India vs England: Best debut performances with the bat

ByNawang Chugh, SportsCafe Editor

11/19/2016

The history of India vs England had introduced to us some of the stellar talents who gave magical debut performances with the bat. We bring to you some of the many tremendous debut performances which are registered in the Indo-England diaries.

Lala Amarnath, 118 against England at Bombay, 1933-34

Defeating England was a dream for every nation during those days. And with India hosting its first Test at home, they had a great chance to make it memorable. Though India failed to win the match, Lala Amarnath’s heroics had shaped the entire batting line-up afterwards. He scored a magnificent 118 which was also India’s first century in international cricket. By scoring a brilliant hundred against England, he made people believe that the nation can do much better in the future.

In the 1st Test, India opted to bat first and put 219 runs on the board. England, led by Douglas Jardine, were too good even in the Indian conditions. The visitors scored a massive 438 runs with the help of Bryan Valentine’s aggressive 136. Nobody had expected that this Test match would be remembered for Lala Amarnath’s brilliant innings. In the 2nd innings when India were 21 for 2; struggling for a significant partnership, Skipper CK Nayudu got a brilliant support from Lala Amarnath. The miracle commenced from here when Amarnath smashed every English bowler and completed his century with the help of 21 boundaries. However, India collapsed from 207 for 2 to 258 all out. England easily achieved the target of mere 40 runs but the man who created headlines was ‘Lala Amarnath.’

Mohammad Azharuddin, 110 against England at Eden Gardens, 1984-85

The stage was perfectly set for the five-match Test series at 1-1 when the Indian team travelled to Kolkata for the Third Test. A tall young man from Hyderabad named Mohammad Azharuddin was ready to make his debut instead of injured Sandeep Patil. Skipper Sunil Gavaskar straightaway opted to bat first after winning the toss but the decision backfired on him as India lost 4 wickets for just 127 runs.

Now, it was a chance for debutant Azharuddin to show his class and he did that in style with his god-gifted wrist. He scored a wonderful 110 before he was caught by the England's captain David Gower. Azhar's partner Ravi Shastri also a made crucial contribution of 111 runs. After batting almost for 4 days, India finally declared its innings at 437 and dismissed English team for a total of 276. The match, however, ended in a draw but Azharuddin made his mark in the Indian squad. The right-hander didn't stop here as he successfully scored centuries in the next two encounters also; making him the only batsman to have scored a hundred in each of his first three Tests.

Joe Root, 73 against India at Nagpur, 2012-13

The visitors, after taking a 2-1 lead, opted to bat first in the 4th and final Test. The plans were simple, just to stop India from winning this Test and they were successful in doing so. Debutant Joe Root joined Kevin Pietersen in the middle after England were struggling at 119 for 4 in their first innings. Playing his first match on a spin-friendly track against four regular spinners was not easy for Joe Root. But, the England star played quite comfortably against all the bowlers including Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Piyush Chawla, and Pragyan Ojha. The young gun of England was confidently facing every attack of the Indian bowlers which resulted in a splendid innings of 73 in 229 balls. His innings got so much appreciation that he was started being compared to the legends of the game.

England were all out for 330 in their 1st innings. India, on the other side, managed to square the score as the hosts put 326 on the board. The visitors, in their 2nd innings, preferred to take the match to a draw as they already grabbed the series with 2 wins earlier. This series was a special one for England as they found a classic batsman in the form of Joe Root who is currently one of the best batsmen in the world.

Alastair Cook, 104 against India at Nagpur, 2005-06

Just like Joe Root, England's most popular batsman Alastair Cook also made his debut in a Test match against India in 2005-06. It was a dream debut for England's current Test captain as he batted exceptionally well in both the innings. The left-hander started his career with a classy 60 in the first innings with the help of 7 boundaries because of which England was able to reach 393 after Captain Andrew Flintoff elected to bat first. India were unable to get around their total despite solid half-centuries from Wasim Jaffer and Mohammad Kaif. The hosts managed to stretch their score to 323.

Cook didn't lose his first-innings confidence as the Gloucester lad went on to score a splendid century in the 2nd innings. He remained not out when the team declared their innings on 297; giving Indians the target of 368 runs. The battle of Nagpur ended in a draw but India won the next game by 9 runs. However, England didn't let India take the trophy alone as they managed to win the 3rd Test to draw the series.

Sourav Ganguly's 131 and Rahul Dravid's 95 against England at Lord's, 1996

India were like a one-man army (Sachin Tendulkar) in the batting before Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid made their debut in 1996. Indians didn't have a great start to their series as they suffered a defeat in the first Test at Edgbaston. To come back in the series, Captain Mohammad Azharuddin made a big decision by dropping Sanjay Manjerekar and stepped in with Ganguly and Dravid after opting to field first. England scored a healthy total of 344 in their first innings.

On the other hand, India was looking forward to their debutants, Ganguly and Dravid who didn't disappoint either. The Bengal Tiger scored a promising 131 and gave India a lead of 85 runs. Rahul Dravid also scored 95 in the same innings that eventually ended the career of Sanjay Manjerekar. England couldn't do much in their 2nd innings as the hosts were 9 down for 278. The match indeed ended in a draw but both Ganguly and Dravid went on to become the stars of Indian batting line-up thereafter.