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The transition from domestic to Test cricket is difficult, but every once in a while, a player makes a dashing entry into the game, and leaves the fans wanting more. Some debutants shine with the bat and make centuries, while others impress with the ball.
However, there are some debutants who show no nerves on the big stage and instead, shine with both the bat and the ball. Here is a look at an elusive list of players who made a century and also picked up a wicket on their Test debut.
#1 WG Grace
WG Grace made his Test debut for England against the Aussies. He made 152 runs in his first innings and also took three wickets in the game to kick off his career in style.
Grace was a prolific run scorer in first-class cricket, having amassed over 54,000 runs at the level. Regarded as one of the best cricketers to have played the game, he was around for 44 seasons and played in over 850 games.
The legendary cricketer also represented England in 22 Tests in which he compiled 1,098 runs, which included two centuries.
#2 Bruce Taylor
Bruce Taylor had a fine maiden Test match as he hit a century and returned five wickets for New Zealand against India back in 1964-65. His 105 runs came in just 158 minutes and a fifer followed.
Taylor went on to represent New Zealand in 30 Tests during the course of which he scored close to 900 runs and took 111 wickets. In his playing days, Taylor was an extremely useful player to have in the team and his presence brought a lot of stability to the playing XI.
#3 KD Walters
Doug Walters, an Aussie cricketer who played 74 Tests between 1965 and 1981, also shone on his Test debut, compiling 155 runs, including a century, and also picking up two wickets.
He went on to have a magnificent career, as he featured in 74 Tests, making more than 5,000 runs at an impressive average of 48.26. He was also a useful medium pacer and ended up with 49 wickets. Walters was inducted into the Cricket Hall of Fame by Cricket Australia in 2011 in recognition of his contributions to the game.
#4 GS Chappell
Greg Chappell became the fourth player to achieve this rare feat when he smashed 108 against England on Test debut and also picked up a wicket. The current generation might identify Chapell with respect to his controversial coaching stint with India.
However, long before all those events, he was a terrific batsman, one of the best of his times. In the 87 Tests that he played in, Chappell scored in excess of 7,000 runs with 24 centuries. Just like the beginning, the end too came with a century, this time against Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
#5 Javed Miandad
Legendary Pakistani batsman Javed Miandad made a superb start to his Test career, scoring 163 runs against the Black Caps at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. He also took a wicket and, in the process, entered this elusive club.
Miandad delivered on the promise that he had shown, going on to play 124 Tests for his country and becoming a legend in the process. He scored close to 9000 runs in the greatest format of the game and smashed 23 hundreds while at it. He also featured in 233 ODIs and added another 7,381 runs to his record.
#6 Sourav Ganguly
Former India captain and current BCCI president Saurav Ganguly also had a fairytale entry into the pinnacle format of the game. He scored a brilliant 131 against the Englishmen at Lord’s and also took three wickets in the game.
It was the beginning of one of the most decorated careers in the history of Indian cricket. Ganguly went on to play 113 Tests for India with 49 of those as captain. He also played in over 311 ODIs and scored over 18,000 international runs over the course of his career.
#7 Azhar Mahmood
Azhar Mahmood’s induction into Test cricket was phenomenal as he made a century in the first innings and followed it up with an unbeaten half-century in the second. He also picked up two wickets for a superb all-round effort on debut.
Mahmood eventually featured in only 21 Tests for Pakistan as he failed to do justice to the immense talent that he possessed. All of Mahmood's three Test tons came in his debut year 1997 following which he was only able to add a solitary half-century to his name.
#8 Thilan Samaraweera
Sri Lanka’s Thilan Samaraweera joined the club on the back of his performance against India in 2001. Samaraweera scored an unbeaten 103 and also took the wicket of Sourav Ganguly, India’s captain.
While he was only able to take 14 more wickets, it was with the bat in hand that Samaraweera made headlines. He played in 81 Tests for Sri Lanka and scored in excess of 5000 runs at a more than healthy average of 48.77.
Samaraweera quitely made a name for himself in a star studded Sri-Lankan lineup comprising Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara, and Mahela Jayawardene.
#9 Scott Styris
New Zealand’s Scott Styris took to Test cricket like a fish to water, making 107 in the first innings and an unbeaten 69 in the second. Styris made the century while batting at No. 8 and was promoted to No. 6 in the second innings.
Styris picked up two wickets as well, including the massive scalp of Brian Lara. On the same tour, Styris picked up the record for the best figures by a Kiwi bowler, which was later broken by Shane Bond. He featured in 29 Tests and it was with the bat that he made a statement, making 1,586 runs at 36.05 while batting in the lower order.
#10 Marcus North
Australian Marcus North made his Test debut against South Africa at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, in 2009. He immediately made an impact, scoring a century in his very first innings.
North also dismissed Paul Harris to pick up his maiden wicket in Test cricket. North had a good Ashes series in 2009 as he smashed two centuries and got close to another in Birmingham.
However, he failed to get going in the following months and that was just how his career panned out. North's was a career of extreme highs and lows and it was this inconsistency which brought about the end of his Test career.
#11 Kane Williamson
Kane Williamson, the current skipper of New Zealand, announced his arrival in Test cricket by scoring a magnificent hundred on debut in Ahmedabad in 2010. He also got the better of Suresh Raina with the ball in hand.
Williamson lived up to the promise that he showed on his debut as he is one of the best batsmen in the world currently and second on the list of highest run scorers for New Zealand in the longest format.
Williamson is also the captain of the New Zealand side and led his country to glory in the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship in 2021.
#12 James Neesham
Jimmy Neesham had a sensational Test debut as he smashed an unbeaten 137 against the touring Indians in 2014. He joined hands with captain Brendon McCullum, who himself made a triple-century, to save the match for his team.
Neesham also picked up the wicket of Rohit Sharma and thus made it to the list. He could only add 11 more Test caps as he was unable to back his talent with consistency.
However, Neesham has done well in limited overs cricket and has become a prominent member of the squad. Neesham still has a few years of cricket left in him and with a couple of World Cups around the corner, he will be desperate to perform for his side.
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