At the Basin Reserve in March 1974, Greg Chappell made 247 not out and 133, and his elder brother Ian Chappell made 145 and 121 — the only instance in Test history of two brothers each scoring a hundred in both innings of the same match. Greg's 380 runs in the Test stood as the world record for runs by a player in one Test until Graham Gooch's 333 and 123 against India at Lord's in July 1990.
The Chappell brothers were already, by March 1974, the centre of Australian cricket. Ian had captained the side since 1971; Greg was vice-captain. The 1973-74 New Zealand tour was Australia's first to the country and was watched closely as a test of the relative strengths of two sides preparing for a busy 1974-75 international calendar.
Greg had been through a difficult personal period — a series of family setbacks in 1973, including the death of an uncle in a road accident — and his form on the early part of the tour was patchy. The Wellington Test came at a moment of refocusing.
Australia, captained by Ian Chappell, batted first and reached 511/6 declared. The Chappell brothers added 264 for the third wicket in the first innings, with Ian making 145 and Greg 247 not out. New Zealand replied with 484 and Australia, leading by only 27, batted again. Both brothers reached three figures a second time — Ian 121, Greg 133. Australia declared at 460/8 and New Zealand, set 485 in just under a day, comfortably saved the match at 230/6.
Greg's 247 not out, made in 472 minutes with 26 fours, was the highest score by an Australian against New Zealand at the time. His match aggregate of 380 was the world record for any individual in a Test, surpassing Doug Walters's 250 + 103 against the West Indies at Sydney in 1969.
Australia 511/6 declared in first innings; Ian 145, Greg 247*
Chappell brothers add 264 for third wicket — record between Australian brothers
New Zealand reply with 484
Second innings: Ian 121, Greg 133
Greg becomes only player ever to score 380 runs in a Test
Match drawn
1 March 1974
Australia first innings — Ian 145, Greg 247*; declare 511/6
3 March 1974
New Zealand reply 484
5 March 1974
Second innings — Ian 121, Greg 133; Australia declare 460/8
6 March 1974
Match drawn — New Zealand 230/6
“I had to wait for him to get out, and he never did.”
The series went to New Zealand, who won the second Test at Christchurch by five wickets — their first Test win against Australia. The Wellington match remained, however, a unique entry in cricket's record books: no other pair of brothers has matched the achievement of two hundreds each in a Test.
Greg Chappell's 380-run aggregate was eventually surpassed by Graham Gooch in 1990. Within the Australian record book, it remained the highest until Mark Taylor's 334 not out at Peshawar in 1998 came close.
Match drawn. The only instance in Test history of two brothers each scoring centuries in both innings of the same match. Greg Chappell's 380 match runs was a world record until Gooch's 456 in 1990.
The Wellington Test is part of the very small set of Tests in which the result is less remembered than the personal achievements within it. The Chappell brothers' joint feat is referenced in every account of New Zealand-Australia cricket, in any biography of either brother, and in the Lord's father-time wall section dealing with brothers in Test cricket.
Greg's 247 not out was also identified at the time as the moment at which his command of the off side, particularly the on-drive against pace, reached its highest level — the technical foundation for the run of form that produced his 1972-77 peak.
Yorkshire v Essex
1932-06-16
On 15-16 June 1932 Herbert Sutcliffe (313) and Percy Holmes (224*) put on 555 for the first wicket against Essex at Leyton, breaking the world first-class record for any wicket and adding a layer of folklore — including a scoreboard that read 554 for several minutes and a hastily reversed declaration — that has clung to the partnership ever since.
Australia v England
1933-02-14
With the fate of the Bodyline series in the balance and England 216 for 6 chasing 340, Eddie Paynter checked himself out of a Brisbane hospital where he was being treated for acute tonsillitis, taxied to the Gabba in pyjamas and a dressing gown, and batted for nearly four hours to score 83. England drew level on first innings, won the Test by six wickets and the series 4-1.
Australia
1934-09-25
Days after the 1934 Oval Test, Bradman fell seriously ill with appendicitis that progressed to peritonitis. With antibiotics not yet available, he was given little chance of survival; his wife Jessie left Adelaide on a sea voyage to England prepared for the worst. He recovered after weeks of intensive nursing in a London nursing home and returned to first-class cricket the following Australian summer.