Freddie Flintoff’s boozy Dowing Street antics are the stuff of Ashes legend, but this is nothing compared to David Boon’s feat.

The Aussie batsman hit 32 half centuries during his Test cricket career, but perhaps his most impressive ‘achievement’ was when he managed to drink 52 cans of Victoria Bitter on a flight to England ahead of the 1989 Ashes.

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Prior to this, the coveted record held by an Australian cricketer was 44 beers set by Doug Walters and Rod Marsh on a flight returning from a tour in the Caribbean.

But, when Boon had already finished 22 beers by the time the Australian team’s Qantas flight had stopped over in Singapore, it seemed the record was under threat.

According to Boon’s teammate, Dean Jones, later on in the journey he had fallen asleep and he was woken by rapturous applause, as the plane’s captain announced Boon had broken the record.

To put this in context in terms of volume, this is more than 34 pints of beer.

After that it is said Boon slept for the next 36 hours, missing two practice sessions.

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But, this did not seem to matter, as Australia went on to win the Ashes series 4-0, while Boon averaged 55 with the bat.

It kick-started a period of dominance for the Aussies, who didn’t lose another series until 2005, which has since gone down as one of the most thrilling in recent years.

Boon, though, denies the stories of his prowess with a can in hand. “I know there are plenty of stories flying around about me that have been greatly embellished over the years,” he said in 2006.

“But that’s how it is… we played our cricket in an era where blokes learned never to let the truth get in the way of a good story.”

True or not, former Aussie captain Ian Chappell was not impressed. “For God’s sake, in my day fifty-eight beers between Sydney and London would virtually have classified you as a teetotaller.”

Unsurprisingly after this story surfaced, Boon became a brand ambassador for Victoria Bitters beer and today he is a cricket match referee.