During the third innings at Queen’s Park Oval, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal combined to establish the quickest opening partnership ever recorded in the annals of Test cricket.
After dismissing India for 438, West Indies concluded day three of the second Test match at Port of Spain with a score of 229-5. They managed to avoid the follow-on on the fourth morning, but Mohammed Siraj’s exceptional performance led to him taking a career-best 5-60, resulting in West Indies being bowled out for 255.
India needed rapid runs for an early declaration, especially with the possibility of rain looming. Captain Rohit Sharma and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal wasted no time and immediately embarked on their mission.
Rohit Sharma dominated the strike, making the most of it by smashing the fastest fifty of his Test career in just 35 balls. Among Indian players, there have been nine even quicker Test fifties, and two others achieved the same milestone in just 35 balls.
Out of these 11 entries, Kapil Dev holds four records, showcasing his exceptional performance. The current Indian record for the fastest fifty is held by Rishabh Pant, who achieved it in just 28 balls against Sri Lanka in the 2021/22 season. Notably, only one remarkable fifties was achieved against West Indies, accomplished by Virender Sehwag in 33 balls at Gros Islet in 2006.
Jaiswal and Rohit continued their aggressive batting display, relentlessly attacking the opposition. At the 10-over mark, India had reached an impressive score of 90-0, the highest number of runs ever scored by a team at that stage in an innings.
When Rohit was eventually dismissed after scoring a quick 57 runs off 44 balls, he and Jaiswal had already formed an impressive partnership, amassing 98 runs in just 71 balls. Their remarkable run rate 8.28 stands as the fastest for any opening partnership that has surpassed 50 runs in Test cricket. It’s worth noting that although Marcus Trescothick and Michael Vaughan once chased down precisely 50 runs in five overs, Jaiswal and Rohit’s performance surpasses that feat in terms of run rate and partnership duration.
Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal concluded the series with a remarkable total of 466 runs, achieved through three outstanding partnerships. This achievement now stands as the highest Indian record for any Test series played away from home, surpassing the previous 459 runs set by Virender Sehwag and Akash Chopra during eight innings in Australia in the 2004/05 season.
Indeed, when considering both home and away series, only two opening pairs have amassed more runs for the first wicket than Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Sunil Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan scored an impressive 537 runs in eight innings against Australia in 1979/80, while Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir accumulated 477 runs in eight innings against Pakistan in 2004/05. Rohit and Jaiswal’s tally of 466 runs across three stands places them among the elite opening partnerships in Indian Test cricket history.
India achieved the fastest team hundred in Test cricket, reaching the milestone in 14.2 overs. After Jaiswal was dismissed for a quick 38 runs off 30 balls, Ishan Kishan came to the crease and partnered with Shubman Gill.
Shortly after coming to the crease, Ishan Kishan displayed his explosive batting prowess by smashing a blazing fifty off just 33 balls, matching Virender Sehwag’s joint-fastest fifty for India against the West Indies. This remarkable feat also stands as the second-fastest Test fifty by an Indian wicketkeeper, following Rishabh Pant’s achievement, as mentioned earlier. Kishan’s extraordinary innings added another chapter to the rich history of Indian batting records.
Following Ishan Kishan’s rapid fifty and Shubman Gill’s contribution of 29 runs in 37 balls, Rohit Sharma made a decisive call, signaling both players to return to the pavilion. At this point, India had accumulated a staggering 181-2 in just 24 overs, setting a new record for the fastest three-digit score in Test cricket history. Their run rate of 7.54 narrowly surpassed Australia’s previous record of 7.53, achieved when they declared at 241-2 in 32 overs against Pakistan in Sydney in the 2016/17 season. India’s phenomenal performance showcased their aggressive and dominant batting prowess on the field.
