India did not just beat Afghanistan in the one-off Test at New Chandigarh — they recorded the biggest Test win in their history, romping home by an innings and 300 runs inside three days. The story of the match was a debutant spinner who announced himself in style.
A debut to remember
Left-arm spinner Manav Suthar marked his first Test with figures of 6 for 33 in Afghanistan’s first innings — the third-best return by an Indian bowler on Test debut. On a surface offering turn, Suthar’s control and flight proved far too much for the visitors, who were skittled for 152 in reply to India’s mammoth total.
The platform
India had set it up with the bat. They declared on 564 for 8, anchored by captain Shubman Gill’s 126 and KL Rahul’s 100, a pair of centuries that took the game beyond Afghanistan’s reach before the bowlers even got to work. With a lead of more than 400, India enforced the follow-on and went for the kill.
Wrapping it up
Asked to bat again, Afghanistan managed only 112 the second time around. Washington Sundar chipped in with four wickets and Kuldeep Yadav took three (including a 3 for 30 spell), sharing the spoils as India completed the rout with more than two full days to spare. An innings-and-300-run margin is the kind of scoreline that signals a chasm in experience and conditions as much as quality.
What it means
For India, the result is a statement of depth — a debutant running through a side, two centurions up top, and spinners hunting in a pack. For Afghanistan, a developing Test nation, it is another hard lesson in the format’s unforgiving length: bat poorly once and the deficit becomes a sentence.
The bottom line
Records tumble rarely, and a ‘biggest-ever’ anything is worth marking. India will leave New Chandigarh delighted with a new spin find and a dominant performance; Afghanistan will leave knowing exactly how much ground separates them from the longest format’s elite — and how much work remains to close it.
Photo: Elsie esq. / BY via flickr