1985
The Test debut of someone called Steve Waugh. A list of all his achievements would fill a site, let alone a page of this size. An average of around 50, in such a long Test career, tells the batting story as well as anything – but he's also taken more than 100 catches, played in over 100 Tests with his twin brother Mark, and added to the captaincy achievements of Allan Border and Mark Taylor by leading Australia to an amazing world record of 16 consecutive Test wins. Adam Gilchrist was in charge for one of those 16, but let's not quibble: this is perhaps the greatest, mentally toughest, cricketer of the last decade. Oh, and also the last Australian to play in a losing Ashes series, back in 1986-87, something he made a whole country pay for several times over.

1995
No Christmas spirit from Australian umpire Darrell Hair as he called Muttiah Muralitharan for throwing. Playing for Sri Lanka at Melbourne, he was called seven times by Hair before switching to the other end, where New Zealander Steve Dunne let him bowl unhindered. Few would have bet on Murali lasting much longer in Test cricket, but he went on to become one of the leading bowlers of the 1990s, overcoming further controversy when he was no-balled by another Australian umpire, Ross Emerson, in 1998-99.

1935
Some of the most exciting strokes ever played came from the bat of Rohan Kanhai, who was born today. After having to wait until his 24th Test innings for his maiden hundred, he turned it into a big one, 256 at Calcutta in 1958-59. He and Garry Sobers made their last Test tons in the same innings, at Lord's in 1973, when Kanhai captained West Indies to a crushing win that clinched the series. He made 55 in his first one-day international and the same score in his last, at the age of 39, when his support of Clive Lloyd helped to win the inaugural World Cup Final at Lord's in 1975.

1928
Batting with what the Wisden Almanack described as "such delightful ease", Alan Kippax made 260 not out and shared the only triple-century last-wicket stand (in fact the only one of 250 or more) in first-class cricket. With last man Hal Hooker, who scored 62, he put on 307 for New South Wales against Victoria at Melbourne.

1938
Using his famously enormous hands to impart some wicket spin to the ball, big Tom Goddard needed only three balls to dismiss the talented and prolific Dudley Nourse, Norman Gordon (out to the first ball he faced in Test cricket) and wicketkeeper Billy Wade. It was the only Test hat-trick by an England bowler between 1929 and 1957.

1995
The bowler with an action described as a "frog in a blender" became South Africa's youngest Test cricketer. When he made his debut against England at Port Elizabeth, Paul Adams was 18 years 340 days old. His left-arm unorthodox spin took four wickets in 50 economical overs, and another four in the next Test helped the pace of Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock to win the series. But once batsmen got over the shock of his action they realised there was little to fear and he quietly slid out of the reckoning.

1913
When the great Wilfred Rhodes took his 100th Test wicket, against South Africa at Johannesburg, he became the first England player to do the double of 100 wickets and 1000 runs. His Test career, the longest of all time, spanned five decades, from 1899 to 1929-30.

1858
One of Australia's earliest Test captains was born. Henry James Herbert Scott, better known as "Tup", couldn't stop England winning all three matches in 1886 (the Wisden Almanack referred to his lack of "authority and experience") - but he'd had a better time at The Oval two years earlier, scoring his only Test ton while partnering Billy Murdoch in the first double-century stand in international cricket.

Other birthdays

1890 Norman Reid (South Africa)
1942 Barry Wood (England)
1971 Mark Lathwell (England)
1973 Nikhil Chopra (India)

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