3 best Test knocks in Rajkot ft. Rishabh Pant

The Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium (SCA Stadium) in Rajkot has been host to two Test matches in the past. While the first Test was played between India and England in November 2016, the second Test saw a clash between the West Indies and India in 2018.

Only one of the two games witnessed a result, as the game between India and England ended in a draw. It was a run-scoring fest between the two sides as a total of 1457 runs were scored across five days of play, only for the game to end in a stalemate.

Nine centuries have been scored at the venue, even though it has hosted just two games. Joe Root, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Alastair Cook, Murali Vijay, and Cheteshwar Pujara finished with three-digit scores during England’s tour of India in 2016.

Later, in the contest against the West Indies, Prithvi Shaw, Virat Kohli and home-boy Ravindra Jadeja notched up tons to take their side’s first-innings total to 649/9 before declaring. India enforced a follow-on before winning the game by an innings and 272 runs.

The venue in Rajkot is all set to host the third Test of the ongoing England tour of India, with the game beginning on February 15. The two sides are currently level at 1-1 and will be eager to take a lead and improve their chances in the five-match series.

On that note, let us have a look at the three best Test knocks played in Rajkot’s SCA Stadium.

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#3 Ravindra Jadeja, 100*(132) vs West Indies in 2018

Ravindra Jadeja

Local lad Ravindra Jadeja was on a run-scoring spree against the West Indies when India hosted the Caribbean side at the venue in 2018. Batting at No. 7, Jadeja took to the crease when India were 470/5, and eventually helped the team get to 649/9.

Batting first, India faced a massive setback as Shannon Gabriel sent KL Rahul packing on the final delivery of the first over. But a 206-run stand between Cheteshwar Pujara and Prithvi Shaw got the hosts back on track.

While Pujara was dismissed at 86, Shaw and Kohli walked back scoring 134 and 139 runs, respectively. India looked comfortable when Jadeja and Rishabh Pant joined hands, but the latter’s wicket led to some trouble.

The lower-middle order and lower-order batters tried their best to support Jadeja, who had been tackling the Caribbean bowlers well. While Jadeja kept piling up runs on one end, wickets kept falling at the other.

The all-rounder eventually managed to bring out his sword celebration, as India declared the innings at 649/9. Jadeja hit five fours and as many sixes during his time on the field and remained unbeaten at 100*(132).

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#2 Ben Stokes, 128(235) vs India in 2016

Ben Stokes

England’s tour of India in 2016 commenced at the SCA Stadium in Rajkot, when the two sides squared off for the first Test of the five-match series. Runs were scored in abundance across five days of the match, but one of the stand-out performers of the encounter was Ben Stokes.

England looked in trouble in the first essay when skipper Alastair Cook decided for the team to bat first. The captain was the first batter to walk off the crease when Ravindra Jadeja dismissed him. Haseeb Hameed, too, struggled to get going and was eventually dismissed by Ravichandran Ashwin.

Joe Root and Moeen Ali then took charge of the innings after Ben Duckett found his way back in the 33rd over. Both Root and Ali successfully got to the triple-digit mark and shared a 179-run stand for the fourth wicket.

Root’s dismissal towards the end of Day 1 brought Stokes into the field. The all-rounder took charge on Day 2 and took the team to 517/9 from 343/5 as England eventually finished with 537 runs on the scoreboard.

Stokes entered the game at a crucial juncture and played the anchor’s role with perfection. He held the innings from one end even though wickets kept falling at the other. The stylish batter played a composed knock and scored 128 runs off 235 balls, lacing his knock with 13 fours and two sixes.

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#1 Rishabh Pant, 92(84) vs West Indies in 2018

Rishabh Pant

Three Indian players scored a century in the game against the West Indies in 2016, but the highlight of the game was wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant’s fiery knock as he made Test cricket look like a walk in the park.

Debutant Prithvi Shaw and veteran Cheteshwar Pujara helped India get to a rollicking start to the first day. The hosts kept batting throughout the first day and resumed the innings on Day 2, with Kohli and Pant on the crease.

Pant walked out to bat at No. 6 when India were at 337/4 in the 84th over and unleashed the beast within. Pant hit eight fours and fours sixes to notch up 92 runs in 94 deliveries at an impressive strike rate of 109.52, the highest among all batters in the game.

Though Pant fell eight runs short of a well-deserved century, his fast-paced knock helped India take the first-innings total to 649/9 as the hosts clinched a massive victory.