India is a tough place to make a Test debut for a bowler and India are tough opponents to play the first game against. Be it in India or away, performing against one of the best batting sides ever is a task. It is a pressure test.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
However, there have been instances where bowlers have had the upper hand in their first match against India. Constellations align to bring them good luck and the bowlers shine with their hard work on helpful surfaces. There have also been instances where bowlers have run through the Indian batting lineup to help their teams win a Test easily.<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">Here are the top five best bowling figures on Test debut against India:<o:p></o:p></h3>
<h3>5. Todd Murphy (AUS)</h3>
<figure class="image" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1690652384884_Todd-Murphy.jpeg" alt="Todd Murphy" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img>
<figcaption data-gramm="false">Todd Murphy. (Photo Source: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)</figcaption>
</figure>
In 2023, Australia visited India for a four-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy and their spin attack was pretty much similar to what England have brought in the 2024 tour. Nathan Lyon was their lead spinner with Matthew Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy as support spinners. Out of this Todd Murphy made an immediate impact on his Test debut.<o:p></o:p>
<a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/todd-murphy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Todd Murphy </a>made his Test debut in the first game in Nagpur and came to bowl after Australia had made 177 in their first innings after winning the toss and choosing to bat first. Then India put on 400 with Rohit Sharma scoring 120, Ravindra Jadeja scoring 70 and Axar Patel making 84. However, amidst this run-fest, the bespectacled Murphy claimed 7/124 in 47 overs.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>

<h3 class="MsoNormal">4. Tom Hartley (ENG)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706441488994_Tom-Hartley.jpeg" alt="Tom Hartley" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img>
<figcaption data-gramm="false">Tom Hartley. (Photo Source: BCCI)</figcaption>
</figure>
The latest entrant on the list is England’s left-arm spinner <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/tom-hartley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tom Hartley</a>. Spinners have had huge success in India on helpful surfaces which offer lots of spin. The same thing happened with Hartley, who was welcomed to Test cricket by Yashasvi Jaiswal with a six on his first ball in Hyderabad. He managed just two wickets for 131 runs in his 25 overs.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
However, things turned his way in the second innings as India's batters turned tentative due to the turn present on the pitch. He took advantage of batters not attacking him and picked the first four Indian wickets to fall. This included wickets of Jaiswal and Shubman Gill in three balls. He ended up taking 7/62 on his debut as England won the Test by 28 runs despite conceding a lead of 90 runs.<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">2. John Lever (ENG)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706518014219_john-lever.jpeg" alt="John Lever" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img>
<figcaption>John Lever. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
Essex pacer <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/john-lever" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Lever</a> made his England Test debut on the 1976 tour of India, in the first Test in Delhi. England batted first and posted 381 with Dennis Amiss making 179. In reply, Lever ran through the Indian batting lineup, picking up the first six wickets to fall, including that of Sunil Gavaskar, Mohinder Amarnath, and Gundappa Viswanath. <o:p></o:p>
He finished up with figures of 7/46 in the first innings on his Test debut as India folded for 122. He further added three more wickets to take on his debut as India collapsed for 234 in the second innings and lost the Test by an innings and 25 runs. 
<h3 class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>2. Jason Krejza (AUS)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706517936762_Jason-Krejza.jpeg" alt="Jason Krejza" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img>
<figcaption>Jason Krejza. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
In the fourth Test of the 2008 series between India and Australia, off-spinner <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/jason-krejza" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jason Krejza</a> made his Test debut in Nagpur. MS Dhoni won the toss and chose to bat first and India batters made merry as they posted 441, with Sachin Tendulkar scoring 109 and Sourav Ganguly making 85 runs. Amidst this run-fest, Krejza bowled lion-hearted long spells and finished with 8/215 in 43.5 overs. 
Then in the Indian second innings, Krejza continued his good form and picked 4/143 in 31 overs to finish with 12 scalps on his Test debut. This was the high point of his Test career as he only played one more Test after that.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">1. Lance Klusener (SA)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706517952011_Lance-Klusener.jpeg" alt="Lance Klusener" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img>
<figcaption>Lance Klusener. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
The record for the best bowling figures in a Test against India on debut is held by South Africa’s <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/lance-klusener" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lance Klusener</a>. Klusener made his Test debut in Kolkata in the second match of the series in 1996. In reply to South Africa’s 428, India posted 329 runs with Mohammad Azharuddin hammering Lance Klusener in his first outing in Tests. He hit him for five fours in an over and the pacer conceded 75 runs in his 14 overs for no wicket.<o:p></o:p>
But with India needing 467 runs to win, Lance Klusener changed his way of bowling and demolished the Indian batting for just 137 runs. He picked wickets of Sourav Ganguly, Mohammad Azharuddin, VVS Laxman, and others, to finish with figures of 8/64 in 21.3 overs. Thanks to his efforts, South Africa won by 329 runs. <o:p></o:p>

