On This Day In Cricket - September 29

When the day of September 29 is recalled, it brings several memorable cricketing moments. In 1934, Lance Gibbs, the first spinner to 300 Test wickets, was born, renowned for his spin, bounce, and accuracy. In 1941, David Steele, the bespectacled underdog who stood tall against Lillee and Thomson, was born. 1957 saw the birth of Chris Broad, a gritty opener who later became an ICC referee. In 1983, Anshuman Gaekwad recorded the slowest double century in Test history. Lindsay Kline, born in 1934, is remembered for the tied Test of 1960. In 2024, Sri Lanka crushed New Zealand in Galle with batting and spin brilliance.

On This Day - September 29, 1957 - Chris Broad Was Born Today

On September 29, 1957, in Knowle, Somerset, Chris Broad came into the world, a lanky left-hander who carved out a storied cricket career. At 6ft 4in, Broad wasn’t about silky strokes but sheer grit, a batsman who grind bowlers down with unwavering focus. His defining chapter unfolded in the 1986-87 Ashes, where he joined the rare club of Jack Hobbs and Wally Hammond, blasting centuries in three straight Tests, a feat that still echoes in England’s cricketing lore.

From 1984 to 1989, he played 25 Tests, piling up 1661 runs at a solid 39.54 average, with six tons and six fifties, his 162 a standout. In ODIs, he notched 1361 runs across 34 matches, averaging a tidy 40.02, with one century and 11 half-centuries. His first-class haul was immense: 21,892 runs, 50 centuries, 340 games. After retiring, Broad lent his voice to commentary before becoming a heavyweight ICC match referee, overseeing 123 Tests, 361 ODIs, and 138 T20Is. His son, Stuart Broad, carried the family torch as a legendary fast bowler.

On This Day - September 29, 2024 - Australia Defeats England by 49 Runs

Bristol’s County Ground, on September 29, 2024, was a rain-lashed stage for the fifth ODI, where Australia clinched the series against England. England batted first, racking up 309 in 49.2 overs. Ben Duckett’s classy 107 off 91 balls was the backbone, with Harry Brook’s fiery 72 off 52 adding spark. Phil Salt’s 45 off 27 was a blazing start, but the middle order crumbled like a dry pitch. Travis Head’s 4 for 28 was a wrecking ball, backed by Glenn Maxwell and Adam Zampa’s two wickets each. Rain slashed Australia’s chase to 117 off 20.4 overs under DLS.

Matthew Short went full throttle, hammering 58 off 30 balls with seven fours and four sixes, while Head’s 31 off 26 kept things ticking. Steven Smith’s unbeaten 36 and Josh Inglis’ 28 not out off 20 sealed 165 for 2, nabbing a 49-run win and a 3-2 series triumph. Head’s heroics earned him Player of the Match and Series gongs. England’s early fire fizzled against Australia’s ice-cool chase. This match, a brew of big hits and rain-soaked tension, captured the old rivalry’s pulse, with Australia’s nerve stealing the show on a soggy day.

On This Day - September 29, 2021 - Royal Challengers Bengaluru Defeats Rajasthan Royals by 7 Wickets

On September 29, 2021, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) steamrolled Rajasthan Royals in Dubai for IPL 2021’s 43rd match. Rajasthan started with a bang, Evin Lewis smashing 58 off 37 balls, five fours, three sixes while Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 31 off 22 kept the scoreboard humming. Their 77-run opening stand looked ominous, but the middle order imploded. Sanju Samson’s 19 was a flicker as Rajasthan crashed from 100 for 1 to 149 for 9. Yuzvendra Chahal’s cunning 2 for 18 in four overs and Harshal Patel’s three wickets tore through the lineup.

Chasing 150, RCB’s Virat Kohli (25) and Devdutt Padikkal (22) set a steady tone. KS Bharat’s 44 off 35 balls held firm, but Glenn Maxwell’s unbeaten 50 off 30, with six fours and a six, was pure dynamite. AB de Villiers’ boundary sealed a seven-wicket win at 153 for 3 in 17.1 overs. RCB’s polished chase kept their playoff hopes alive, with Chahal’s guile and Maxwell’s bravado outshining Rajasthan’s early promise. The Royals’ collapse was a lesson in fragility, while RCB’s blend of grit and flair marked this as a pivotal step in their IPL 2021 quest.

On This Day - September 29, 2020 - Sunrisers Hyderabad Defeats Delhi Capitals by 15 Runs

On September 29, 2020, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) notched their first IPL 2020 win, outgunning Delhi Capitals by 15 runs in Abu Dhabi. SRH posted 162 for 4 in 20 overs, with David Warner’s gritty 45 off 33 balls and Jonny Bairstow’s 53 off 48 laying a foundation. Kane Williamson’s 41 off 26 balls, at a strike rate over 150, brought the heat, while Abdul Samad’s 12 not out off 7 added a late sting. Delhi’s chase of 163 hit turbulence on a tricky pitch.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar snagged Prithvi Shaw early, and Rashid Khan’s dazzling 3 for 14, dismissing Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, and Rishabh Pant, swung the game. Shimron Hetmyer and Kagiso Rabada fought back, but Delhi stalled at 147 for 7. Bhuvneshwar took two wickets, with T Natarajan and Khaleel Ahmed chipping in. Rashid’s magic earned him Player of the Match. SRH’s bowlers turned a modest total into a fortress, with Rashid’s spin leaving Delhi’s batters bamboozled. This win was SRH’s wake-up call, proving they could outfox a heavyweight like Delhi in a tense IPL battle, setting the stage for a spirited campaign.

