In the third Test against India at Nagpur on October 26, Glenn McGrath became the 30th cricketer, the eighth Australian and the sixth bowler to play 100 Tests.
It was a memorable Test for McGrath as Australia conquered the final frontier. He scored 11 not out with two fours -- his first double-digit score in the year 2004, captured 5 wickets for 106 runs (including those of Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid in the first innings and Sachin Tendulkar's in the second) and also took one catch.
During this Test, McGrath also became only the fourth bowler after team mate Shane Warne, Sri Lanka's Mutthiah Muralitharan and West Indian Courtney Walsh to complete 450 wickets in Test cricket.
The exclusive club of cricketers with 100 or more Test appearances includes eight Australians, seven Englishmen, seven West Indians, four Indians, three Pakistanis and one South African.
Test cricket was more than 91 years old when it produced the first centurion, Colin Cowdrey. In the next less than 37 years, 29 have joined him, an indication of mushrooming of Test matches since the 1970s.
The 100 Test-men include 21 specialist batsmen, four all-rounders, two wicket-keeping batsmen and three specialist bowlers. India's Sachin Tendulkar, at 29 years 134 days, was the youngest to appear in his 100th Test, whereas England's Geoff Boycott at 40 years 254 days, was the oldest.
Table I lists all players with 100 or more Test appearances in chronological order. It is observed that:
a) Cowdrey, Boycott, Dilip Vengsarkar, Kapil Dev, Alec Stewart and Carl Hooper all played their first as well as 100th Test against the same opponent.
b) Allan Border, Javed Miandad and Hooper made their first and 100th Test appearance on the same ground.
c) Mark Waugh took the shortest time to complete his 100 Tests -- 8 years and 342 days. At the other end of the scale, West Indies' Clive Lloyd took the longest time to do so -- 17 years and 137 days.
Table I 100-Test Club members:
| Player (Country) | First Test | 100th Test | Time Span | |
| 1 | Colin Cowdrey (Eng) | Nov 26,1954 | Jul 11,1968 | 13 yrs 228 days |
| v Australia, Brisbane | v Australia, Birmingham | |||
| 2 | Geoff Boycott (Eng) | Jun 4,1964 | Jul 2,1981 | 17 yrs 28 days |
| v Australia, Nottingham | v Australia, Lord's | |||
| 3 | Clive Lloyd (W0I) | Dec 13,1966 | Apr 28,1984 | 17 yrs 137 days |
| v India, Mumbai | v Australia, Kingston | |||
| 4 | Sunil Gavaskar (Ind) | Mar 6,1971 | Oct 17,1984 | 13 yrs 225 days |
| v W.Indies, Port-of-Spain | v Pakistan, Karachi | |||
| 5 | David Gower (Eng) | Jun 1,1978 | Jul 21,1988 | 10 yrs 50 days |
| v Pakistan, Birmingham | v West Indies, Leeds | |||
| 6 | Viv Richards (WI) | Nov 22,1974 | Nov 18,1988 | 13 yrs 362 days |
| v India, Bangalore | v Australia, Brisbane | |||
| 7 | Dilip Vengsarkar (Ind) | Jan 24,1976 | Nov 24,1988 | 12 yrs 305 days |
| v New Zealand, Auckland | v New Zealand, Mumbai | |||
| 8 | Allan Border (Aus) | Dec 29,1978 | Dec 24,1988 | 9 yrs 361 days |
| v England, Melbourne | v West Indies, Melbourne | |||
| 9 | Kapil Dev (Ind) | Oct 16,1978 | Nov 15,1989 | 11 yrs 30 days |
