The birth of Zed

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Zaheer Abbas had an insatiable appetite for runs

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1947

That classical strokemaker Zaheer Abbas was born. Playing in glasses for much of his career, he scored 5062 Test runs for Pakistan (1969-70 to 1985-86) and is the only batsman to have hit two separate hundreds in a first-class match eight times. He twice made Test double-hundreds in England: 274 at Edgbaston in 1971 and 240 at The Oval in 1974.

1958

A distinguished trio made their Test debuts for England, against New Zealand at Old Trafford: Ted Dexter hit 52 and Ray Illingworth took three wickets in 45 economical overs. The third newcomer, Raman Subba Row, made only 9, but it scarcely mattered: England won by an innings and 13 runs, and became the first side to win the opening four Tests of a series in England.

2010

Pakistan beat Australia in a Test after 15 years. And after much drama. Playing their home series in England, after security concerns ruled out any international cricket in their country, Pakistan lost the first Test by a huge margin and their captain, Shahid Afridi, who announced his retirement from Tests. The 25-year-old Salman Butt took over at Headingley and Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir wiped out Australia for 88 - their lowest first-innings total in 53 years. Pakistan were set a target of 180, and at the end of day three they needed 40 to win with seven wickets in hand. Nerves jangled as they lost another four on the fourth morning but fittingly Amir, who took seven in the match, was at the crease when the winning runs were hit.

1981

Doug Bollinger turned 29 the day Australia lost to Pakistan at Headingley in 2010. He broke into the national side the previous year, and picked up eight wickets, including his maiden five-for, in his third Test, against West Indies in Perth, and followed with seven more in Hamilton three months later. By then he had taken 33 wickets in 20 one-dayers, with five-fors in Abu Dhabi and Guwahati. He was included in the squad for the first Test of the 2009-10 Ashes but released due to fitness doubts. Bollinger missed the 2011 World Cup, needing ankle surgery. He was picked only for the limited-overs leg of the Sri Lanka tour that followed the World Cup and took nine wickets in the series win.

1947

When South Africa's Alan Melville hit a four to bring up his hundred at Lord's, it was his fourth century in successive Test innings, all against England, spread over eight years. In 1938-39, he made 103 in the Timeless Test in Durban, and then followed with 189 and 104 not out at Trent Bridge in the first Test of 1947, South Africa's first after the war.

1931

Brilliant little George Gunn was 52 years old when he completed an innings of 183 for Notts against Warwickshire. His son George Vernon Gunn scored 100 not out in the same innings.

1867

The immortal Fred Tate was born. In contrast with his son Maurice, who took 155 wickets for England, poor Fred played in only one Test, but he put his name on it - and not just because it began on his birthday. After dropping a vital catch at Old Trafford in 1902, he was the last man out at the end of the match, which Australia won by three runs. Victor Trumper had scored a hundred before lunch in the first innings. By winning "Tate's Match", Australia retained the Ashes.

1917

Australian opening batsman Jack Moroney was born. After making a duck in his first Test knock, against South Africa in Johannesburg in 1949-50, he returned to the same ground later in the series to score a hundred in each innings.

1996

Death of Alphonso (Alfie) Roberts. When he appeared in his only Test, against New Zealand in Auckland in 1955-56, he became the first cricketer from the "small islands" (in his case, St Vincent) to play for West Indies.

Other birthdays

1888 Arthur Richardson (Australia)

1929 Alfred Binns (West Indies)

1935 Derek Varnals (South Africa)

1938 John Sparling (New Zealand)

1976 Cherie Bambury (Australia)

1982 Tessa van der Gun (Netherlands)

1985 Rusty Theron (South Africa)