Indian captain Rohit Sharma etched his name in cricket history by becoming the first-ever outfield player (non wicket-keeper) to secure 60 or more catches in all three formats of the game. This remarkable feat was accomplished on the first day of India’s fifth and final Test against England at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.
Rohit’s achievement spans across Test cricket, where he has taken 60 catches, one-day internationals, with 93 catches to his name, and T20 internationals, where he has also grasped 60 catches. The historic milestone was reached when he safely caught Mark Wood’s delivery off Ravichandran Ashwin’s bowling at slips.
India’s dominant performance saw them bowl out England for 218 runs in their first innings on Day 1. Highlighting the bowling prowess, spinner Kuldeep Yadav shone brightly, claiming five wickets, while milestone-man Ravichandran Ashwin marked his 100th Test with four crucial dismissals.
Despite Zak Crawley’s impressive 79 runs, England faced yet another collapse, succumbing to India’s relentless bowling attack. Notably, Jonny Bairstow, also celebrating his 100th Test, contributed 29 runs to surpass the 6,000-run mark in Tests, joining the ranks of the elite 17 Englishmen to achieve this milestone.
With the series already in their favour at 3-1, India aims to conclude the five-match Test series against England on a high note.
The starting XIs for the fifth Test feature
India: Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah.
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (C), Ben Foakes (WK), Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir.
