Statistical highlights of India v Australia 1st Test 2004/05

Statistical highlights of India v Australia 1st Test 2004/05 by Rajneesh Gupta

Scorecard:

India v Australia

Steve Bucknor and Billy Bowden were officiating in their 92nd and 19th Test respectively. This match was Bucknor’s sixth on Indian soil, while Billy Bowden was standing for the first time in a Test in India.
India went into the Test without Sachin Tendulkar. This was the fourth time Tendulkar had to miss a Test since making his Test debut in November 1989 (v Pakistan). In fact all three previous Tests missed by Tendulkar were in same series - against Sri Lanka in 2001-02.
It was for the first time Tendulkar was missing a ‘home’ Test having appeared in all 47 previous Tests India have played since he made his first Test appearance at home soil (at Chandigarh Test against Sri Lanka in November 1990). Tendulkar thus missed the opportunity of overhauling Sunil Gavaskar’s Indian record of 56 consecutive Tests at home soil.
Adam Gilchrist was captaining Australia for the fourth time - first time in a Test match against India.
Michael Clarke, playing his 50th first-class game, became 389th player to represent Australia in a Test match.
On the opening day Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden became second most prolific opening pair for Australia moving ahead of Bill Lawry & Bob Simpson who had aggregated 3596 runs at an average of 60.95. Langer-Hayden pair has now aggregated 3604 runs at an average of 60.06. Only Michael Slater and Mark Taylor have aggregated more runs for Australia in partnership for the first wicket than Langer-Hayden pair - 3887 runs (ave.51.14) in 78 innings.
Anil Kumble became second Indian after Kapil Dev and only the ninth bowler in Test history to take 400 wickets when he bowled Simon Katich on the opening day. By taking only 85 matches to do so, Kumble became the third fastest in terms of Tests taken to accomplish this feat. Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan and New Zealand’s Richard Hadlee reached the 400-wicket milestone in only 72 and 80 Tests respectively.
Kumble’s 400th Test wicket came on his home ground. Interestingly Kumble had also reached the milestone of 100 wickets and 300 wickets on his home ground. His feat of reaching multiples of 100 wickets THRICE on the same ground is unparalleled in Test history.
Adam Gilchrist (104 off 109 balls) scored his 11th century -second against India. He is now only one short of Zimbabwean Andy Flower’s world record tally of 12 centuries as a wicketkeeper.
Adam Gilchrist holds a unique record on his name. All of his 11 centuries have come on different grounds! He has now scored two centuries in India (at Mumbai Wankede in 1999-00 and Bangalore), 4 in Australia (Hobart,Sydney,Brisbane & Perth), 2 in South Africa (Johannesburg & Cape Town) and one each in England (Edgbaston), West Indies (Port-of-Spain) and Sri Lanka (Kandy).
Michael Clarke (151 off 248 balls) became the 17th Australian and the 79th batsman in the world to score a century on Test debut. The last Australian to make a century on Test debut was Greg Blewett about 10 years back. Australia’s Charles Bannerman was the first batsman in Test history to score a century on debut. He did so by scoring unbeaten 165 (retired hurt) in the very first Test match (against England at Melbourne in 1876-77).
Clarke also became the first Australian to score a century on Test debut against India (eighth overall) and the fourth to do so against India on Indian soil.
Clarke also made his highest first-class score, bettering the 140 he made for Hampshire against Nottinghamshire at Nottingham in 2004. Interestingly Clarke had made his first-class debut for New South Wales against the Indians at Sydney in 1999-00.
Clarke and Gilchrist provided the 13th instance of number 6 and 7 scoring centuries together in the same Test innings. This was the third such instance against India. Salim Malik & Imran Khan for Pakistan at Faisalabad in 1982-83 and Shivnarine Chanderpaul & Ridley Jacobs for West Indies at St.John’s in 2001-02 provided the other two instances.
The 167-run partnership between Clarke and Gilchrist is a record for the sixth wicket at Bangalore, eclipsing the 96 between Mohammad Azharuddin and Anil Kumble against South Africa in 1999-00.
The catch of Shane Warne off the bowling of Harbhajan Singh on the second day was the 100th for Rahul Dravid in Test cricket. He became third Indian and only the 19th player in the world to take 100 catches in the field. Other Indians to do so for India are Sunil Gavaskar (108) and Mohammad Azharuddin (105). Dravid is the quickest of the three taking only 79 Tests to accomplish this feat. Mohammad Azharuddin needed 91 Tests, while Gavaskar took 115 Tests to complete his 100 catches.
Dravid, with two catches in first innings and another two in second innings has taken his tally of catches to 23 in 15 Tests to become the leading fielder against Australia, surpassing Sunil Gavaskar's tally of 19 catches in 20 matches.
