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10 times Indian batsmen were rocked by rookie bowlers

India lost the first T20I against Sri Lanka by 5 wickets after being bowled out for a paltry 101 courtesy of debutant pace bowler Kasun Rajitha and Dasun Shanaka.

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India produced a pathetic show with the bat, as they were bowled out for 101 in the first T20I versus Sri Lanka © AFP
India produced a pathetic show with the bat, as they were bowled out for 101 in the first T20I versus Sri Lanka © AFP

India lost the first T20I against Sri Lanka by 5 wickets after being bowled out for a paltry 101 courtesy of debutant pace bowler Kasun Rajitha and Dasun Shanaka, who was bowling for the first time in international cricket. Both rookie pace bowlers took three wickets each to leave India in complete disarray. That India had just whitewashed Australia 3-0 in the T20I series Down Under only added to the bewilderment of their collapse. However, India have a long and chequered history of going bust against unheralded bowlers. Here are 10 occasions on which India folded up against bowlers they were facing for the first time. Full Cricket Scorecard: India vs Sri Lanka 2015-16, 1st T20I at Pune

NOTE: These are not necessarily the debut matches for the bowlers, simply the first time they bowled to India in any format.

1. Allan Donald, India vs South Africa 1991, 1st ODI at Eden Gardens, 5 for 29: South African cricket lost out on valuable time due to the apartheid, and in the process some of the game’s most outstanding cricketers never had an international career. Clive Rice, Mike Procter, Barry Richards, and Graeme Pollock were some of the cricketers whose international careers could never take flight. Luckily, Allan Donald was not one of those cricketers. Though the early part of Donald’s career as a young fast bowler was lost, he made his international debut in 1991, aged 25. It was in South Africa’s first series after readmission, against India.

‘White Lightening’ proved his moniker by ripping through India in the first ODI at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. Batting first, South Africa could only muster a disappointing 177 for 8. However, India’s chase was far from simple. Donald took out both openers Ravi Shastri and Navjot Sidhu, as well as No. 3 Sanjay Manjrekar to leave India at 20 for 3. Mohammad Azharuddin’s dismissal for 16 made it 60 for 4. Sachin Tendulkar (62) and Pravin Amre (55) put on 56 for the fifth wicket before Donald returned to dismiss the former. He accounted for Amre as well, but by then India had done enough to go over the line. India were saved by their bowlers, but Donald nearly won South Africa the game.

2. Lance Klusener, India vs South Africa 1996-97, 2nd Test at Eden Gardens, 8 for 64: There is something about South African debutant pace bowlers and Eden Gardens that must haunt Indians. After Donald’s marvellous debut in 1991, it was time for the all-rounder Lance Klusener to make a mark. South Africa batted first and were bowled out for 428 thanks to centuries from openers Andrew Hudson and Gary Kirsten. India responded with 329 riding on Azhar’s 109 and Anil Kumble’s excellent 88. Klusener went wicketless in India’s first innings. Kirsten then went on to get his second ton of the match, backed up by a century from Daryll Cullinan. Set 467 to win, India crashed to 137 all out in the face of a mind-numbing spell from Klusener. India had no answer to his pace and swing. Klusener finished with 8 for 64 as South Africa romped home.

3. Brett Lee, Australia vs India, 1999-2000, 2nd Test at Melbourne, 5 for 47: He may not go down in history as one of the all-time greats, but Brett Lee carved a niche for himself as being one of the most charismatic, whole-hearted cricketers of his generation. Energetic till the end of his career — and even after — Lee burst on to the scene with a five-wicket haul on Test debut at the MCG.

Australia amassed 405 in their first innings, riding on half-centuries from Michael Slater, Ricky Ponting, and Adam Gilchrist. Tendulkar responded with a sparkling 116 but it was a lone battle as India were blown away by a young tearaway pacer on debut. Lee took out S Ramesh, Rahul Dravid, MSK Prasad, Ajit Agarkar, and Javagal Srinath, while Glenn McGrath cleaned up from the other end. India were set 376 to chase in the fourth innings, but Lee again removed Dravid and Srinath as India were shot out for 195.

4. Douglas Hondo, India vs Zimbabwe 2001-02, 3rd ODI at Kochi, 4 for 37: Sourav Ganguly was left ruing his decision to bat first in the third ODI thanks to Douglas Hondo. The long-haired fast bowler has not played the first two matches, but was an immediate success. He got the first three Indian wickets to fall: Dinesh Mongia, Sourav Ganguly, and VVS Laxman, and then returned to take the final wicket as India were bowled out for a mere 191. Led by Alastair Campbell’s 71 and Grant Flower’s 49 Zimbabwe chased down the target with six wickets to spare.

