Chris Cairns will surely remember the second Test against South Africa in Auckland for whole of his life.
He not only played a significant role in New Zealand's maiden Test victory over South Africa on home soil, but also earned himself a place among the top all-rounders in Test cricket history.
In the first innings, Cairns hit a career-best 158 off just 171 balls, with 18 fours and seven sixes. During the course of his innings he achieved a significant landmark by completing his 3000 runs in Test cricket.
He then achieved another landmark, with the ball. In claiming the wicket of Nicky Boje, caught behind in South Africa's second innings, he completed his 200th wicket in Test cricket.
Cairns thus became the second New Zealander and only the sixth all-rounder in Test cricket to complete the coveted double of 3000 runs and 200 wickets, and joined the ranks of West Indies' Gary Sobers, England's Ian Botham, India's Kapil Dev, Pakistan's Imran Khan and countryman Richard Hadlee.
It took Cairns only 58 Tests to complete his double. Only one player, England's Ian Botham, has completed the double in lesser Tests.
Cairns's performance in Test cricket:
| Opponent | Tests | Runs | Hs | Ave | Balls | Runs | Wkts | Best | Ave | Ct |
| Australia | 14 | 863 | 109 | 34.52 | 2623 | 1636 | 39 | 5/146 | 41.95 | 2 |
| England | 11 | 533 | 80 | 29.61 | 1962 | 1045 | 35 | 6/52 | 29.86 | 2 |
| India | 8 | 377 | 126 | 34.27 | 1296 | 698 | 19 | 4/44 | 36.74 | - |
| Pakistan | 5 | 249 | 93 | 24.90 | 917 | 593 | 16 | 5/137 | 37.06 | 4 |
| South Africa | 2 | 186 | 158 | 93.00 | 405 | 217 | 5 | 3/63 | 43.40 | - |
| Sri Lanka | 6 | 175 | 70 | 17.50 | 796 | 491 | 19 | 5/62 | 25.84 | 5 |
| West Indies | 2 | 103 | 72 | 51.50 | 510 | 169 | 17 | 7/27 | 9.94 | 1 |
| Zimbabwe | 8 | 480 | 124 | 43.64 | 2141 | 944 | 39 | 5/31 | 24.21 | - |
| Bangladesh | 2 | 84 | 48 | 42.00 | 302 | 159 | 13 | 7/53 | 12.23 | - |
| TOTAL | 58 | 3050 | 158 | 33.51 | 10952 | 5952 | 202 | 7/27 | 29.46 | 14 |
Leading all-rounders in Test cricket:
| All-rounder | For | Tests | Runs | Hs | Ave | RC | Wkts | Best | Ave |
| GStA Sobers | WI | 93 | 8032 | 365* | 57.78 | 7999 | 235 | 6/73 | 34.04 |
| Kapil Dev | Ind | 131 | 5248 | 163 | 31.05 | 12867 | 434 | 9/83 | 29.65 |
| IT Botham | Eng | 102 | 5200 | 208 | 33.55 | 10878 | 383 | 8/34 | 28.40 |
| Imran Khan | Pak | 88 | 3807 | 136 | 37.69 | 8258 | 362 | 8/58 | 22.81 |
| RJ Hadlee | NZ | 86 | 3124 | 151* | 27.17 | 9612 | 431 | 9/52 | 22.30 |
| CL Cairns | NZ | 58 | 3050 | 158 | 33.51 | 5952 | 202 | 7/27 | 29.46 |
Fastest to complete the double of 3000 runs and 200 wickets:
| Tests | Allrounder | Country | Double completed |
| 55 | IT Botham | England | v Australia,Perth,1982-83 |
| 58 | CL Cairns | New Zealand | v South Africa, Auckland, 2003-04 |
| 73 | Kapil Dev | India | v Australia,Melbourne,1985-86 |
| 75 | Imran Khan | Pakistan | v New Zealand, Auckland,1988-89 |
| 80 | GStA Sobers | West Indies | v India, Bridgetown,1970-71 |
| 83 | RJ Hadlee | New Zealand | v Australia, Wellington,1989-90 |
