From Lala Amarnath to Bhuvneshwar Kumar – Throwback to some of the best bowling performances by Indians in England
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Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Lala Amarnath and Kapil Dev
The Indian team is all set to lock horns against New Zealand in the finals of the much-awaited World Test Championship at Southampton from June 18th-22nd. Post which, team India will face England for a five-match Test series starting from 4th August.
This UK tour would be a challenging one for the men in blue as they would compete against two of the best sides in the Test arena. The outcome of the tour would highly depend on the performances of the bowlers. There is a long history of Indian bowlers doing well in England.
From Lala Amarnath to Bhuvneshwar Kumar, let’s take a look at some of the best bowling performances by Indians in England.
Lala Amarnath and Vinoo Mankad, 1946
When India toured England in 1946 for a three-match test series, Lala Amarnath ended up as the highest wicket-taker for the visitors with 13 wickets to his name. He was followed by Vinoo Mankad, who took 11 wickets. Despite their performances, India lost the series 1-0. Amarnath took two five-wicket hauls, one in the first test where he was the sole performer for India with the figures of 5/118. Unfortunately, India lost that match by 10 wickets. The next one came in the second test where he rolled over England’s batting lineup with the figures of 5/96. Vinoo Mankad also provided the required support with his maiden five-wicket haul to guide India towards a draw.
Subhash Gupte and Surendra Nath, 1959
India’s tour of England in the year 1959 was one of the most embarrassing series defeats in the history of Indian cricket as they lost to the hosts by 5-0. In this horror show by the Indian team, the bowling performances of leggie Subhash Gupte and medium-pacer Surendra Nath came out as positives. Gupte took 17 wickets in the series with the best bowling figures of 4/76. Following him, Nath also bowled brilliantly who scalped 16 wickets in the series which included two five-wicket hauls.
S Venkataraghavan and BS Chandrasekhar, 1971
The 1971 tour of England marked the first-ever series victory for India on English soil. S Venkataraghavan and BS Chandrasekhar ended up as the highest wicket-takers of the series with 13 wickets each under their belt. The first two tests resulted in a draw and it was the final test that created the history for the Indians. Chandrasekhar, who toiled with the England batters deceiving them with his leg-spin bowling picked 6/38 and guided India towards victory. Venkataraghavan played a supporting hand to him throughout the series.
Kapil Dev, 1979
In India’s tour of England in the year 1979, the hosts came out on top after winning the four-match series by 1-0. England won the first test by an innings and 83 runs despite Kapil Dev’s heroic five-wicket haul. No other Indian bowler picked up a wicket in that match. India went on to draw the last three matches owing to consistent performances by the 20-year old Kapil Dev, who kept on picking wickets at regular intervals. Eventually, he was the second-highest wicket-taker in the series with 16 wickets under his kitty.
Chetan Sharma, 1986
Chetan Sharma played a huge role in India’s series victory over England in 1986. Despite missing out from the second test, he ended up as the leading wicket-taker in the 3 match series with 16 scalps. India won the first two Tests of the series and Chetan Sharma’s 10/188 in the final test ensured a draw after Mike Gatting’s magnificent 183*. Unfortunately, Sharma didn’t get a chance to play in England after that series.
Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, 2002
The four-match Test series of India’s tour of England, 2002 ended in a draw with the series levelled at 1-1. After losing the first test, India made a comeback as they drew the second and fourth tests and won the third one. Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh were the picks of the bowlers who picked 14 and 12 wickets respectively in the series. In a series that was dominated by the batters, they rose to the occasion and delivered some outstanding performances.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma, 2014
Despite brilliant bowling performances by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma in the 2014 England series, India lost by 3-1 due to a poor display by the batters. India’s only victory came at the iconic Lords stadium after a splendid show of pace bowling by Bhuvneshwar and Ishant. Bhuvi took 6/67 in the first innings followed by Ishant’s 7/74 which guided India towards a win. Bhuvneshwar took 19 wickets in five matches whereas Ishant took 14 in three matches.
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Mohamed Azhar
(370 Articles Published)