Cricket has always been a game full of surprises, quirks and legends that leave fans in awe. From teams being out for a duck to players scoring 7 runs on a single ball, the history of the game is full of extraordinary stories. One of the most notable stories is the incident of scoring 286 runs on one ball, which has fascinated cricket fans for over a century.
Origin of the story
This strange story first appeared in the Pall Mall Gazette, a London-based English newspaper, in 1865. It was later referenced in the “Sporting Notes and News” section of the Gazette on January 15, 1894. According to the report, Victoria was seen playing against a makeshift local team in a match in Bunbury, Western Australia. This brilliant delivery happened on the very first ball of the match.
ball in the tree
The batsman hit the ball with tremendous force, causing it to hit the ground into the branches of a tall Jarrah tree. The home team immediately appealed and claimed the ball had been lost, hoping to gain an advantage. However, the umpires refused to declare it lost, claiming they could determine exactly where the ball had landed.
One rifle and 286 runs
According to the story, then someone brought out a rifle to uproot the ball. After several unsuccessful attempts, the ball finally came down. Unfortunately, no one caught it before it fell to the ground. By that time, the batsmen were said to have scored 286 runs on that single ball, reportedly a world record.
Fact or fiction?
It is important to note that there is no concrete evidence supporting this extraordinary phenomenon. While the story appeared in some newspapers, the Western Mail in Australia dismissed it as a “gigantic fairy tale”. To score 286 runs one would have had to run almost 6 kilometers to get the ball off the tree, an impossible feat under normal cricket conditions.
Even though the story is probably a myth, it continues to fascinate fans and reflects cricket’s long-standing reputation for strange and wonderful occurrences. Stories like these keep the game fascinating and ensure that cricket history is full of legends that straddle the line between myth and reality.
