R Ashwin and Jonny Bairstow joined the elite list of cricketers on Thursday, March 7 as the duo played its respective 100th Test when India and England locked horns for one final time in the ongoing five-match series at the picturesque HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. Bairstow was presented with his 100th Test cap by Joe Root in the presence of his mother, sister, partner and kid while Ashwin had a special presentation from India head coach Rahul Dravid alongside his wife Prithi and his daughters.
This was the fourth time two players were playing their respective 100th Test in the same game and the third instance of them being from opposite teams. Ashwin and Bairstow will be soon followed in the elite list by Kane Williamson and Tim Southee when the duo takes the field in their respective 100th Test against Australia starting Friday, March 8 in Christchurch.
Players to play the 100th Test together
Michael Atherton, Alec Stewart (ENG vs WI) - Old Trafford, 2000
Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock and Stephen Fleming (SA vs NZ) - Centurion, 2006
Michael Clarke, Alastair Cook (AUS vs ENG) - Perth, 2013
R Ashwin, Jonny Bairstow (IND vs ENG) - Dharamsala, 2024
Kane Williamson, Tim Southee (NZ vs AUS) - Christchurch, 2024*
On the other hand, ageless England pacer James Anderson became the first England player to feature in 400 international matches. Anderson, who was playing on his 50th Test venue, is just two wickets away from the 700 landmark, will become the first pacer to achieve the feat and third bowler overall.
England won the toss and skipper Ben Stokes elected to bat first saying that it was the best option given the surface, despite the cold and overcast conditions in the lap of the Himalayas. Both teams made changes to their line-ups with England bringing back pacer Mark Wood to the side while the Indian team saw pacer Jasprit Bumrah return and Devdutt Padikkal debut with Rajat Patidar injured.
Playing XIs
India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Ben Stokes(c), Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes(w), Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, Mark Wood, James Anderson
