After conquering the Australian shores, India are back at home for another crucial Test series against England. With a spot in the World Test Championship final at stake for both teams, the four-match contest is expected to be yet another blockbuster affair, with the first two matches in Chennai followed by two games in Ahmedabad. The series also marks the return of international cricket to India amid the coronavirus pandemic. England too will have their tails up, having swept the two-match Test series in Sri Lanka with captain Joe Root in pristine form.
While India will be boosted by the return of captain Virat Kohli and seamer Ishant Sharma among few others, England too will see Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes come back to the squad after being rested for the tour of Sri Lanka.
Contests between the two sides in India have produced some brilliant individual performances and memorable matches. From India’s massive chase in Chennai to Kevin Pietersen and Alistair Cook dominating the hosts in their own backyard, there have been plenty of heated contests between the two teams.
Here we look at how the results went when these two teams clashed in the previous 5 Test series in India:
1. India 4-0 England (2016)
Virat Kohli led from the front as India dominated England in the five-match series. The India captain was in pristine form, scoring two centuries – including a double-ton at the Wankhede — and two half-centuries, while Cheteshwar Pujara and Murali Vijay also scored two tons each. India’s spin attack was too much for England to handle, despite Joe Root finishing as the second-highest run-scorer in the series behind Kohli, as Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja topped the wicket charts with 28 and 26 scalps respectively.
A draw in the first Test, with Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Alistair Cook all notching centuries was the highest point for the visitors
2. India 1-2 England (2012)
Alistair Cook scored three centuries as England came back from defeat in the first Test to register a memorable series win in India. Cheteshwar Pujara’s double-century helped India win the first match in Ahmedabad, but then Kevin Pietersen and Cook dominated as England cruised to victory in Mumbai. Cook scored his third century in as many matches at the Eden Gardens as the visitors took a series lead before the fourth and final match ended in a draw.
Cook was top-scorer with 562 runs, while Pujara finished behind him with 438 runs. Graeme Swann and Pragyan Ojha shared the honours for most wickets, with 20 each in the series.
3. India 1-0 England (2008)
India completed their second-highest run-chase ever in Tests to beat England at the Chepauk and ended up taking the two-match series 1-0. Andrew Strauss’ twin centuries left India with a target of 387 to chase. But man-of-the-match Virender Sehwag gave India a blistering start, smashing 83 off just 68 deliveries to set the platform for a magnificent win. His opening partner Gautam Gambhir hit 66 and Yuvraj Singh scored 85, while Sachin Tendulkar scored an unbeaten 103 to anchor India to a famous win.
The second match ended in a draw, with Gautam Gambhir hitting 179 and 97 in India’s two outings, while Kevin Pietersen scored an impressive century for England.
Gambhir finished the series as the top-scorer with 361 runs, while Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh and Graeme Swann bagged eight wickets each.
4. India 1-1 England (2006)
Andrew Flintoff starred as the three-match series ended in a 1-1 draw. The opener in Nagpur ended in a stalemate, with Wasim Jaffer scoring a century. Anil Kumble picked up nine wickets as India took the lead in the series in Chandigarh, before Flintoff scored two half-centuries in Mumbai to level the series.
Rahul Dravid top-scored with 309 runs, while Kumble had the most wickets with 16 scalps. Flintoff finished 3rd on both lists, with 264 runs and 11 wickets.
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5. India 1-0 England (2001)
Deep Dasgupta’s century and Anil Kumble’s six-wicket haul in the second innings in Chandigarh helped India win the series opener, as the other two matches ended in draws. Sachin Tendulkar was the top-scorer, with 307 runs, while England’s Marcus Trescothick, Mark Butcher and Craig White were also among the runs. Anil Kumble was the best bowler of the series by far, with 19 wickets, while Harbhajan Singh was behind him with 13 scalps.