5 Cricket Greats Who Rebounded from Horror Debuts
India's Pankaj Singh made one of the worst Test debuts in recent memory this summer, returning match figures of 0 for 179 at the Rose Bowl, to become something of a tragi-comic figure among England's fans and media.
But of course, he is far from alone in enduring a nightmarish start to his international career.
The five players on this list, ranked in descending order based on the severity of their disastrous debuts, each bounced back to enjoy incredible careers. Over to you, Pankaj.
5. Jeff Thomson
1 of 5
Tests: 51
Wickets: 200
Just five games after making his first-class debut, Jeff Thomson found himself walking out at the famous MCG wearing a Baggy Green to play Test cricket for the first time.
A feverish crowd awaited the 22-year-old Sydney-born pace sensation as did the opposition, Pakistan, who were probably wondering what all the fuss was about.
But after the slingy fast bowler returned a hugely disappointing 0 for 100 off 17 overs in the first innings, people could have been forgiven to wonder what all the fuss was about.
Thomson was dropped and later admitted that he had played the game with a broken foot, being too scared to tell the selectors for fear of being dropped.
Two years later, he returned against England in the 1974/75 Ashes series, and the pumped-up bowler claimed match figures of 9 for 105 to fire Australia to victory, and the rest, as they say, is history.
4. Michael Holding
2 of 5
Tests: 60
Wickets: 249
Pace demon Michael Holding terrorised batting line-ups throughout the 1970s and 1980s, bowling with searing pace to capture almost 250 wickets in just 60 Test matches.
However, few who witnessed the Jamaican's international debut against the Aussies in Brisbane—where he returned match figures of 0/127—would have suspected they were seeing a future great of the game in action.
In fact, things didn't get much better over the course of the series, which the West Indies lost 5-1, as the towering fast bowler struggled to find his straps, claiming just 10 wickets at an average of 61.40.
Of course the West Indian managed to quickly put this behind him as England's Geoff Boycott, who had to endure the "greatest over ever," can testify.
3. Graham Gooch
3 of 5
Tests: 118
Runs: 8,900
Over an epic 27-year career, Graham Gooch scored over 67,000 runs, 13,000 of which were at international level and made during eras when England were struggling.
But how many more would the moustache-clad opener have scored if he hadn't endured a nightmarish Test debut at Edgbaston when aged just 21 years old?
The opposition was the old enemy, Australia, who boasted the new ball pairing of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson; however, it was Max Walker who had Gooch caught behind for a duck off just his third ball.
In the second innings, the man who would go on to captain England for 34 Tests, edged Thomson behind, again without scoring, to register a pair on debut and join a surprisingly long list.
Gooch played one more Test, scoring six and 31 before being put out to pasture, and not returning to international cricket for three long years.
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2: Shane Warne
4 of 5
Tests: 145
Wickets: 708
Shane Warne is the second-highest wicket-taker of all time in Test cricket and finished with more than a 1,000 scalps in total across all international formats.
However, a debut, against the spin-savvy Indians proved a chastening affair for the Victorian who toiled away to produce match figures of 1/150 in what turned out to be a dull drawn game.
Things didn't get much better next time out either as the peroxide-blonde "wonder kid" failed to take a wicket in Adelaide, and midway through his third appearance, on a tour of Sri Lanka in Colombo, he possessed a Test bowling average of over 300.
But then, that light-bulb moment occurred. With the hosts chasing a paltry 181 to win, they needed less than 30 runs to win when Warne was thrown the ball.
He proceeded to rip out three quick scalps and help his country to claim an unlikely victory. Would cricket history have been the same if the Sri Lankans have knocked off the runs?
1. Marvan Atapattu
5 of 5
Tests: 90
Runs: 5,502
Sri Lanka's head coach, Marvan Atapattu is a hugely respected figure in cricket and carved out a successful 17-year international career scoring over 14,000 runs across all formats.
But rewind back to his early days, and it is a wonder that the stylish batsman wasn't given a one-way ticket back to club cricket.
On his debut in 1990 against India, Atapattu scored a pair. Three years later against the Australians he managed another duck and his first Test run before being dismissed.
Then, after being dropped once more, he returned emphatically in 1994 to score...another pair. So, just to recount, that is six innings, six dismissals, five ducks and just one run.
So, next time you think things have started badly in something you are doing, spare a thought for Marvan.
*Statistics courtesy of ESPN Cricinfo unless specified.
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