| v Pakistan, Faisalabad | v Pakistan, Karachi | |||
| 10 | Javed Miandad (Pak) | Oct 9,1976 | Dec 1,1989 | 13 yrs 53 days |
| v New Zealand, Lahore | India, Lahore | |||
| 11 | Gordon Greenidge (WI) | Nov 22,1974 | Apr 13,1990 | 15 yrs 162 days |
| v India, Bangalore | v England, St.John's | |||
| 12 | Desmond Haynes (WI) | Mar 3,1978 | Jul 4,1991 | 13 yrs 123 days |
| v Australia, Port-of-Spain | v England, Nottingham | |||
| 13 | Ian Botham (Eng) | Jul 28,1977 | Feb 2,1992 | 14 yrs 189 days |
| v Australia, Nottingham | v New Zealand, Wellington | |||
| 14 | Graham Gooch (Eng) | Jul 10,1975 | Jan 29,1993 | 16 yrs 203 days |
| v Australia, Birmingham | v India, Calcutta | |||
| 15 | David Boon (Aus) | Nov 23,1984 | Apr 21,1995 | 10 yrs 139 days |
| v West Indies, Brisbane | v W.Indies, Port-of-Spain | |||
| 16 | Steve Waugh (Aus) | Dec 26,1985 | Jan 2,1998 | 12 yrs 7 days |
| v India, Melbourne | v South Africa, Sydney | |||
| 17 | Ian Healy (Aus) | Sep 15,1988 | Jan 30,1998 | 9 yrs 137 days |
| v Pakistan, Karachi | v South Africa, Adelaide | |||
| 18 | Courtney Walsh | Nov 9,1984 | Feb 27,1998 | 13 yrs 110 days |
| v Australia, Perth | v England, Georgetown | |||
| 19 | Mark Taylor (Aus) | Jan 26,1989 | Nov 20,1998 | 9 yrs 298 days |
| v West Indies, Sydney | v England, Brisbane | |||
| 20 | Saleem Malik (Pak) | Mar 5,1982 | Dec 10,1998 | 16 yrs 280 days |
| v Sri Lanka, Karachi | v Zimbabwe, Lahore | |||
| 21 | Mark Waugh (Aus) | Jan 25,1991 | Jan 2,2000 | 8 yrs 342 days |
| v England, Adelaide | v India, Sydney | |||
| 22 | Mike Atherton (Eng) | Aug 10,1989 | Aug 3,2000 | 10 yrs 359 days |
| v Australia, Nottingham | v West Indies, Manchester | |||
| 23 | Alec Stewart (Eng) | Feb 24,1990 | Aug 3,2000 | 10 yrs 161 days |
| v West Indies, Kingston | v West Indies, Manchester | |||
| 24 | Wasim Akram (Pak) | Jan 25,1985 | Nov 29,2000 | 15 yrs 309 days |
| v New Zealand, Auckland | v England, Faisalabad | |||
| 25 | Shane Warne (Aus) | Jan 2,1992 | Mar 8,2002 | 10 yrs 65 days |
| v India, Sydney | v South Africa, Cape Town | |||
| 26 | Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) | Nov 15,1989 | Sep 5,2002 | 12 yrs 294 days |
| v Pakistan, Karachi | v England, The Oval | |||
| 27 | Carl Hooper (WI) | Dec 11,1987 | Oct 9,2002 | 14 yrs 302 days |
| v India, Mumbai WS | v India, Mumbai WS | |||
| 28 | Brian Lara (WI) | Dec 6,1990 | Dec 26,2003 | 13 yrs 20 days |
| v Pakistan, Lahore | v South Africa, Durban | |||
| 29 | Gary Kirsten (SA) | Dec 26,1993 | Mar 18,2004 | 10 yrs 82 days |
| v Australia, Melbourne | v New Zealand, Auckland | |||
| 30 | Glenn McGrath (Aus) | Nov 12,1993 | Oct 26,2004 | 10 yrs 349 days |
| v New Zealand, Perth | v India, Nagpur |
Table II gives the country wise break-up of 100 Tests from which we gauge the facts:
a) Steve Waugh, Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Wasim Akram, Gary Kirsten and McGrath played against all other Test playing nations.
b) Allan Border holds the record of playing most Test matches against a particular country -- 47 against England.
