The best of India in England, Part 2: Vengsarkar dazzles, Kapil Dev runs through Gower's men as India conquer Lord's
Starting with their maiden Test in June 1932, India had played 10 matches at Lord's when Kapil Dev led his side to England in the summer of 1986 for a three-Test series. At what's often referred to as the Headquarters of Cricket, India had found little joy – eight losses and two draws. India's form going into that series too was less than encouraging. Their last Test win had come in November 1984, also against England, at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, after which they had endured ten winless outings.
Under David Gower, who had masterminded a come-from-behind 2-1 triumph in India in 1984-85, England had a formidable batting unit that included Graham Gooch, Mike Gatting and Allan Lamb, so it came as a bit of a surprise when Kapil chose to bowl first. Openers Gooch and Tim Robinson got the hosts off to a cracking start, putting on 66 as the wisdom of fielding first was questioned when, through Chetan Sharma, India staged a spectacular fightback.
Just two months previously, Chetan had made the news for all the wrong reasons, being at the receiving end of a last-ball six by Javed Miandad that took Pakistan to a famous victory in Sharjah. Presented with the opportunity to sing the redemption song, the 20-year-old grabbed it with both hands, winkling out Gower, Gatting and Lamb, the heart of the England batting, within six runs after Maninder Singh's left-arm spin had accounted for Robinson.
England were in strife at 98 for four when a familiar tormentor linked up with the man touted as the next Ian Botham. Gooch hadn't yet become India's nemesis – that would come when he would sweep them out of the World Cup semifinal in 1987 and follow it up with a triple-hundred at Lord's in 1990 – but alongside Derek Pringle, the Nairobi-born all-rounder, he repaired the damage with a stand of 147 for the fifth wicket. Pringle contributed a patient 63 and Gooch completed a brilliant century but for the second time in the innings, India rallied splendidly. Roger Binny, the 1983 World Cup hero, stepped in to clean up the lower order once Chetan clean bowled Gooch, England losing their last six wickets for 49 runs to be bowled out for 294 with Chetan returning a second five-wicket haul in Tests.
India's top-five responded in kind with patience as the watchword. Sunil Gavaskar batted nearly three hours in stitching together 34, while No. 3 Mohinder Amarnath's 69 spanned four hours. But the man who hogged the limelight was the tall, majestic Dilip Vengsarkar, the elegant No. 4. On his two previous visits to Lord's in 1979 and 1982, he had weighed in with 103 and 157 respectively. This time, he waltzed to a boundary-laden 126, making him the first overseas batter to strike three Lord's hundreds, and that too on the bounce. A middle-order wobble meant India didn't build handsomely from 232 for three; 341 all out game them a lead of 47 when it could have been so much more.
England's second innings flourished all too briefly through Gatting and Lamb, whose 73-run fourth-wicket partnership nullified Kapil's three-wicket burst with the new ball. But when Ravi Shastri snapped the threatening stand by having Lamb caught behind, India regathered focus with Maninder spinning a wicked web. In a stunning exhibition of left-arm spin bowling, he snaffled three for nine from 20.4 top-class overs, ensuring that England's riposte ended at 180.
With England's second innings having ended at the stroke of stumps on day four, India had a whole day to knock off the 134 runs needed for a magnificent first triumph at Lord's. The task appeared straightforward but small targets are often tricky, and even though India had great batting depth, the top order endured a nervous night. The apprehensions of their fans, more than the team's, grew when K Srikkanth fell for a ten-ball duck to Graham Dilley but with handy contributions from Gavaskar and Vengsarkar, India made reasonably promising progress.
Mohammad Azharuddin's dismissal for ten, run out following a mix-up with Shastri, meant only the all-rounders were left in the hut with 24 needed and five wickets remaining. Enter Kapil to leave his, and India's, authoritative imprint on the Lord's turf. In just ten deliveries, India's mercurial leader breezed to an unbeaten 23 with four fours and a six, turning a potentially nervy hour to an 18-minute celebratory romp. At the same venue where, three years previously, he had held aloft the 60-over World Cup trophy, Kapil fired another shot announcing India's cricketing upswing, taming Lord's and helping his side open up a 1-0 lead. India would go on to win the series 2-0, their first series triumph in Old Blighty for 15 years.