India is a tough place to make a Test debut for a bowler and India are tough opponents to play the first game against. Be it in India or away, performing against one of the best batting sides ever is a task. It is a pressure test.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
However, there have been instances where bowlers have had the upper hand in their first match against India. Constellations align to bring them good luck and the bowlers shine with their hard work on helpful surfaces. There have also been instances where bowlers have run through the Indian batting lineup to help their teams win a Test easily.<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">Here are the top five best bowling figures on Test debut against India:<o:p></o:p></h3>
<h3>5. Todd Murphy (AUS)</h3>
<figure class="image"><img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1690652384884_Todd-Murphy.jpeg" alt="Todd Murphy" loading="lazy">
<figcaption data-gramm="false" wt-ignore-input="true">Todd Murphy. (Photo Source: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)</figcaption>
</figure>
In 2023, Australia visited India for a four-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy and their spin attack was pretty much similar to what England have brought in the 2024 tour. Nathan Lyon was their lead spinner with Matthew Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy as support spinners. Out of this Todd Murphy made an immediate impact on his Test debut.<o:p></o:p>
<a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/todd-murphy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Todd Murphy </a>made his Test debut in the first game in Nagpur and came to bowl after Australia had made 177 in their first innings after winning the toss and choosing to bat first. Then India put on 400 with Rohit Sharma scoring 120, Ravindra Jadeja scoring 70 and Axar Patel making 84. However, amidst this run-fest, the bespectacled Murphy claimed 7/124 in 47 overs.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>

<h3 class="MsoNormal">4. Tom Hartley (ENG)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image"><img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706441488994_Tom-Hartley.jpeg" alt="Tom Hartley" loading="lazy">
<figcaption data-gramm="false" wt-ignore-input="true">Tom Hartley. (Photo Source: BCCI)</figcaption>
</figure>
The latest entrant on the list is England’s left-arm spinner <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/tom-hartley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tom Hartley</a>. Spinners have had huge success in India on helpful surfaces which offer lots of spin. The same thing happened with Hartley, who was welcomed to Test cricket by Yashasvi Jaiswal with a six on his first ball in Hyderabad. He managed just two wickets for 131 runs in his 25 overs.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
However, things turned his way in the second innings as India's batters turned tentative due to the turn present on the pitch. He took advantage of batters not attacking him and picked the first four Indian wickets to fall. This included wickets of Jaiswal and Shubman Gill in three balls. He ended up taking 7/62 on his debut as England won the Test by 28 runs despite conceding a lead of 90 runs.<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">2. John Lever (ENG)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image"><img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706518014219_john-lever.jpeg" alt="John Lever" loading="lazy">
<figcaption>John Lever. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
Essex pacer <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/john-lever" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Lever</a> made his England Test debut on the 1976 tour of India, in the first Test in Delhi. England batted first and posted 381 with Dennis Amiss making 179. In reply, Lever ran through the Indian batting lineup, picking up the first six wickets to fall, including that of Sunil Gavaskar, Mohinder Amarnath, and Gundappa Viswanath. <o:p></o:p>
He finished up with figures of 7/46 in the first innings on his Test debut as India folded for 122. He further added three more wickets to take on his debut as India collapsed for 234 in the second innings and lost the Test by an innings and 25 runs. 
<h3 class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>2. Jason Krejza (AUS)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image"><img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706517936762_Jason-Krejza.jpeg" alt="Jason Krejza" loading="lazy">
<figcaption>Jason Krejza. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
In the fourth Test of the 2008 series between India and Australia, off-spinner <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/jason-krejza" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jason Krejza</a> made his Test debut in Nagpur. MS Dhoni won the toss and chose to bat first and India batters made merry as they posted 441, with Sachin Tendulkar scoring 109 and Sourav Ganguly making 85 runs. Amidst this run-fest, Krejza bowled lion-hearted long spells and finished with 8/215 in 43.5 overs. 
Then in the Indian second innings, Krejza continued his good form and picked 4/143 in 31 overs to finish with 12 scalps on his Test debut. This was the high point of his Test career as he only played one more Test after that.&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">1. Lance Klusener (SA)<o:p></o:p></h3>
<figure class="image"><img src="https://media.crictracker.com/media/attachments/1706517952011_Lance-Klusener.jpeg" alt="Lance Klusener" loading="lazy">
<figcaption>Lance Klusener. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)</figcaption>
</figure>
The record for the best bowling figures in a Test against India on debut is held by South Africa’s <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/cricket-players/lance-klusener" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lance Klusener</a>. Klusener made his Test debut in Kolkata in the second match of the series in 1996. In reply to South Africa’s 428, India posted 329 runs with Mohammad Azharuddin hammering Lance Klusener in his first outing in Tests. He hit him for five fours in an over and the pacer conceded 75 runs in his 14 overs for no wicket.<o:p></o:p>
But with India needing 467 runs to win, Lance Klusener changed his way of bowling and demolished the Indian batting for just 137 runs. He picked wickets of Sourav Ganguly, Mohammad Azharuddin, VVS Laxman, and others, to finish with figures of 8/64 in 21.3 overs. Thanks to his efforts, South Africa won by 329 runs. <o:p></o:p>

India is a tough place to make a Test debut for a bowler and India are tough opponents to play the first game against. Be it in India or away, performing against one of the best batting sides ever is

Ranking top 5 bowling performances in India on Test debut

5 best bowling figures on Test debut against India in India.

Check out the top five bowlers who showcased their talents in their Test debuts against India. Here, we rank them from 1 to 5 based on their bowling spells.