Table II: Country wise break-up of 100 Test appearances:
| Tests | Player | -------------------- vs -------------------- | |||||||||
| Eng | Aus | SA | WI | NZ | Ind | Pak | SL | Zim | BD | ||
| 168 | Steve Waugh | 46 | x | 16 | 32 | 23 | 18 | 20 | 8 | 3 | 2 |
| 156 | Allan Border | 47 | x | 6 | 31 | 23 | 20 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 133 | Alec Stewart | x | 33 | 23 | 24 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 9 | 6 | 0 |
| 132 | Courtney Walsh | 36 | 38 | 10 | x | 10 | 15 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 131 | Kapil Dev | 27 | 20 | 4 | 25 | 10 | x | 29 | 14 | 2 | 0 |
| 128 | Mark Waugh | 29 | x | 18 | 28 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| 125 | Sunil Gavaskar | 38 | 20 | 0 | 27 | 9 | X | 24 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 124 | Javed Miandad | 22 | 25 | 0 | 16 | 18 | 28 | x | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| 121 | Viv Richards | 36 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 28 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 119 | Ian Healy | 33 | x | 12 | 28 | 11 | 9 | 14 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| 118 | Graham Gooch | x | 42 | 3 | 26 | 15 | 19 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 117 | David Gower | x | 42 | 0 | 19 | 13 | 24 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 116 | Dilip Vengsarkar | 26 | 24 | 0 | 25 | 11 | 0 | 22 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 116 | Desmond Haynes | 36 | 33 | 1 | x | 10 | 19 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 115 | Mike Atherton | x | 33 | 18 | 27 | 11 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| 115 | Sachin Tendulkar | 16 | 20 | 14 | 16 | 16 | X | 10 | 13 | 9 | 1 |
| 114 | Shane Warne | 26 | X | 18 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| 114 | Colin Cowdrey | x | 43 | 14 | 21 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 112 | Brian Lara | 30 | 27 | 15 | x | 8 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| 110 | Clive Lloyd | 34 | 29 | 0 | x | 8 | 28 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 108 | Geoff Boycott | x | 38 | 7 | 29 | 15 | 13 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 108 | Gordon Greenidge | 32 | 29 | 0 | x | 10 | 23 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 107 | David Boon | 31 | x | 6 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 104 | Mark Taylor | 33 | x | 11 | 20 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 104 | Wasim Akram | 18 | 13 | 4 | 17 | 9 | 12 | x | 19 | 10 | 2 |
| 103 | Salim Malik | 19 | 15 | 1 | 7 | 18 | 22 | x | 15 | 6 | 0 |
| 102 | Ian Botham | x | 36 | 0 | 20 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 102 | Carl Hooper | 24 | 25 | 10 | x | 2 | 19 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| 101 | Gary Kirsten | 22 | 18 | x | 13 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 3 | 2 |
| 100 | Glenn McGrath | 22 | x | 14 | 20 | 9 | 10 | 14 | 8 | 1 | 2 |
Table III furnishes the batting and fielding performances of 100 Test men from which we gauge the following facts:
a) Steve Waugh has figured in most Tests (168)
b) Border has scored most runs (11,174) and has the most scores of fifty plus (90).
c) Gavaskar has compiled the most centuries (34)
d) Lara has played the highest individual innings (400*)
e) Tendulkar has the highest batting average (56.76)
