On Wednesday, Indian cricketer Suryakumar Yadav created an unwanted record in international cricket as he became the first Indian player to get out for golden ducks in three consecutive innings.
Yadav’s third golden duck came during the third ODI match against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Aston Agar castled him with a skidder that hit the off-stump and kept low, leaving the Indian middle-order batter in a state of shock.
Yadav’s first two ducks came in the second and third ODI games against Australia, which were played in Mumbai and Vishakapatnam respectively, in a span of just six days.
The batsman’s three consecutive ducks in international cricket are an embarrassing record that he would surely want to forget.
However, it is not the first time that an Indian cricketer has achieved such a feat.
Washington Sundar was the first Indian player to get out for golden ducks in three consecutive innings, and he registered the same during the T20I matches against West Indies, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand between December 2019 and January 2020.
Sundar’s record is not as high-profile as Yadav’s, but it still makes for an embarrassing statistic for the Indian cricket team.
In terms of Indian cricketers who have achieved the feat of getting out for three consecutive ducks, Yadav joins a list that includes some notable names in Indian cricket history.
Sachin Tendulkar, the batting great, was the first Indian to get out for three consecutive ducks during a Test match in 1994.
Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah are the other Indian cricketers who have suffered the same fate as Yadav in international cricket.
However, the record for the most consecutive ducks by an Indian cricketer in international cricket belongs to former pacer Ajit Agarkar, who holds the Indian and joint international record of five consecutive ducks in Test cricket.
Agarkar’s record is a testament to the unpredictability of cricket, and it shows that even the most talented players can go through a lean patch.
Yadav’s third consecutive golden duck came at a crucial stage of the match when India was chasing a target of 270 runs in the series decider against Australia.
With Virat Kohli back in the pavilion, India was struggling at 185/5, and Yadav’s dismissal only made things worse for the home team.
Agar bowled a terrific spell that kept Kohli on his toes for much of the game, and Yadav’s failure to read a skidder was a testament to the quality of the Australian spinner.
Earlier in the match, Australia won the toss and chose to bat first. They were all out for 269 runs in 49 overs, with opener Mitchell Marsh scoring a valuable 47 runs.
Alex Carey and Travis Head also played crucial knocks, scoring 38 and 33 runs respectively. Among the Indian bowlers, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav were the pick of the lot, with three wickets each.
Mohammad Siraj and Axar Patel also contributed with two wickets each.
Suryakumar Yadav’s record of getting out for golden ducks in three consecutive innings is an unfortunate one for the Indian cricket team.
However, the sport of cricket is unpredictable, and even the best players can suffer from a lean patch.
Yadav will be hoping to bounce back in the upcoming matches and contribute to India’s success.
