The series was heavily hyped, given that India crossed the border after a hiatus of 14 years

In the present era of cricket, India is undoubtedly a better side than PAK in ODI and T20I cricket. However, it is difficult to determine which side is better in Test cricket, given that the two countries no longer visit each other’s soil for Test series. However, in the 90s, 80s, and even before that, both sides held their fortresses strong, although PAK had won its first Test series in India in 1986/87.

For India, the moment came on this day in 2004 when a team led by Sourav Ganguly secured India’s first Test series on PAK soil.

Sultan of Multan strikes hard

From the first game, India had one of its best Test batting displays. Virender Sehwag stole the show with 309 runs coming off his bat in 375 runs at a whopping strike rate of 82 in Test cricket, earning him the moniker ‘Sultan of Multan’. Tendulkar also joined the scoring spree, adding 194 runs, whereas down the order, a young Yuvraj Singh contributed with 59 runs. The collective effort helped India post 675 runs on the board.

🏏 309 runs
⏱ 531 minutes
4️⃣ 39 fours
🙌 six sixes#Onthisday in 2004, Virender Sehwag became the first batter to score a Test match triple-century for India. pic.twitter.com/xoIEquB2Li

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) March 29, 2023

With PAK trailing by over 200 runs, they were forced to follow on, but the hosts eventually lost by an innings and 52 runs.

Anil Kumble, from India’s bowling unit, made headlines by taking eight wickets in the two innings.

PAK’s equaliser

While India’s performance was incredibly strong in the first game, the second game was a poor show, with the batters making only 287 runs in the first innings and 241 in the second. Umar Gul ripped through the Indian batting line-up in the first innings, whereas in the second, Shoaib Akhtar and Danish Kaneria grabbed three wickets each, helping PAK win by nine wickets.

India’s epochal comeback

 

After losing the second game, India made a historic comeback in the third game to win it and create history. Lakshmipathy Balaji grabbed four wickets to halt PAK’s batting in the first innings, which scored 224 runs, whereas, in terms of batting, Rahul Dravid scored 270 runs single-handedly. Others, such as Parthiv Patel (69), skipper Sourav Ganguly (77), VVS Laxman (71), and Yuvraj Singh (47), took India’s score to 600.

 

In the second innings, Balaji once again struck hard, grabbing three wickets, whereas Anil Kumble picked four, wrapping PAK at 245 runs. India won the game by an innings and 131 runs, securing their first-ever Test series victory on PAK soil.

India not only won the game but also led the bowling and batting stats. Anil Kumble ended as the top wicket-taker with 15 wickets, followed by Irfan Pathan and Balaji, who grabbed 12 wickets each. In terms of batting, Virender Sehwag ended up as the top run scorer with 438 runs in four innings at an average of 109.50.