IND vs AFG: Manav Suthar picks wicket in first over on Test debut, joins rare club of Indians

Debutant spinner Manav Suthar became only the eighth Indian to pick a wicket in his first over in Tests when he claimed the scalp of Afghanistan opener Abdul Malik during the one-off Test between the two sides in New Chandigarh on Sunday.

Suthar dismissed Malik off just his fourth ball in Test cricket by inducing the batter’s top edge, which was caught by Mohammed Siraj.

The left-arm spinner is the first Indian to pick a wicket in the first over of his Test career since Tinu Yohannan, who achieved the feat in 2001 against England.

Montu Banerjee was the first Indian to do so, back in 1948 against West Indies. He was followed by Manohar Hardikar (1958 vs West Indies), Vaman Kumar (1961 vs Pakistan), Chetan Sharma (1984 vs Pakistan), WV Raman (1988 vs West Indies), Nilesh Kulkarni (1997 vs Sri Lanka), Yohannan and Suthar.

Suthar soon added a second wicket to his tally when he ended Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s stay in the middle in the 20th over of Afghanistan’s innings.

Published on Jun 07, 2026