5 England cricketers with their highest score on Test debut

Getting the call-up to the national Test team is the dream for all cricketers but performing in the debut game is a tough ask for most, due to the sheer pressure of the occasion. England is the oldest cricketing nation in the world and over the course of its history, hundreds of players have made their debuts.

However, very few can boast of having made a substantial score on their debut Test appearances and hence, it is a rare group within which these batsmen belong. Despite that, some cricketers do end up making substantial scores on their very first appearances and here is a look at the English cricketers, who made the highest scores on their debut Test matches.

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#5 138 by Peter May against South Africa at Leeds, 1951

Peter May is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen to have played for England and it was evident when he played his first Test match for his country, back in July 1951 at Leeds.

May had already created a reputation for being one of the most naturally gifted batsmen in the domestic game and his superbly classical batting style was widely acknowledged. In the 4th Test of the series against South Africa, the visitors piled up 538 in their first innings and for England, it became a matter of survival.

The right-hander came in to bat at No. 3 and played a superb innings to make 138 on his Test debut. His partnership with another England great, Len Hutton, was largely responsible for saving the game. May went on to play 66 Test matches for England and was a key member of the legendary team that did not lose a series from 1952 to 1958.

#4 140 by Billy Griffith against West Indies at Port of Spain, 1948

Billy Griffith

The former England batsman played only three Test matches in his career but the innings he played on his debut is particularly praiseworthy because Billy Griffith was drafted in as a temporary opener and ended up playing an epic innings.

In the 2nd Test during England's tour of the Caribbean at Port of Spain, the visitor batted first and after Griffith had run his partner Jack Robertson out early on, he decided that he had to make up for it.

He later joked that he had to keep playing so that he did not have to go back to the dressing room and face the music from his captain. He played for six minutes short of six hours and made 140 runs to ensure that England were out of any kind of danger of losing the game.

It remains the 4th highest score among debutantes in English cricket history. Griffith only played two more Tests in his career but went on to become an administrator and cricket journalist.

#3 152 by WG Grace against Australia at The Oval, 1880

WG Grace

Back in 1880, Australia arrived in England to play only one Test match but that game was completely overshadowed by the singular exploits of W.G. Grace.

The Test at the Oval was his debut game and during the course of an epic innings, he flayed the Australian bowling attack to all parts of the Oval to set up a massive victory for England.

Grace opened the batting and batted for around four hours, during the course of which he hit 12 boundaries to score 152 runs off 294 deliveries. England ended up scoring 420 runs and won the Test by 5 wickets after Australia had been forced to follow-on. Grace's legacy as the pioneer of modern batsmanship was firmly secured after this stupendous innings.

#2 154 not out by KS Ranjitsinghji against Australia at Manchester, 1896

KS Ranjitsinghji

Like WG Grace, the Indian prince Ranjitsinghji was also a pioneer of modern batting and introduced such strokes like the late cut and the leg glance to the game. After having made his name at Cambridge University and Sussex, Ranji finally made his debut for England in 1896 against Australia at Manchester.

Although England lost a closely fought game by 3 wickets, Ranji proved beyond doubt his prowess as a batsman of rare talent. In the first innings, he made 62 and in the second innings, he stood alone among the ruins.

England's batting floundered badly but batting at No. 3, Ranji made 154 (next highest was 41) and remained unbeaten. He went on to become one of the greatest England batsmen of that era.

#1 287 by Tip Foster against Australia at Sydney, 1903

Tip Foster (Credits: The Telegraph)

Reginald Erskine Foster or Tip Foster's stellar show in his debut Test is the highest score made by a debutant ever and it is a record that has remained unscathed for more than 114 years (and counting).

Foster was known as a superb stroke-maker, who was particularly partial towards off-side strokes and in addition to that, he had the backfoot game to play the late cut as well when he so wanted.

His bat speed was also one of the important attributes of his batsmanship. In the 1st Test of the Ashes in Australia at Sydney, the hosts made 285 in their first innings and England seemed to be struggling at 73 for 3 when Foster came in to bat at No. 5.

However, he played a superlative innings and hit as many as 37 boundaries to completely change the complexion of the game. Such an innings on debut has not been seen since and England went on to draw first blood in the Ashes with a comfortable 5 wicket win.