5. Umar Gul, Pakistan vs India 2003-04, 2nd Test at Lahore, 5 for 31: Virender Sehwag had sent the Pakistan bowling flying for cover with his 309 at Multan, so Pakistan rung in a couple of changes for the second Test at Lahore. One of those changes was bringing in Umar Gul, a pace bowler who India had no idea about. Gul was nowhere near as fast as Shoaib Akhtar or Mohammad Sami, but he proved to be the deciding factor of the match. Gul took out Sehwag, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, and Parthiv Patel in a spell of devastating swing bowling as India were bowled out for 287. Pakistan buried India under a mountain of runs and ended up winning the match by 9 wickets.

6. Alex Wharf, England vs India 2004, 1st ODI at Trent Bridge, 3 for 30: Unlike most spells on this list, Alex Wharf did not take a five-for in this innings, but it was a spell that broke India’s back. India were put in by England skipper Michael Vaughan. Sehwag was dismissed by Darren Gough, but Ganguly and Laxman put on 52 around eight overs. Then debutant pacer Wharf was brought on, and the match turned on its head. In two overs Wharf dismissed both Ganguly and Laxman, and in his next over he had Dravid as well. India were suddenly 80 for 4. They never recovered, and were bowled out for 170. England chased down the total easily to win by 7 wickets.

7. Ajantha Mendis, India vs Sri Lanka, Asia Cup 2008 Final at Karachi, 6 for 13: India had a dominated throughout the Asia Cup 2008, and met Sri Lanka in the final. After Sri Lanka lost Kumar Sangakkara to a run out early, the impressive young Ishant Sharma came to the fore for India and removed Mahela Jayawardene, Chamara Kapugedara, and Chamara Silva to leave Sri Lanka in deep trouble at 66 for 4. Then Sanath Jayasuriya produced the kind of innings only he could to thrash 125 off 114 balls. Sri Lanka eventually recovered and posted 273. But this is not the story of Jayasuriya’s master class. The true magic unfurled after that.

Sehwag started the chase in frenetic fashion, ravaging the Sri Lankan bowling en route to a 36-ball 60. Gautam Gambhir fell for 6, but that made no difference to Sehwag. Sri Lanka brought on their “mystery spinner” Ajantha Mendis in the 10th over. India had already crossed 70 by now. Sehwag decided that the new spinner had to disappear, so he stepped out to cut him away. Sehwag missed the ball, and was stumped. India were 76 for 2 in the 10th over at this point.

Two balls later, Yuvraj was bowled. Soon Suresh Raina was as well. Rohit Sharma had no clue which way the ball was spinning, and was trapped LBW. Irfan Pathan could only edge to slip. RP Singh had no chance, and was bowled for a duck. India crashed an burned to go from 76 for 1 to 173 all out. Mendis, with 6 for 13 in 8 overs, was the man solely responsible.

8. Taskin Ahmed, Bangladesh vs India 2014, 2nd ODI at Mirpur, 5 for 28: India sent a second-string side to Bangladesh under Raina’s captaincy. India won the first match easily, and looked set to win the series in the next match itself. Bangladesh had an ace up their sleeve though; a young fast bowler named Taskin Ahmed who had impressed at the ICC Under-19 World Cup 2014 earlier that year. Mashrafe Mortaza dismissed Ajinkya Rahane early. Taskin bowled first-change, and was soon cashing in. Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, Cheteshwar Pujara, Stuart Binny, and Amit Mishra were all sent packing as India were shot out for a shocking 105. It ought to have been a victory lap for Bangladesh and Taskin, but Binny produced a once-in-a-lifetime spell to take 6 for 4 as India incredibly won by 47 runs.

9. Josh Hazlewood, Australia vs India 2014-15, 2nd Test at Brisbane, 5 for 68: The first Test at Adelaide had been an emotional affair following the passing of Phillip Hughes, but by the second Test the focus was back on cricket. India handed a Test debut to Josh Hazlewood as India opted to bat first. India got to 56 before the first wicket fell and were soon on 100 when Hazlewood got his first victim: Pujara. He then took out the impossible-to-get-out Virat Kohli, Rahane, R Ashwin, and Dhoni to complete a memorable five-for on debut. He got rid of Pujara and Dhoni in the second innings as well, as Australia won by 4 wickets.

10. Mustafizur Rahman, Bangladesh vs India 2015, 1st ODI at Mirpur, 5 for 50: India had sent essentially an ‘A’ team to tour Bangladesh in 2014, but they showed a lot more respect the following year by sending a full-strength team. Bangladesh batted first in the opening ODI, scoring 307. Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan added 95 for the first wicket. A left-arm seamer named Mustafizur Rahman soon got into the action on debut. Rohit was the first to go for a well-paced 63. Rahane was out soon after. Raina scored a valiant 40, but was bowled at a crucial juncture. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja soon added to the tally, as India capitulated from 95 for 0 to 195 all out, with Mustafizur taking 5 for 50.

(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek who loves cricket more than cricketers. His Twitter handle is @ShiamakUnwalla)

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