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Playing XI When India Used DRS For The First Time

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Anil Kumble Karthik

Umpire Decision Review System is one of the breakthrough technologies in the game of cricket. The difficulty in umpiring close calls was one of the pain points in the sport. However, ICC has reduced it to an extent by bringing forth the DRS technology. There were a lot of debates about whether DRS would affect the spontaneity of the game. However, it was also important that the bad calls from umpires had to be reversed. India was one of the first countries to use the system. In this article, we take a look at the playing XI when India used DRS for the first time.

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DRS was first introduced in the 2008 game between India and Sri Lanka. The match was happening at Colombo, and it was a game between two-Test match heavyweights at that point. Hence, there was not a better occasion to try the DRS. Sri Lanka eventually won this game.

First Match when DRS was used: India vs Sri Lanka, 1st Test, July 23rd 2008

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Openers: Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag

Photo: Gautam Gambhir/Instagram

Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag were the openers for Team India when India used DRS for the first time. The Delhi pair is one of the most successful opening combinations for Team India across formats. 2008 was the time when the duo was at its peak. However, in this game, both these players did not get a fifty and were one of the reasons why India lost the game. Sehwag is the first batsman in the history of the game to be given out by DRS.

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Middle-Order: Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Dinesh Karthik (WK)

India had its strongest middle-order in action for this game. The Indian team was in good form at the moment and one of the reasons behind this was the mighty middle-order.

While Rahul Dravid batted at his usual No.3, Sachin Tendulkar followed at No.4. Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman formed the core of the lower end of the middle-order. India’s wicket-keeper in this game was Dinesh Karthik, who was still fairly new to the scene then. VVS Laxman got a fifty in the first innings, and that was the best individual performance in this game by the middle-order batsman. It was a massive and rare failure for them.

Bowlers: Anil Kumble (C), Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma

With Rahul Dravid quitting his services as the captain of the team, it was Anil Kumble was elevated to the role of the skipper. A legendary leg-spinner, Kumble was at his best around that time. Especially on the subcontinent pitches, he was a beast. Harbhajan Singh formed a productive pair with Kumble. The leg-spin and off-spin combination did wonders for Team India in many encounters. While Bhajji got two wickets in the game, Kumble went wicket-less.

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It was a two-member pace attack for Team India in this XI when India used DRS for the first time. Zaheer Khan was the leader while Ishant Sharma was the youngster. Both the pacers got a total of two wickets each in this game.