History beckoned in a County Championship match on Saturday (July 23) when Glamorgan's Sam Northeast took the cricketing world by storm by cracking a mammoth 400 in a single innings against Leicestershire.
He became the first batter after Brian Lara to go past the 400-run mark in a single innings in first-class cricket. He scored an unbeaten 410 off 450 deliveries in the game against Leicestershire. He is the ninth batter overall to reach the 400-run mark in a first-class innings. Northeast smashed 45 fours and three sixes en route to his unbeaten 410 in the first innings, as Glamorgan declared on 795/5.
The batter came at a time when his side was reeling at 9/2 in 6.1 overs; however, he steadied the ship with a brilliant 306-run stand alongside South Africa's Colin Ingram, who scored a century (139). After his dismissal, Glamorgan lost two more wickets in quick succession before wicketkeeper-batter Chris Cooke joined Northeast.
Northeast also became only the 11th batter ever to break the 400-run barrier in a first-class innings. He was on 308 runs by the end of Day 3, and by the end of lunch on Day 4, he stood on 410 off 450 balls, including 45 fours and three sixes. His innings helped his team reach 795 for the loss of five wickets in 160 overs.
Glamorgan also recorded its highest-ever total as it went past 718 with an unbeaten 461-run stand between Northeast and Chris Cooke - the second-highest sixth-wicket partnership in FC history.
Northeast made his first-class debut in 2007 and has amassed close to 12,000 runs from 192 matches with 27 hundreds and 61 fifties. He and his batting partner Chris Cooke added 461 runs by the end of the fourth day’s lunch. Cooke remained unbeaten on 191 runs off 227 balls, with 19 fours and three sixes.
Northeast also became the first batter to reach the 400-run mark for Glamorgan. The side's final score – 795/5d – is also its highest in County history.
