Which batter has the biggest difference between averages in wins and defeats in Tests?
And what's the record for the most consecutive Test appearances by a player against the same opposition?
That's a great spot because, as it turns out, England's Rory Burns has the biggest negative difference between his batting average in Tests won (25.41) and lost (35.86). Looking at the 394 players who were part of at least ten wins and ten defeats, next comes the 19th-century Australian Harry Trott, who averaged 16.40 in wins but 25.88 in defeats, a difference of -9.44 to Burns's current -10.45.
This query tested the database skills of ESPNcricinfo's Shiva Jayaraman, who thought it was the toughest one I'd ever asked him (luckily, he enjoyed the challenge!) And the record turns out to be held by Mark Waugh's long-time captain for Australia - Allan Border played 44 successive Tests against England between 1979-80 and 1993. He went past two other Australians in Ashes matches: Victor Trumper played 40 in a row between 1899 and 1911-12, and Monty Noble 39 between 1897-98 and 1909.
That remarkable effort by Jaskaran Malhotra last week, when he hammered 173 not out - the United States' first century in ODIs - against Papua New Guinea in Al-Amerat also included six sixes in the final over, only the second instance of six sixes in an over in ODIs after Herschelle Gibbs did it for South Africa against Netherlands in St Kitts during the 2007 World Cup.
It's the record by a distance: Jimmy Anderson is on the verge of becoming the first man to have remained not out in 100 Test innings. Only five others - all fully paid-up members of the No. 11s union - have managed more than 50: Courtney Walsh (61), Muthiah Muralidaran (56), Bob Willis (55), Chris Martin (52) and Glenn McGrath (51). The first recognised batsman comes next: Shivnarine Chanderpaul was unbeaten in 49 innings in Tests, during which he made more than 4000 runs. Allan Border and Steve Waugh both finished not out on 44 occasions.
Sri Lanka's latest "mystery spinner", 21-year-old Maheesh Theekshana, dismissed Janneman Malan of South Africa with his first ball in one-day internationals, in Colombo last week. His captain, Dasun Shanaka, predicted a bright future: "It's not easy to read him because he's now got the googly and the carrom ball, and his offspin as well. Because he's got several variations, I don't think it'll be easy for any team to read him."
Steven Lynch is the editor of the updated edition of Wisden on the Ashes