Instant hits: Indian cricketers who have taken 5 wickets on test debut

India is a country where you can relate bowling attack to quality spinners. And it is a fact that India has produced some of the finest spinners in the world cricket. Some criticize India for preparing spin-friendly wickets. I don’t understand why they do so. I haven’t seen any spinning tracks in New Zealand or Australia.

Another thing which I have analysed is that Indian debutants who picked up 5 wickets in either of the innings on debut did so against traditionally spin-fearing nations – West Indies, Australia, England.

There are two players who took 5 wickets or more on their debut at Feroz Shah Kotla – VV Kumar and Ravichandran Ashwin. Both of them had similar weapon, i.e., variation. For Kumar, it was the googly and for Ashwin it is the carrom ball.

1. Narender Hirwani :-

As a 19 year old young lad, he dismantled the mighty West Indies of 1987-88. He ended up with 16 of the allocated 20 wickets, accounting for 80% of the dismissals in the match. He went on to take 20 wickets in the next 3 matches. Slowly, his magic of spin wasn’t that effective towards batsmen. It is also interesting to note that it was the arrival of Anil Kumble that limited his chances.

Hirwani had an exceptional domestic record, taking 723 wickets in 167 matches. 400 of them came in his home state Madhya Pradesh. He finally hung his boots in 2006, and in 2008, he was appointed a Selector.

2. S. Abid Ali:-

Tailor made for T20 and ODI format, he had panther-like speed which made him very active on the field and was an excellent runner between the wickets. Unfortunately his gentle medium pace was overshadowed by the spin department. He was a very good lower down batsman too.

On his debut against Australia in Brisbane he took 6-55, also scoring 78 and 81 in the same series, giving more than useful contribution lower down the order.

3. Dilip Rasiklal Doshi

Had an impressive test record of capturing 114 wickets in 33 matches. His gripping, flight and control of the ball made him a very respectable spinner in the English county circle. Interesting to note is the fact that he was in his prime in the county period, when no county team prepared a track suitable for spin bowling. Despite that, Doshi stuck to the basics of spin, captured wickets for his county team. His respectable performances in the county earned him an Indian cap. He made his debut for the Indian team when he had actually crossed 30. He played his entire carrier as a secondary spin option option after the great Bishen Singh Bedi.He took 6-103 against the Aussies who toured India. This performance made Kapil Dev include him in plans . He reached the 100 wicket mark in a span of only 28 matches.

His short span of test career can be attributed to the fact that he had a very un-easy relationship with Sunil Gavaskar. That came into the light of press during India’s Tour of Pakistan in 1982-83.

4. Vaman Kumar

One of the most unfortunate cricketing talents who got raw deal from the selectors. He took 6 wickets for Team India against the arch rivals Pakistan at Delhi in 1961. His weapon, the googly played the trick. He can also be credited for bring back the leg spin to the foray, which looked depleted in the domestic arena.

During the next test, he got injured. India was scheduled to play against England, and he was made to play because leg spin had been England’s main problem. As a result he gave away quick 70 runs and remained wicketless. He was never considered again.

5. Amit Mishra :-

How can our generation forget the tour of Australia to India which was also considered a revenge by Indian team for what they faced down under. It also marked the inflection point of Australia as world champions in both the formats. Also in the same series Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly hung their boots. The series also remarked the comeback of Amit Mishra after his brilliance in the IPL for Delhi Daredevils.

A traditional Leg spinner, Googly is his main weapon. In the recent matches, his flipper has done quite well. On his debut against Australia, he picked up 5 for 71.

6. Ravichandran Ashwin:-

Interestingly this guy can bowl anytime. He can open the bowling, bowl at the death and of course bowl the middle overs too. He is a useful lower order batsman, in addition to this. He has also opened batting for his domestic side Tamil Nadu. Just like Ajantha Mendis, he can bowl carrom/soduku ball. He got inspiration from tennis ball cricket, his tall fingers and practice made him him perfectionist in this kind of bowling. Interesting to note is the fact that he is an engineering graduate.

In the ongoing series he lived up to the trust shown by the selectors. This series is termed as being the practice test before the great India’s tour of Australia. Ashwin took 6 wickets in the second innings. Thanks to his brilliance India now has to chase a target which is less than 300. It will be a tough task, but let’s see what happens.