f) Healy has taken most catches (366) and made most stumpings (29)
g) Mark Waugh has held the most catches (181) among the non-wicketkeepers
h) Walsh has remained unbeaten on most occasions (61). He has also made most ducks (43).
Table III: 100 Test members - batting & fielding performances
(in descending order of runs):
| Player | For | Tests | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | 50 | 0 | Ct | St |
| AR Border | Aus | 156 | 265 | 44 | 11,174 | 205 | 50.56 | 27 | 63 | 11 | 156 | - |
| SR Waugh | Aus | 168 | 260 | 46 | 10,927 | 200 | 51.06 | 32 | 50 | 22 | 112 | - |
| SM Gavaskar | Ind | 125 | 214 | 16 | 10,122 | 236* | 51.12 | 34 | 45 | 12 | 108 | - |
| BC Lara | WI | 112 | 197 | 6 | 10,094 | 400* | 52.85 | 26 | 46 | 13 | 147 | - |
| SR Tendulkar | Ind | 115 | 186 | 19 | 9,480 | 241* | 56.76 | 33 | 37 | 12 | 72 | - |
| GA Gooch | Eng | 118 | 215 | 6 | 8,900 | 333 | 42.58 | 20 | 46 | 13 | 103 | - |
| Javed Miandad | Pak | 124 | 189 | 21 | 8,832 | 280* | 52.57 | 23 | 43 | 6 | 93 | 1 |
| IVA Richards | WI | 121 | 182 | 12 | 8,540 | 291 | 50.24 | 24 | 45 | 10 | 122 | - |
| AJ Stewart | Eng | 133 | 235 | 21 | 8,463 | 190 | 39.55 | 15 | 45 | 14 | 263 | 14 |
| DI Gower | Eng | 117 | 204 | 18 | 8,231 | 215 | 44.25 | 18 | 39 | 7 | 74 | - |
| G Boycott | Eng | 108 | 193 | 23 | 8,114 | 246* | 47.73 | 22 | 42 | 10 | 33 | - |
| ME Waugh | Aus | 128 | 209 | 17 | 8,029 | 153* | 41.82 | 20 | 47 | 19 | 181 | - |
| MA Atherton | Eng | 115 | 212 | 7 | 7,728 | 185* | 37.70 | 16 | 46 | 20 | 83 | - |
| MC Cowdrey | Eng | 114 | 188 | 15 | 7,624 | 182 | 44.07 | 22 | 38 | 9 | 120 | - |
| CG Greenidge | WI | 108 | 185 | 16 | 7,558 | 226 | 44.72 | 19 | 34 | 11 | 96 | - |
| MA Taylor | Aus | 104 | 186 | 13 | 7,525 | 334* | 43.50 | 19 | 40 | 5 | 157 | - |
| CH Lloyd | WI | 110 | 175 | 14 | 7,515 | 242* | 46.68 | 19 | 39 | 4 | 90 | - |
| DL Haynes | WI | 116 | 202 | 25 | 7,487 | 184 | 42.30 | 18 | 39 | 10 | 65 | - |
| DC Boon | Aus | 107 | 190 | 20 | 7,422 | 200 | 43.66 | 21 | 32 | 16 | 99 | - |
| G Kirsten | SA | 101 | 176 | 15 | 7,289 | 275 | 45.27 | 21 | 34 | 13 | 83 | - |
| DB Vengsarkar | Ind | 116 | 185 | 22 | 6,868 | 166 | 42.13 | 17 | 35 | 15 | 78 | - |
| Salim Malik | Pak | 103 | 154 | 22 | 5,768 | 237 | 43.70 | 15 | 29 | 12 | 65 | - |
| CL Hooper | WI | 102 | 173 | 15 | 5,762 | 233 | 36.47 | 13 | 27 | 13 | 115 | - |
| Kapil Dev | Ind | 131 | 184 | 15 | 5,248 | 163 | 31.05 | 8 | 27 | 16 | 64 | - |
| IT Botham | Eng | 102 | 161 | 6 | 5,200 | 208 | 33.55 | 14 | 22 | 14 | 120 | - |
| IA Healy | Aus | 119 | 182 | 23 | 4,356 | 161* | 27.40 | 4 | 22 | 18 | 366 | 29 |
| Wasim Akram | Pak | 104 | 147 | 19 | 2,898 | 257* | 22.64 | 3 | 7 | 17 | 43 | - |
| SK Warne | Aus | 114 | 160 | 13 | 2,362 | 99 | 16.07 | - | 8 | 30 | 94 | - |
| CA Walsh | WI | 132 | 185 | 61 | 936 | 30* | 7.55 | - | - | 43 | 29 | - |
| GD McGrath | Aus | 100 | 112 | 40 | 468 | 39 | 6.50 | - | - | 28 | 31 | - |
Table IV furnishes the bowling performances of 100 Test men from which we gauge the following facts:
a) Warne has bowled most balls (32,330), most maidens (1505), conceded most runs (13,846) and has taken most wickets (541). He also has the most instances of 5 wickets in an innings (28) as also the most 10-wicket match hauls (8).
b) Kapil has the best innings analysis (9-83).
c) McGrath has the best strike-rate (52.19) among the bowlers (having bowled a minimum of 50 balls).