Brief scores: England: 294 all out in 128.2 overs (Graham Gooch 114, Tim Robinson 35, Derek Pringle 63; Roger Binny 3-55, Chetan Sharma 5-64) and 180 all out in 96.4 overs (Mike Gatting 40, Allan Lamb 39, Paul Downton 29; Kapil Dev 4-52, Maninder Singh 3-9) lost to India: 341 all out in 137 overs (Sunil Gavaskar 34, Mohinder Amarnath 69, Dilip Vengsarkar 126, Mohammad Azharuddin 33, Kiran More 25; Graham Dilley 4-146, Pringle 3-58) and 136/5 in 42 overs (Vengsarkar 33; Dilley 2-28) by five wickets. Player of the Match: Kapil Dev.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
37 minutes ago
- News18
On This Day In 1983: India Beat England To Reach Historic World Cup Final
Last Updated: On This Day In 1983: India raced to their maiden World Cup final appearance by defeating England in a memorable semifinal played in Manchester, chasing down the target of 213. On This Day In 1983: India continued their inspiring run at the 1983 Prudential World Cup with a memorable semifinal victory over England in Manchester on this day. Kapil Dev's courageous brigade overcame heavy odds staked against them and surpassed Bob Willis' experienced English side considered massive favourites to qualify for the final. Proving the pundits wrong, Kapil's men got the tri-colour flying high at Old Trafford with a brilliant allround performance. After a magnificent turnaround in their campaign with wins over Zimbabwe and Australia that propelled them to the knock-outs stage, the Indians carried confidence and momentum to the semifinal versus the hosts. But they were hardly given a chance to stand the English juggernaut that had the wealth of experience and understanding of the 60-over game in the early years of domestic and international limited-overs cricket. The Englishmen were further boosted by the toss as the coin fell in their favour and Willis decided to bat first. But Kapil's Devils turned the tables on them with a spirited bowling performance. Allrounder Roger Binny (2/42) continued his magnificent form with the new ball, dismissing both of England's set openers Graeme Fowler (33) and Chris Tavaré (32). On a day where the ball swung and seamed, India's battery of medium pacers didn't allow England's middle-order to settle down. The steady Mohinder Amarnath once again came in handy with the ball, taking 2 wickets while conceding just 27 runs off his 12 overs. Kapil then ran through the English tail in his 3 for 35 and helped dismiss the hosts for 213. In the chase, maestro Sunil Gavaskar missed out on an opportunity to regain form as his departure for 25 off 41 broke a useful opening stand of 46 shared with the attacking Krishnamachari Srikkanth, who was out soon for 19. India needed their middle-order to come to the fore and two senior pros Amarnath and Yashpal Sharma did not disappoint. They stitched an exceptional third-wicket stand of 92 runs to bring India's noses ahead before Amarnath was out for 46. The solid-looking Sharma was then joined by the aggressive Sandeep Patil. Batting in contrasting fashions, the duo didn't allow the England bowling unit to create inroads until the match was sealed. Patil went hell for leather, taking confidence from the assurance provided by the calming Sharma at the other end. The Mumbaikar hammered an unbeaten 51 off 32 balls while Sharma produced an important 61 before his wicket. Skipper Kapil walked out and gave the strike back to Patil, witnessing the winning moment where Patil smashed Willis (1/42) to the deep mid-wicket region. The Old Trafford crowd rushed to the ground while Kapil and Patil somehow evaded them in the most jubilant scenes that marked one of the greatest days in Indian cricket history. First Published: June 22, 2025, 07:20 IST
NDTV
40 minutes ago
- NDTV
"Very, Very Disappointing": Sunil Gavaskar Slams Team India For Big Mistakes vs England, Singles Out Yashasvi Jaiswal
What was supposed to be a day of complete dominance, ultimately raised a lot of questions for India vs England in the first Test in Leeds on Saturday. After centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant looked like taking India to a 500-plus total, there was a spectacular collapse as India lost the last seven wickets for jus 41 runs. Then, England reached 209/3 at Stumps in reply to India's 471, but could have been lesser had some easy catches beeen taken. First, Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped Ben Duckett in the fifth over. The same England batter was dropped again in the seventh over by Ravindra Jadeja at backward point. Bumrah was thrice unlucky as Ollie Pope, who went on to slam a ton, was dropped by Jaiswal at third slip off his bowling. Sunil Gavaskar wasn't a happy man. "I don't think there will be any medal given. T Dillip gives those after a match. This is what was really very, very disappointing. Yashasvi Jaiswal is a very good fielder but he