On This Day in Cricket - March 15

The date of March 15 will always be remembered as one of the most important dates in the history of cricket as the fans saw the birth of Test Cricket in 1877, as Australia and England played for the first time at the MCG. In 1983, one of the premier fast-bowlers, Ben Hilfenhaus, was born, who later went on to represent the Australian cricket team. In 1979, Kyle Mills was born, who became an integral part of the New Zealand team. Coming to 1995, the Sri Lankan team managed to win an Overseas Test match against the New Zealand team after 32 attempts.

On This Day - March 15, 1877 - The Birth of Test Cricket

The first match of Test Cricket was played on March 15, 1877, between the Australian team and the England team at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Coming to the match, the Australian team managed to win the toss and elected to bat first. Being the captain of the Australian team, Dave Gregory and his men started the innings on a positive note and it was Charles Bannerman who managed to make it big for the team in the first innings itself.

(Test Cricket was born on March 15, 1877)

On the first day of the match, the Australian cricket team finished at 166/6 as it was Charles Bannerman who finished the day at 126* while Jack Blackham was playing at 3*. From the England team, it was the duo of Alfred Shaw and James Southerton who picked 3 wickets each in the first innings of the game.

On This Day - March 15, 1983 - Ben Hilfenhaus was Born Today

The Australian bowler who was born on March 15, 1983, Benjamin William Hilfenhaus, made his name by delivering some of the most deadly spells for his team. Being a valuable player in the Test team, Ben managed to pick up a total of 99 wickets by averaging 28.50 with the ball and maintaining an economy rate of 2.78. Coming to the ODI’s, he picked up 29 wickets while keeping an economy rate of 5.30.

(Ben Hilfenhaus was born on March 15, 1983)

In the T20I Format, he played just 7 matches for the Australian team and picked 9 wickets for the team. However, around the Leagues, Ben Hilfenhaus made a name for himself by being a bowler who knew how to take crucial wickets. In the 96 matches, he picked up 117 wickets and maintained an economy rate of 7.60 which allowed him to be ranked as one of the best bowlers in the T20 Tournaments.

On This Day - March 15, 1979 - Kyle Mills Was Born Today

Born on March 15, 1979, Kyle Mills was the bowler that New Zealand needed whenever the situation got trickier during the cricket matches. Being the player who knew how to pick wickets, he managed to play 19 Test matches for the team and was able to pick up a total of 44 wickets and had an average of 33.02 for the team.

(Kyle Mills was born on March 15, 1979)

In ODI Cricket, his 170 matches saw him pick a total of 240 wickets and also maintain an economy rate of 4.72 while having an average of 27.02. In the 42 T20Is, the star bowler got just 43 wickets but his economy rate of 8.21 allowed him to be a regular player in the team. Injuries played a crucial role in Kyle Mils career as he played his last ODI Match for New Zealand on 31st January 2015.

On This Day - March 15, 1992 - South Africa defeats India by 6 Wickets

In the 1992 ODI World Cup, the Indian team played against South Africa on March 15, 1992 at the Adelaide Oval. After winning the toss, the South African team elected to field first and straightaway managed to put the Indian team under pressure. In the 30 overs game which was shortened due to rain, the Indian team managed to make a total of 180 runs with the loss of 6 wickets and it was Mohammad Azharuddin who made 79 runs off just 77 balls.

(South Africa defeated India by 6 wickets)

Chasing a target of 181 runs, the South African team was confident and hence they started well as Andrew Hudson with 53 runs off just 73 balls and Peter Kirsten with 84 runs off 86 balls helped them to easily chase off the target in 29.1 overs against the Indian team.