Saransh Jain sets unique record after making his debut for India in second Test vs SL

The 33-year-old Saransh Jain received his India cap after years of perseverance and a strong record in domestic cricket. Jain, who plays for Madhya Pradesh, made his debut at 33 years and 145 days old. The player brings experience of 54 first-class games, with 2223 runs and 188 wickets under his belt.

Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bat first, with India resting Kuldeep Yadav due to an infection. The MP star was handed his cap by Ravindra Jadeja at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo.

He is the 320th player to play Test cricket for India and is also the oldest cricketer to make his Test debut in the 21st Century. Saba Karim held the previous record, playing his first red-ball game for India in 2000 against Bangladesh. That game in Dhaka was incidentally his only Test match and also Bangladesh’s debut in the format.

Oldest Test debutants for India in 21st Century

Where does Saransh Jain rank among all-time oldest Test debutants for India?

The bowling all-rounder is placed 10th in the all-time list for oldest Test debutants for India.

For the record, the oldest cricketer to make his debut in red-ball cricket was James Southerton, who was 49 years old and 119 days. This happened during the first-ever Test match between England and Australia in 1877, which started on 15th March at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.