1896
Aristocratic strokemaker KS Ranjitsinhji achieved the unique feat of scoring two first-class hundreds on the same day, for Sussex against Yorkshire at Hove. A month earlier, the Indian-born Ranji had made an unbeaten 154 on his debut for England, against Australia at Old Trafford. His county partnerships with the equally cultured CB Fry were legendary.

1992
At Colombo's Sinhalese Sports Club, Sri Lanka needed only 54 to win with eight wickets left – whereupon Australia's captain Allan Border called up an underachieving legspinner called Shane Warne, who took 3 for 11 to help offspinner Greg Matthews (4 for 76) bowl Australia to victory by 16 runs. This after Sri Lanka took a first-innings lead of 291, with Romesh Kaluwitharana flaying 132 not out on his debut. The remaining two Tests were drawn.

1956
Birth of another fair-haired Australian spinner, Peter Taylor, who was so unknown that when he made his debut against England at the SCG in 1986-87, many thought he was a misprint for the then uncapped Mark Taylor. He took 6 for 78 with his looping offbreaks and helped Australia win a match that went to the penultimate over. It was the only five-wicket haul of his 13-Test career, but he took 97 wickets in 83 one-day internationals and went on to become a Test selector.

1939
As people's thoughts turned to what Wisden described as the `European situation', the third Test between England and West Indies at the Oval petered out into a tame draw in front of 9000 spectators. It was the last Test to be played until New Zealand hosted Australia in March 1946, six-and-a-half years later. West Indies cancelled the remainder of their tour and returned home early. Within a fortnight England had declared war on Germany.

1897
Birth of Australia's pre-war captain Bill Woodfull, who liked to regain the Ashes on his birthday: he did it in 1930 and again in 1934 (see below).

1930
Australia regained the Ashes with an innings win at The Oval, thanks to Don Bradman's 232, which was almost an average score for him at the time. Earlier in the series he had scored 131, 254 and 334. His total of 974 runs is still a record for any Test series.

1934
Another Oval Test, another Bradman double ton, another big Australian win to regain the Ashes. This time The Don hit 244 and shared a record stand of 451 with Bill Ponsford, who scored 266 in his last Test. Also making his Test farewell was poor Frank Woolley, once a superb fielder but now a 47-year-old substitute wicketkeeper who conceded a Test-record 37 byes. An unjust end to one of the greatest careers.

1912
England dismissed Australia for only 65 at The Oval (Woolley 5 for 20, Harry Dean 4 for 19) to win the Triangular Tournament, the only competition between three Test teams ever held in a single country (South Africa finished third).

1896
Gloucestershire were all out for 17, their lowest score in any first-class match, against the Australians at Cheltenham. Two offspinners did all the bowling, Hugh Trumble taking 6 for 8 and Tom McKibbin 4 for 7.

1881
Birth of double international Harry Makepeace, whose century at Melbourne in 1920-21 made up for some bad luck in his England matches as a footballer. On his debut, against Scotland in 1906, his injury was described as "the turning point of the match". He scored two other fifties in the 1920-21 Ashes series, some rare defiance in the face of a 5-0 defeat.

Other birthdays
1893 George Wood (England)
1923 Ken Rickards (West Indies)

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