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A Comprehensive overview of the India national cricket team

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Team India

The India national cricket team represents India in international cricket and is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). India are a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), holds Test, ODI, and T20I status. Team India are the reigning Asia Cup winners and Twenty20 World Cup champions.

To date, Indian cricket team have played 579 Tests, winning 178, losing 178, and drawing 222 draws. Interestingly, India have only one Test match tie in its history, which came against Australia in 1986.

As of September 2024, India are currently leading the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) standings, having won six of their nine matches. India have reached the WTC final twice, finishing as runners-up in 2021 and 2023 after losing against New Zealand and Australia, respectively. Their key Test rivalries include the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (against Australia), the Freedom Trophy (against South Africa), and the Anthony de Mello Trophy and Pataudi Trophy (both against England).

In ODI format, India cricket team have so far played 1,058 matches, securing 559 victories, 445 defeats, 10 ties, while 44 matches ended without any result. India are currently leading the ICC Men’s ODI Team rankings with 118 rating points. India’s prowess in this format was highlighted by their participation in four World Cup finals (1983, 2003, 2011, and 2023), winning twice—in 1983 and 2011. 

India was the second nation to win the Cricket World Cup after the West Indies and the first to do so on home soil in 2011. Apart from the World Cup, India have also clinched the ICC Champions Trophy twice (in 2002 and 2013) and the ODI Asia Cup seven times (in 1984, 1988, 1990-91, 1995, 2010, 2018, and 2023).

Meanwhile, in T20Is, India played 235 matches, winning 154, losing 69, tying 6, and having 6 ended with no results. India also holds the top rank in the ICC T20I Rankings with 267 rating points. India have clinched the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup twice, in 2007 and 2024, and won the Twenty20 Asia Cup in 2016 and the Asian Games in 2022.

History

Early history (1700s–1918)

In India, cricket was established by the British in the early 1700s and the first match was played in 1721. The Koli community of Gujarat adopted the sport which led to the establishment of the first Indian cricket club, the Oriental Cricket Club. This was founded by the Parsi community in Mumbai in 1848. In 1911, an Indian team, led by Bhupinder Singh, toured the British Isles. By 1912, a quadrangular tournament in which Parsis, Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, and Europeans participated was held annually in Bombay (now Mumbai). 

Test Match Status (1918–1970)

India received an invitation from the International Cricket Council in 1926 and made their Test debut in 1932 against England. The team was captained by CK Nayudu, suffering a defeat by 158 runs. The 1933 series against England marked India’s first at home, which they lost 2–0. One of their notable achievements came when they registered an international victory over England in Madras in their 24th Test in 1952. In 1947, following its independence, India faced Don Bradman’s Australian team, losing 4–0.

India registered their first Test series win against arch-rivals Pakistan later in 1952. Their early successes also included a series win against New Zealand in 1956. However, they struggled against stronger teams and suffered a 5–0 whitewash by England in 1959. India won their first home Test series against England in 1961–62 and drawn series against Pakistan and Australia. In 1971, India achieved back-to-back series victories in the West Indies and England under captain Ajit Wadekar.

One-day cricket and ICC Cricket World Cup success (1970–1985)

In the early stages following the introduction of One Day International (ODI) cricket, India struggled, failing to advance past the first round in the first two World Cups. In the first World Cup in 1975, India scored a below-par 132 for 3 with Sunil Gavaskar scoring an unbeaten 36 off 174 balls, contributing to a heavy 202-run defeat against England.

Meanwhile, in 1976, India set a Test record in 1976 by chasing 403 runs against the West Indies, aided by Gundappa Viswanath’s century. In November same year, India scored 524 for 9 declared against New Zealand,where all eleven batters reached double figures without any individual centurion.

Notably, the 1980s saw a shift toward a more aggressive batting style with players like Mohammad Azharuddin, Dilip Vengsarkar, Kapil Dev, and Ravi Shastri.

India clinched their first-ever World Cup in 1983, defeating the two-time champions West Indies at Lord’s. Despite this success, India struggled in the red-ball format, enduring 28 straight matches without a win.

In 1984, India won the Asia Cup and the World Championship of Cricket in the following year. Additionally, their only Test series win outside the country during this time was against England in 1986. Gavaskar and Kapil Dev reached career pinnacles, with the former becoming the first player to score 10,000 Test runs and the all-rounder setting a record for the most wickets in Tests at the time.

Late 20th Century (1985–2000)

India struggled to win Tests outside the subcontinent, achieving only 17 wins in 30 home matches during the 1990s. In the 1996 Cricket World Cup, the team faced a setback, losing in the semi-finals to Sri Lanka. A transition period began when Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid made their international debut. Sachin Tendulkar briefly served as captain in late 1996 but stepped down after a lackluster performance, leading to Mohammed Azharuddin’s reinstatement. After India failed to make it to the semi-finals at the 1999 Cricket World Cup, Tendulkar was reappointed as captain. However, he struggled once again as captain and eventually resigned, vowing never to take up the leadership role again.

21st Century

In an unfortunate event, Indian cricket faced a major setback with Mohammad Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja being implicated in a match-fixing scandal in 2000. In 2002, India reached the joint finals of the ICC Champions Trophy 2002 and advanced to the 2003 Cricket World Cup final, but lost to Australia.

India won their first-ever ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2007, with a win over arch-rivals Pakistan in the final. In 2011, they claimed their second Cricket World Cup title after defeating Sri Lanka and thus became the first team to win on home soil.

