Image Credit- Times of India.
Venue- Chittagong Divisional Stadium, Chittagong, Bangladesh [April 16-20, 2006].
Whenever we hear the name Jason Gillespie, the first thing that comes to mind is a tall, long-haired fast bowler always eyeing wickets and threatening the opposition. However, this post is not about his bowling heroics but about his exceptional batting performance. In the summer of 2006, the Australian cricket team toured Bangladesh to play 2 tests and 3 ODIs. The Visitors won the first test by the barest of margins as the Bangla Tigers gave them a very strong fight. As a result, when both teams reached Chittagong for the final test, no one was expecting it to be an easy game.
In a must-win game, the Bangladeshi captain won the toss and elected to bat first. Unfortunately, they could not get the best out of the conditions, as they were bowled out for just 197 in their first innings. In response, the Aussies declared at a mammoth score of 581/4. However, what is interesting in it is their highest run-getter in that inning. It's not their Captain Ponting or Hayden or Hussey. But it was their night watchman, Jason Gillespie, who scored the highest among all of them. Dizzy was at his ultimate best in Chittagong as he scored an unbeaten 201 of 425 deliveries. Furthermore, his innings comprised 26 boundaries and 6 sixes. The man who came in as a night watchman ended up being invincible. Apart from him, Mike Hussey scored a quickfire 182 as the Aussies took the game under control.
It was almost certain that the match was nearly over for the hosts. However, they did give a fightback in the second innings but failed to save the test. The Bangladeshis in their second innings were bowled out for 304 runs as the Aussies won the game by an innings and 80 runs. For his all-around performance, Jason Gillespie was awarded the man of the match award. Unfortunately, it turned out to be his last test in Baggy Green.
To watch the highlights of that innings, Click Here.
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