From 11 June to 22 June, India played 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is against Zimbabwe and won the ODI series by 3-0 and T20I series by 2-1.
India tried and tested many players and some of them have made their dream ODI and T20I debuts for India and some of them have wasted golden opportunities. India won the ODI series convincingly but Zimbabwe showed good fight in T20I series and as a result of that just like another series, there were many records broken and created during this India’s tour of Zimbabwe.
The Quint takes a look at the 25 most stunning stats from India’s tour of Zimbabwe.
1. KL Rahul’s Memorable ODI Debut
KL Rahul made his ODI debut against Zimbabwe on 11 June 2016 in Harare. He scored 100* runs from 115 balls and became the first ever player to score a century in the first innings as an opener in both Tests and ODIs.
He also became the first Indian to score a century on ODI debut. During that knock, Rahul broke Robin Uthappa’s record of 86 runs. Uthappa had scored 86 against England in 2006 on his ODI debut.
2. MS Dhoni’s Unique ODI Captaincy Record
By captaining India in the ODI series against Zimbabwe, MS Dhoni became the second Indian captain after Sourav Ganguly to lead India in all the 10 Test nations in ODI cricket.
MS Dhoni has led India in India, Australia, Bangladesh, England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Pakistan and Zimbabwe.
3. Dhoni Wins 12th ODI Series as Captain
The ODI series win against Zimbabwe was the 12th ODI series / tournament win for India under MS Dhoni’s captaincy, the most under any Indian captain.
4. KL Rahul’s Most Runs Record Before Getting Out in ODIs
KL Rahul scored 100* runs in the first ODI match against Zimbabwe and in the second ODI match he scored 33 runs, which means he scored 133 runs before getting out in ODIs.
He broke WV Raman’s record who scored 103 runs for India from his first two ODI matches before getting out.
5. India Break Pakistan’s ODI Record
After winning the three match ODI series by 3-0, India notched 454 ODI wins from 899 ODI matches. Before the series, India and Pakistan had won the same number of ODI matches.
The men in blue are only behind Australia who have won 541 ODI matches till date.
6. India’s First Overseas ODI Series Whitewash Win Under MS Dhoni
India have successfully claimed an overseas whitewash win under MS Dhoni’s captaincy in ODIs for the first time after the ODI series against Zimbabwe. The Indian team have also completed three whitewashes under MS Dhoni’s captaincy till date, the most under any Indian captain.
7. Faiz Fazal’s Successful ODI Debut Records
Faiz Fazal made his debut at the age of 30 years and 282 days in the third ODI match against Zimbabwe in Harare on 15 June 2016 and therefore he became the seventh oldest player to make his debut for India in ODIs.
He scored 55* runs from 61 balls on debut and therefore became the 14th Indian player to score 50+ runs on ODI debut. He also became the third player from Vidarbha to play at least an ODI match for India.
Fazal also became third Indian opener to score a fifty on ODI debut and the second oldest Indian to score a fifty on ODI debut.
8. MS Dhoni Not Only a Successful ODI Captain But a Wicket-Keeper Too
MS Dhoni became the fourth wicket-keeper in the history of ODI cricket to claim 350 dismissals in the third ODI match against Zimbabwe in Harare on 15 June 2016 when he took a catch presented by Elton Chigumubura off Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling.
Now, he has claimed 350 dismissals from 278 ODIs for India. Only Kumar Sangakkara (482), Adam Gilchrist (472) and Mark Boucher (424) are ahead of him in the list.
9. KL Rahul Nearly Broke Sidhu’s Amazing ODI Record
KL Rahul has scored 196 runs from his first three ODI matches of his ODI career which he played against Zimbabwe from 11 June 2016 to 15 June 2016, the second most runs scored by an Indian player in his first three ODI matches. Navjot Singh Sidhu is the owner of this record who had scored 199 runs in his first three ODI innings for India.
10. Jasprit Bumrah’s Best Bowling Figures in ODIs
Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling figures registered in the third ODI match against Zimbabwe in Harare on 15 June 2016 was 4/22, his best figures registered in an ODI match. His previous best was of 4/28, which was also registered against Zimbabwe in the first match of the ODI series.
11. KL Rahul 3 - 0 MS Dhoni
For the first time in his ODI career, MS Dhoni did not bat in an ODI series for more than one match. In this ODI series against Zimbabwe, he did not get a chance to bat while KL Rahul batted in all three matches as an opener.
12. MS Dhoni Breaks Kamran Akmal’s Record
MS Dhoni clinched the record of the most number of dismissals in T20Is during the first T20 against Zimbabwe on 18 June 2016. The Indian limited-overs captain surpassed Kamran Akmal’s record of 60 dismissals.
