Last Updated:January 03, 2025, 07:47 IST

Legendary Indian batter Mohammed Azharuddin made his Test debut on this day in 1985 against England at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. He scored 110 runs off 322 balls, featuring ten boundaries.

In 2021, Mohammed Azharuddin shared a picture of the bat his grandfather had chosen, which he used to score three consecutive centuries in his first three Tests against England in 1984-85. (Image: azharflicks/X, formerly Twitter)

On This Day In 1985: Legendary Indian batter Mohammed Azharuddin announced his arrival in international cricket on this day in 1985 with a brilliant century. Azharuddin – India’s captain for nearly a decade in the 1990s – made his Test debut against England at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 1985.

The series was at level after the first two matches. India, led by Sunil Gavaskar, failed to make the desired start in the Kolkata Test. When Azharudding walked into the crease, his team was reeling at 126/3. Dilip Vengsarkar, batting at 48, was also dismissed soon.

Azharuddin then joined hands with Ravi Shastri and stitched a 214-run partnership to revive the innings. The duo showed their mettle and negotiated with the English bowling unit with much composure.

Azharuddin faced 322 balls to score 110, with his knock laced with ten boundaries. Shastri, on the other hand, registered 111 off 357 deliveries, hitting 13 fours. Riding on their contributions, India posted 437 and declared their first innings on Day 4.

Sharing a new18.com report in 2022, Azhar recalled his debut inning and posted on X, formerly Twitter: “I was happy to score a century on my test debut. I went beyond my own expectations I must say. This ton gave me the confidence to score two more in the consecutive matches..”

England also faced an early collapse. Opener Graeme Fowler struck 49 runs while Mike Getting added 48 to the score.

Allan Lamb was the top-performing batter for England with 47 runs. The visitors were ultimately bundled out for 297. India started their second innings on the fifth day and at the stumps, they were at 29/1.

Azharuddin continued his sublime form in the remaining matches of the series. He registered 105 runs in the second innings of the fourth Test where the other Indian batters failed miserably. England won the match by nine wickets to take a lead in the series.

India put up a better performance in the fifth Test. They produced a mammoth 553 in the first innings, with Azharuddin stepping up with a 122-run knock. With his third ton, Azharuddin created a world record by becoming the first batter to register triple-digit scores in each of the first three Tests of his career. Azharuddin later revealed that he played those matches with a bat gifted by his grandfather.

In 2021, the former India skipper dropped a picture of the treasured willow on social media with the caption, “With this bat, I made a world record of three consecutive hundreds in my first three tests against England in 84-85. In a season I scored more than 800 runs with this very bat, chosen by my grandfather.”

Azharuddin announced his retirement in 2000 after featuring in an Asia Cup match against Pakistan. He represented India in 99 Tests and 234 ODIs before hanging up his gloves. The batting maestro aggregated a total of 15,593 runs across the two formats during his international career.