A 100th hundred for Boycott!
It was late on the afternoon of August 11, 1977 – 36 at lunch, 79 at tea and then history made at 5:49pm to be precise.
Boycott had claimed his 100th hundred on his home ground. Fairy tale stuff!
An on-driven four to the boundary off the bowling of Australian captain Greg Chappell sparked scenes of jubilation, thousands lauding the landmark occasion and, at the same time, one of crickets most controversial characters in the post-war era.
Boycott, one of the finest opening batsmen in history, scored 22 Test centuries in all at an average of 54.57. As Yorkshire’s prodigal son brought up the milestone, play was halted for around seven minutes, almost as If there needed to be a collective in-take of breath, a realisation as to what had just happened.
Fresh from a three-year voluntary abstinence, which encompassed 30 Tests and now aged 36, he recorded scores of 107, 80 and then the infamous 191 upon his return.
