Sarfaraz Khan made history and received widespread praise for his outstanding century on Day 4 of the first Test at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Despite a disappointing start with a duck in India's first innings total of 46, Sarfaraz turned the match around with an impressive performance in the second innings, achieving his first Test century.
Entering the crease after the early dismissal of Rohit Sharma on Day 3, Sarfaraz showed a positive and aggressive approach, forming a crucial partnership with Virat Kohli. Their stand was pivotal for India as they aimed to recover from a challenging position. Although Kohli was dismissed on the last ball of the day, Sarfaraz continued to anchor India's innings on Day 4 with a combination of solid defense and aggressive strokeplay. His ability to hit boundaries, along with his patience and focus, was evident as he guided India to a stronger position and reached the milestone of his first Test hundred.
Scoring a duck and a century in the same match is a rare achievement in Test cricket, with only 22 instances in the history of the format and Sarfaraz being the ninth Indian player to accomplish this feat. The most recent occurrence before Sarfaraz's innings was by Shubman Gill against Bangladesh in Chennai last month, underscoring the difficulty of bouncing back from a poor first innings and excelling in the second.
Sarfaraz's innings is being praised as a demonstration of his mental resilience, ability to learn from mistakes, and skill in adapting to challenging conditions. Despite his initial setback, he approached the game with a positive mindset, showcasing both his technique and temperament against a formidable bowling attack.
Players to score a duck in the first innings and a century in the second innings of the same Test Match:
Madhav Apte - 0 and 163 (Vs West Indies, 1953)
Sunil Gavaskar - 0 and 118 (vs Australia, 1977)
Dilip Vengsarkar - 0 and 103 (vs England, 1979)
Mohammad Azharuddin - 0 and 109 (vs Pakistan, 1989)
Sachin Tendulkar - 0 and 136 (Vs Pakistan, 1999)
Shikhar Dhawan - 0 and 114 (Vs New Zealand, 2014)
Virat Kohli - 0 and 104 (vs Sri Lanka, 2017)
Shubman Gill - 0 and 119 (vs Bangladesh, 2024)
Sarfaraz Khan - 0 and 114* (vs New Zealand, 2024)
Also read| Mohammad Rizwan set to replace Babar Azam as Pakistan's ODI and T20I captain
