Adelaide Test: Statistical Highlights

• This was Test match number 1673.

• Irfan Pathan became 248th player to make Test debut for India. At 19 years 46 days, he also became the second youngest to open the bowling for India after Chetan Sharma. Sharma was 18 years 288 days old when he opened the attack for India against Pakistan at Lahore in 1984-85.

• Australia, by scoring exactly 400 runs (for the loss of five wickets) on first day, became only the second team in Test history to score 400 runs in a single day's play against India. The only other team to do so is England. They scored 471 for the loss of eight wickets on the first day of Oval Test in 1936.

• This was also the fourth instance of a side scoring 400 runs on the first day of a Test on Australian soil. On all four occasions, Australia have performed the feat.

• Ricky Ponting's 242 in the first innings was the the highest score by an Australian against India. Justin Langer with 223 at Sydney in 1999-00 was the previous record holder.

• The 83-run partnership between Ponting and Jason Gillespie was Australia's best against India for the eighth wicket. The pair bettered the 73-run partnership between Tom Veivers and Graham McKenzie in Chennai in 1964-65.

• Anil Kumble (5-154) captured five wickets in an innings for the 21st time in his career – fifth time in an away Test. The last time he claimed a five-wicket haul overseas was against West Indies at Port of Spain in 1996-97, when he returned the figures of 5 for 104.

• Rahul Dravid completed his 6000 runs when his score reached 29 on the second day. He became sixth Indian and 34th batsman overall to do so. By taking only 73 Tests for his 6000 runs, Dravid became second fastest among Indians to reach this landmark. Sunil Gavaskar had taken 67 Tests (and 117 innings) to complete his 6000 runs. Sachin Tendulkar took 76 Tests (and 120 innings) to accomplish this feat.

• Dravid's 233 was the third highest Test score by an Indian batsman after VVS Laxman's epic 281 against Australia at Calcutta in 2000-01 and Sunil Gavaskar's unbeaten 236 against West Indies at Madras in 1983-84.

• Dravid's 233 was the highest ever score achieved by an Indian away from India. He moved ahead of Sunil Gavaskar who had made 221 against England at the Oval in 1979. The previous highest individual score by an Indian on Australian soil was 206 by Ravi Shastri at Sydney in 1991-92.

• Dravid has now scored four double centuries in 73 Tests. This puts him at level with Sunil Gavaskar to become the joint record holder of scoring most double centuries for India. The world record is held by Australia's Don Bradman. He scored 12 double centuries in only 52 Tests.

• Dravid reached his century in style by hitting a six (off Gillespie). He became only the fifth Indian batsman to complete his century with a six after Polly Umrigar, Kapil Dev, Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Azharuddin. Tendulkar, alongwith England's Ken Barrington, holds the world record of completing the century with a six on four occasions. 

• The 303-run partnership between Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman was India's best for any wicket in an away Test. The previous record partnership for India on foreign soil was of 255 runs for third wicket between Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly against England at Nottingham in 1996. Incidentally the previous highest fifth wicket partnership for India in an overseas Test was a 220 run-partnership between Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag against South Africa at Bloemfontein in 2001-02.

• The Dravid-Laxman pair had also put on 376 runs for the fifth wicket against Australia at Calcutta in 2000-01. They thus became only the third pair after Australia's Don Bradman & Bill Ponsford and South Africa's Graeme Smith & Herschelle Gibbs to be involved in two triple-century partnerships.

• Dravid and Laxman also crossed 1000 runs for their fifth wicket partnership aggregate during their triple century stand. They became first Indian pair and sixth in Test history to aggregate 1000 or more runs for the fifth wicket. At the end of this match, this pair has added 1185 runs for the fifth wicket which is the third highest aggregate for this wicket by any pair in Test cricket.

• Ajit Agarkar's second innings figures of six for 41 were the second best by an Indian bowler in Australia after Kapil Dev's 8 for 106 at this same venue in 1985-86. The figures were also the personal best for Agarkar beating 3 for 43 against Australia at this same venue in 1999-00.

• Ponting was dismissed for a naught in the second innings. He thus became only the fourth batsman in Test chronicles to follow a double century in the first innings with a duck in the second. The details:

• The disparity of 360 runs between the two innings was the third largest for Australia. It was also the largest difference in the two innings of a match for any side against India.

• Rahul Dravid at the end of his match has aggregated 6276 runs in 73 Tests which takes him past Mohammad Azharuddin's run-aggregate of 6215. Now only Sunil Gavaskar (10122), Sachin Tendulkar (8920) and Dilip Vengsarkar (6868) have aggregated more runs in a career for India than Dravid.

• Dravid's match aggregate of 305 was the third highest by an Indian batsman after Sunil Gavaskar's 344 (v West Indies at Port-of-Spain in 1970-71) and VVS Laxman's 340 (v Australia at Calcutta in 2000-01). Dravid has now aggregated 250 (or more) runs in a match on four occasions – more than any other batsman for India. The previous Indian record was held by Sunil Gavaskar who had three such instances on his name. The world record of most 250-plus match aggregates is held by Australia's Don Bradman. Bradman had aggregated 250 runs in a match on as many as seven occasions. At the end of this match, Dravid is at level with two Pakistanis Zaheer Abbas and Javed Miandad.

• Sachin Tendulkar, when on 18, went ahead of England's Graham Gooch's tally of 8900 runs to become the fourth highest run-scorer in Test history. Now only Australia's Allan Border (11174), Steve Waugh (10788) and fellow countryman Sunil Gavaskar (10122) are ahead of Tendulkar.

• The win by four wickets was only the 19th for India in 177 Tests played overseas. India had last beaten Australia in Australia way back in 1980-81 when home team chasing a victory target of 143 in fourth innings was bundled for 83 by Kapil Dev, Karsan Ghavri and Dilip Doshi handing over India an improbable 59 run win.

• India provided only the eighth instance of a side successfully chasing a fourth innings victory target of 200 runs or more against Australia in Australia. The last team to do so was West Indies (also at Adelaide) in 1981-82.

• The match provided the 17th instance of both sides making 500 runs or more in their first innings in a Test, however it was the first Test that produced result.

• Australia's first innings total of 556 was the second highest total by a losing side batting first in a Test match. Interestingly the highest ever such total was also recorded by Australia. They made 586 runs in their first innings against England at Sydney in 1894-95 only to end up losing the match by 10 runs.

• Australia's first innings total of 556 was also the third highest total for a losing side after their 586 against England in 1894-95 and Pakistan's 574 for eight decl. at Melbourne in 1972-73.

• Ponting with his 242 in Australia's first innings now holds the dubious distinction of achieving the highest individual score in Test cricket history for a losing side. The previous record was on the name of New Zealander Nathan Astle who made 222 against England at Christchurch in 2001-02. England won that match by 98 runs.

• The win was India's 14 under Sourav Ganguly's captaincy. Ganguly thus equalled Mohammad Azharuddin's record of winning most Tests as Indian skipper.But while Azhar captained India in 47 Tests, Ganguly needed only 35 to come at level with him. Moreover, Ganguly has lost fewer matches in comparison with Azhar.

Also Read:

• Ganguly equals Azhar's record
• Dravid's amazing feat
• All for a losing cause