Both the openers got out on the first ball, this has happened only 4 times in Tests so far

New Delhi. In cricket, it is common for a team’s opener to get out on his/her first ball but there have been some tests in which both the openers of a team have become victims of ‘Golden Duck’ (out on the first ball). In the 147-year history of test cricket, there have been 4 such occasions when both the openers of a team have returned to the pavilion after losing their wickets on their first ball. This shameful record is registered in the name of two Asian teams – Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

In the second innings of the Leeds Test against England in 1982, Pakistan openers Mohsin Khan and Mudassar Nazar lost their wickets on their very first ball. Similarly, in 2000, Sri Lanka’s Sanath Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu were out on ‘Golden Duck’. Among these batsmen, Jayasuriya has scored a triple century against India and Pakistan’s Mudassar Nazar has scored a double century. The highest score of both of them is against India.

Let’s take a look at those Tests when both the openers of a team got out on their very first ball

England v New Zealand, Christchurch Test 1932-33
Test cricket began in March 1877 with a match between Australia and England, but in the year 1933, for the first time both the openers of a team were out on a ‘golden duck’. In the first innings of the test against New Zealand in Christchurch in March 1933, both the openers of the England team, Herbert Sutcliffe and Eddie Painter were out on the very first ball. Sutcliffe was dismissed by Kiwi bowler Ted Bedrock on the very first ball of the first over of the innings, while Painter became the victim of Dennis Smith in the next over. In this way, Sutcliffe and Painter became the first opening pair to be victims of ‘golden duck’ in Test cricket. However, on the first day, despite losing both the openers in the first two overs, the England team was successful in scoring 560 runs (innings declared) for 8 wickets in the first innings with the help of Wally Hammond’s 227 runs. The match ended in a draw.

Saw Lara score 501 runs and Hanif score 499 runs, born in India but played for England

Pakistan Vs England, Leeds Test 1982

Nearly 49 years after 1933, both the Pakistani openers were out on their very first ball in the third Test against England in Leeds. In the second innings of this Test which started on 26th August, both the Pakistani openers Mohsin Khan and Mudassar Nazar were out on ‘Golden Duck’. Both were out by England’s fast bowler Bob Willis. England won the series 2-1 by winning this Test by 3 wickets but Imran Khan, who performed brilliantly with ball and bat in the match, was declared the Player of the Match and the Series. Apart from scoring 113 runs in the match, Imran also took 8 wickets. In the three Test series, he/she scored 212 runs and took 21 wickets.

Played one Test and one ODI, neither the account of wickets nor of runs was opened, garnered discussion for wrong reasons

Sri Lanka Vs South Africa, Kandy Test 2000

In the second innings of the Kandy Test against South Africa in August 2000, both Sri Lankan openers Sanath Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu were out on their very first ball. Atapattu was out by Shaun Pollock and Jayasuriya was out by Nantie Hayward. The interesting thing is that in the first innings of the Test, both South African openers – Gary Kirsten and Neil McKenzie – were also out on 0, but both of them were out on ‘duck’ after playing 5-5 balls. In this thrilling match, despite gaining a lead of 55 runs on the basis of the first innings, Sri Lanka had to face a defeat of 7 runs. Apart from Jayasuriya and Atapattu, Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan and South Africa’s Nicky Boje were also out on the very first ball in one innings each of this match.

When nephew equaled uncle’s record in cricket, some were better, two pairs from India included

New Zealand Vs South Africa, Centurion Test 2016
In the Centurion Test against South Africa in August 2016, both the openers of one team were out on golden ducks. In the second innings of the Test, New Zealand’s Tom Latham and Martin Guptill lost their wickets on their very first ball. Both these wickets went to the account of fast bowler Dale Steyn. South Africa won this Test by a margin of 204 runs on the fourth day itself by bundling out New Zealand’s first innings for 214 and second innings for 195 runs.

tag: England Cricket Team, New Zealand Cricket, pakistan cricket team, Sri Lanka cricket team