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July 25 down the years

The tale of four keepers

How many men does it take to keep wicket for England in a Test?

July 26 | July 24

At 45, Bob Taylor was the oldest of the four men who kept wickets for England at Lord's in 1986 © Getty Images

1986
The beginning of England's tale of four wicketkeepers. When Richard Hadlee sent Bruce French to hospital in the first Test at Lord's, England needed a replacement keeper. Bill Athey donned the gloves for two overs, and then Bob Taylor - aged 45 and at the ground doing PR work for the sponsors Cornhill Insurance - sheepishly came onto the field and kept so impeccably that it seemed he'd never been away. The next day Hampshire's Bobby Parks stood in from after lunch, and then French resumed on the fourth day - for all of one ball, which was all it took to wrap up New Zealand's innings. Oddly, none of the four took any catches.

1997
At Headingley, a pivotal moment in an Ashes series. With the series locked at 1-1, Australia were 50 for 3 in reply to England's 172, Matthew Elliott poked at an awayswinger from Mike Smith, and edged it gently towards first slip - where Graham Thorpe dropped it. It was a dolly. Off the very next ball, Dean Headley nabbed Steve Waugh, so the Aussies might have been 50 for 5. Instead their fifth-wicket pair of Elliott and Ricky Ponting, who made his maiden Test century in his first Ashes Test, added a soul-destroying 288. Elliott, 29 when he was dropped, plunged 170 daggers into Thorpe's heart. England were pummelled by an innings - and Smith, who himself later dropped Elliott, never did take a Test wicket.

1999
Lucky 13th for New Zealand. They had got close on a couple of occasions, not least on their previous visit in 1994, but at the 13th attempt, New Zealand won a Test at Lord's. The architects of their nine-wicket win were Chris Cairns, who took 6 for 77 to shoot England out for 186 in their first innings, and Matt Horne, whose even 100 ensured that the initiative was not lost. England, who had won an extraordinary match at Edgbaston to go 1-0 up, never recovered, and eventually succumbed 2-1. It was an inauspicious start to Nasser Hussain's tenure as captain.

1921
Warwick Armstrong's reputation as a ogre seemed to get to the umpires on the second day of the fourth Test between England and Australia at Old Trafford. When England's captain Lionel Tennyson tried to declare shortly before the close of play Armstrong objected - under the laws as they stood then, because the first day had been washed out the match was classed as a two-day game and so declarations were not permissible - and a lengthy discussion ensued. When play resumed, Armstrong, who had just completed an over before the delay, bowled the next over from the other end.

1884
The match between Lancashire and Gloucestershire was abandoned as a result of the death of Martha Grace, mother of WG and EM who were both playing in the match. It remains the only first-class game to be abandoned for such a reason.

1957
The hat-trick taken by fast bowler Peter Loader against West Indies at Headingley was the last by an England bowler in a Test until Dominic Cork in 1995. Loader dismissed West Indies captain John Goddard, then bowlers Sonny Ramadhin and Roy Gilchrist, as West Indies collapsed to 142 all out. England replied with 279, which was enough to seal an innings victory, and an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.

1914
At the age of 66, the incomparable WG Grace made 69 not out for Eltham away to Grove Park, his last innings in club cricket. He died the following year.

1974
The start of England's 500th Test (not counting the three abandoned without a ball being bowled) against Pakistan at Headingley was marked by play being suspended for 14 minutes on the first morning after a bomb scare led to one of the stands being evacuated. The match ended in a draw.

1900
Living up to his reputation as one of the biggest hitters in history, Gilbert Jessop scored a hundred before lunch twice in the same match, for Gloucestershire at Bradford against a Yorkshire opening attack of George Hirst and Wilfred Rhodes.

1964
A maiden Test century for Bob Simpson turned into a monumental 311 at Old Trafford. The match ended as a monumental bore.

Other birthdays
1908 Bill Bowes (England)
1925 Alistair Taylor (South Africa)
1930 Murray Chapple (New Zealand)
1968 Rudi Bryson (South Africa)
1982 Monde Zondeki (South Africa)