10 cricketers who were named Man of the Series in their debut Test series
It is a dream for every cricketer to play Test cricket for his nation. The debut Test is special for every cricketer. Be it the nervous feeling at the beginning of Test or the excitement to play the ultimate form of cricket, every cricketer wants to excel in his debut series.
Till date, there have been 10 cricketers who have created an immediate impact in their debut Test series and have been awarded with the Man of the series award. Here is a look at the said 10 cricketers.
#1 Sourav Ganguly- Arrival of the PRINCE OF KOLKATA:
India's tour of England in the year 1996 saw the arrival of Sourav Ganguly. The second Test at Lord's saw a young left-handed batsman making his debut for India. After the dismissal of Vikram Rathore at the score of 25 in India's first innings, Ganguly walked in to bat at number 3.
The left-hander smashed the English bowlers all over the park and scored a brilliant 131 against the likes of Lewis, Cork, Mullally and Martin. He smashed 20 boundaries in his debut innings at the home of cricket. Apart from this brilliant century, Ganguly picked up 3 wickets and had a perfect debut.
He followed up his debut innings with another century at Trent Bridge and scored 136 runs with 17 boundaries and 2 sixes. He added 255 runs with Sachin Tendulkar and India scored 521 runs in their first innings. Ganguly once again proved his worth with the ball and picked up 3 wickets in England's first innings. India's second innings saw another fluent innings from the bat of Ganguly as he scored 48 runs.
Though India had lost the first Test, the arrival of Ganguly added a new dimension to the team and the second and third Tests ended in draws. Ganguly in spite of batting for only 3 innings was named the player of the series as he scored 315 runs with 2 centuries at an average of 105. He also picked up 6 wickets in 37.5 overs he bowled at an average of just 20.83.
A new legend was born and was ready to dominate world cricket in the years to come.
#2 Jacques Rudolph- An average of 293 in debut Test series
The year 2003 saw Jacques Rudolph's dominating Test debut. The left-handed Rudolph in his debut innings batted at number 3 in the first Test at Chittagong and scored an unbeaten 222 with 29 boundaries and 2 sixes.
South Africa won the Test by an innings and 60 runs. The second Test at Dhaka once again witnessed Rudolph dominating the Bangladeshi bowlers and he again topped the scoreboard in the Test by scoring 71 runs in the first innings.
Rudolph was named the Man of the Series for an astonishing average of 293 runs in the two innings of the series and was expected to be the mainstay of the South African batting line-up for the years to come
#3 Stuart Clark- 20 wickets at an average of 15.85
Australia whitewashed South Africa in a 3 match Test series in the year 2006 in South Africa. The series saw the rise of Stuart Clark as a genuine match winner.
Clark picked up 20 wickets in the 3 match Test series at an average of 15.85 and in the 118 overs he bowled, Clark conceded only 317 runs at an economy of 2.69.
The 20 wickets included a 5 wicket haul in his debut Test innings at Cape Town. The fast bowler picked up 94 wickets in his Test career at an average of 23.86 and won many matches for Australia with his match-winning spells.