Table IV: 100 Test members - bowling performances:
(in descending order of wickets)
| Player | For | Tests | Balls | Mdns | Runs | Wkts | Ave | Best | 5WI | 10WM | SR | ER |
| SK Warne | Aus | 115 | 32,330 | 1,505 | 13,846 | 541 | 25.59 | 8/71 | 28 | 8 | 59.75 | 42.82 |
| CA Walsh | WI | 132 | 30,019 | 1,145 | 12,688 | 519 | 24.45 | 7/37 | 22 | 3 | 57.84 | 42.27 |
| GD McGrath | Aus | 100 | 23,538 | 1,182 | 9,801 | 451 | 21.73 | 8/38 | 24 | 3 | 52.19 | 41.63 |
| Kapil Dev | Ind | 131 | 27,740 | 1,060 | 12,867 | 434 | 29.65 | 9/83 | 23 | 2 | 63.92 | 46.38 |
| Wasim Akram | Pak | 104 | 22,627 | 871 | 9,779 | 414 | 23.62 | 7/119 | 25 | 5 | 54.65 | 43.22 |
| IT Botham | Eng | 102 | 21,815 | 788 | 10,878 | 383 | 28.40 | 8/34 | 27 | 4 | 56.96 | 49.86 |
| CL Hooper | WI | 102 | 13,788 | 531 | 5,635 | 114 | 49.43 | 5/26 | 4 | - | 120.95 | 40.87 |
| SR Waugh | Aus | 168 | 7,805 | 332 | 3,445 | 92 | 37.45 | 5/28 | 3 | - | 84.84 | 44.14 |
| ME Waugh | Aus | 128 | 4,853 | 171 | 2,429 | 59 | 41.17 | 5/40 | 1 | - | 82.25 | 50.05 |
| AR Border | Aus | 156 | 4,009 | 199 | 1,525 | 39 | 39.10 | 7/46 | 2 | 1 | 102.79 | 38.04 |
| SR Tendulkar | Ind | 114 | 2,928 | 74 | 1,600 | 35 | 45.71 | 3/10 | - | - | 83.65 | 54.64 |
| IVA Richards | WI | 121 | 5,170 | 203 | 1,964 | 32 | 61.38 | 2/17 | - | - | 161.56 | 37.99 |
| GA Gooch | Eng | 118 | 2,655 | 122 | 1,069 | 23 | 46.48 | 3/39 | - | - | 115.43 | 40.26 |
| Javed Miandad | Pak | 124 | 1,470 | 32 | 682 | 17 | 40.12 | 3/74 | - | - | 86.47 | 46.39 |
| CH Lloyd | WI | 110 | 1,716 | 75 | 622 | 10 | 62.20 | 2/13 | - | - | 171.60 | 36.25 |
| G Boycott | Eng | 108 | 944 | 45 | 382 | 7 | 54.57 | 3/47 | - | - | 134.86 | 40.47 |
| Salim Malik | Pak | 103 | 734 | 20 | 414 | 5 | 82.80 | 1/3 | - | - | 146.80 | 56.40 |
| MA Atherton | Eng | 115 | 408 | 12 | 302 | 2 | 151.00 | 1/20 | - | - | 204.00 | 74.02 |
| G Kirsten | SA | 101 | 349 | 19 | 142 | 2 | 71.00 | 1/0 | - | - | 174.50 | 40.69 |
| SM Gavaskar | Ind | 125 | 380 | 15 | 206 | 1 | 206.00 | 1/34 | - | - | 380.00 | 54.21 |
| DI Gower | Eng | 117 | 36 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 20.00 | 1/1 | - | - | 36.00 | 55.56 |
| DL Haynes | WI | 116 | 18 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 8.00 | 1/2 | - | - | 18.00 | 44.44 |
| MA Taylor | Aus | 104 | 42 | 3 | 26 | 1 | 26.00 | 1/11 | - | - | 42.00 | 61.90 |
| DC Boon | Aus | 107 | 36 | 3 | 14 | 0 | - | 0/0 | - | - | - | 38.89 |
| MC Cowdrey | Eng | 114 | 119 | 0 | 104 | 0 | - | 0/1 | - | - | - | 87.40 |
| CG Greenidge | WI | 108 | 26 | 3 | 4 | 0 | - | 0/0 | - | - | - | 15.38 |
| BC Lara | WI | 112 | 60 | 1 | 28 | 0 | - | 0/0 | - | - | - | 46.67 |
| AJ Stewart | Eng | 133 | 20 | 0 | 13 | 0 | - | 0/5 | - | - | - | 65.00 |
| DB Vengsarkar | Ind | 116 | 47 | 1 | 36 | 0 | - | 0/3 | - | - | - | 76.60 |
(Note: Ian Healy did not bowl)
Table V lists 30 players alphabetically and shows their progressive quantum of runs in each segment of 25 Tests. It is observed that:
Richards scored the most runs (2,426) in the first 25 Tests, but thereafter Gavaskar simply raced away from the rest in the next two segments -- 50 and 75 Tests.
