Ever since its inception, numerous cricketers have played the oldest format of the game. Several players have shined, making their nation proud while the myriads have failed to produce quality performances. The first match is very important in cricket’s cricketing career, as every player wants to make runs for their team and create an impact right away.
Scoring a double century in the Test cricket is never easy, especially in the debut game. However, 5 players have done this strenuous job of scoring a double century in their first international red-ball game. This article features a description of those five sumptuous innings:
Tip Foster (ENG):
The first-ever player to register a double century on Test debut is the Englishman, Tip Foster in 1903. Walking in at 73/3 in the second innings, Foster amassed 287 runs against Australia. The right-handed batsman hit 37 fours in this record-breaking knock at Sydney. His innings itself surpassed Australia’s first innings score of 285, giving England a massive first innings lead of 292.
The Worcestershire-born spent almost seven hours on the crease in this marathon innings, making Aussies toil hard at their own home. Foster’s 287 was also the first-ever 250+ score by a player in the test cricket, helping England win the first match of the series by five wickets.
Lawrence Rowe (WI):
The Caribbean batsman, Lawrence Rowe, scored a scintillating double-century against New Zealand at Kingston. Walking in at 78/1 in the first innings, Rowe accumulated 214 runs and helped West Indies register a big score of 508/4 on the board. Rowe hit 19 fours and a six in this innings that lasted more than seven hours.
Rowe’s heroics didn’t end in the first innings only as he went on to score a swashbuckling century in the third innings of the match. The elegant batsman remained unbeaten on the score of 100 and helped his team draw the contest. Rowe is also one of the seven players to score a double century (or more) and a century in the same test match.
Brendon Kuruppu (SL):
Brendon Kuruppu scored an unbeaten 201 against New Zealand in the first Test at Colombo. While opening for Sri Lanka, Kuruppu accrued 201 runs, while other batsmen failing to cross the 60-run mark in the innings. The right-handed batsman thumped 24 fours in this 548-balls knock. An innings that lasted for around 13 hours helped Sri Lanka post a fighting total of 397/7 against the Kiwis.
The hard-fought innings from Jeff Crowe and Sir Richard Hadlee helped New Zealand draw the game. The wicketkeeper-batsman also holds the record of being the first player to score an unbeaten double-century on the test debut.
Matthew Sinclair (NZ):
The fourth player to feature in this elite list is the wicketkeeper-batsman, Matthew Sinclair, from New Zealand. After losing their first wicket at the score of 33, the Kiwis sent in the debutant Matthew Sinclair at No. 3 against the West Indies. Sinclair assembled 214 runs off 447 balls, hitting 22 fours throughout this sensational knock.
The 45-years old himself scored more than 41% of the team’s first innings total and guided his team to a huge total of 518/9. New Zealand registered a comfortable victory by an innings and 105 runs over the Caribbean nation in this Boxing Day test match. Matthew Sinclair was adjudged as Man of the Match for his double-century.
Jacques Rudolph (SA):
The fifth and the most recent player to register a double-century on the test debut is the South African batsman, Jacques Rudolph. Bangladesh, after winning the toss, got bundled on a modest total of 173 in the first innings. In reply, South Africa scored a momentous total of 470 – thanks to the magnificent innings of Jacques Rudolph and Boeta Dippenaar.
Rudolph played a stunning innings of 222, which included 29 fours and 2 maximums. This knock helped South Africa register an innings win over the Asian nation, Bangladesh. Jacques Rudolph was named as Man of the Match for his astonishing knock at Chattogram in 2003.
