ENG vs IND 2018: Hundreds by Indian captains in England

‘Hundreds by Indian captains in England’ – With Virat Kohli scoring a magnificent century in the first England vs India Test, we take a look at all the centuries scored by Indian skippers in England.

The game of cricket can be hard sometimes on the individuals. The history of this beautiful game has witnessed several heroic performances which went in vain. But then again those instances highlighted the fact that cricket is a team game and collective performance is important to win games.

The most recent example of it is the first England vs India Test. Kohli played one of the finest knocks of his Test career but could not avoid a loss for his team. The India skipper scored a majestic 149 in the first innings and 51 in the second but still ended up on the losing side.

The reason behind the same was the poor performances from the other batsmen. In the first innings, it was Kohli’s 149-run knock that helped India recover from 100 for 5 and put up 274 in reply to England’s 287. Apart from Kohli, only three players could cross the 20-run mark with Shikhar Dhawan’s 26 being the second highest.

The batsmen then failed to show up in the second innings too. India were all out for 162 while chasing 194. Kohli once again top-scored for his side, scoring a fighting 51. But lack of support from other end once again saw his heroic effort going in vain. The likes of Murali Vijay, KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane all failed to fire as England won the low-scoring game by 31 runs.

But result aside, Kohli has been garnering praise from all over for his stunning century in the testing conditions. He was tested to the edge by the English bowlers in the bowler-friendly conditions but showed his class by scoring his first Test ton in England.

Despite wickets falling around him, Kohli didn’t lose focus and played a gem of an innings. He forged important partnerships with Ajinkya Rahane (41 runs for the fourth wicket) and Hardik Pandya (48 runs for the fifth wicket) and ensured India got as close to England’s first-innings total of 287.

Well, Kohli is not the first Indian skipper to score a century in England. So here we take a look at some other ‘Hundreds by Indian captains in England’. The players are put in the list on the basis of their scores:

5. Mohammad Azharuddin – 121, Lord’s 1990:

At number five in the list of Hundreds by Indian captains in England is Azharuddin.

The Lord’s Test will be always remembered for Graham Gooch’s 333 and 123. But it was same Test where Azharuddin played one of his best Test knocks and Kapil Dev hit four consecutive sixes to help India avoid follow-on.

Riding on Gooch’s triple century, England declared their innings at 653 for 4. In reply, India came up with a heroic display. Ravi Shastri scored a ton at the top to lead India’s brave reply before Azharuddin scored 121. Impressively, the knock had come off only 111 balls and was studded with 22 fours.

England declared for 272 for 4 in the second innings, setting India a target of 472. In reply India were all out for 224.

4. Sourav Ganguly – 128, Leeds, 2002.

At number four in the list of Hundreds by Indian captains in England is Ganguly.

One of India’s finest-ever Test victories came in 2002 at Leeds.  On a wicket that looked a seamer’s paradise, Ganguly bravely elected to bat first.

Dravid’s splendid 148 and Sanjay Bangar’s fifty set the tone for a good score before Ganguly took the matters in his own hands. He slammed 128 off just 167 balls and was well supported by Sachin Tendulkar who scored 193 as India posted 628 for 8. India eventually won the game by an innings and 46 runs.

3. MAK Pataudi – 148, Leeds, 1967:

At number three in the list of Hundreds by Indian captains in England is MAK Pataudi.

India’s tour of England in 1967 was a dismal one.  Injuries and testing conditions had made it a forgettable English summer for the Indians. But amidst all this, MAK Pataudi delivered a performance that became a part of the cricketing folklore. The skipper scored a splendid 148 in the second innings of the first Test at Headingley. India trailed by a massive 386 runs on first innings, but Pataudi’s fighting knock restored Indian pride, even though England won the Test by six wickets.

2. Virat Kohli – 149, Edgbaston, 2018:

Hundreds by Indian captains in England (England vs India, Credits: Getty)

At number two in the list of Hundreds by Indian captains in England is Kohli.

In reply to England 287, India were reeling at 100 for 7. At one stage it looked like India would concede a 150-run deficit. However, India’s captain fantastic was not ready to throw in the towel yet. He waged a lone battle to help India reduce the deficit to just 13.

Kohli faced 3.1 times the deliveries faced by Nos 9, 10 and 11. It was the best effort by anyone who has batted 100 balls with the tail since 2001. In the process, he scored 92 of the 105 runs added by the last three wickets. As a result, India could recover and post 274. But the game ended in a heartbreak for Kohli as England won the low-scoring thriller by 31 runs.

1.Mohammad Azharuddin –  179, Manchester, 1990:

At number one in the list of Hundreds by Indian captains in England is Azharuddin.

India had their back against the wall after England scored 519 and had the visitors reeling at 57 for 3. However, Azharuddin and Sanjay Bangar bailed India out of trouble by adding 189 runs for the fourth wicket. The stand ended when Manjrekar departed for 93. Azharuddin, however, went on to score 190 to help India post 432.

In the second innings, England declared after scoring 320 for 4. In reply, India scored 343 for 6 and the game ended in a draw.