Courtesy: BCCI
On March 7, 1987, former India opener Sunil Gavaskar became the first batter to notch up 10000 Test runs with his 58th run against Pakistan in the first innings of the Test match played in Ahmedabad. After winning the toss, Pakistan posted a good score of 395 runs on the board after batting for two days. Ijaz Faqih shone with his bat and scored 105 while the visitors’ skipper Imran Khan also chipped in with his 72 to help his side reach the impressive total.
Replying to Pakistan’s total, India lost their top-order batters Kris Srikanth and Mohinder Amarnath early, but Gavaskar held his nerve and stood with Dilip Vengsarkar at the crease. After scripting history of 10000 Test runs, Sunil Gavaskar fell to Imran Khan and returned to the dugout with a score of 63 runs ot his name. Vengsarkar went on to score a ton which took India to 323 runs. The match eventually concluded in a draw, but Team India fans got something to cheer about with Gavaskar’s feat. Ultimately, Sunil Gavaskar retired from red-ball cricket after appearing in the next Test against the Imran Khan-led side in Bengaluru.
Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid are only India cricketers to reach 10000 Test runs milestone after Gavaskar
After Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar became the second India batter to rack up 10000 runs in the longest form of the sport after 18 years during the match against Pakistan at the iconic Eden Gardens in March 2005. Rahul Dravid followed Gavaskar and Tendulkar and became the third batter from his nation to achieve the feat during the Test against South Africa at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in March 2008.
Besides India players, Brian Lara, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Shivanarine Chanderpaul, Younis Khan, Joe Root, Alastair Cook, and Steven Smith are a few notable names who have joined Sunil Gavaskar on the list of the greatest batters who have smashed more than 10000 runs in Tests.