India clinched the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy under the leadership of MS Dhoni, which made the wicketkeeper-batter become the first captain to win all three major ICC trophies. They then emerged as runners-up in the 2014 T20 World Cup and reached the semifinals of the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

In the following year, India crowned the Asia Cup and reached the semifinals of the T20 World Cup, only to lose to the West Indies. In the 2019 ODI World Cup, India topped the group stage but lost to New Zealand in the semifinals, marking Dhoni’s last World Cup. In 2021, India played the first ICC World Test Championship final but lost to New Zealand and reached the semifinals of the T20 World Cup in the subsequent year.

In 2023, India won the Asia Cup against Sri Lanka and finished the group stage of the Cricket World Cup undefeated. They advanced to the final but lost to Australia in the final held in Ahmedabad. India clinched the 2024 ICC t20 World Cup, defeating South Africa.

Governing Body

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the governing body for Indian men’s and women’s cricket, operational since 1929. Headquartered in Mumbai, the BCCI has significant influence over the International Cricket Council (ICC). The board has often advocated for more lucrative series against countries like Australia and England, rather than smaller cricketing nations. Roger Binny is the current BCCI president, while Jay Shah is serving as the secretary.

Selection Committee

The national selection committee is managed through the BCCI’s zonal selection policy, which includes one selector from each of the five zones and a chairman appointed by the governing body.  Until November 2022, Chetan Sharma served as chief selector alongside members Debashish Mohanty, Harvinder Singh, and Sunil Joshi. Following India’s lackluster performance at the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, the entire panel was dismissed. Sharma was reappointed as chief selector in January 2023 but resigned in the following month which saw Shiv Sunder Das take over as interim. On July 4, 2023, former India cricketer Ajit Agarkar was appointed as the new chief selector, joining Das, Subroto Banerjee, Salil Ankola, and Sridharan Sharath on the committee.

International grounds

The Bombay Gymkhana hosted the first full-scale match involving an Indian team in 1877 and the first Test match in India in 1933. The Feroz Shah Kotla Ground was the first stadium to host a Test match post-independence in 1948. India has 21 international stadiums that have hosted official Test matches. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is the largest cricket stadium globally, while the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata has hosted the most Tests.

Other significant venues include the Arun Jaitley Stadium, where Anil Kumble’s historic ten-wicket haul, and the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, known for its popularity and capacity of 33,000 spectators. The M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk is also historically important, where India registered their first Test victory.

Captains of the Indian Men’s Cricket Team

A total of 35 individuals have captained the Indian men’s cricket team in Test matches. CK Nayudu was India’s first captain who led the side in four matches against England in the early 1930s. Lala Amarnath captained the team in its first Test match post-independence and secured their first victory in 1952–53.

From 1961 to 1970, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi captained the team for 36 Tests, achieving a historic milestone by leading the side to its first series win in New Zealand in 1968. Following him, Ajit Wadekar took over the captaincy and guided them to significant victories in the West Indies and England.

Sunil Gavaskar was appointed as captain in 1978, followed by Kapil Dev, who led the team to its first ODI World Cup win in 1983. Mohammad Azharuddin captained the team from 1989 to 1999, followed by Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly. Ganguly became the most successful Indian captain with notable achievements, including the joint win of the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka, and the runners-up of the 2003 ODI World Cup. Under his captaincy, India lost only three Tests at home and managed to draw Test series in England and Australia.

In 2005, Rahul Dravid took over the role and led the side to a Test series victory in the West Indies. MS Dhoni was named as ODI and T20I captain in 2007, guiding India to their first-ever T20 World Cup title and the 2011 Cricket World Cup. The legendary wicketkeeper-batter succeeded Anil Kumble as the men’s Test captain the same year and under him India held the number one Test ranking for 21 months. Notably, Dhoni is the first and only captain to have won all three major ICC trophies.

Flamboyant batter Virat Kohli succeeded Dhoni as Test captain in 2014. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma was appointed T20I captain in 2021 and later became the ODI and Test captain. He led the team to victories including the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup before retiring from T20I captaincy. Suryakumar Yadav succeeded him and is currently leading the T20I side.

Honours

ICC

  • World Test Championship:
    • Runners-up (2): 2019–21, 2021-23
  • Cricket World Cup:
    • Champions (2): 1983, 2011
    • Runners-up (2): 2003, 2023
  • T20 World Cup:
    • Champions (2): 2007, 2024
    • Runners-up (1): 2014
  • Champions Trophy:
    • Champions (2): 2002, 2013
    • Runners-up (2): 2000, 2017

ACC

  • Asia Cup:
    • Champions (8): 1984, 1988, 1990–91, 1995, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2023
    • Runners-up (3): 1997, 2004, 2008

Others

  • Asian Games
    • Gold medal (1): 2022

India Women’s Cricket Team

The India women’s national cricket team, also known as the Women in Blue, represents India in international women’s cricket. The team, which is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), holds ICC’s full membership status and competes in Test, ODI, and T20I formats.

India women made its international debut on October 31, 1976, against the West Indies. The team have reached the final of the Women’s Cricket World Cup twice– 2005 and 2017. They have clinched the ODI Asia Cup titles four times– 2004, 2005-06, 2006, and in 2008. Meanwhile, they have played in the Women’s T20 World Cup final once in 2020 but emerged as runners-up. In addition, they won the T20I Asia Cup thrice in 2012, 2016, and 2022.

Adding to these achievements, they had clinched the Gold medal in the 2022 Asian Games and silver medal in the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Honours

ICC

  • Women’s World Cup
    • Runners-up: 2005, 2017
  • Women’s T20 World Cup
    • Runners-up: 2020

ACC

  • Women’s Asia Cup
    • Champions: 2004, 2005–06, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2022
    • Runners-up: 2018, 2024

Other

Commonwealth Games

  • Silver Medal: 2022

Asian Games

  • Gold Medal: 2022

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