Published 15:23 IST, January 16th 2021
IND vs AUS: Who was Sachin Tendulkar's historic first Test wicket in Australia?
A throwback to Sachin Tendulkar's first-ever Test wicket in Australian conditions from his first trip Down Under alongside Kapil Dev back in 1992.
Washington Sundar made his Test debut on Friday, December 15 against Australia at the Gabba. The lanky off-spinner from Chennai was favoured over Ravichandran Ashwin, another lanky off-spinner from Chennai. Since the latter of the two was yet to recover from his back injury, young Sundar made full use of his opportunity as he spun a three-wicket web around the hosts in his maiden Test outing itself.
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Sachin Tendulkar first Test wicket in Australia from his maiden visit Down Under
When Washington Sundar claimed the first (Steve Smith) of his three wickets, he became only the third youngest Indian spinner to pick a wicket in Australia. At the age of 21 years and 102 days, he is placed third behind the likes of Sachin Tendulkar (18 years and 253 days) and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan (19 years and 360 days).
Even though Sachin Tendulkar is widely regarded as a world-class batsman and one of the greatest of all time, his decorated career was also orchestrated by countless impressive bowling spells. As Sundar on his Test debut recently joined Tendulkar in an elite club of young Indian spinners to pick up a wicket Down Under, here is a look back at the time when the Master Blaster himself nabbed his first victim in Australian conditions.
In 1991-92, an 18-year-old Sachin Tendulkar was part of India’s touring party in Australia alongside veterans Kapil Dev, Ravi Shastri and Mohammad Azharuddin. In the 4th Test of that series, the youngster scored 148 runs to register his first ton in Australian conditions. Interestingly, he picked his first Test wicket in Australia the very next day itself.
Who was Sachin Tendulkar's first Test wicket in Australia?
Sachin Tendulkar bowled only one over during Australia’s 2nd innings at the SCG. He picked the wicket of Australian tail-ender Merv Hughes as India threw everything at the hosts to claim a final hour victory. Unfortunately for the visitors, the Test ended in a draw.
Sachin Tendulkar wickets in international cricket
The Sachin Tendulkar wickets section in international cricket composes of some staggering numbers. From his debut in 1989 up until the day of his retirement in 2013, Tendulkar collected 201 wickets with his crafty leg-spin as well as off-spin options. He picked 154 wickets in ODIs and another 46 in Tests. Tendulkar also picked a wicket in his only T20I outing back in 2006 against South Africa.
Image source: ICC Twitter
Updated 15:23 IST, January 16th 2021