Brendon McCullum Falls Five Short of Fastest Double Ton in Tests
Brendon McCullum was poised to break the record for the fastest double hundred in Tests but fell short by five runs. The New Zealand captain perished for a 134-ball 195 before falling to Tharindu Kaushal.
New Zealand's flamboyant skipper Brendon McCullum came close to surpassing countryman and former batsman Nathan Astle's (153 balls) record for the fastest Test double double off. However, he fell for 195 off 134 balls, powering his side to 429/7 at stumps on the first day of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Christchurch Friday. This was also the most scored by the Black Caps in a day's play.
McCullum's knock included 18 fours and 11 towering sixes. He had smashed a double ton off 186 balls, now the fifth fastest of all time, against Pakistan in Sharjah in November.
McCullum now holds the most sixes in Tests in a calender year. Former Australia wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist had hit 22 sixes in 15 Tests back in 2005 while MCullum has 33 after nine matches this year.
In the debut Test at Hagley Oval, purpose-built after the horrific earthquake that destroyed much of Christchurch and claimed 185 lives in 2011, McCullum achieved the 1,000-run milestone when he belted Angelo Mathews over the long-on boundary for the first of his sixes.
He then brought up his 100 in 74 balls to break his own record for the fastest century by a New Zealander by four deliveries.
In February, McCullum became the first New Zealander to score 300 in a Test innings in the second Test against India and has averaged nearly 67 from 16 innings in the year.
He became the 136th cricketer worldwide to register on the 1,000 run-list which is headed by Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf who notched a phenomenal 1,788 at 99.33 in 2006.
McCullum went to the crease when Taylor slipped as he tried to turn back on an aborted single attempt and was run out by a side-on throw from Kaushal Silva.