The 2021-23 World Test Championship begins tomorrow with a five-match series between England and India. At stake will be the Pataudi Trophy, which England have held for the last decade – since 2011, England have won 11 and lost only two out of 14 home Tests against India. The first Test will be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, where India have played seven Tests so far. Here is a look back at those instances.
May leads from the front – First Test, 1959
India’s first Test outing ended in a tame defeat, which would set the tone for a 5-0 sweep. They started well, as medium pacer Surendranath and leg-spinner Subhash Gupte reduced England to to 60/3. However, captain Peter May, in at 29/2, turned the match around.
May (106), supported by knocks from Ken Barrington (56), debutant Martin Horton (58) and Godfrey Evans (73) took England to a sturdy 422. India could only manage 206 (Fred Trueman 4/45) and 157 (Brian Statham 5/31); opener Pankaj Roy top-scored with 54 and 49.
Batsmen prosper in stalemate – Third Test, 1996
Trailing the three-match series 1-0, India lost both openers with 33 on the board before Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar added 255 for the third wicket. Ganguly (136) bettered his 131 on debut in the second Test at Lord’s, while Tendulkar went on to make 177.
Rahul Dravid (84) further boosted the total to 521, after which captain Michael Atherton (160) dug in on the flat pitch, putting on 192 for the second wicket with Nasser Hussain (107). England accumulated 564 and then dismissed India for 211, with Tendulkar hitting 74.
Three hundreds and three nineties – Second Test, 2002
Virender Sehwag (106) helped India recover from an indifferent start, laying the foundation for a competitive 357. But England replied with a massive 617 thanks to Michael Vaughan’s stroke-filled 197 followed by attacking efforts from Alec Stewart (87) and Craig White (94*).
When India fell to 11/2 late on the fourth day, England were in with a chance. But they were thwarted by the trio of Dravid (115), Tendulkar (92) and captain Ganguly (99), who carried the total to 424/8. England maintained the lead in the series, which was ultimately shared 1-1.
Zaheer delivers a historic triumph – Second Test, 2007
Having escaped at Lord’s, India scripted a memorable win that proved to be series-clinching. England were bowled out for 198 after Dravid called correctly, with left-arm quick Zaheer Khan claiming 4/59. Openers Dinesh Karthik (77) and Wasim Jaffer (62) added 147 in reply.
Tendulkar (91), Ganguly (79) and VVS Laxman (54) shored up the total to 481, before Zaheer, seemingly charged up after the infamous ‘jellybean’ incident, snared another 5/75 even as captain Vaughan battled with 124. Left to chase 73, India sealed a seven-wicket win.
Broad and Bell deflate India – Second Test, 2011
India’s pacers had England reeling at 124/8 on the first afternoon, before Stuart Broad thumped 64 from number nine to improve the total to 221. India were 267/4 in response when Broad (6/46) changed the game again, taking four wickets in eight balls, including a hat-trick.
Dravid, opening the innings, scored 117, but the collapse meant that India’s lead was kept to 67. The home batsmen, led by Ian Bell (159) cashed in by piling up 544, before Tim Bresnan (who had earlier struck 90) took 5/48 to send India crashing to defeat by as many as 319 runs.
Tenth-wicket stands make merry – First Test, 2014
Murali Vijay (146) and skipper MS Dhoni (82) anchored the Indian innings on a flat pitch, but a wobble of four wickets for two runs left the score at 346/9. Mohammad Shami (51*) joined Bhuvneshwar Kumar (58) at this stage, and they shared an incredible 111-run alliance.
Kumar (5/82) impressed with the ball too, and at 298/9, India were in the ascendancy. Astonishingly, the tenth wicket rose to the occasion again, as Joe Root (154*) and James Anderson (81) created a new Test record of 198. India then mustered 391/9 to ensure a draw.
India keep their hopes alive – Third Test, 2018
Down by 2-0 in the five-match series (that they would eventually lose 4-1), India needed a rejuvenated performance. They produced just that, with captain Virat Kohli (97) and Ajinkya Rahane (81) first steering them from 82/3 to a fighting 329. In reply, England moved to 54/0.
However, the hosts capitulated, primarily against seamer Hardik Pandya (5/28), to be skittled for 161. Kohli (103) starred again, declaring to set England an improbable 521. Jos Buttler scored 106, but Jasprit Bumrah (5/85) took a fifer this time to complete India’s 203-run win.
The Cricket Cauldron 