Faisalabad, October 16, 1978
India waited for the fast bowling ace to come on the scene when a 19-year-old Kapil Dev came into play in his debut Test match against Pakistan in Faisalabad. He did not have a spectacular debut on the scorecard but bowled with such brilliance that it sent out signals that there was a star in the making.
Pakistan's first innings total of 503/8 declared saw Zaheer Abbas score 176 and Javed Miandad hit an unbeaten 154. Bowling 16 overs, young Kapil gave away 71 runs without taking a wicket. However, the speed and bounce he generated sent shivers down the spine of the Pakistani batters.
India posted 462/9 declared in reply, as Gundappa Viswanath scored 145 and Sunil Gavaskar scored a well-deserved 89. Kapil added eight runs with the bat. Pakistan responded by declaring their innings at 264/4 with a lead of 306. There were not enough overs for a result as India posted 43/0 and the match ended in a draw. Kapil picked up his first Test wicket in the second innings as Sadiq Mohammad was out for 16.
Though the debut had little to write home about, Kapil was only 19 and Indian cricket fans saw the potential and promise of a young man who could turn out to be one of the best all-rounders the game had seen.
In the 16 years that followed, Kapil turned out to be a 131-Test, 5,248-run, and 434-wicket all-rounder. His captaincy saw India win their first-ever World Cup in 1983, which changed forever the perception of Indian cricket in the world.
It all started in Faisalabad. The numbers may not have been stellar but Kapil Dev proved that he was born to bat and bowl in the longer form of the game.
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