Cricket History and Facts

Merv Hughes was known as 'Fruitfly' among his Australian teammates, a nickname that played on his distinctive moustache and large build. Geoff Lawson, Mike Veletta, and Mike Whitney had different nicknames and were not called 'Fruitfly'.

Pravin Amre and Vinod Kambli both played for Boland province in South African domestic cricket during the early 1990s when many Indian players participated in South Africa's emerging cricket system post-apartheid. Griqualand West, Border, and Gauteng were other provinces but not the ones they represented.

Ravi Shastri played county cricket for Glamorgan in 1984. He was a successful overseas professional and had a productive season with the Welsh county. Leicestershire, Gloucestershire, and Lancashire were not counties he represented.

Bishen Singh Bedi, the legendary Indian spin bowler, played for Northamptonshire in county cricket. He was known for his classical left-arm orthodox spin and had a successful stint with the county. Essex, Surrey, and Sussex were not counties he represented.

Yuvraj Singh was signed by Yorkshire in 2003 to play as an overseas professional in county cricket. This was a significant opportunity for the young Indian all-rounder early in his international career. Nottinghamshire, Essex, and Surrey were not the counties he signed with that year.

Sourav Ganguly had a difficult season with Lancashire in 2000, struggling with form and adapting to English conditions. This stint is remembered as one of his more challenging periods in county cricket. Sachin Tendulkar, Javagal Srinath, and Nayan Mongia did not have notable struggles with Lancashire in 2000.

Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed for a duck (0 runs) in his ODI debut against Pakistan in 1989. He was caught by Waqar Younis off the bowling of Younis Khan. This is a well-documented fact about his early career, making 0 the correct answer.

Sachin Tendulkar scored his first ODI fifty (79 runs) in his 9th match against New Zealand in 1990. This milestone came relatively early in his ODI career. His 2nd match was too early, and 24th or 100th matches would be much later than when he actually achieved this feat.

Sachin Tendulkar was born on April 24, 1973. This is a well-documented biographical fact. The other dates (May 5, May 4, April 14) are incorrect and do not match his actual birth date.

Sachin Tendulkar was Yorkshire's first overseas professional, breaking their 132-year tradition of only having English players. This was a significant milestone in county cricket history. Option A duplicates the question text, and the other claims about centuries and replacing Gavaskar are incorrect.

Sachin Tendulkar scored 2 centuries in the 1996 World Cup - against Kenya and Sri Lanka. This was his standout World Cup performance despite India's semifinal exit. He did not score 0, 3, or 1 century in that tournament.

Sachin Tendulkar scored 9 ODI centuries in 1998, widely regarded as his best year. This was a record-breaking year where he scored over 1800 runs. The numbers 5, 6, and 3 are incorrect counts for his centuries in 1998.

Sachin Tendulkar's highest score in Test cricket is 248 not out (against Bangladesh in 2004). His highest score in ODIs at the time of this question's likely creation was 186 not out (against New Zealand in 1999), though he later scored 200*.