6 Indian batters to be run out in the 90s in a Test ft. Shubman Gill
In the gripping realm of Test cricket, reaching the score of 90s brings both excitement and nerves for batters. Unfortunately, many talented players have fallen just short of the coveted 100-run mark, leaving a bitter taste of what could have been.
Recently, one such case in point was Shubman Gill, who was on the brink of achieving a personal milestone but fell victim to a run-out in the 90s. His dismissal took place in the first session on Day 4 of the ongoing third Test between India and England.
With this incident, Gill became only the sixth Indian and the 47th overall to get run-out in the nervous nineties in a Test innings. On that note, let's take a look at all the six Indians to be run out in the 90s in a Test.
#6 Vinoo Mankad - 96 vs West Indies in Port of Spain, 1953
One of the greatest all-rounders in Indian cricket history, was the first cricketer to get dismissed via a run out in 90s for India in a Test match. The unfortunate incident occured during the third Test of India's tour of the West Indies in 1953.
Trailing by a slim margin of 36 runs, India made 362/7 in their second innings, with opener Madhav Apte scoring 163 alone. Mankad came to bat when India were 209/6 and played a superb innings.
He made 96, his highest individual score against the West Indies. However, he was run-out and failed to make his three-digit score. India declared their innings following Mankad's dismissal before the match ended in draw.
#5 Motganhalli Jaisimha - 99 vs Pakistan in Kanpur, 1960
During the second Test between India and Pakistan in Kanpur in 1960, Motganhalli Jaisimha battled for more than 500 minutes in the middle only to see him get run out on 99.
In their first innings, Pakistan made 335. India comfortably went past Pakistan's total, with Jaisimha playing a composed innings. He held his fort for long hours and scored 12 innings to get close to his hundred.
Unluckily, he was run out on 99, missing out on his maiden Test ton. Polly Umrigar got to the three-figure, however, as he made 115 and took India's total to 404.
#4 Dilip Vengsarkar - 90 vs Sri Lanka in Chennai, 1982
Another legend to feature on this list, Dilip Vengsarkar was run out on 90 in a one-off Test match against Sri Lanka in Chennai in 1982.
Vengsarkar came to bat after Sunil Gavaskar and Arun Lal stitched up a partnership of 156 runs for the opening wicket. Vengsarkar looked solid from the start and got to his fifty in no time.
He added 173 more runs in tandem with Gavaskar, who himself scored a fabulous ton. However, when Vengsarkar entered into the 90s, he was involved in a miscommunication with Gavaskar and got dismissed. It was the first-ever instance for Vengsarkar to get out in the 90s in Test cricket.
#3 Ajay Jadeja - 96 vs West Indies in Antigua, 1997
While Ajay Jadeja was a gun player in ODIs, his Test career never came to fruition.
During the 15 Tests he played for India, Jadeja made four half-centuries, including a 96 against the West Indies away from home.
He was unfortunate not to convert his knock against the Windies into a Test hundred as he was batting quite well in the Antigua Test in 1997. After the first three days of the Test were washed out, the game was bound to get drawn.
However, the last two days witnessed some cricketing action as Jadeja and VVS Laxman opened the innings for India. Jadeja, in particular, was batting masterfully as he mixed caution with aggression.
The right-hander agonisingly fell four runs short of what could've been his maiden Test hundred. A brilliant piece of fielding effort by Stuart Williams saw Jadeja's end on 96.
#2 MS Dhoni - 99 vs England in Nagpur, 2012
As many as five times, MS Dhoni was dismissed in the nervous nineties in Test cricket. Among those dismissals is his knock of 99 against England in Nagpur in 2012.
India were in a spot of trouble at 71/4 when Dhoni walked out to bat. Coming in to bat at a crucial juncture, Dhoni showcased his ability to anchor the innings while also scoring at a brisk pace when required.
He played with great patience and technique, negotiating the challenging conditions and the English bowling attack adeptly. The former Indian skipper added a 198-run partnership with Virat Kohli (103) for the fifth wicket.
However, on the last session on Day 3, England pegged back into the game by dismissing Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja in quick succession. Dhoni, who was batting in his 90s, was determined to get to the personal landmark behind him.
In what was the penultimate over of the day, Dhoni eyed a quick single when he was at 99. After the wicketkeeper batter pushed on to the mid-off, he rapidly went to sneak in a run before Sir Alastair Cook did a sharp work of picking the ball quickly and rattling the stumps at the non-strikers end.
The decision went upstairs, with the replays showing that Dhoni's bat was on the line and not surpassing when the bails came off. In the end, India fell short of the English first innings total by four runs. Thereafter, the English batsmen batted India out of the game, and the match ended in a tame draw.
#1 Shubman Gill - 91 vs England in Rajkot, 2024
After scoring a duck in the first innings, Shubman Gill was desperate to get some runs under his belt in the second innings in Rajkot. To his credit, he looked much more assured in the second essay, finding boundaries at ease.
He remained unbeaten at 65 at the end of Day 3's play and eyed a century on Day 4. Gill played some sumptuous shots en route to his stay and entered the 90s. During the 64th over, however, the star batter was run out on 91, ending his beautiful knock in a rather hapless fashion.
The runout occurred due to a mix-up in communication between Gill and Kuldeep Yadav, resulting in the former being run out before what would have been his second consecutive Test ton.