by Abhishek Mukherjee
7 August 2015
The crowd had no idea that they were about to witness history. Stokes came round the wicket and bowled one down leg; Warner tried to flick and missed. The stifled appeal was turned down.
Then the crowd broke into a loud applause, for the electronic scoreboard at Trent Bridge displayed the words “The next ball will be the MILLIONTH DELIVERY to be bowled in Test cricket in England”.
The clapping started, but it turned out to be an anticlimax. It was an ordinary over-pitched delivery, and Warner responded with a regulation on-driven boundary without any drama or fuss. Just like that.
The crowd cheered without much enthusiasm, but cricket statisticians across the world celebrated the moment with gusto.
Stokes, perhaps buoyed by the sense of history, routed Australia for 253 with career-best figures of 6 for 36. England took an unassailable 3-1 lead and regained The Ashes.