On This Day - September 29, 1991 - Mominul Haque Was Born Today

Born on September 29, 1991, in Cox’s Bazar, Mominul Haque became Bangladesh’s Test batting bedrock. A left-handed craftsman with a dab of left-arm spin, he debuted in 2013 at Galle and has played 73 Tests, scoring 4627 runs at a 36.72 average. His 13 centuries and 22 fifties, topped by a 181, mark him as a red-ball maestro. Chattogram’s his hunting ground, with over five Test tons. Mominul’s early career was a purple patch, racking up 50-plus scores in 11 straight Tests.

He’s the only Bangladeshi to score centuries in both innings of a Test and the first to hit 300 runs in a two-Test series, doing it twice. As captain from 2019 to 2022, he steered Bangladesh to a historic Test win in New Zealand in 2022. In ODIs, he managed 557 runs in 28 matches; in T20Is, just 60 runs in 6. But his first-class tally of over 10,000 runs, 29 centuries screams Test specialist. Mominul’s knack for grinding runs under pressure has been Bangladesh’s backbone, his quiet resolve lifting a nation’s cricketing dreams in the toughest format.

On This Day - September 29, 2014 - Kolkata Knight Riders Defeats Dolphins by 36 Runs

On September 29, 2014, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ran riot over the Dolphins in a Champions League T20 clash in Hyderabad. Batting first, KKR wobbled early, losing Gautam Gambhir (12) and Jacques Kallis (6), but Robin Uthappa and Manish Pandey turned the tide. Their unbeaten 153-run stand, then a Champions League record drove KKR to 187 for 2. Uthappa’s 85 not out off 55 balls, with 13 fours, was all class, while Pandey’s 76 not out off 47, with five fours and five sixes, oozed power.

The Dolphins’ chase nosedived to 6 for 2. Morne van Wyk (34) and Khaya Zondo (32) scrapped, and Andile Phehlukwayo’s 37 off 18 brought late fireworks, but wickets kept falling. Sunil Narine’s 3 for 33 and Yusuf Pathan’s 2 for 25 pinned the Dolphins to 151 for 8. KKR’s 36-run win, with Uthappa as Player of the Match, kept their unbeaten run humming. The match was a showcase of KKR’s batting muscle and bowling smarts, overwhelming a gutsy Dolphins side. Uthappa and Pandey’s partnership was a thing of beauty, blending finesse and fury to cement KKR’s tournament dominance.

On This Day - September 29, 2012 - Sri Lanka Defeats West Indies by 9 Wickets

On September 29, 2012, Sri Lanka dismantled the West Indies by nine wickets in a World T20 clash at Pallekele. The West Indies, batting first, limped to 129 for 5 in 20 overs. Chris Gayle’s 2 and Johnson Charles’ 12 were early blows, but Marlon Samuels’ 50 off 35 balls and Dwayne Bravo’s 40 off 34 kept them afloat. Ajantha Mendis’ stingy 2 for 12, backed by wickets from Angelo Mathews, Nuwan Kulasekara, and Jeevan Mendis, choked the scoring. Chasing 130, Sri Lanka’s openers roared.

Tillakaratne Dilshan’s 13 off 9 was a brief spark before falling, but Mahela Jayawardene’s unbeaten 65 off 49 balls, with 10 fours and a six, was a clinic. Kumar Sangakkara’s 39 not out off 34 sealed a 108-run unbroken stand, guiding Sri Lanka to 130 for 1 in 15.2 overs. The nine-wicket rout, with 28 balls left, earned Jayawardene Player of the Match. Sri Lanka’s tight bowling and slick batting made a strong West Indies side look ordinary, their home-soil dominance shining through in a performance that echoed across the tournament.

On This Day - September 29, 2009 - New Zealand defeats England by 4 Wickets

When the ICC Champions Trophy 2009 group clash took place in Johannesburg on September 29, New Zealand completely outplayed England to win by four wickets. England, after being sent in to bat, struggled badly against the pace of Shane Bond and the accuracy of Grant Elliott. Their batting fell apart as Bond took 3 for 21 and Elliott claimed 4 for 31. Only Paul Collingwood with 40 runs and Ravi Bopara with 30 offered some fight, but the rest of the lineup collapsed. England were bowled out for just 146 in 43.1 overs, with Kyle Mills also bowling a miserly spell of 1 for 19 from his 10 overs.

Chasing 147, New Zealand made a fast start through Brendon McCullum, who smashed 48 from 39 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes, and Martin Guptill, who scored a fluent 53 off 55 balls. Their opening stand of 84 virtually sealed the game. Although Stuart Broad’s 4 for 39 gave England some hope by picking wickets in the middle order, the target was too small to defend. Captain Daniel Vettori guided his side home with an unbeaten 10 as New Zealand reached 147 for 6 in just 27.1 overs. Elliott’s all-round show earned him the Player of the Match award.