The Indian team will have revenge on their mind when they take on England in the upcoming five-match Test series. The last time Alastair Cook’s men were in India, they came from 1-0 down to win the four-match Test series by 2-1.
The first decade of this millennium saw the two powerhouses of cricket playing some fiercely-contested Tests between them. However, it is quite safe to say that the English team has won the bragging rights after winning the last three series against India. The English team has thoroughly dominated the Indian team and would look to continue the trend in the upcoming series. However, this time around, the scenario is very different for the visitors. Cook’s side is low on confidence after suffering a demoralising defeat against Bangladesh last month. The loss exposed the English batsmen’s weakness against spinners, something that the in-form Indian spinners would look to exploit.
Virat Kohli’s men are brimming with confidence after decimating New Zealand in the recently-concluded Test series. The world number one team will look to continue their impressive run on home soil and consolidate their position at the top of the rankings.
As both teams prepare for a gruelling two months of Test cricket, let’s take a look at the last five Tests between them:
5. 9-13 July 2014 (Trent Bridge): Match Drawn
The last time India were in England,they were humiliated by 4-0. As expected, there were apprehensions all around surrounding India’s performance on the seaming pitches of England. But proving everyone wrong, MS Dhoni’s batsmen gave a brilliant batting performance to start the tour with a draw.
Batting first, the visitors scored a huge score of 457 runs. In-form opener Murali Vijay scored 146 to build a solid platform for a big score. Half-centuries from Dhoni (82), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (58) and Mohammad Shami (51) saw India starting the series on a good note.
In reply, England batsmen too made full use of the pitch that was looking good for batting and scored 496 runs. Joe Root top-scored for the hosts with 154 runs while Sam Robson and Gary Ballance chipped in with useful half-centuries.
After the end of the fourth day, a draw was looking like the most likely result after India finished the fourth day on 167 for 3. However, the English bowlers made the match interesting by taking three wickets for 17 runs in the first hour of the final day. But a 78-run innings from Stuart Binny steered the visitors to safety as the match eventually ended in a draw.
Brief scores:
India 457 (Vijay 146, Dhoni 82) and 391 for 9 declared (Binny 78, Bhuvneshwar 63*) drew with England 496 (Root 154*, Anderson 81, Bhuvneshwar 5-82)