hasn't been able to hold on to anything this time," Sunil Gavaskar, who was commentating, said at the close of play. Talking about the match, Top-order batter Ollie Pope smashed his ninth Test century and remained unbeaten as England trail India by 262 runs after reaching 209/3 in 49 overs at stumps on the second day of the first Test in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series at Headingley on Saturday. It was a day when India were primed to get a big total, thanks to Shubman Gill making a career-best 147 and Rishabh Pant somersaulting his way to an astonishing 134 – his seventh ton in the format. But after Gill departed, India lost their last seven wickets for just 41 runs to be bowled out for 471 in 113 overs. A rain delay meant England's innings had a delayed start, and then they dealt with a menacing Jasprit Bumrah. But Pope and Ben Duckett added 122 runs for the second wicket to bring some normalcy into England's innings. While Duckett fell for 62, Pope went on to score his ninth Test ton, laced with 13 fours. Pope got the final session underway with a late cut through the gap between third slip and gully, taking him to a half-century in 64 balls. But Bumrah found success when Duckett chopped onto his stumps and fell for 62 off 94 balls. Pope got a life on 60 when he tried to steer off Bumrah, but Yashasvi Jaiswal made a mess of the catch at third slip. Siraj bowled with much better lengths, and that resulted in him trapping Joe Root lbw for seven, only for the batter to overturn it on review. Pope continued to grow in confidence by taking boundaries off Jadeja, Prasidh, and Shardul Thakur before getting his hundred off 125 balls through an inside edge off Bumrah. But on the very next ball, Root poked at an outside off-stump delivery from Bumrah, and a thick outside edge was snapped up by Nair at first slip, making it the tenth time the pacer dismissed the premier England batter in Tests. Just before lunch, Bumrah had Harry Brook give a top edge on a pull to mid-wicket, but didn't get the scalp as replays showed he overstepped for the third time in the over. That gave England a huge sigh of relief as local lad Brook and Pope walked off after having an enthralling day where England gained some momentum they squandered on day one's play. For India, they would need to fire back on day three after having a bowling performance that was more of Bumrah or nothing.
India Today
42 minutes ago
- India Today
Ollie Pope's century gave me goosebumps: Ben Duckett praises Headingley hero
England opener Ben Duckett heaped praise on Ollie Pope after their crucial 122-run stand helped England wrest control of Day 2 of the Headingley Test against India. Pope's unbeaten century under pressure was the standout performance for the hosts as they finished the day on top despite an early at the post-day press conference, Duckett reflected on how composed Pope was while facing India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, especially in fading light and against the new ball. According to Duckett, Pope's temperament and positivity turned the momentum in England's favour during a key phase of just think he was so calm coming out. He probably couldn't walk out in tougher conditions-with Jasprit (Bumrah) running down the hill with the lights on. I think at one point he was around 50 or run a ball 50, so it was a great partnership with him," Duckett said. ENG vs IND 1st Test Day 2 Highlights"I always have a good time out there in the middle with him, and I got goosebumps when he got to 100. You could see what it meant to him. He's such a big part of the dressing room, and it was just great to see him be there at 100 not out," he had earlier dominated the opening session thanks to Rishabh Pant's counterattacking century, alongside his equally attacking captain Shubman Gill. At 430/3, India looked set for a massive first-innings score. But a lower-order collapse saw them bowled out for 471, leaving England with an struck immediately, dismissing Zak Crawley in the first over. But from there, Duckett and Pope dug in with a mix of control and intent. The England openers were not without their share of luck—India's fielders dropped a few chances, including a crucial one by Ravindra Jadeja when Duckett was on 15-but they made those moments eventually fell for 62, undone by Bumrah's sharp bowling once again. But by then, he and Pope had laid a solid foundation. Pope, who was picked over young Jacob Bethell in the England Playing XI for the Headingley Test, capitalised on the start and marched to a fine 125-ball Bumrah was once again India's lone shining light with the ball, picking up all three wickets on the day-Crawley, Duckett, and the dangerous Joe Root. But with Pope still unbeaten and Harry Brook settling in, India have a tough task ahead on Day 3 to regain control of the Test in Leeds. You May Also Like
