The Vault - Martin Crowe: 467 reasons to be celebrating

This article appeared in the Herald on February 5, 1991, after the first test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at the Basin Reserve.

When Martin Crowe and Andrew Jones walked off the Basin reserve at tea yesterday they had no idea they were on the verge of setting a new world-record partnership in test cricket.

"We did not know about the world record until the lads told us in the dressing room at tea that we wanted only one run to break it," said Crowe after the match.

"That really made us beside ourselves with nerves."

Crowe who made 299 and Jones, who made 186, scored 467 in 548 minutes, and broke the previous any-wicket world record of 451 which was set by Don Bradman and Bill Ponsford in 1934 against England, and equalled in the 1982-83 season by Mudassar Nazar and Javed Miandad of Pakistan against India.

Despite the record and the fact that he had led his team from the brink of defeat to a draw against Sri Lanka, Crowe was disappointed that he just failed to become the first New Zealander to score 300 in a test match.

"I feel rather as if I had been climbing Everest, and pulled a hamstring on the last stride," said the 28-year-old New Zealand skipper.

The Crowe-Jones records yesterday included:

• World record partnership for any wicket of 467.
• Highest New Zealand individual test score of 299, beating Glenn Turner's 1971-72 mark of 259.
• New Zealand's highest test innings total of 671 for four wickets, with the old record 533 for seven.
• Crowe's 299 was his highest first-class score, breaking his old record of 242.

Crowe may have failed to join the elite batsmen in the 300-plus club, headed by Gary Sobers with 365 and containing 10 other batsmen, but he did gain one mark of distinction - he and Bradman are the only batsmen to be out for 299 in a test.

The 300-club members are: Sobers 365, Len Hutton 364, Hanif Mohammed 337, Walter Hammond 336, Bradman 334 and 304, Graham Gooch 333, Andy Sandham 325, Bob Simpson 311, John Edrich 310 not out, Bob Cowper 307, Lawrence Rowe 302.

• Several cricket enthusiasts called the New Zealand Herald last evening, saying that television replays had shown that a Crowe six had been ruled a four.

"I was at the square leg end in that over, but cannot remember any discussion about a wrong call," Steve Woodward, one of the test umpires, said last night.

"I had a chat with Martin, and he did not mention any possibility there might have been a wrong call.

"There is no video evidence," said Woodward, "to make us suggest there should be a recount of Martin's score."