Lara, however, ended up the highest run-scorer after exactly 100 Tests.
Table V: Progressive runs scored in each 25 Test segment:
| Player | 25 Test Runs | 50 Test Runs | 75 Test Runs | 100 Test Runs |
| Akram | 410 | 1,099 | 1,960 | 2,815 |
| Atherton | 1,597 | 3,681 | 5,287 | 6,742 |
| Boon | 1,572 | 3,326 | 5,428 | 7,094 |
| Border | 1,863 | 3,492 | 5,611 | 7,670 |
| Botham | 1,336 | 2,625 | 4,321 | 5,192 |
| Boycott | 1,566 | 3,603 | 5,704 | 7,518 |
| Cowdrey | 1,660 | 3,270 | 5,250 | 7,044 |
| Gavaskar | 2,256 | 4,947 | 6,718 | 8,479 |
| Gooch | 1,377 | 3,123 | 4,852 | 7,608 |
| Gower | 1,616 | 3,374 | 5,228 | 7,000 |
| Greenidge | 2,088 | 3,607 | 5,268 | 7,134 |
| Haynes | 1,490 | 2,890 | 4,444 | 6,486 |
| Hooper | 1,044 | 2,405 | 3,927 | 5,662 |
| Healy | 660 | 1,562 | 2,636 | 3,741 |
| Kapil | 1,023 | 2,129 | 3,075 | 4,142 |
| Kirsten | 1,694 | 3,231 | 5,122 | 7,212 |
| Lara | 2,283 | 4,205 | 6,133 | 8,916 |
| Lloyd | 1,520 | 3,653 | 5,089 | 6,904 |
| McGrath | 70 | 260 | 399 | 468 |
| Malik | 1,242 | 2,234 | 3,967 | 5,641 |
| Miandad | 2,059 | 3,860 | 5,444 | 7,694 |
| Richards | 2,426 | 4,329 | 5,761 | 7,336 |
| Stewart | 1,639 | 3,257 | 5,153 | 6,838 |
| Taylor | 2,272 | 4,044 | 5,688 | 7,343 |
| Tendulkar | 1,522 | 3,438 | 5,995 | 8,405 |
| Vengsarkar | 1,391 | 2,847 | 4,280 | 6,356 |
| Walsh | 189 | 437 | 626 | 794 |
| Warne | 426 | 806 | 1,390 | 2,052 |
| M.Waugh | 1,355 | 3,222 | 4,939 | 6,403 |
| S.Waugh | 1,079 | 2,387 | 4,240 | 6,288 |
Highest run-aggregate after each 25 Test segment:
Richards -- 2,426 runs in 25 Tests
Gavaskar -- 4,947 runs in 50 Tests
Gavaskar -- 6,718 runs in 75 Tests
Lara -- 8,916 runs in 100 Tests
Table VI shows the number of runs added in each 25 Test segment.
Lara holds the record of scoring most runs in a segment of 25 Tests. Lara aggregated 2,783 runs with 8 centuries from his 75th to 100th Test. Gooch just lagged behind with 2,756 runs from his 75th to 100th Test.
