It was far from an ideal start in cricket’s most prestigious format for IPL star B. Sai Sudharsan.
His debut in Test cricket was forgettable, as the Indian batter failed to get off the mark in his first innings. That zero has stirred memories from nearly 26 years ago—and placed Sudharsan in a unique spot in India’s Test history.
Making his debut as India’s 327th Test cricketer in the Headingley Test against England on Friday, Sudharsan walked in at No. 3 after KL Rahul was dismissed just before the lunch break, ending a solid 91-run opening stand.
But just one over later, Sudharsan fell for a four-ball duck—chasing a delivery outside leg stump from England captain Ben Stokes, only to edge it to the wicketkeeper with a loose shot.
He became the sixth Indian top-order batter (No. 1–3) to be dismissed for a duck on Test debut, and notably, the first ever Indian to do so while batting at No. 3.
Before him, the last Indian top-order batter to register a duck on debut was Devang Gandhi, who fell for zero off 14 balls against New Zealand in Mohali in October 1999.
Others to suffer the same fate include Krishnamachari Srikkanth (1981), K.S. Indrajitsinhji (1964), Dattajirao Gaekwad (1952), and Madhusudan Rege (1949). Except for Srikkanth, all were dismissed for ducks in the second innings.
Sudharsan received his Test cap with a modest first-class average of 39.93 in 29 matches. However, his explosive performance in the recent IPL—averaging 54.21 with a strike rate of 156.17—had drawn plenty of attention.
Still, his selection sparked criticism, especially since more experienced names like Dhruv Jurel (who has already played Tests) and Abhimanyu Easwaran (who averages 48.87 in 101 first-class matches) are part of the same squad and yet remain on the sidelines.
June 20 has a special place in Indian cricket history as the Test debut date for three legends—Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, and Virat Kohli. Naturally, expectations were high when Sudharsan debuted on the same date. But with the bat, he couldn’t live up to the moment.
Now the question is whether he can bounce back in the second innings and turn things around.
