In cricket, a century is a score of 100 or more runs in a single innings by a batsman. Refer to entry for ton. Scores of more than 200 runs are still statistically counted as a century, although these scores are referred to as double century (200–299 runs). A double century is regarded as a landmark score for batsmen and a player's number of double centuries are generally recorded in their career statistics. First-class cricket, the longest version of the game after Test cricket, involves two innings per side in a match and scheduled to last for up to three or more days. An individual scoring a double century on his first-class debut is considered a notable achievement by critics.
The first player to score a double century on first-class debut is English batsman Tom Marsden, who scored 227 runs in the second innings. He achieved the feat on 26 July 1826, while playing for Sheffield & Leicester, against Nottingham during the 1826 English cricket season. English batter David Sales made 210 runs in the third innings, while playing for Northamptonshire on 27 July 1996, against Worcestershire during the 1996 County Championship. He did this at the age of 18 years 234 days, becoming the youngest player to score a double hundred on first-class debut, and also in the County Championship. Sakibul Gani of Bihar claimed the highest individual score in an innings on first-class debut till date, scoring 341 runs against Mizoram, on 18 February 2023, during the 2022–23 Ranji Trophy. With this, he also became the first cricketer to hit a triple century on first-class debut. Hanif Kunrai of Kunar Province scored 200 runs off 189 balls, recording the fastest double century in an innings on first-class debut. He set the record on 17 February 2023, while playing against Kandahar Province, during the 2018–19 Mirwais Nika Provincial 3-Day. The highest unbeaten score on first-class debut till date is 267, which has been achieved by Ajay Rohera of Madhya Pradesh in December 2018, against Hyderabad. Indian batsman Gundappa Viswanath made 230 runs on his first-class debut, for Mysore against Andhra in the 1967–68 Ranji Trophy. He also scored 137 runs on his Test debut, against Australia, on 20 November 1969. With this, he became the first and only cricketer to score a double century on first-class debut as well as a century on Test debut.
The feat has been accomplished by 25 players on 25 occasions as of December 2023. No batter has been able to score a double hundred in both innings on first-class debut so far. Mike Powell's score of 200* for Glamorgan against Oxford University, in June 1997, is the first and only instance of a player achieving the landmark on a losing cause. 13 players from India have reached the milestone so far, the most for any country in the history.
Key Notation Meaning * The player remained not out Inn. The innings of the match in which the player scored his century Date The date on which the match began Team The team the batsman was representing Opposition The team the batsman was playing against Venue The cricket ground where the match was played Result Result for the team for which the double century was scored List + Cricketers who have scored a double century on first-class debut No. Batsman Score Inn. Team Opposition Venue Date Result 1 2272 Sheffield & Leicester Nottingham Darnall New Ground, Sheffield 24 July 1826 Won 2 2072 New South Wales Queensland Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 19 February 1915 Won 3 2401 Transvaal Griqualand West Old Wanderers, Johannesburg 16 December 1920 Won 4 200*2 Trinidad and Tobago MCC Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain 15 January 1935 Drawn 5 232*1 Victoria Queensland Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne 19 December 1946 Won 6 215*1 Cambridge University Lancashire Fenner's, Cambridge 1 May 1948 Drawn 7 2021 Victoria Tasmania Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne 5 February 1952 Drawn 8 2301 Mysore Andhra Police Parade Ground, Vijayawada 11 November 1967 Drawn 9 2601 Bombay Haryana Nahar Singh Stadium, Faridabad 12 February 1994 Won 10 209*1 Madhya Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Jayanti Stadium, Bhilai 13 January 1996 Drawn 11 210*3 Northamptonshire Worcestershire Chester Road North Ground, Kidderminster 24 July 1996 Drawn 12 200*1 Glamorgan Oxford University University Parks, Oxford 5 June 1997 Lost 13 2012 Gujarat Tamil Nadu Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad 13 December 2011 Drawn 14 2132 Punjab Hyderabad Inderjit Singh Bindra Stadium, Mohali 2 November 2012 Won 15 2022 Punjab Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamshala 6 October 2017 Drawn 16 256*1 Speenghar Tigers Amo Sharks Ghazi Amanullah International Cricket Stadium, Jalalabad 20 October 2017 Won 17 2032 Central DistrictsNorthern DistrictsBay Oval, Mount Maunganui 23 October 2017Drawn 18 267*2 Madhya Pradesh Hyderabad Holkar Stadium, Indore 6 December 2018 Won 19 2282 Manipur Nagaland Nagaland Cricket Association Stadium, Sovima 6 December 2018 Won 20 200*2 Kunar ProvinceKandahar ProvinceKunar Cricket Ground, Asadabad15 February 2019Drawn 21 2332 Chandigarh Arunachal Pradesh Sector 16 Stadium, Chandigarh 9 December 2019 Won 22 3411 Bihar Mizoram Jadavpur University Campus Ground, Kolkata 17 February 2022 Drawn 23 2191 Maharashtra Assam Chaudhary Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium, Rohtak 17 February 2022 Won 24 2521 Mumbai Uttarakhand Three Ovals KSCA Stadium, Bangalore 6 June 2022 Won 25 2272 Saurashtra Assam Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati 13 December 2022 Drawn
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