Table VI: Runs added in each 25 Test segment:
| Player | 1st to 25th Test | 26th to 50th Test | 51st to 75th Test | 76th to 100th Test |
| Akram | 410 | 689 | 861 | 855 |
| Atherton | 1,597 | 2,084 | 1,606 | 1,455 |
| Boon | 1,572 | 1,754 | 2,102 | 1,666 |
| Border | 1,863 | 1,629 | 2,119 | 2,059 |
| Botham | 1,336 | 1,289 | 1,696 | 871 |
| Boycott | 1,566 | 2,037 | 2,101 | 1,814 |
| Cowdrey | 1,660 | 1,610 | 1,980 | 1,794 |
| Gavaskar | 2,256 | 2,691 | 1,771 | 1,761 |
| Gooch | 1,377 | 1,746 | 1,729 | 2,756 |
| Gower | 1,616 | 1,758 | 1,854 | 1,772 |
| Greenidge | 2,088 | 1,519 | 1,661 | 1,866 |
| Haynes | 1,490 | 1,400 | 1,554 | 2,042 |
| Hooper | 1,044 | 1,361 | 1,522 | 1,735 |
| Healy | 660 | 902 | 1,074 | 1,105 |
| Kapil | 1,023 | 1,106 | 946 | 1,067 |
| Kirsten | 1,694 | 1,537 | 1,891 | 2,090 |
| Lara | 2,283 | 1,922 | 1,928 | 2,783 |
| Lloyd | 1,520 | 2,133 | 1,436 | 1,815 |
| McGrath | 70 | 190 | 133 | 69 |
| Malik | 1,242 | 992 | 1,733 | 1,674 |
| Miandad | 2,059 | 1,801 | 1,584 | 2,250 |
| Richards | 2,426 | 1,903 | 1,432 | 1,575 |
| Stewart | 1,639 | 1,618 | 1,896 | 1,685 |
| Taylor | 2,272 | 1,772 | 1,644 | 1,655 |
| Tendulkar | 1,522 | 1,916 | 2,557 | 2,410 |
| Vengsarkar | 1,391 | 1,456 | 1,433 | 2,076 |
| Walsh | 189 | 248 | 189 | 168 |
| Warne | 426 | 380 | 584 | 662 |
| M Waugh | 1,355 | 1,867 | 1,717 | 1,464 |
| S Waugh | 1,079 | 1,308 | 1,853 | 2,048 |
Most runs added in each 25 Test segment:
From 1st to 25th Test -- 2,426 runs by Richards
From 26th to 50th Test -- 2,691 runs by Gavaskar
From 51st to 75th Test -- 2,557 runs by Tendulkar
From 76th to 100th Test -- 2,783 runs by Lara
Table VII shows the comparative bowling figures of the six leading wicket-takers:
The others being only occasional bowlers, despite Border's match winning seven for 46 and four for 50 (match analysis of 11 for 96 against the mighty West Indies at Sydney in 1988-89, Carl Hooper's four five-wicket innings hauls and Steve Waugh's three five-wicket innings hauls.
It will be observed that Botham had a tally of more wickets than any one else in the first segment.
Warne had an edge over the others in second segment (i.e.from 26th to 50th Test), while McGrath outpaces all others in third and fourth segment of 25 Tests.
The first quarter of his Test career was most the productive one for Botham as he took as many as 139 wickets in his first 25 Tests with five wickets in an innings 14 times and 10 in a match thrice.
Warne and McGrath are the only ones to take 100 wickets in three different segments. While all other bowlers slowed down after 75 Tests, Warne has accelerated in the fourth segment.
Table VII: Progressive wickets after each 25 Test segment:
| Player | 25 Test Wickets | 50 Test Wickets | 75 Test Wickets | 100 Test Wickets |
| Akram | 76 | 197 | 322 | 409 |
| Botham | 139 | 229 | 326 | 383 |
| Kapil | 100 | 200 | 286 | 354 |
| McGrath | 106 | 234 | 358 | 451 |
| Walsh | 87 | 174 | 279 | 367 |
| Warne | 112 | 235 | 331 | 444 |
Highest wicket-aggregate after each 25 Test segment:
Botham -- 139 wickets in 25 Tests
Warne -- 235 wickets in 50 Tests
McGrath -- 358 wickets in 75 Tests
McGrath -- 451 wickets in 100 Tests
Table VIII: Wickets taken in each 25 Test segment:
| Player | 1st to 25th Test | 26th to 50th Test | 51st to 75th Test | 76th to 100th Test |
| Akram | 76 | 121 | 125 | 87 |
| Botham | 139 | 90 | 97 | 57 |
| Kapil | 100 | 100 | 86 | 68 |
| McGrath | 106 | 128 | 124 | 93 |
| Walsh | 87 | 87 | 105 | 88 |
| Warne | 112 | 123 | 96 | 113 |
Most wickets added in each 25 Test segment:
From 1st to 25th Test -- 139 wickets by Botham
From 26th to 50th Test -- 128 wickets by McGrath
From 51st to 75th Test -- 125 wickets by Akram
From 76th to 100th Test -- 113 wickets by Warne
Table IX deals with Healy and Stewart's progress behind the stumps:
Stewart's tally also includes the catches taken in the field while not performing the duty behind the stumps.
