Stats: Fifties by Indian on ODI debut

Tags: Ambati Thirupathi Rayudu, Robin Venu Uthappa, Brijesh Pursuram Patel, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Sandeep Madhusudan Patil, Raman Lamba, Amay Ramsevak Khurasiya

Published on: Jul 26, 2013

After a long wait, Ambati Rayudu made an impressive ODI debut, scoring an unbeaten 63 off 84 balls in the opening match of the one-day series against Zimbabwe at Harare

After a long wait, Ambati Rayudu made an impressive ODI debut, scoring an unbeaten 63 off 84 balls in the opening match of the one-day series against Zimbabwe at Harare. Rayudu’s knock featured four fours, and it was his partnership with centurion Virat Kohli that helped India chase down a target of 229 with ease. Here’s a look at some other Indians who also registered a half-century on their one-day debut

Robin Uthappa (86): The out of favour Indian opener made 86 off 96 balls in his debut match, against England at Indore on April 15, 2006. India were chasing a massive 289 in the game, but courtesy Uthappa’s excellent knock, they chased down the target with seven wickets in hand. Uthappa’s innings contained 12 fours and one six. He looked set to reach a memorable ton on debut, but was unfortunately run out for 86. Dravid, Yuvraj and Raina also got half-centuries in the match.

Brijesh Patel (82):Coming into bat at number six in his first one-dayer, against England at Leeds on July 13, 1974, Patel made a handsome 82 off 78 balls with the aid of eight fours and two sixes. Thanks to Patel’s brilliance, India made 265. Ajit Wadekar, who was also making his debut, got a half-century as well. He made 67. England however chased down the target with ease thanks to John Edrich’s superb 90.

Navjot Sidhu (73): The former India opener made his one-day debut during the 1987 World Cup match against Australia at Madras (Chennai) on October 9, 1987. Sidhu made a wonderful debut ending as the highest scorer for India. He slammed four fours and five sixes in his 73 which came off only 79 balls. Sadly for Sidhu, his brilliance couldn’t result in an Indian win. Chasing 271 for victory, India crumbed to 269 all out.

Sandeep Patil (64): The dashing batsman made a dazzling debut against Australia at the MCG on December 6, 1980. India batted first in this Benson & Hedges World Series clash and Patil’s breezy 64 took them to a competitive 208. Patil’s knock came off only 70 balls even though he hit only four boundaries in the innings. In reply, Australia collapsed to 142 all out, and Patil won the man of the match on debut.

Raman Lamba (64): In a match which featured three centuries overall, the late Lamba made 64 off 53 balls, against Australia at Jaipur on September 7, 1986. Lamba hit six fours and a six during his brilliant innings. Srikkanth, Geoff Marsh and David Boon were the centurions in the match, but the game was a memorable one for Lamba, since India won the clash by seven wickets.

Amay Khurasiya (57): He had a failed international career, but Khurasiya made a memorable ODI debut, against Sri Lanka at Pune on March 30, 1999. India batted first in the match, and Ajay Jadeja got a hundred, but it was Khurasiya’s brilliance towards the end that took them to a dominating total. Khurasiya blasted 57 off 45 balls with four fours and two sixes as India posted 286 and won the match by 51 runs.

--By A Cricket Analyst

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