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On Sunday, Indian opener KL Rahul etched his name in history books as he became only the second Indian batter after Wasim Jaffer to hit a century in South Africa. Rahul reached the milestone figure on Day 1 of the ongoing first Testღ against Proteas at Supersport Park in Centurion.
On the second last ball of the 78th over of India’s first innings, Rahul smashed Keshav Maharaj for a boundary in the point region to complete his seventh ton i♌n red-ball cricke💦t.
Indian openers to hit Test Hundred in South Africa:
- 2007 – Wasim Jaffer, Cape Town
- 2021 – KL Rahul, Centurion
Further, Rahul also went past former Indian opener Virender Sehwag to smash more than four centuries outside Asia. The Karnataka stalwart is now only behind the legendary Sunil Gavaskar, who had scored 15 tons outside Asia.
Most Test hundreds by an Indian opener outside Asia:
- 15 – Sunil Gavaskar (81 innings)
- 5 – KL Rahul (34 innings)
- 4 – Virender Sehwag (59 innings)
- 3 – Vinoo Mankad (19 innings)/ Ravi Shastri (19 innings)
Rahul is also the first Indian opener to hit centuries in Australia, England and South Africa – the third visiting opening batter overall.
Visiting openers with Test tons in Australia, England & South Africa:
- Saeed Anwar – Pakistan
- Chris Gayle – West Indies
- KL Rahul – India
Meanwhile, at the close of play, India were in a commanding position with 272 runs on the board for the loss of three wickets. Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane remained unbeaten on 122 and 40, respectively.
For South Africa, fast bowler Lungi Ngidi wജas the only wicket-taker with all three scalps in his pocket.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
Welcome t💯o the exclusive club of Indian openers with a Test hundred in SA @klrahul11 😁 very well played 👏🏼
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14)
Scoring overse💟as ton is not new for but I am sure this one will count among very special because of the context of the series and conditi🍃ons.
— parthiv patel (@parthiv9)
A KLassy 100! 🔥 I am so glad we got to see KL Rahul inserted back into the Indian Test team this year. He’s played some great red ꦕball cricket. A very versatile player. A well made century that is! 👏🏼
— Chloe-Amanda Bailey (@ChloeAmandaB)
Well played @klrahul11 Top class 👌👌👏👏
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh)
This is 𓆉a fantastic knock from @klrahul11 patience and application. See the number of balls he left. First test ﷺof an overseas series and to get a century is super special. Well played.
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar)
There’s a KL Rahul who admonishes every𓃲 ball in T20s .. And there’s a KL Rahul who’s so poised and patient in test cricket. Both a treat to watch. So much to admire about the centurion at Centurion today .. And the context of this hundred .. Taking a bow @klrahul11
— Jatin Sapru (@jatinsapru)
That 💯 has 𝗞𝗟ass written all over it! 😍
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders)
A brill💫iant day of cricket comes to an end with 🇮🇳 firmly in the driver’s seat, thanks to KL Rahul🅺’s brilliant knock. 💯🔝
Drop a 🤩 if you can’t wait to for Day 2️⃣!
📸:
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets)
India have batted with great resolve and skill. South Africa will bowl better a🌸s the series goes along but India have just given a glimpse of why they are such a force in test cricket
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha)
Jaffer 🤝 Rahul
Indian openers to score a 💯 in SA ✅
@klrahul11 | |
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals)
Another KLassy 100 👌
— betvisa69.com (@CricketTimesHQ)
India's best start on day 1 in South Africa was the 372/7 at Bloemfontein on 3 Nov 2001, when Tendulkar made 155 and Sehwag, on debut, hit 105.
But South A🔯frica won the Test by 9 wkts on the 4th day!— Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman)
