Unadkat returns to Test fold after 118 matches

Mirpur, Dec 22 (PTI) Pacer Jaydev Unadkat’s got into cricketing records for an unenviable piece of statistic on Thursday, returning to the Test fold after missing 118 games.

Unadkat made his Test debut against South Africa at Centurion on December 16, 2020. In between, he missed more than a century of Tests, the second highest in world cricket.

Only England’s Gareth Batty (142) has missed more matches between two games in the history of Test cricket.

Unadkat, playing only the second Test of his career in the ongoing match against Bangladesh here, looked lively on the morning of the first day and picked up the wicket of Zakir Hasan.

He replaced wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who had returned with match-winning figures of 8/113 in India’s 188-run win in the opening game in Chattogram.

Unadkat got the call-up for the Bangladesh tour as a replacement for the injured Mohammed Shami. His selection came following an impressive performance for Saurashtra in Vijay Hazare Trophy.

The Saurashtra skipper was the highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 19 scalps in 10 games. In all, he has picked 353 wickets in 96 first-class matches.