Having won the ODI series, Indian thoughts turned to the Test series, a tall order given that they had previously never won a Test match on Pakistani soil.
However, they soon set that record straight with a dominant victory in the first Test match, in Multan. It was built on a brilliant batting display by opener Virender Sehwag, who became the first Indian to score a triple century in Test cricket.
It was also the second fastest of all time. Sehwag made 309 off 375 balls, hitting 39 fours and six sixes. His stand with Sachin Tendulkar for the third wicket was worth 336, with Tendulkar going on to make an unbeaten 194, striking 21 fours in the process. Yuvraj Singh made 59, but his dismissal triggered the declaration, with India 675/5 at the time.
There was some controversy over the declaration by stand-in captain Rahul Dravid, who left Tendulkar high and dry, six runs short of a double hundred.
While none of the Pakistan bowlers will want to look back on their figures, Saqlain Mushtaq’s stand out: his 43 overs yielded one wicket and came at a cost of 204 runs.
Pakistan initially responded in kind, particularly when Yasir Hameed and his captain Inzamam ul-Haq were batting together. But both fell in quick succession, Inzamam for 77, followed by Hameed for 91. After that, although several men got in, nobody went on to make a big score.
In the end, Pakistan were all out for 407, with a first-innings deficit of 268. Irfan Pathan was the pick of the Indian bowlers, with 4-100.
India enforced the follow on, and soon had Pakistan in trouble at 136/8. It was left to Mohammad Yousuf or deny them for the time, putting on 70 for the ninth wicket with Shoaib Akhtar, who scored four of them.
Yousuf was last out, for 112, having hit two sixes and 16 fours, scoring more than Pakistan’s final total of 216. Anil Kumble was the most successful bowler for Indian this time, with figures of 6-72.
India won by an innings and 52 runs, making history in the bargain.