India is playing the first of two Test matches against New Zealand in Kanpur. With Virat Kohli absent, Shreyas Iyer made his Test cricket debut. He took advantage of the chance and scored a century in his first Test. He made 105 runs from 171 balls, helping the team reach a total of 345 runs in the first innings.
This is not the first time an Indian cricketer has scored a century on debut. Shreyas Iyer is the 10th Indian to do so. Out of these, 10 batsmen scored their debut century in home matches.
This article looks at those 10 Indian batsmen who scored a century in their debut home Test.
1. Lala Amarnath: 118 against England
For those who don’t know, Lala Amarnath was the first Indian cricketer to score a century in his debut Test. England toured India in 1933 for a three-match Test series. Lala Amarnath made his Test debut in the first match of the series. India was bowled out for 219 runs in the first innings, and England replied with 438 runs.
In India’s second innings, Lala Amarnath scored 118 runs, including 21 boundaries. This was the only century he scored in his Test career. He scored a total of 878 runs in Tests, with an average of 24.38. In first-class cricket, he took 463 wickets.
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2. Deepak Shodhan: 110 against Pakistan
Deepak Shodhan, a former Indian cricketer, played his first Test match against Pakistan in 1952 at Eden Gardens. He batted at number eight when the team was struggling at 179 for 8. In his debut game, he impressed everyone with his batting and scored 110 runs, helping India take a 140-run lead in the first innings. The match ended in a draw, so he didn’t bat in the second innings. Shodhan played only three Test matches for India, scoring 181 runs with an average of 60.33. He also played in 43 first-class matches and scored 1802 runs.
3. AG Kripal Singh: 100* against New Zealand
AG Kripal Singh was born on August 6, 1933, and was a key player for Madras Cricket. His consistent performance in domestic cricket led to his international debut in 1955. He played 14 Tests for India. In his first Test in Hyderabad against New Zealand in 1955, he scored an unbeaten century. Sadly, this was the only century in his Test career. He scored a total of 422 runs in his 14 Test matches, with an average of 28.1. AG Kripal Singh died at the age of 53 from a heart attack while he was serving as an Indian selector.
4. Hanumant Singh: 105 against England
Former Indian cricketer Hanumant Singh didn’t achieve as much as his talent promised. Hanumant Singh was the nephew of Duleep Singh and the cousin of Indrajit Sinhji. He made his Test debut against England on 8th February 1964 at Feroz Shah Cricket Stadium.
India batted first and scored 344 runs in the first innings. Hanumant Singh shined with the bat, scoring 105 runs from 230 balls, with 16 fours. England replied with 451 runs. The match ended in a draw. Unfortunately, this was the only century Hanumant Singh scored in his Test career. He played 14 Tests and scored 686 runs at an average of 31.2.
5. Gundappa Vishwanath
Former Indian cricketer Gundappa Vishwanath made his Test Cricket debut in the second Test of Australia’s tour of India in 1969. India batted first, and Vishwanath came in after two wickets fell.
He got out for zero runs, but in India’s second innings, he scored his first Test century with 137 runs, including 25 fours. This made him the first batsman to score a century in the second innings of a debut Test.
Gundappa Vishwanath had a great career in Test Cricket. He played 91 Tests, scored 6080 runs with an average of 41.9, and made 14 centuries and 35 half-centuries.
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6. Mohammad Azharuddin: 100 against England
Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin is considered one of the best players to have played for India. He is also one of the most successful captains in Indian Cricket. Mohammad Azharuddin started his international career with a century on his debut. He made his Test debut on 3rd January 1985 against England.
The third Test between England and India was played at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. In his first Test, Mohammad Azharuddin batted at number five. He formed a crucial 214-run partnership with Mohinder Amarnath for the fifth wicket, putting India in a strong position.
Azharuddin impressed everyone with his stylish batting, scoring 110 runs off 322 balls, including 10 fours. He didn’t stop there; he scored another excellent 105 runs in the next match and followed it with his third consecutive century in his third Test.
7. Shikhar Dhawan: 187 against Australia
On March 18, 2013, Shikhar Dhawan finally got his chance to play Test Cricket. After working hard in domestic cricket for years, he made his debut for India against Australia in the third match of a four-match series.
Opening the batting with Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan made history by scoring the fastest century by an Indian on debut, reaching 100 runs in just 85 balls. He went on to score 187 runs from 174 balls, which is the highest score by an Indian on Test debut. India won the game by 6 wickets.
8. Rohit Sharma: 177 against West Indies
Rohit Sharma started playing one-day cricket in 2007. He waited more than 6 years to play his first Test match. In 2013, during a series against the West Indies in India, he made his Test debut as a middle-order batsman. When India was struggling with 5 wickets down for only 83 runs, Rohit Sharma came in to bat at number six.
He formed important partnerships with MS Dhoni and Ravichandran Ashwin, helping India score 453 runs in their second innings. Rohit Sharma played a remarkable innings, scoring 177 runs off 301 balls with 23 fours and 1 six. This is the second-highest score by an Indian batsman on their Test debut.
9. Prithvi Shaw: 134 against West Indies
Before the first Test between India and West Indies in 2018, Prithvi Shaw received his Test cap. He started batting with KL Rahul in the first innings. KL Rahul got out quickly, but Prithvi Shaw was determined to show his skills.
He played aggressively and scored a century, becoming the youngest Indian cricketer to do so on Test debut. Shaw scored 134 runs from 154 balls, hitting 19 fours. India won the game by an innings and 272 runs.
Since then, he has played 5 Tests for India, scoring 339 runs with a strike rate of 86.00.
10. Shreyas Iyer: 105 against New Zealand
Shreyas Iyer recently played his first Test match for India against New Zealand in Kanpur. He received his Test cap from Sunil Gavaskar. Batting at number five, Iyer came in after India lost three wickets for 106 runs.
Iyer took some time to settle in but then started scoring quickly. Despite losing wickets at the other end, he continued to score runs comfortably. He went on to score a century, becoming the 16th Indian batsman to do so on Test debut.
Iyer was dismissed after scoring 105 runs off 171 balls in the 97th over. His innings helped India reach a total of 345 runs in the first innings.
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