Team India began – The attention was on India’s decisive seven-wicket victory over South Africa in the second Test of the series on Thursday,
January 4 in Cape Town, with superb performances from Mohammed Siraj (6/15) and Jasprit Bumrah (6/61).
The match, which was finished in just five sessions, will go down in Test history as the quickest completed clash.
Team India began the New Year with a 1-1 tie against South Africa after the two-Test series.
Here are some examples of times when India began the New Year with a great Test win:
No 4 – New Zealand was defeated by an innings and 109 runs at Chennai in 1955/56 – Team India began
India won the high-scoring series decisively, shattering records along the way.
The openers, Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy dominated the New Zealand bowlers on an easy-paced field,
setting a new Test cricket record with a 413-run partnership.
Mankad’s score of 231 broke the Indian Test record of 223, which he and Umrigar matched in the same series.
The score of 537 for three established a new national record, surpassing the 498 for four declared in the first Test.
Following on and 328 behind, New Zealand struggled against spin, with Gupte and Mankad proving successful.
No 3 – Australia was defeated by an innings and two runs in Sydney in 1977/78
Australia faltered early, scoring 131 in the first innings, and their difficulties were compounded by missed catches during India’s innings.
Sunil Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan got the series off to a flying start, scoring 97 runs for the first wicket.
On the second day, rain hampered play on the dynamic pitch. The visitors ultimately declared with a score of 396/8.
The ball spun regularly in the second innings, and Erapalli Prasanna stood out with 4 for 51 as Australia was bowled out for 263.
Despite an ankle ailment, Peter Toohey batted an impressive 85 runs,
with a notable catch by replacement Madan Lal on the last morning.
No 2 – Cuttack, 1986/87: defeated Sri Lanka by an innings and 67 runs
The victory of the toss by Kapil Dev provided India a substantial edge on an unstable Barabati Stadium pitch.
Vengsarkar’s 166, aided by Amarnath and a quick sixth-wicket stand with Kapil Dev, set the tone.
Sri Lanka battled against the slow-medium pace of Maninder Singh and Kapil Dev, falling short by an innings and 67 runs.
Kapil Dev took his 300th wicket, completing the Test cricket milestone of 3,000 runs
and 300 wickets, while Shastri’s four for 11 clinched a home victory.
No 1 – South Africa was defeated by 7 wickets at Cape Town in 2024 – Team India began
Rohit Sharma and his squad earned a 1-1 series tie after defeating South Africa by an astounding seven wickets at Newlands Cricket Ground in the shortest Test match ever played.
The exceptional bowling of Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah reduced the Proteas’ runs in both innings.
The Indian openers laid a solid platform with a target of 79, contributing to a 44-run partnership in 34 balls till Nandre Burger removed Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Rohit Sharma batted first, scoring 17 runs in 22 balls. Shreyas Iyer, who gracefully lofted Marco Jansen’s ball for a boundary towards far on, secured the triumph in style.