No cricket-playing venue attracts special aura than the home of the gentleman’s game — Lord’s in St John’s Wood in north London and aptly named after its founder Thomas Lord. It is often referred to as the headquarters of all Test centres across the globe despite International Cricket Council moving out of offices at Lord’s in August 2005.

Many visiting legends of the game have played to the gallery on the hallowed turf and left their imprint with memorable performances. Likewise, the greats of English cricket have had been part of unforgettable memories whenever a Lord’s Test — a total of 132 matches since England hosted old foes Australia in 1884 — is played.

It is tradition in England that every visiting country plays a Test match at the most famous arena in world cricket. Qamar Ahmed, the celebrated Pakistan cricket journalist, has been a regular visitor to Lord’s where he reported his first Test in 1974 when, by a sheer coincidence, Pakistan visited England and became only the second team after Don Bradman’s Australian side of 1948 to remain undefeated throughout the trip.

With Pakistan taking on England in the first Test of the tour at Lord’s on July 14, here’s looking back at some history associated with the most famous arena in world cricket

“Lord’s as a cricket venue is considered to be the home of cricket and has an aura of its own with a magnificent pavilion and ground and a library that can match any in the world for its specialized subject,” Qamar says of the place.

“The museum of the game is another attraction which has memorabilia belonging to great cricketers of the past and present with honour boards in the dressing rooms and in the museum of those who have made Test hundred here or have taken five or more wickets.”

“Of all the cricket grounds I have seen in the world Lord’s holds a special place for me. Thomas Lord, a Yorkshire cricketer having come toLondon, had developed the ground at Dorset square but had to move near Regents Park canal and finally shifted in 1814 where the present Lord’s stands in all its magnificence.”

But extraordinarily some of the best of the best were unable to get their name enshrined on the prestigious board. Sachin Tendulkar, astonishingly enough, hit a world-record 51 Test centuries but none at Lord’s. Similarly, Brian Lara has the distinction of twice breaking the record for the highest individual innings in Test history but a Lord’s ton eluded the gifted Trinidadian.

Sunil Gavaskar, technically one of the best opening batsmen of all time, never reached three figures in a Lord’s Test, while his Indian compatriot Dilip Vengsarkar has the distinction of being the only visiting batsman to score three centuries at Lord’s. Graeme Smith marked his first Test as South Africa skipper at Lord’s with the highest innings from an overseas batsman when the tall left-handed opener hit 259 in 2003.

Graham Gooch, who has the distinction of compiling the only triple hundred at Lord’s, shares the landmark of most hundreds made by an individual with Michael Vaughan. Both former England skippers have notched up six three-figure knocks apiece. Gooch is the leading scorer here with 2,015 runs in 21 Tests, followed by current England captain Alastair Cook, who has amassed 1,657 in 21 matches.

No Pakistani batsman have reached a century at Lord’s after Mohammad Yousuf produced an epic innings of 202 in the 2006 series; that innings is the highest by any batsman from Pakistan, surpassing an equally breathtaking 200 from Mohsin Khan, the handsome opening batsman of the 1980s whose matchless contribution paved the way for Pakistan’s maiden Test victory at Lord’s in 1982.

Mohsin’s opening partner Mudassar Nazar was dubbed ‘man with the golden arm’ in the same Test when his seaming bowling helped record his country’s best innings figures of 6-32 at this venue.

But no man ever caught the world’s attention more than Bob Massie, a 25-year-old from Perth who dismantled England’s batting at Lord’s in 1972 with a remarkable display of prodigious swing bowling to take 16 wickets for 137 runs (8-84 and 8-53 over the two innings) and that, too, on his Test debut. Those analysis to this day still remain the best match haul in a Lord’s Test. But his was a bizarre tale of an international cricketer whose star fell as quickly as it had risen as Massie played just five more Tests, and within 18 months of his Lord’s debut he was dropped by his state side, Western Australia!

Glenn McGrath has the most wickets for a visiting bowler at Lord’s; the gangling Aussie has picked up 26 in just three Tests here and also has the honour of returning the second best innings figures of 8-38 in 1997 at the venue after Ian Botham’s 8-34 against Pakistan in 1978.

Botham is the second highest wicket-taker in Lord Tests, claiming 69 in 15 matches, behind compatriot James Anderson’s 78 from 19 appearances. Stuart Broad, the new-ball partner to Anderson, has relished the conditions at Lord’s to grab 67 victims in 16 Tests.

Pakistan’s opening game of the upcoming four-match series will be their 15th at Lord’s since they drew the first Test on the inaugural England tour in 1954. They also hosted Australia here prior to the series against England six years ago, giving Lord’s its second ‘neutral’ Test after Australia played South Africa in the famous Triangular Series 98 years earlier in 1912.

Apart from the win in 1982, Pakistan managed to score just two more victories at Lord’s on successive tours in 1992 and 1996. On the contrary, they have been defeated five times here, including one to Australia in 2010.

For the veteran Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq there is one added incentive; it would be his first Test on English soil at the age of 42. Among his charges, Younis Khan will surely be determined to make only his second, and possibly his final appearance, at Lord’s a memorable occasion by becoming just the seventh Pakistan batsman to enshrine his name on the famed honours’ board by hitting a century.

So, there is a lot to be collectively achieved for Pakistan in the forthcoming fixture, the 133rd Test match to be staged at Lord’s.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, July 10th, 2016