Saturday (December 19) will go down as one of the darkest days in the history of Indian cricket. The fans will forever remember it for a long time as on this day, Team India registered their lowest total in the history of Test cricket.
Indian batting collapsed in front of top-quality Australian bowling and could only post 36/9 in their second innings. The show ended when pacer Mohammed Shami was hit on the forearm by a short ball from Pat Cummins. Shami could not continue further, and the Indian innings was wrapped up at 36 runs in 21.2 overs.
The hosts received the target of just 90 runs on the third day of the first Pink-Ball Test at Adelaide Oval. Australia got to the mark after losing two wickets with Joe Burns reaching a half-century.
India’s earlier lowest score was 42 at the Lord’s which came way back in 1974 against England. This was also the lowest score in the history of Day/Night Tests and the joint fifth lowest overall.
The only relieving thing for Indian fans was that at one stage, the Virat Kohli and Co. were reduced to 26/8 and looked like they might equal the lowest ever Test score but Hanuma Vihari’s boundary helped the visitors to avoid that major embarrassment.
Not a single Indian batsman was able to reach double figures as the pace duo of Josh Hazlewood (5-3-8-5) and Cummins (10.2-4-21-4), destroyed the tourists with top-of-the-line bowling.
10 Lowest totals in Test cricket
- 26 – NZ v ENG, Auckland, 1955
- 30 – SA v ENG, Port Elizabeth, 1896
- 30 – SA v ENG, Birmingham, 1924
- 35 – SA v ENG, Cape Town, 1899
- 36 – SA v AUS, Melbourne, 1932
- 36 – AUS v ENG, Birmingham, 1902
- 36 – IND v AUS, Adelaide, 2020*
- 38 – IRE v ENG, Lords, 2019
- 42 – NZ v AUS, Wellington, 1946
- 42 – AUS v ENG, Sydney, 1888
This was also only the second instance when all 11 batsmen of a side failed to reach the double figures in Test cricket. Previously, England had dismissed South Africa for 30 runs in 1924 with the top-scoring batsman for the Proteas was Herbie Taylor (7).
Coming back to the Adelaide Test, it was the first time since 1955 where all ten partnerships were in single digits. Not only that but also it was the lowest score by any team in 65 years.
India’s lowest totals in Test cricket
- 36 v Australia, Adelaide, 2020*
- 42 v England, Lords, 1974
- 58 v Australia, Brisbane 1947
- 58 v England, Manchester, 1952
- 66 v South Africa, Durban, 1996
- 67 v Australia, Melbourne, 1948
- 75 v West Indies, Delhi, 1987
- 76 v South Africa, Ahmedabad, 2008
- 81 v West Indies, Bridgetown, 1997
- 81 v New Zealand, Wellington, 1976
