The game of cricket is all about building up partnerships and keeping the scoreboard moving. It’s more so in the longer format of the game where the batsmen need to play a ‘wait and watch’ game.
This attains more importance in the case of the openers since a ‘good start’ is half the job done. If the openers are able to give a good platform, then the middle order and the lower middle order can go for the onslaught and put up a good, healthy total on the scoreboard. This also would give a lot of confidence for the batting team bowlers to plan their strategy.
Let us look into three instances of excellent opening partnerships in Tests where the top order had gone on to register runs in excess of 400 for the first wicket.
3 First-wicket Parterships aggregating over 400 runs in Test cricket:
- 415 runs by Neil McKenzie and Graeme Smith against Bangladesh in 2008
The second Test of the two-Test 2007-08 series between South Africa and Bangladesh was played at Chittagong Divisional Stadium, Chittagong, between 29th February and 3rd March 2008.
South Africa, led by Graeme Smith, elected to bat. The opening pair of Neil McKenzie and Smith proved to be really tough for the ‘not much experienced’ young Bangladeshi bowlers.
The duo stayed together for 406 minutes and put up a mammoth 415 runs for the first wicket.
Smith was the first to go in the third delivery of the 93rd over, trying to sweep a full-flighted and straight delivery from Abdur Razzak which ended up disturbing ‘the furniture’ behind him.
Facing 277 deliveries in 406 minutes and after dispatching the red-leather 33 times to the ropes and once beyond, the SA skipper notched up 232 runs. His first century came off 127 balls with the help of 15 fours. His second hundred came after facing 238 deliveries with 28 fours and a six.
McKenzie who was on 170 runs aided by 20 fours and 3 sixes at the time of Smith’s departure, got to his second century off 198 deliveries aided by 13 fours and a six. Eventually, he went on to score 227 runs off 388 balls with 28 fours and 3 sixes while reaching his double-ton after 350 balls with 24 fours and 3 sixes.
The SA openers sent the Bangladesh fielders on a ‘leather hunt’ and won the game by an innings and 205 runs.
- 413 runs by Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy against New Zealand in 1956
The first incident of a 400-plus opening partnership in Test cricket was established way back in 1956. Playing against New Zealand in the Fifth and Final Test at Corporation Stadium, Madras (now Chennai), between 6th and 11th January 1956, the Indian openers, Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy, after India elected to bat, went on to register a 413 runs partnership for the first wicket, a record for the first wicket. They had surpassed the previous best of 359 runs made by Hutton and Washbrook of England, playing against South Africa at Johannesburg in 1948-49.
This first-wicket partnership was also a record for India’s first class cricket. It overtook the previous best of 293 runs scored by Vijay Merchant and Vinoo Mankad against Sussex at Hove in 1946.
Being together at the crease for 472 minutes, Pankaj Roy, who was accounted for by the off-spinner, Matt Poore, notched up a brilliant 173 runs with the help of 12 fours.
Batting for almost 9 hours (525 minutes), and adding another 36 runs alongwith Polly Umrigar for the second wicket, Vinoo Mankad notched up 231 runs aided by 21 hits to the fence, before he was caught by Harry Cave off Alex Moir.
In the process, he surpassed his own previous record of 223 runs which he jointly held alongwith Polly Umrigar.
India won the match by an innings and 109 runs.
- 410 runs by Virendra Sehwag and Rahul Dravid against Pakistan in 2006
The drawn the First Test of the 3-match 2006 series between India and Pakistan was played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, between 13th and 17th January 2006.
Pakistan, led by Inzamam-ul-Haq, won the toss and elected to bat. Aided by wonderful batting display by Younis Khan (199), Mohammad Yousuf (173), Shahid Afridi (103) and an unbeaten 102* runs by Kamran Akmal, the home team put up a massive total of 679 for the loss of 7 wickets and declared their innings.
The second wicket-partnership between Shoaib Malik and Younis Khan produced 124 runs while the third wicket-partnership between Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf realised a massive 319 runs. Shahid Afridi and Kamran Akmal got together and added 170 runs for the sixth wicket.
Commencing their reply, India opened with Virendra Sehwag and Rahul Dravid. Taking the Pakistan bowlers ‘head on’ the pair were together for 328 minutes and plundered runs at will.
Facing 247 deliveries, smashing 47 fours and a solitary six, quite unusual by Sehwag standards, he notched up 254 runs before Navad ul Hasan got the better of him. Sehwag, trying to lift to the third man, a short-rising delivery outside the off-stump, failed to keep it down. The ball kissed the bat and landed safely into the gloves of the wicket-keeper, Kamran Akmal, who made no mistake.
The partnership for the first wicket produced 410 runs. The pair failed to rewrite the record books, falling short by just 3 runs. The record Indian partnership for the openers still stands in the names of Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy, who put up 413 runs in 1956 playing against New Zealand.
Sehwag’s first 100 runs came in 93 balls with 20 hits to the fence while the second 100 came after facing 184 deliveries with the help of 36 fours and a six.
Playing an innings of utmost caution, Dravid notched up an unbeaten 128* runs facing 230 deliveries, studded with 18 fours. His century came in 200 balls assisted by 14 hits to the fence.
Weather-God played truant. An appeal for bad light was offered and accepted. The Umpires who decided to take Tea early, later on came out for an inspection and finally decided to call off the day”s play that ended the first Test in a draw.