Legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has made a special tweet for R Ashwin and Jonny Bairstow on the occasion of their 100th Test match, hailing their “passion and perseverance” for Test cricket.
It marked a rare day in cricket on Thursday in Dharamsala when two players received their 100th Test cap ahead of the same match – India’s off-spinner R Ashwin and England’s batter Jonny Bairstow. Ashwin was given his cap by head coach Rahul Dravid and Bairstow by skipper Ben Stokes. Both players had someone from their families with them for their landmark achievement.
Wishes had been pouring in from the cricket fraternity for the past couple of days, and on the match day, a special tweet came from the ‘God of cricket’, Sachin Tendulkar, the only man in history to play in 200 Test matches.
Sachin Tendulkar tweeted: “It’s a historic day in Dharamsala as @ashwinravi99 and @jbairstow21
don the international whites for the 100th time. An incredible achievement that speaks volumes about their passion and perseverance for red-ball cricket. I wish them both a fantastic game ahead!”
It’s a historic day in Dharamsala as @ashwinravi99 and @jbairstow21 don the international whites for the 100th time. An incredible achievement that speaks volumes about their passion and perseverance for red-ball cricket. I wish them both a fantastic game ahead!#INDvENG pic.twitter.com/XTvzApvHEI
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) March 7, 2024
Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat first in Dharamsala.
Before India came out to take the field to begin their bowling, the Indian players gave a guard of honor to R Ashwin. The off-spinner walked through it and hugged captain Rohit Sharma before leading the players to the pitch to get the game underway.
Ashwin became the 14th Indian player to feature in 100 Tests.
Such a proud moment for R Ashwin and his nation: Rohit Sharma
At the toss, skipper Rohit spoke a few words about Ashwin’s historic feat. Earlier in this series, he had picked up his 500th Test wicket and his 35th five-for in the format.
Sharma said: “Ash has been a real stalwart of Indian cricket. Such a proud moment for him, his nation and the family. We will be rooting for him to do the magic.”
Teams:
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Ben Stokes(c), Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes(w), Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, Mark Wood, James Anderson
Also Read: WATCH: Sachin Tendulkar Plays Special Match With Para-Cricketer Amir At ISPL Inauguration
