Jeet Raval captain of the Northern Brave during his lengthy vigil at the crease against the Central Stags at Bay Oval in Tauranga. Photo: Photosport
After more than nine hours at the crease, Northern Districts captain Jeet Raval has come within seven minutes of setting a world record.
Raval scored a century at Bay Oval in Tauranga in their Plunket Shield match against Central Districts taking nine hours and 11 minutes - just six minutes quicker than the slowest first-class cricket century of all time - a record held by former Pakistan international Mudassar Nazar, set against England in Lahore in 1977/78.
The former Black Caps opener who played 24 tests between 2016-2020 almost apologetically raised his bat first ball after lunch, after scampering a tight single.
He was finally dismissed for 107 with the match ultimately ending in a draw.
Raval's dogged century ranks as the third slowest by time:
- 9 hours and 17 minutes - Mudassar Nazar P v E Lahore 1977/78
- 9 hours and 16 minutes - S Ramesh TN v Kerala Chennai 2001/02
- 9 hours and 11 minutes - Jeet Raval ND v CD Mt Maunganui 2024/25
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