NEW DELHI: Off-spinner R Ashwin will appear in his 100th Test in Dharamsala on Thursday. He will be only the 14th Indian cricketer to feature in 100 Tests.Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar are among the 13 Indians to have played 100 Tests. Off-spinner R Ashwin will join the 100-Test club at Dharamsala.
The fifth Test between India and England will be a mini-game of milestones as off-spinner R. Ashwin will appear in his 100th Test in Dharamsala on Thursday.
England’s Jonny Bairstow will also appear in his 100th Test at the HPCA Stadium.
Ashwin will only be the 14th Indian and the first from Tamil Nadu to feature in 100 Tests. Ahead of his milestone match, here is a look at how the first 13 Indians fared in their respective 100th Tests:
Sunil Gavaskar
100th Test: vs Pakistan, Lahore – 17 October 1984
Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar was the first Indian to feature in 100 Tests. Gavaskar reached the mark in a match against Pakistan at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Leading the team in the first Test of a three-match series, Gavaskar top-scored with 48 in the first-innings as Pakistan bundled India for 156 after compiling 428 for nine declared. Although India secured a draw with an unbeaten Mohinder Amarnath hundred seeing the game through, Gavaskar was trapped leg-before on 37 in his second essay. The series ended in a 0-0 stalemate after the third Test of the series was cancelled due to former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination.
Dilip Vengsarkar
100th Test: vs New Zealand, Mumbai – 24 November 1988
Mumbai batting bulwark Dilip Vengsarkar had the opportunity to play his milestone 100th Test on his home turf at the Wankhede Stadium against New Zealand. However, the skipper and his side ended up on the wrong side of the result with the Kiwis securing a 179-run win, their last Test win in India. Vengsarkar made 25 in the first innings but fell for a six-ball duck to John Bracewell in a 282-run chase.
Kapil Dev
100th Test: vs Pakistan, Karachi – 15 November 1989
India’s legendary captain Kapil Dev made his 100th Test appearance in a fiercely contested game against Pakistan in Karachi. Kapil was the first bowler ever to reach the landmark.
The match would also later gain the spotlight for the debuts of Sachin Tendulkar and Waqar Younis, with the former being the youngest Test debutant for India. While the game ended in a draw as India made 303 for three chasing 453, Kapil picked up eight wickets, including a four-for in the first innings. He would also become only the third bowler to reach 350 Test wickets, having missed just one match since his debut. Kapil also struck a half-century batting at number eight in India’s first innings.
Sachin Tendulkar
100th Test: vs England, London – 5 September 2002
Fresh from a blistering 193 against England in the previous Test, Sachin Tendulkar arrived for his hundredth at the iconic Oval in London. While England compiled 515 in the first innings, India served up a strong riposte as Rahul Dravid steered the side with a double hundred. Tendulkar chipped in with a brisk half-century before being trapped leg-before by Andy Caddick on 54. India would post 508 before the match ended in a draw.
Anil Kumble
100th Test: vs Sri Lanka, Ahmedabad – 18 December 2005
Anil Kumble appeared in his 100th Test against Sri Lanka in Ahmedabad. Although Harbhajan Singh revelled with a seven-wicket haul in the first innings, Kumble produced a matchwinning five-for in the second, making him just one of three bowlers to record a five-wicket haul in their 100th Test, alongside Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralidaran. Kumble’s 5/89 led India to a breezy 289-run win.
Rahul Dravid
100th Test: vs England, Mumbai – 18 March 2006
Rahul Dravid’s 100th Test ended in defeat as the visiting England put up a commanding show at the Wankhede Stadium. While England made 400 in the first innings, India could only muster 279 with captain Dravid making 52 before falling to James Anderson. India’s 313-run chase ended in shambles, bowled out for 100 as Dravid fell for nine off 60 deliveries.
Sourav Ganguly
100th Test: vs Australia, Melbourne – 26 December 2007
Sourav Ganguly made his 100th appearance in whites during the Boxing Day Test against Australia in Melbourne. The one-side match finished with an ignominious 337-run defeat for India – their heaviest loss by runs in Australia. Though India could not gather more than 200 in both innings, Ganguly managed 43 and 40 in the match.
VVS Laxman
100th Test: vs Australia, Nagpur – 6 November 2008
VVS Laxman’s milestone 100th game came against his most favoured opponents – Australia – in Nagpur. Laxman struck a stoic 64 batting at number five as Tendulkar compiled a hundred in an eventual 172-run victory. Laxman failed to get going in the second innings, falling to spinner Jason Krejza for four runs.
Virender Sehwag
100th Test: vs England, Mumbai – 23 November 2012
Virender Sehwag’s 100th Test coincided with a woeful series for India at home against a solid English unit. Sehwag was constricted by left-arm spinner Monty Panesar as he collected only 39 runs in two innings at the Wankhede. England recorded a remarkable 10-wicket win and proceeded to a historic 2-1 series win in India’s backyard.
Harbhajan Singh
100th Test: vs Australia, Chennai – 22 February 2013
In the final legs of his international career, Harbhajan Singh returned to face Australia at Chennai – the venue of his career-best performance against the same opposition in the epochal 2001 series. Twelve years on, Harbhajan would play second fiddle to a young off-spinner R. Ashwin, who would fox the Aussies with a 12-wicket match haul, with a seven-for in the first innings. Harbhajan picked up three wickets as India walloped Australia by eight wickets in the series opener.
Ishant Sharma
100th Test: vs England, Ahmedabad – 24 February 2021
Ishant entered the exclusive 100-Test club as the second Indian pacer after Kapil Dev to the feat on a dustbowl in Ahmedabad against England. Ishant is still the only player to play his 100th Test in a day-night affair, with India securing a 10-wicket win in the shortest Test since January 1935 (by balls – 832). As the spinners ruled the roost, Ishant only bowled five overs in the Test, picking up the solitary wicket of Dom Sibley.
Ishant Sharma receiving a guard of honour from his teammates in his 100th Test.Ishant Sharma receiving a guard of honour from his teammates in his 100th Test. (ICC)
Virat Kohli
100th Test: vs Sri Lanka, Mohali – 4 March 2022
India’s batting maestro Virat Kohli played his landmark Test in Mohali in a fairly one-sided contest against Sri Lanka. Kohli had a limited role with the bat in an innings victory as he notched up 45 before being cleaned up by Lasith Embuldeniya. Kohli, however, crossed 8000 Test runs – becoming the sixth Indian to the mark during his knock.
Cheteshwar Pujara
100th Test: vs Australia, Delhi – 17 February 2023
A batting mainstay of India’s Test dominance over the last decade, Pujara reached his 100th game in Delhi against Australia last year. However, the Saurashtra batter had a poor start to the match as he fell for a seven-ball duck to Nathan Lyon on a dicey, spinning surface.
The finish would be sweeter for the India no. 3 as he hit the winning runs with an unbeaten 31 en route to a six-wicket victory.
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