On a damp Old Trafford pitch in 1988, Malcolm Marshall produced what many of his peers consider his masterpiece — 7 for 22 in 18.3 overs to bowl England out for 93.
England had lost the first Test at Trent Bridge by an innings and arrived at Old Trafford with their batting under siege.
Damp conditions on the morning of England's second innings gave the seamers movement; Marshall took the new ball with the lead already past 250.
England, captained by Mike Gatting at the start of the summer, were rolled for 135 in their first innings and conceded a 251-run lead. In the second innings, Marshall opened the bowling and was virtually unplayable. He took 7 for 22 from 18.3 overs, with five maidens, beating the bat from over and around the wicket and finishing with the best Test figures of his career. England were dismissed for 93 to lose by an innings and 156 runs. The performance came in the middle of a summer that produced four different England captains — Gatting, John Emburey, Chris Cowdrey and Graham Gooch — and confirmed the West Indian dominance of England that had now stretched to 5-0, 5-0, 4-0 over three consecutive series. Marshall finished the five-Test series with 35 wickets at 12.65, statistically one of the great series-long bowling performances in Test history.
Marshall opens the bowling around the wicket
Takes 4/12 in his opening spell
Returns after lunch to clean up the tail
Final figures 18.3-5-22-7
England dismissed for 93, losing by an innings and 156
Day 3, morning
England begin second innings 251 behind
Day 3, lunch
Marshall 4/12 from his opening spell
Day 3, afternoon
Marshall finishes with 7/22; England all out 93
Day 3, close
WI win by an innings and 156
“He bowled like a bowler from another planet.”
“The best spell of fast bowling I ever stood up to.”
The result accelerated England's captaincy chaos; four men captained the side that summer.
A near-perfect fast-bowling spell on a helpful pitch, and Marshall's career-best Test figures.
Marshall's 35 wickets at 12.65 in the series is one of the great bowling performances of the era. The 7/22 itself remained his Test-best.
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.