OTD | Sunil Gavaskar scored his first-ever Test hundred against West Indies in 1971

There are very few players who start their international career the way Sunil Gavaskar did. The former Indian great made his international debut in 1971 against West Indies on an away tour. In his debut Test, he scored two half-centuries which was later followed by his first century in international cricket which he scored on this day. 

Young Gavaskar leads India

The third Test of the series in Georgetown started with West Indies skipper Gary Sobers winning the toss and opting to bat first. In the first innings the home team scored 363 runs. Clive Llyod and Desmond Lewis played crucial knocks, scoring 60 and 81 respectively. This total could have been bigger had some of the other batters capitalized on their starts. 

When India came out to bat, the opening pair of Ashok Mankad and Sunil Gavaskar pushed the opposition on the back foot with a 72-run stand for the first wicket. Gavaskar built another partnership after Mankad’s dismissal. His partnership with the experienced Gundappa Viswanath carried India to 228 runs. The young Gavaskar who was playing his debut series showed exemplary skill to tackle the West Indies bowling attack. He scored his third consecutive half-century in Test cricket. The right-handed opener went on to convert this half-century to his first-ever century in Test cricket. By the time he got out, he already had 116 runs to his name. West Indies skipper Sobers got the better of the Indian to give his team a much-needed breakthrough. This batting performance from Gavaskar helped India post 376 runs on the board at the end of the first innings. 

A stalemate 

Both the team bettered their batting performance in the second innings. West Indies declared their second innings with a score of 307 runs. Charlie Davis and Gary Sobers scored centuries and did not give any room for Indian bowlers to make inroads. 

By the time India’s turn to bat came there was not much time left in the contest. Openers Ashok Mankad and Sunil Gavaskar stayed unbeaten till the end. India added 123 runs before both teams decided to settle for a draw. Gavaskar once again went past the 50-run mark. With this draw, India kept the 1-0 lead in the series intact. 

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