On February 8, 1994 at Motera, Kapil Dev had Hashan Tillakaratne caught at slip by Sanjay Manjrekar to claim his 432nd Test wicket and pass Sir Richard Hadlee for the all-time Test wicket-taking record. He was 35; he had been chasing the record for two seasons.
Hadlee had been the world's leading Test wicket-taker since 1988 when he passed Ian Botham's record. He retired in July 1990 on 431. Kapil, four years younger and still active, was the obvious successor. The chase had become a national subplot of Indian cricket from 1992.
Kapil entered the 1993-94 home season needing five wickets. He took a few against the West Indies in late 1993 and one in the Lucknow Test against Sri Lanka. The Motera Test began with him on 431 — equal with Hadlee.
Hadlee had retired in 1990 with 431 Test wickets — at the time more than any bowler in history. Kapil Dev, who had begun his Test career in 1978 a few months after Hadlee, was the only man within reach. By the start of the 1993-94 home season Kapil had 426. He took five against the West Indies (one Test) and another against Sri Lanka in the Lucknow Test. Then came Motera. Sri Lanka were batting in their first innings on day two. Kapil was bowling his accustomed line — outswing on a fourth-stump line. In the eighth over of the morning session, he found the edge of Tillakaratne's bat. Manjrekar at first slip held it cleanly. The umpire — Daniel Reddy — raised the finger. The Motera crowd erupted; 432 balloons were released. Kapil was mobbed by his teammates. He retired a few months later in November 1994 with 434 wickets — a record that Courtney Walsh would eventually break in March 2000.
Equals Hadlee with 431st wicket in Lucknow
Motera Test begins with Kapil on 431
8th over day 2: Kapil bowls outswing to Tillakaratne
Edge to Manjrekar at first slip — caught
Umpire Daniel Reddy raises finger
432 balloons released; Kapil mobbed
1990
Hadlee retires on 431 Test wickets.
Late 1993-94 season
Kapil chases the record across home Tests vs WI and SL.
February 8, 1994 — Motera
432nd wicket — Tillakaratne caught Manjrekar.
November 1994
Kapil retires on 434.
“I bowled the same ball I always bowl. The bat got an edge. The slip caught it. That's all.”
“Records are made to be broken. I'm proud Kapil broke mine.”
Kapil retired ten months later in November 1994 with 434 Test wickets, 5,248 Test runs and a World Cup. His 434 record was broken by Courtney Walsh in March 2000 (Walsh finished on 519). Anil Kumble, Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne would all eventually pass that mark.
A milestone almost no Indian had thought possible when Kapil debuted as a 19-year-old in 1978. The first non-white bowler to lead the all-time wicket-takers list.
The 432nd wicket remains a touchstone for Indian cricket. Kapil was the first Indian — and the first non-white — to hold the Test wickets record. His ability to take wickets with outswing on subcontinental pitches changed Indian fast-bowling expectations forever.
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.