India vs England, 1st Test: Interesting stats from Day 1
Joe Root and Dominic Sibley dominated the show on Day 1 of the ongoing first Test against India at Chepauk. Root, who is playing his 100th Test, continued his incredible run in the Asian conditions. He hit his 20th Test century as the visitors easily navigated the Indian bowlers. Root shared a mammoth stand with Sibley. We look at interesting numbers from Day 1.
England skipper Root, on Friday, became the 15th England cricketer to feature in 100 Test matches. At 30 years and 37 days, Root is the third-youngest to do so after Alastair Cook (28y, 353d) and Sachin Tendulkar (29y, 134d). The 30-year-old made his 100th Test memorable by scoring another ton in sub-continent conditions. This was his 20th hundred in Test cricket.
It is interesting to note that Root has a 50+ score in each of his seven Tests in India. His scores read as - 73 and 20* (Nagpur), 124 and 4 (Rajkot), 53 and 25 (Vizag), 15 and 78 (Mohali), 21 and 77 (Mumbai), 88 and 6 (Chennai), 100+* (Chennai). Root now owns most runs among overseas batsmen in India since 2016.
Root has become only the third Englishman and the fifth captain to score a ton in his 100th Test. Only Colin Cowdrey and Alec Stewart have done so for England. The only captains to have achieved the feat are Cowdrey, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Ricky Ponting (2), and Graeme Smith. In total, Root is the ninth player to slam a century in the 100th Test match.
Root is the first-ever cricketer to score a century in his 98th, 99th and 100th Test. Besides a century in the ongoing Test, Root registered scores of 228 and 186 against Sri Lanka in the last two Tests.
In the first hour on Day 1, the England innings was powered by the dynamic opening pair of Rory Burns and Dominic Sibley. They became the first visiting opening pair to put up a 50+ stand in India in 13 Tests. Interestingly, England's openers have been the best among all touring teams in India since 2010, averaging over 65 (Runs: 1,119 100s: 4).
Ashwin broke the Sibley-Burns stand by dismissing the latter before the lunch break. The Indian off-spinner now has fifth-most wickets with the first new ball in Tests since his debut. Others on the tally are Broad (121), Anderson (117), Boult (84) and Philander (78).
After 17 games, India's premier fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah finally got to play his first Test match at home. This is the joint-most Tests played before featuring in home Tests (excluding Pakistani players), along with Daren Ganga. Others on the list are Bert Strudwick (15), Billy Bates (15), and Frederick Fane (14). Notably, Bumrah dismissed Daniel Lawrence and Sibley on Day 1.
The Indian bowlers were unable to produce consistent breakthroughs on the first day. Ashwin and Bumrah remained the only bowlers to have taken a wicket. Notably, more than 10 no-balls have been bowled so far by the Indian bowlers.
