Image: Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja are back after a successful collaboration / © ESPNcricinfo
From 20 June, the Test season for the Indian team officially starts a new era under the captain, Shubman Gill, and vice-captain, Rishabh Pant. The team has made solid preparations for the series against England, which will be a big challenge for the batsmen but also a treat for the bowlers.
Known for its bowler-friendly conditions and slow outfields, batsmen often find it challenging to score runs in English conditions. But there are multiple instances when the Indian players were able to play some solid knocks on England’s ground, and made them question their bowling skills with their batting style.
In part 1, we already took a look at some magnificent innings played by Indian batters on English soil. But just five innings can’t describe the dominance held by the Indians with the bat, as we will be taking a look at part 2 of the same.
Ravindra Jadeja, mostly known for his bowling abilities, has also shone with the bat in the series in England. Such a knock came in the India tour of England 2021-22, during the last Test, when Jasprit Bumrah was the captain of the team. With the match being played at Birmingham, India were sent to bat first against the English bowlers.
India surely didn’t get a good start, as both openers, Shubman Gill (17) and Cheteshwar Pujara (13), were dismissed early by James Anderson. Other top-order batsmen such as Hanuma Vihari, Virat Kohli, and Shreyas Iyer were also not able to perform well, putting India at a score of 98 runs for 5 wickets.
That’s when Ravindra Jadeja stepped to the crease and, with the help of Rishabh Pant, took the Indian team to a stable score. Jadeja smashed a brilliant century, scoring 104 runs in 194 balls with 13 fours, before losing his wicket to James Anderson. England didn’t respond well to India’s total of 416, as they scored 284 in the second innings.
In the third inning, India ended up scoring 245 runs, giving England a target of 378. Although the target was high, the English batters took their original form, and with the help of Bairstow and Root’s partnership, the team was able to chase down the target with 7 wickets remaining. Still, the knock of Jadeja shows the grit the Indian team holds in its middle order.
Playing his first Test series as a captain against England in England, Virat Kohli made his mark among the toughest Indian batters even on English soil. During the India tour of England 2018, Kohli smashed his second century in England in the third Test match. This match was being played at Nottingham, and India was sent to bat first.
The team ended up scoring 329 runs, as Virat Kohli (97) narrowly missed his century. In response to the same, the English batters were not able to perform well, and got out at the score of 161, giving the Indian team a lead of 169 runs. With Kohli missing out on his century in the first innings, he came back in the third innings for the same.
Along with Cheteshwar Pujara, Kohli dominated the English bowlers and reached his century with ease. This time, the captain scored 103 runs off 197 balls with 10 fours, before he was dismissed by Chris Woakes. His century, along with the half-centuries of Hardik Pandya and Cheteshwar Pujara, helped the Indian team to score 352 runs for the loss of 7 wickets, before the team declared.
England had a massive target of 521 runs to achieve, and the team fell short by 203 runs. Indian bowlers pushed them all out at the score of 317, and this was also the first win by India in England under Virat Kohli’s captaincy. Along with that, he also won the Player of the Match award for scoring 200 runs in both innings combined.
Cheteshwar Pujara, also known as the most patient Test player, showcased his superior performances for the Indian team in almost every overseas match. In the India tour of England 2018, Pujara was able to smash a century in the English conditions during the fourth Test. This match was played at Southampton, and England were sent to bat first.
The Indian bowlers had almost equal contributions to the wickets column, as they were able to restrict England to a score of 246. In the second innings, almost every Indian batsman, except Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara, failed to score well. Kohli lost his wicket after scoring 46, but Pujara stuck to the crease till the last wicket. He ended up scoring 132 runs off 257 balls with 16 fours.
India scored 273 runs in the second innings, and now it was England’s turn to set up a target for the team. They scored 271 runs, which included a half-century by Jos Buttler, and India was given the target of 245 runs to chase if they had to win this crucial Test match.
However, the Indian batsmen once again failed to stick to the crease for a long time, as Pujara also was not able to score well. Only Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane crossed the 50-run mark, but they lost their wickets to Moeen Ali. As a result, India lost the match by 60 runs, despite dominating in the majority of the match.
Ravindra Jadeja is not the only all-rounder of the Indian team to have smashed a century in England in the Test format, as it was already done by the legendary player Anil Kumble. His century came during the Pataudi Trophy 2007, which was hosted by England. India already had a win in their hand, and didn’t have to lose this match to win the series.
The third match of the series was being played at the Oval, where India decided to bat first after winning the toss. They displayed a strong form with the bat, including the half-centuries by Dinesh Karthik (91), Rahul Dravid (51), Sachin Tendulkar (82), VVS Laxman (51), and MS Dhoni (92).
These half-centuries by the batsmen were not the only standout feature of the team; it was Anil Kumble’s magnificent century. Coming in at number 8, Kumble scored 110 runs off 193 balls with 16 fours and one six, as India ended up scoring 664 runs. England responded with just 345 runs in the second innings.
Batting once again, India scored 180 runs in the third innings before the team declared. England had the massive target of 500 runs, as they scored just 369 runs for the loss of 6 wickets, after which the match ended up in a draw. For his brilliance with both bat and ball, Anil Kumble received the Player of the Match award.
The Indian team struggled a lot to perform well during the India tour of England 2014, but there were also a few occasions when the batsmen were able to dominate. One such innings was played by Murali Vijay, which took place in the first Test of the series. This match was played at Nottingham, and India decided to bat first after winning the toss.
Murali Vijay, who came to open the innings for the Indian team, held the crease for a long time, watching the team’s top order collapse. But with Ajinkya Rahane and MS Dhoni, Vijay put down some stable partnerships for the team before he lost his wicket to James Anderson. He ended up scoring 146 runs in 361 balls, with 25 fours and one six.
Besides him, Dhoni, Bhuvneshwar, and Shami smashed half-centuries, which helped the team score 457. In response to the same, England also showcased their batting skills at their own home ground and ended up scoring 496 runs. Root and Anderson’s partnership played as a turning point for the Indian bowlers, as the team now had to start with a trail.
In the third innings, Murali Vijay once again scored well, as he reached his half-century in 111 balls. Showcasing an impressive batting performance, followed by half-centuries of Pujara, Vijay, Binny, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, India ended up scoring 391 runs for the loss of 9 wickets before declaring. But the match resulted in a draw, as some part of the game was also affected by the rain.
Now, with Shubman Gill and company heading for the big challenge in the England tour, it is expected that the new stars of the Indian batting line-up will be able to shine against England.