Adam Lyth will be England's 666th Test cricketer
Yorkshire opener happy to wear number despite links to devil
Wednesday 20 May 2015 12:30, UK
The devil is in his detailed preparation - and nothing else - as Adam Lyth prepares to become England's 666th Test cricketer.
The Yorkshire opener says he won't be bothered one jot sporting the 'number of the beast' on his cap when he makes his debut at Lord's on Thursday.
You'd expect nothing else from a player born in Whitby, a town synonymous with terror ever since Bram Stoker chose it in his 1897 novel as the location of Count Dracula's arrival in England.
Lyth and his new team-mates must avoid a horror show in the two Tests against New Zealand to ensure alarm doesn't spread before this summer's Ashes.
Before the first ball of the new Test summer is bowled, here are some top spooky stats and unnerving superstitions….
Spooky stats...
The first colossus of the game, WG Grace's renown is founded on his batting ability but he also claimed nine Test wickets - from 666 balls bowled
One side has scored 666 in first-class cricket - Sialkot against Hyderabad in 2007 - but it has never been done in Test cricket, Australia's 668 against West Indies in Bridgetown in May 1955 and India's 664 against England at the Oval in 2007 carefully sidestepping the mark
Of all current players, David Griffiths has a first-class batting average of 6.66 - a figure matched in days gone by, by Derbyshire's Stephen Doughty, Northamptonshire's Harold Dainty and Durham UCCE's Mumtaz Habibullah
Australian wicketkeeper Tim Paine and West Indian paceman Franklyn Rose faced 666 deliveries in their Test careers.
Superstitions...
Notoriously superstitious, Neil McKenzie once scored a hundred after turning up at a ground to find his bat on the roof - so in the next match, he taped his bat to the dressing-room ceiling!
Even cricketing gods aren't infallible - Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar always made sure that he put his left pad on first before going out to bat
Former England wicketkeeper Jack Russell refused to wear anything other than his tatty Gloucestershire hat on his head, while he had a penchant for baked beans and English tea when on tour
Mark Ramprakash would always chew the same piece of gum throughout an innings, and stick it to the top of his bat if he was not out overnight.
Ever notice the red handkerchief hanging out of Steve Waugh's pocket? Not just useful for wiping away the sweat of another innings - it was a gift from his grandfather.
Much missed are the days when former umpire David Shepherd would stand on one leg when England landed on their unlucky number of 111, known widely in the game as 'Nelson'
Watch England's first Test against New Zealand live on Sky Sports this Thursday from 10am on Sky Sports 2 HD, when we'll hear from both Stuart Broad and Joe Root in the build-up.
