THIS cricket season witnessed the equalling of one of the most impressive world records in the game as Essex's Graham Napier hit 16 sixes in a single innings during his Twenty20 cup game against Sussex at Chelmsford.

As cricket's writers and experts scoured the pages of the history books to find more information about the record it equalled - people were soon reminded that Abergavenny's Avenue Road cricket ground has been home to one of the great cricketing world records for over 13 years.

The world record was set by Andrew Symonds who was batting for Gloucestershire against Glamorgan in a County Championship match at the Pen-y-Pound ground in 1995.

The big-hitting Aussie didn't just break one world record during the match but two as he claimed the record for the most sixes hit during an innings (16) and the most sixes hit during a match (20).

It broke the previous world records set by New Zealand's former captain, John Richard Reid, whose record of 15 sixes in an innings and 17 in a match had stood for decades.

Avenue Road's traditionally short boundaries had already given the ground a reputation for favouring big-hitting batsmen thanks to Graeme Hick's 252* in 1990.

However Wisden's match report concluded that Symonds' innings would have been just as impressive with longer boundaries.

"The 16 sixes came in an unbeaten 254 from only 206 balls; there was also 22 fours," they stated.

"Andrew Symonds hit the 16th six of his innings off Watkin, just right of the sightscreen. It landed on a tennis court about 20 feet over the boundary and gave Symonds a world record."

Symonds also set a record for his county in the match by becoming the youngest player to score a double-century for Gloucestershire.

The impressive innings probably overshadowed what was a truly great match and it's probably forgotten that Gloucestershire's medium pace bowler, Javagal Srinath, became one of the few players in first class cricket history to take nine wickets in an innings.

Srinath finished the first innings with figures of 9-76 and took 14 wickets in the match.

Despite the impressive individual performances from Gloucestershire it was Glamorgan who came closest to winning the actual match and a 306 run partnership between David Hemp and Matthew Maynard helped them on their way.

Gloucestershire were the favourites but rain hit their chances and Glamorgan bowlers Darren Thomas and Steve Watkin hitback during the switchback game.

Glamorgan needed only one more wicket to clinch the game but Gloucestershire survived the last three overs and the match ended as a draw.

The quality and entertainment of the match prompted Wisden to say of the Avenue Road ground, that "even without Symonds, the contest would have maintained the reputation of Pen-y-Pound for producing extraordinary county matches."

The ground has hosted county championship matches since 1983 but it is probably a 1990 county championship game between Glamorgan and Worcestershire that cemented it's reputation.

Graeme Hick's aforementioned unbeaten innings of 252 made the headlines but it proved a tremendously exciting match.

Glamorgan were set a tough target of 495 to reach on the final day and at the time very few cricket sides in the world had ever achieved such a high total for the fourth innings.

However Glamorgan came within two runs of winning the match in an impressive display of batting that left them with figures of 493-6.

Unfortunately for Glamorgan the match finished in a draw adding to the Avenue Road's record of eight drawn county championship games out of 14.

It is probably an unfair reflection on Avenue Road that more games have not finished with results as most first class matches at the ground were played during the 1980s when county championship games were played over three days and not the modern day standard of four.

The weather also played its part with the majority of matches played at the Pen-y-Pound ground in late summer with rain often halted play.

Indeed the weather has robbed Abergavenny of their only opportunity to see county cricket in recent years.

Last year county cricket returned to Abergavenny for the first time in a decade only for rain to ruin any chance of any play when Glamorgan faced Leicestershire.

The same fate ruined the town's chance to witness an international side for the first time when Glamorgan faced Bangladesh A in 1995.

The weather once again ended any hopes for much play but it didn't prevent Abergavenny's Mike Powell hitting a century on the only day that was playable.

In the 14 times Glamorgan has played at Avenue Road they have won three times and arguably their greatest and most important victory came in 1997.

That season Glamorgan travelled to Abergavenny on the verge of winning the County Championship for the first time in almost 30 years.

The match against Northamptonshire again proved a classic and for once it wasn't a batsman who made the headlines but Glamorgan's fast bowler, Waqar Younis, who claimed 10 wickets in the match.

The win put Glamorgan in a commanding position at the top of the table and they were soon crowned champions for the first time since 1969.

It proved to be another outstanding match and added to Wisden's claims two years earlier that Avenue Road produced 'extraordinary matches'.

Avenue Road may now have to share one of its world records but without doubt the Pen-y-Pound ground has produced some memorable moments of cricket over the years.

Finally, it's also worth remembering that Abergavenny is also linked to another great cricketing record for batsmen hitting sixes.

Abergavenny born, Malcolm Nash, was the unfortunate Glamorgan bowler on the end of Sir Garfield Sobers becoming the first ever batsmen to hit six sixes in an over.