Some debutants make centuries, while others amaze with the ball. Today, we are talking about those debutants who exhibit no nervousness and instead display their commitment and appreciation for the sport. This is a list of cricketers who made some of the sport’s most memorable debuts.
3. Shikhar Dhawan (vs Australia, 2013)
Star India batter Shikhar Dhawan made his Test debut for India in 2013 in Mohali against Australia. The first day of the Test got washed out due to rain, and Australia ended up with 408 runs in the first innings. Everyone believed the Test would end up in a tie with four days left and the Australians posting a mammoth total. But debutant Shikar Dhawan had something else in his mind.
The ‘Jatt’ shattered the record for the quickest century by a batsman on his debut as he hammered the Australian bowlers all around the park. Dhawan added 289 runs for the first wicket along with opener Murali Vijay.
2. Yuvraj Singh (vs Australia 2000)
Star India allrounder Yuvraj Singh debuted against Mighty Aussies in 2002 at the age of 18 years. The young boy didn’t make any century, but his impactful half-century left the audience craving more. In the first quarter-finals of the Knockouts series, India locked horns with Australia and came to bat first.
India lost three wickets quickly, and debutant Yuvi came on strike. Yuvraj’ss impactful innings of 84 runoff 80 balls led India to a comfortable position. He hammered some all-time great bowlers and became a sensation in world cricket.
1. Faf du Plessis (vs Australia 2012)
Making centuries or taking wickets on debut is a moment of pride for any player, but doing the same thing in the deadliest conditions is extraordinary. South Africa superstar Faf du Plessis made his Test debut in November 2012 against Australia on ‘The Perth’. After scoring 550 runs in the first inning, the Australians were well in the lead. In response, RSA got off to a good start before going wrong.
Porters were 300 runs behind the hosts and seven down for 250 when Faf Du Plessis came to bat. Faf demonstrated his incredible temperament by scoring a fantastic 50 and helped Africa to be in the game. However, Australia gave RSA a target of 429 runs when they declared their second inning at 267/8. RSA has to survive A packed Day 5 and one and a half sessions of Day 4 to draw the game, which looked impossible when Australia smashed the top order of South Africa. However, Faf had other plans and survived the whole day five as RSA registered one of the best Draws in the history of test cricket. It’s one of the players’ most challenging tasks to replicate their domestic form in International cricket. Still, occasionally, a player breaks onto the scene with some impressive performance, leaving the crowd craving for more.