It will be observed that Healy was undoubtedly better of the two. Healy's lowest aggregate in 25-Test segment was 74 from 1st Test to 25th Test, which was higher than Stewart's best of 68 in the 76 to 100 Test segment.
Table IX: Progressive dismissals after each 25 Test segment:
| Player | 25 Test Dismissals | 50 Test Dismissals | 75 Test Dismissals | 100 Test Dismissals |
| Healy | 74 | 166 | 254 | 347 |
| Stewart | 28 | 69 | 125 | 193 |
Table X shows the performance of players with bat, ball and in the field in their 100th Tests. It will be observed that:
a) Only four players -- Gordon Greenidge (149), Miandad (145), Stewart (105) and Cowdrey (104) scored centuries in their 100th Test.
b) Border, Vengsarkar, Mark Taylor and Walsh suffered the ignominy of recording a 'duck' in their 100th Test.
c) Warne is the only player to take a five-wicket haul in his 100th Test. By scoring a fifty in the first innings, he also provided a rare occurrence of a fifty and five-wicket haul in the same Test.
d) Mark Waugh held the most number of catches in his 100th Test
e) Botham, McGrath, Walsh and Warne are the only ones to have contributed in each of the three fields i.e. batting, bowling and fielding.
Table X: Performance in the 100th Test:
| Player | Runs | Wkts | Cts/St | Result of 100th Test |
| Akram | 1 & 4* | 1-69 & 0-13 | 0 | Drawn |
| Atherton | 1 & 28 | - | 0 | Drawn |
| Boon | 18 & 9 | - | 0 | Australia lost |
| Border | 0 & 20 | - & 0-0 | 3 | Australia lost |
| Botham | 15 & 1 | 1-53 & 2-23 | 1 | Drawn |
| Boycott | 17 & 60 | - | 0 | Drawn |
| Cowdrey | 104 | - | 0 | Drawn |
| Gavaskar | 48 & 37 | - | 3 | Drawn |
| Gooch | 17 & 18 | - | 1 | England lost |
| Gower | 13 & 2 | - | 1 | England lost |
| Greenidge | 149 | - | 1 | West Indies won |
| Haynes | 18 & 57* | - | 0 | West Indies won |
| Hooper | 23 & 1 | 1-40 | 1 | West Indies lost |
| Healy | 1 & 10 | - | 2 / 1 | Drawn |
| Kapil | 55 | 4-69 & 3-82 | 0 | Drawn |
| Kirsten | 1 & 1 | - | 0 | South Africa lost |
| Lara | 72 & 11 | - | 1 | West Indies lost |
| Lloyd | 20 | - | 0 | West Indies won |
| McGrath | 11* | 3-27 & 2-79 | 1 | Australia won |
| Malik | 2 | - | 1 | Drawn |
| Miandad | 145 | - | 1 | Drawn |
| Richards | 68 | 0-1 & 0-26 | 2 | West Indies won |
| Stewart | 105 | - | 2 | Drawn |
| Taylor | 46 & 0 | - | 0 | Drawn |
| Tendulkar | 54 | 0-4 | 0 | Drawn |
| Vengsarkar | 25 & 0 | - | 2 | India lost |
| Walsh | 3* & 0 | 2-47 & 3-25 | 1 | West Indies won |
| Warne | 63 & 15* | 2-70 & 6-161 | 1 | Australia won |
| M.Waugh | 32 | - | 4 | Australia won |
| S.Waugh | 85 | 0-10 | 1 | Australia won |
A scrutiny of the last column in the above table reveals the fact that McGrath is one of the only nine players who were in the winning side on their 100th appearance.
The nine players were -- five West Indians (Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Lloyd, Richards and Walsh) plus four Australians -- the Waugh brothers, McGrath and Warne
Gooch and David Gower for England, Border and Boon for Australia, Gary Kirsten for South Africa, Hooper and Lara for West Indies and Dilip Vengsarkar for India ended on losing sides in their 100th Test, while Akram, Michael Atherton, Botham, Boycott, Cowdrey, Gavaskar, Ian Healy, Kapil, Salim Malik, Miandad, Stewart, Taylor and Tendulkar were all involved in drawn encounters in their 100th Test.
