Ind v Aus 2020: 4 Indian cricketers who have scored an ODI and Test century in Australia

Indian cricket has always boasted of some top-flight quality in terms of the batting contingent, and the Indian team has produced a fair share of batting stalwarts over the years. However, quite a few of them have somehow struggled to an extent while playing in the SENA conditions (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) as well as in the West Indies, especially in the 1970s-80s.

More so in Australia conditions, the runs have proved to be hard to come by for the Indian batsmen. What's probably surprising is that the first century in ODIs by an Indian batsman Down Under did not come until the turn of the millennium, when Sourav Ganguly notched up a ton in 1999-2000.

Since that famous century, there have only been four batsmen in the history of Indian cricket who have managed to score a century in both the ODIs and the longest format of the game.

In this article, we take a look at the four batsmen who have achieved that feat.

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1. Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly [googlycricket.net]

Sourav Ganguly created history when he scored a century against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, becoming the first Indian batsman to score an ODI century in Australia. The southpaw achieved this milestone during the 1999-2000 Carlton and United Series Tri-series that featured Pakistan, apart from India and Australia.

The opener was in blistering form in that series, notching up two centuries as he amassed 356 runs to finish as the top run-getter in that tournament, the second of those two centuries coming against Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval.

The left-hander's only Test century in Australia came during the first Test of 2003-04 Border Gavaskar series. Ganguly, who was the captain of the touring side, set the tone for the rest of the series by scoring 144 on a spicy Gabba track. The well-fought series ended in a draw though, with both the teams winning a match each.

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2. Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar [cricket.com.au]

Out of the 49 centuries that Sachin Tendulkar scored in ODI cricket, surprisingly, only one of them was scored in Australia. The Little Master brought up his only century in Australia during the 2007-08 Commonwealth Bank Series, with his cracking century helping India chase down a tricky 240-run target with 4 overs to spare. Tendulkar, though, did not achieve top success in Australia, averaging 34 in ODIs that were played Down Under when compared to his career average of 44.83.

In stark contrast, Tendulkar was brilliant when it came down to batting in Tests in Australia. The Master Blaster scored 1809 runs in 20 Tests at an average of 53.21, including five centuries, and a famous double century at the Sydney Cricket Ground during the 2003-04 tour of Australia.

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3. VVS Laxman

VVS Laxman [sportswiki.com]

When one considers a list of cricketers with batting accolades against the mighty Australians, seldom can we imagine the absence of VVS Laxman in that list. Laxman has a total of four centuries in 15 Tests that were played in Australia, three of which came at the Sydney Cricket Ground, with the other ton having been produced at Adelaide.

The right-hander also scored three ODI centuries in Australia, one each at the Adelaide Oval, SCG and Bellerive Oval in Hobart. Notably, the three centuries Laxman notched up in Australia is the highest tally of ODI centuries for him in a single country.

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1. Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli [cricket.com.au]

Current Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli has been really prolific when it comes to batting in Australia. Kohli has scored six centuries in just 12 Test matches and averages 55.39 in the longest format of the game, a touch better than his career average of 53.63.

In ODIs, Kohli has scored five centuries in Australia over the course of 26 matches he's played there, and his average of over 50 highlights the 32-year-old's dominance in those conditions.

Love test cricket practice sessions ❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/XPNad3YapF

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) November 17, 2020