LynchMar 3, 2026, 01:04 PM

CloseSteven Lynch won the Wisden Cricket Monthly Christmas Quiz three years
running before the then-editor said “I can’t let you win it again, but would
you like a job?” That lasted for 15 years, before he moved across to the
Wisden website when that was set up in 2000. Following the merger of the two
sites early in 2003 he was appointed as the global editor of Wisden
Cricinfo. In June 2005 he became the deputy editor of Wisden Cricketers’
Almanack. He continues to contribute the popular weekly “Ask Steven”
question-and-answer column on ESPNcricinfo, and edits the Wisden Guide to
International Cricket.

Multiple Authors

Alyssa Healy hit 158 in what she says will be her last one-day international. Has anyone ever made a higher score in their last match? asked Jenny Morgan from Australia
Alyssa Healy smashed 158 from 98 balls against India in Hobart last weekend. Assuming Healy sticks to her retirement plan, that is indeed the highest score by a woman in her final ODI: Johmari Logtenberg of South Africa made 153 not out in her last such game, against Netherlands in Deventer in August 2007. She was only 18 at the time, but retired to concentrate on golf, but had to give that up not long afterwards because of a foot problem.

Three other current female players have scored centuries in their most recent ODIs, but they will presumably play again.

Twelve men have scored a century in what turned out to be their final ODI: the highest score among them is James Marshall’s 161 for New Zealand against Ireland in Aberdeen in July 2008. I’ve not included the 13 current players who did this in 2025 or 2026.

Tristan Stubbs took three catches in the same over in a group game in the T20 World Cup. Was this unique for an outfielder? asked Ben from Australia
South Africa’s Tristan Stubbs took three catches – Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh and Arshdeep Singh – off the bowling of Keshav Maharaj in the 15th over of India’s innings in Ahmedabad on February 22. Pandya was caught on the long-off boundary, while Rinku and Arshdeep were taken at long-on, although it was roughly the same spot on the ground as they are left-handers.

We don’t have ball-by-ball data for all T20 internationals, but it looks as if three catches in one over by an outfielder is unmatched: it certainly hasn’t been done by anyone from a Test-playing country. It would appear that the only wicketkeepers to have done it in T20Is are New Zealand’s Mitch Hay, against Sri Lanka in Mount Maunganui in December 2024 (three catches in four balls from Jacob Duffy), and Austria’s Emma Kirkman, against Denmark women in Seebarn in May 2024 (all three victims of an Andrea-Mae Zepeda hat-trick).

Who’s scored the most runs in a single T20 World Cup? asked Junaid Ahmed from the UAE
At the start of the current tournament this record was held by Virat Kohli, with 319 in Bangladesh in 2013-14, but that’s been broken this year: Sahibzada Farhan of Pakistan made 383 runs in the group games to set a new mark.

Brian Bennett came close with 292 this time, at an average of 146, but Zimbabwe have been eliminated now so he won’t be adding to that. However, Aiden Markram of South Africa made 268 runs in the group games, and possibly has two innings to come. Others with an outside chance of topping the list with the knockout games to come include Suryakumar Yadav (231 runs in the group games), Harry Brook and Ryan Rickelton (both 228) and Ishan Kishan (224).

AB de Villiers equalled the record for dismissals in a Test with 11 Getty Images

Who’s the only man to take 100 Test catches as a wicketkeeper, and 100 as an outfielder? Is it Jonny Bairstow? asked David McKinlay from England
That’s not a bad guess, but although Jonny Bairstow racked up 209 catches as a wicketkeeper, he held only 33 in the outfield. Alec Stewart had 36, and Kumar Sangakkara 51. But the man in three figures for both is the versatile South African AB de Villiers, who took 101 catches when keeping wicket – including equalling the Test record with 11 against England in Johannesburg in February 2013 – and 121 in the field.

Apparently there’s only two Wisden Cricketers of the Year whose portraits in the book show them fielding. Is that right? asked Matt Bennett from England
That’s a topical one, with this year’s Wisden hotly awaited (it’s due to be published on April 14). The tradition of naming Cricketers of the Year started in 1889: each one was commemorated by a portrait, which was unusual for the time (there were no other photographs in Wisden for years).

It wasn’t until 1946 that action photographs replaced staid old headshots, and since then it looks as if there have been three players whose accompanying photograph showed them fielding (not including wicketkeepers here). You can possibly guess two of them: the great South African fielders Colin Bland (a Cricketer of the Year in 1966) and Jonty Rhodes (1999).

They were not the first, though: that honour went to Surrey’s Stuart Surridge, in the 1953 book. He was a notable close fielder, but is probably remembered more for his captaincy: he skippered Surrey for five years (1952-56) and won the County Championship in all five seasons.

Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.

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