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On this day in 1996, Sourav Ganguly scored a famous hundred on Test debut at Lord’s. On Day 3 of the second Test of the series, the left-hander resumed his knock on 26 in India’s first innings and went on to score a sublime 131. His iconic knock featured 20 fours as India replied with 429 to England’s first-innings total of 344.
Another Indian legend, Rahul Dravid, also debuted in the same match and narrowly missed out on a hundred, as he was dismissed for 95. Ganguly and Dravid featured in a sixth-wicket stand of 94. In the years to come, the duo would go on to feature in many more memorable partnerships for India.
Having made a stellar start to his Test career, Ganguly went on to become one of India’s most distinguished captains. From 2000 to 2005, he led India in 49 Tests, winning 21 and losing 13.
The "Prince of Kolkata" is among a special group of cricketers who notched up a hundred on their Test debut and then went on to captain the country.
Here’s a look at a few other famous names who have done the same.
#1 Greg Chappell (Australia)
Ganguly and Greg Chappell may not have had a great relationship as captain and coach. But they do have something in common. Like the former Indian captain, Chappell also scored a century on Test debut and went on to lead his country.
Chappell made his Test debut against England in Perth in December 1970. He scored 108 as Australia responded with 440 to England’s first innings total of 397. Chappell went on to become the lynchpin of the Aussie batting line-up for the next decade.
He went on to lead Australia in 48 Tests from 1975 to 1983. Under him, the Aussies won 21 Tests and lost 13 (the same number of wins and losses as Ganguly!).
Chappell also had a terrific batting record as captain in Tests - 4209 runs at an average of 55.38 with 13 hundreds.
#2 Javed Miandad (Pakistan)
Pakistan legend Javed Miandad hammered 163 on Test debut against New Zealand in Lahore in October 1976. Against a bowling attack that featured Sir Richard Hadlee, Miandad struck 19 fours in his 259-minute stay as Pakistan scored 417 runs after batting first. They went on to win the match by six wickets and Miandad established himself as a great batter.
Miandad captained Pakistan in 34 Tests between 1980 and 1993. He finished with a decent record as a leader, winning 14 of those games and losing only six. Fourteen other Tests that Miandad led produced no results.
Impressively, the right-handed batter did not experience a dip in form while leading the team. As captain, he scored 2354 runs in Test matches at an average of 50.08 with five hundreds, which included a best of 211 against Australia.
#3 Mohammed Azharuddin (India)
Mohammed Azharuddin remains the only batter in the history of Test cricket to have scored hundreds in his first three matches. Replacing Sandeep Patil, he scored 110 on Test debut against England in January 1985 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, thus beginning a special association with the venue.
In the next two Tests of the series, Azhar scored 105 in the second innings in Chennai and 122 in the first innings in Kanpur. Although the hosts went on to lose the five-match series by a 2-1 margin, a batting star was well and truly born. His sublime wristwork won him many admirers in the years to come.
Azhar led the country in 47 Tests from 1990 to 1999 of which India won 14 and lost an equal number of matches. He scored 2856 runs as captain at an average of 43.93 with nine hundreds.
While India only lost four Tests under him at home, they never won a Test outside the subcontinent. Azhar’s only away win came against Sri Lanka in Colombo in 1993.
#4 Andrew Strauss (England)
Former England opener Andrew Strauss made a memorable Test debut, scoring 112 and 83 against New Zealand at Lord’s in May 2004. He could have scored a hundred in each innings but was run out 17 short as England chased down 282 by an emphatic margin of seven wickets. Strauss soon went on to establish himself as a key member of England’s batting line-up.
The left-hander played exactly 100 Tests, leading England in 50 matches. With Strauss at the helm, England won 24 Tests and lost only 11 between 2006 and 2012. As captain, he scored 3343 runs at an average of 40.76 with nine hundreds.
He was in charge when England lifted the Ashes in 2009 and 2011, making him one of the country's most successful Test captains. Strauss ended his Test career with 7037 runs at an average of 40.91 with 21 hundreds.
#5 Kane Williamson (New Zealand)
Current New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson also notched up a century on his Test debut. The highly-rated right-handed batter scored a fine 131 against India in the Ahmedabad Test, played in November 2010. Williamson faced 299 balls and struck 10 fours as New Zealand responded with 459 to India’s first-innings score of 487.
Williamson hasn’t looked back since making a stellar start to his Test career. He was appointed captain in 2016 and has so far led the Kiwis in 39 Tests out of which they have won 22 and lost nine. He has a wonderful record as a leader with the willow, having notched up 3252 runs at an average of 58.07 with 11 hundreds.
It was Williamson who led the Kiwis to victory in the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC). New Zealand beat India by eight wickets in the final played in Southampton in June 2021. The skipper made a significant contribution in the win, scoring 49 and 52 not out.
Other batters who scored hundred on Test debut and went to become captain
WG Grace (England)
Lala Amarnath (India)
Saleem Malik (Pakistan)
*Kepler Wessels (Australia/South Africa)
Younis Khan (Pakistan)
Michael Clarke (Australia)
Alastair Cook (England)
Faf du Plessis (South Africa)
Rohit Sharma (India)
(*Wessels scored a hundred on debut for Australia and went on to captain South Africa.)
Also Read: 5 best moments from Virat Kohli’s Test career
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