On this day in 1978: Kapil Dev makes his Test debut
October 16 has a significant place in Indian cricketing history as it was the day that legendary Indian World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev made his Test Debut against arch-rivals Pakistan. The mercurial all-rounder had already made his international debut just a couple of weeks earlier against the same opposition in the first ODI at Quetta.
The eternal rivals clashed in Faisalabad in the first Test match of the series with the hosts opting to bat first after winning the toss. Majid Khan and Sadiq Mohammad provided a solid start for Pakistan but it was what followed that stole the limelight. Initially, it was Zaheer Abbas (176) who thwarted the Indians, before Javed Miandad (154) joined the party.
Pakistan finished with a healthy total of 503 runs in the first innings. A young 19-year-old Kapil Dev toiled hard only to remain wicketless in the first innings. India made a right fist of it during their reply, initially buoyed by Sunil Gavaskar’s masterful 89, which was followed by a commanding 145 by the entertaining Gundappa Viswanath.
India declared on 462/9 in search of a result in the series opener. Pakistan replied in kind, declaring a handsome total of 264/4, thanks to Asif Iqbal’s 104 and Zaheer Abbas’ 96. During the Pakistani innings, Kapil Dev managed to scalp his maiden Test wicket after dismissing Sadiq Mohammad.
But by the time Pakistan declared, the result was a foregone conclusion as India were set an impossible target of 306 runs in the final session of the match. Sunil Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan remained unbeaten at the crease as the match fizzled out to a disappointing draw.
Although Kapil Dev failed to leave his mark on the match by grabbing just a solitary wicket, he went on to become India’s leading wicket-taker in red-ball cricket with 434 scalps to his name at the time of his retirement. One of the finest all-rounders of his time, Kapil Dev is the only Test cricketer to have achieved the incredible feat of 5000 runs and 400 wickets in red-ball cricket to date.
