Cricket History and Facts

When Sachin Tendulkar scored his first Test century (119 vs England at Manchester in 1990), Manoj Prabhakar was at the non-striker's end. The other options - Kapil Dev, Mohammad Azharuddin, and Sanjay Manjrekar - were not batting with him at that specific moment.

Kevin Pietersen was England's top scorer in the 2010 T20 World Cup final against Australia, scoring 47 runs. He played a crucial inning in England's successful chase. The other options - Flintoff (retired before 2010), Collingwood (captain, modest score), and Strauss (not in T20 squad) - did not top score.

In the 2007 T20 World Cup bowl-out between India and Pakistan, Pakistan's Yasir Arafat and Umar Gul missed hitting the stumps. India won 3-0 with successful hits from Sehwag, Harbhajan, and Robin Uthappa. Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan didn't bowl.

Irfan Pathan became the first Indian bowler to take a hat-trick in the very first over of a Test match, achieving this feat against Pakistan in Karachi in 2006. He dismissed Salman Butt, Younis Khan, and Mohammad Yousuf in three consecutive deliveries.

Kapil Dev scored India's first ODI century (175 not out) against Zimbabwe in the 1983 World Cup, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest innings in ODI history. Sunil Gavaskar was a legendary Test batter but was not the first Indian ODI centurion. Ravi Shastri and Gundappa Viswanath were not ODI century specialists.

Lala Amarnath scored 118 on his Test debut against England in 1933, making him the first Indian to score a Test century in debut match. Sunil Gavaskar scored centuries on debut but in the West Indies. Ravi Shastri and Gundappa Viswanath were not known for debut centuries.

Sachin Tendulkar initially wanted to become a fast bowler and even tried bowling fast in his early school days. However, his coach Ramakant Acharekar and others noticed his exceptional batting talent and directed him toward batting.

Sachin Tendulkar scored his highest ODI score of 200* (not out) at Gwalior's Captain Roop Singh Stadium against South Africa on February 24, 2010. This was the first double century in ODI history.

Sachin Tendulkar scored his highest ODI score of 200* (not out) at Gwalior's Captain Roop Singh Stadium against South Africa on February 24, 2010. This was the first double century in ODI history.

Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer hold the Test cricket record for most 200+ run partnerships with 6 such stands. Their prolific opening partnership was a cornerstone of Australia's dominance in the 2000s.

Shahid Afridi held the record for most sixes in a calendar year in ODIs (32 sixes in 2002) when this question was written. The question asks specifically about a calendar year record. Note that this record has since been broken, but for the time period of this question, Afridi's record stood.

Muthiah Muralitharan, despite being the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket, surprisingly never took a 5-wicket haul in Australia. This is a well-known cricket statistic due to the difficult batting conditions and his struggles against Australian batsmen on their home soil.