The wicket of Michael Kasprowicz was the 100th for Harbhajan Singh at home soil in 19 Tests. He became sixth Indian to do so. Harbhajan, however, is the quickest of the lot beating Bhagwat Chandrasekhar and Anil Kumble’s previous record of 21 Tests.
A day after completing his 400 wickets in Test cricket, Kumble achieved another milestone though dubious in nature. His first innings figures of 3 for 157 means that he has now conceded 100 runs in an innings on as many as 32 occasions, which takes him ahead of England’s Ian Botham’s tally of 31 such instances. Now only Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan (42) has conceded 100 runs off his bowling on more occasions than Kumble.Quite Interestingly Kumble has now gone for over 100 runs 8 times in his last 8 Tests.
The other Indians to concede 100 runs on 15 or more occasions are Kapil Dev (25),Bhagwat Chandrasekhar (22), Erapally Prasanna (18), Bishan Bedi (170, Javagal Srinath (17), Subhash Gupte (16) and Vinoo Mankad (16).
Glenn McGrath topped the tally of bowlers to inflict most ducks in Test cricket when he won a LBW shout against Aakash Chopra in his favour in first innings. It was 80th time McGrath was returning a batsman back to pavilion without letting him open his account. He moved ahead of West Indian Courtney Walsh and Pakistan’s Wasim Akram, who had dismissed 79 batsmen on duck. At the end of this Test, McGrath has taken his tally to 82 ducks from 98 matches.
Rahul Dravid’s duck in first innings was his first duck in India. Before this he had scored 2662 runs in 57 innings of 33 Tests.
When VVS Laxman was bowled by Warne in first innings, it was the first time in ten completed innings against Australia in India that Laxman got out in any other fashion than being CAUGHT.
When Gilchrist did not ask India to follow-on after gaining a first innings lead of 228 runs, he provided the sixth instance of a side not enforcing follow-on on India despite being entitled to do so. On all the six occasions the opponents went on to win the match.
Harbhajan Singh followed his first innings’ five for 146 with six for 78 in the second innings. He has now taken a five wicket-innings haul in six successive innings against Australia at home. Harbhajan had returned the figures of 7-123 & 6-73 at Calcutta and 7-133 & 8-84 at Chennai in 2000-01.
Harbhajan has now taken three ten-wicket hauls in his Test career and all three have come at home against Australia. He now joins the ranks of Englishmen George Lohmann and Johnny Briggs; and New Zealander Richard Hadlee, who have also taken ten-wicket match hauls THRICE against Australia. England’s Tom Richardson, however, heads the list with FOUR ten-wicket match hauls against Australia.
Harbhajan's match figures of 11 for 224 are the best by any bowler at Bangalore, surpassing Maninder Singh's 10 for 126 against Pakistan in 1986-87.
Dravid’s 60 in second innings was his FIFTIETH fifty-plus scores in Test cricket – 17 centuries & 33 fifties. He became fourth Indian to do so after Sunil Gavaskar (79), Sachin Tendulkar (70) and Dilip Vengsarkar (52).
Irfan Pathan (55) made his maiden fifty. His previous best was 49 against Pakistan at Lahore in 2003-04.
The 89-run partnership between Pathan and Harbhajan is India's best against Australia for the ninth wicket in all Tests. The pair obliterated the previous record stand of 81 between Sachin Tendulkar and Kiran More at Perth in 1991-92. India's previous highest ninth wicket stand against Australia in India was 57 between Kapil Dev and Shivlal Yadav at Madras in 1986-87.
The five LBW dismissals in the second innings are the most given against India in an innings against Australia. The previous record was of four LBWs in an innings (twice) in the Adelaide Test in 1991-92.
It was the second time India lost five wickets in an innings in this fashion. The only other such instance had come at Chandigarh in 1990-91 when six Indian batsmen were made to return to the pavilion by Sri Lankan bowlers as LBW.
Harbhajan Singh became only the second Indian player to score fifty runs and claim ten wickets in a match. Kapil Dev,who made 84 and captured 11 Pakistani wickets in the Madras Test in 1979-80, is the only other Indian to do so.
Harbhajan’s match figures of 11 for 224 are the third best for India for a losing cause. Javagal Srinath had taken 13 for 132 against Pakistan at Kolkata in 1998-99, which incidentally is the best performance ever by any bowler for a losing side. ‘Bapoo’ Nadkarni had taken 11 for 122 at Madras in 1964-65. Overall it was the 11th instance of an Indian bowler ending on losing side despite taking ten wickets in a match. Interestingly 9 of them have come at home.
The defeat by 217 runs was India’s 15th by 200 runs margin. Interestingly 8 of these defeats have come on Indian soil.
The defeat was India’s second under Ganguly’s captaincy at home soil (in 15 matches). Incidentally Ganguly’s only other defeat was also against Australia (at Mumbai in 2000-01).

(Article: Copyright © 2004 Rajneesh Gupta)
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