MS Dhoni has claimed 61 dismissals as a wicket-keeper for India from 71 T20I matches.
13. Jasprit Bumrah’s Many Records
Jasprit Bumrah became the first Indian bowler to pick 50 wickets in T20s in a calendar year and he also became the first player to take 50 wickets in T20s in 2016 in the first T20I match in Harare on 18 June 2016. By the end of the series, he had taken 53 wickets from 42 T20 matches in 2016.
14. India Lose a Wicket in the First Ball of the Innings
In the first T20I match against Zimbabwe in Harare, India lost KL Rahul in the first ball of the innings and it was the first T20I match in Indian cricket history where they have lost a wicket in the first ball of the innings.
15. Forgettable T20I Debut for Rishi Dhawan and Jaydev Unadkat
Rishi Dhawan and Jaydev Unadkat made their T20I debuts for India in the first T20I match against Zimbabwe in Harare and conceded 42 runs and 43 runs from their 4 overs respectively. Jaydev Unadkat conceded the fourth most runs and Rishi Dhawan conceded fifth most runs on T20I debuts for India among other Indian players.
16. Zimbabwe’s Lowest Total Against India in T20Is
In the second T20I match against India in Harare on 20 June 2016, Zimbabwe scored 99 runs by losing nine wickets from their 20 overs while batting first. It was Zimbabwe’s lowest total against India in T20Is while it was also their third lowest total in T20Is and the lowest they have scored in Harare in T20Is.
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17. Rahul-Mandeep’s Record Century Stand
In the second T20I match against Zimbabwe, KL Rahul and Mandeep Singh added 103* runs for the opening wicket, this was only the second century opening stand for India in T20Is. Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir hold the record of the highest partnership by an Indian opening pair. They scored 136 against England in 2007 at Durban.
18. India’s First Ever 10-Wicket Win in T20Is
India beat Zimbabwe by 10 wickets in the second T20I match in Harare on 20 June 2016, this was the first match that India won by 10 wickets in T20Is. Their previous best was by nine-wicket margins against UAE and Sri Lanka.
19. Sran’s Best Bowling Figures on T20I Debut and His Other Records
The bowling figures of Barinder Sran registered in the second T20I match against Zimbabwe was 4/10. These are the second best bowling figures for an Indian, the best for an Indian on T20I debut and the second best bowling figures for a player on T20I debut.
Barinder Sran became the first bowler for India to take three or more wickets on both ODI and T20I debut. Earlier this year, when he made his ODI debut against Australia at WACA, he took three wickets for 56 runs.
He also became the fifth Indian player to win the man of the match award on T20I debut. Other four players who have achieved the same milestone are Dinesh Karthik, Pragyan Ojha, S Badrinath and Axar Patel.
Barinder Sran took four wickets in powerplay overs in the second T20I match against Zimbabwe at Harare therefore he became the second Indian to take 4 wickets in a T20I game in powerplay overs. Earlier this year, R Ashwin picked up 4 wickets vs Sri Lanka in Vizag.
20. India Defends Lowest Ever Total in T20Is
India scored 138 runs in the third T20I match against Zimbabwe and defended that total by winning the match by three runs, this is the lowest total defended by India in T20Is. The previous lowest total that India defended was 146 against Bangladesh in the 2016 World T20 in Bengaluru.
21. MS Dhoni, Jasprit Bumrah and India’s Unique Record in T20Is
MS Dhoni and Jasprit Bumrah have played 19 T20I matches this year, the most by any player in a calendar year in T20Is. Previously, the record was held by Saeed Ajmal and Umar Akmal, both have played 18 T20I matches in 2010 for Pakistan.
India have played 19 T20I matches in this year, the most by any team in a calendar year. Pakistan played 18 T20I matches in 2010.
22. Hamilton Masakadza’s 50 T20Is for Zimbabwe
Hamilton Masakadza became the first Zimbabwean player to play 50 T20I matches when he played the third T20I match against India on 22 June 2016. He has scored 1413 runs from 50 T20I matches for Zimbabwe so far.
23. Barinder Singh Sran – Player of the Series
Barinder Sran became the first Indian pacer to win the player of the series award in T20Is. He is the second Indian bowler to win a series award after Ashwin in T20Is.
24. MS Dhoni Equals Ricky Ponting’s Captaincy Record
MS Dhoni has captained India in 324 international matches, the joint most by any captain in international cricket. Ricky Ponting had also played 324 matches as a captain of Australia.
25. Sran’s Joint Most Wickets From First Two T20I Matches for India
Barinder Sran took six wickets from his first 2 T20I matches for India, the joint most by an Indian bowler. Pragyan Ojha has also picked up six wickets from his first two T20I matches.
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