“Dream debut!”- Twitter erupts as Todd Murphy stuns India on Test debut
Like Krejza, Murphy also completed a fifer on debut, becoming the second Australian off-spinner to do so.
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Todd Murphy
Todd Murphy was included in the Australian squad as the second off-spinner after Nathan Lyon for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. For the first time in 35 years, Australia played two off-spinners.
Former Australian left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe heaped praise on Murphy on SEN Radio ahead of the first Test, that he is “very special. The last time I was this excited about an off-spinner was Nathan Lyon.” While Lyon, who was deemed as the threat to the Indian batters, could do little (he only dismissed Suryakumar Yadav), it was the 22-year-old debutant from Victoria who came as a surprise package.
Murphy did what former Aussie off-spinner Jason Krejza did on his debut in Nagpur back in 2008. Like Krejza, Murphy also completed a fifer on debut, becoming the second Australian off-spinner to do so and the youngest Aussie spin bowler to scalp five wickets since 1882.
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Check how Twitter reacted to Todd Murphy’s fifer
The spectacled youngster’s maiden wicket was KL Rahul, which also gave Australia their first breakthrough on Thursday afternoon. On the next day, Murphy dismissed Ravichandran Ashwin (23) for lbw with the help of DRS.
A few overs later, Cheteshwar Pujara fell prey to his fuller ball. Murphy got his fourth wicket by shocking Virat Kohli who faltered once again against spin on home soil. Since 2020, he got out 10 times out of 12 Test dismissals against spinners.
Coming back to Murphy again, he completed his fifer by dismissing another debutant Srikar Bharat after tea when skipper Pat Cummins went for the DRS again. Murphy has so far bowled 29 overs, conceded 68 runs, and scalped five wickets at an economy of 2.34.
Murphy has played just seven first-class matches where he scalped 29 wickets. He got his Baggy Green after a brilliant Sheffield Shield campaign for Victoria, leaving out spinners Ashton Agar and Mitchell Swepson. The close to Murphy dubbed him as Nathan Lyon’s apparent heir.
Talking about the ongoing match, India are leading by 90 runs after scoring 267/7. After captain Rohit Sharma’s wicket, who scored his ninth Test century, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel are attempting to steady India’s innings. Jadeja completed his half-century (53* off 128), while Axar Patel scored 11* off 38.
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Gouri Das
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