![Sonal Dinusha finished as the highest run-getter in IND Vs SL Tests [Source: AFP]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1787898878909_SonalDinushafinishedasthehighestrun-getterinINDVsSLTests.jpg?type=hq)
Sonal Dinusha finished as the highest run-getter in IND Vs SL Tests [Source: AFP]
Sonal Dinusha was an unknown commodity before the India vs Sri Lanka Test series started, but two games later, the talented player has become the talk of the town for his excellent composure and batting skills.
While most of the top-order Sri Lankan batters failed to deliver the goods and struggled against the Indian bowlers, Dinusha stood tall, and he racked up 481 runs in four innings, with 3 centuries and 2 fifties to his name. The Sri Lankan batter also attained several records in the Test series.
He single-handedly kept his team alive in the second Test match, and if not for him, India would have wrapped up the second Test on Day 4 itself. Interestingly, Dinusha is not the only Test player who has haunted India in an entire series.
Several other players, who were relatively unknown when they debuted, hampered India’s chances and inflicted defeat on them. In this article, we take a look at players who had a similar impact against India to Dinusha's.
1) Sam Curran (2018 Test series)
India had a relatively strong chance to win a Test series against England in 2018, but one man stood tall for England and single-handedly dented India’s chances, and his name was Sam Curran.
With the bat, with the ball, Curran delivered the goods and inflicted a painful defeat. In the first Test match, he scalped a 4-wicket haul and scored a match-winning 63 in England’s second innings.
Curran then scored 78 in the first innings of the fourth Test match, followed by 46 in the second innings as England once again defeated India. He finished the Test tour with 272 runs in 4 Tests, and also scalped 11 wickets as he single-handedly destroyed India’s series aspirations.
2) Keegan Petersen (2021 Test series)
Another Test series where India started as the favourites, but like Curran in 2018, another newcomer defeated India, almost single-handedly.
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Keegan Petersen failed to deliver in the first Test match as India defeated the Proteas to take a 1-0 lead. However, the talented youngster came to South Africa’s rescue in the second Test as he scored a gritty 62 in the first innings, followed by 28 in the second innings.
His best, however, came in the series finale as the tour was poised at 1:1. In the first innings, Petersen slammed 72 off 166 balls, and he then scored a match-winning 82 as South Africa sealed the series, 2-1. Petersen finished the Test tour with 276 runs in three Tests, with an average of 46.
3) Kyle Jamieson (2020 Test tour, WTC final)
For a brief period in 2020, Kyle Jamieson was the best Test bowler, and the journey started in the home series against India. The Virat Kohli-led side toured New Zealand, and Jamieson became a problem for the tourists.
In the first Test match in Wellington, Jamieson used his height to advantage as he terrorised the Indian batters with his seam presentation.
He scalped a 4-wicket haul in the first innings, including the all-important scalp of Virat Kohli. In the second Test match, the tall pacer grabbed a five-wicket haul to bundle out the Indian side for a paltry 242.
He finished the tour with 9 wickets to his name, but the real problem started for India in the WTC final 2021. On a seaming deck, Jamieson grabbed a fifer in the first innings, followed by two wickets in the second as the Kiwis won the inaugural WTC title.
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