Virat Kohli’s Indian team needed just 10 minutes on day five to wrap up a win at Trent Bridge, and close out what is now India’s 7th win in 60 Test matches in England.
Playing like the number 1 ranked Test side that they are, India dominated the hosts almost right through the game and wrapped up a comprehensive 203-run win. They posted in excess of 300 in both the innings, and then dismissed the hosts for 161 and 317 to walk away with a famous win.
The win will go down in history as one of India’s best overseas wins because it came on the back of not one individual's performance but was the outcome of a complete team performance. Even if captain Virat Kohli was Team India’s stand-out batsman in the Test match, several others made crucial contributions – notably Ajinkya Rahane (81 in the first innings), and Shikhar Dhawan (44), KL Rahul (36), Cheteshwar Pujara (72) and Hardik Pandya (52*) in the second innings.
With the ball, Pandya collected his maiden 5-wicket haul in the first innings, while Jasprit Bumrah did the bulk of the damage in the second innings and collected his second 5-wicket haul in Test cricket. The bowlers were well supported by the fielders too; wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul were very good in the field, taking several catches, in the process forcing their way into the record books.
The win should be rated very also highly because:
- India were trailing 0-2 down and had suffered an embarrassing innings and 159 run defeat in the previous Test at Lord's. To bounce back from such a big defeat speaks volumes about the character of the entire set-up and the belief within the team.
- That India were able to force a win after batting first indicates that it is prepared to do the difficult things.
- India outclassed the hosts in excellent even Test match conditions. It is worth recalling that the weather played a huge part in England's win at Lord's; the hosts enjoyed overcast conditions when they had the opportunity to bowl, and the sun was out in its full glory when England had the opportunity to pile on the runs.
- Team India’s domination can be established from the fact that while Virat Kohli and company won 8 sessions, only 7 sessions went the hosts’ way.
Here are a few important numbers related to India's famous win and from the events of the fourth day.
With the win in the third Test against England at Nottingham, Virat Kohli took his tally of wins as India's captain to 22 matches, in the process overtaking Sourav Ganguly's tally of 21 wins as captain.
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That Team India clicked as a unit can also be established from the fact that India’s second innings at Trent Bridge was the first time an Indian team had managed 50-plus partnerships for each of the first four wickets in Test matches in England.
With his 97 & 103 at Trent Bridge, Virat Kohli took his series aggregate to 440 runs which is the highest by an Indian captain in a Test series in England. Virat broke the record held by Mohammad Azharuddin, who had scored 426 runs in the 3-Test series in England in 1990.
The Trent Bridge Test match was only the third time that India had managed 50-plus opening partnerships in both innings of a Test match in England.
KL Rahul took 7 catches in the Nottingham Test, in the process becoming the first Indian fielder to take 7 catches in a Test match in England. The last time any fielder took 6 catches in a Test match in England was in 2002 – when Virender Sehwag pouched 6 catches at Headingley.
Rishabh Pant made a memorable Test debut too; he took 5 catches in the first innings of the Trent Bridge Test and added 2 more to his tally in the second innings. He became one of six wicket-keepers in Test history to pouch 7 catches on Test debut. He also set the record for the most catches taken by an Indian wicket-keeper in Test matches in England.
When on 12, Stuart Broad reached the 3,000 Test runs milestone, in the process becoming only the 5th player in Test cricket history to do the double of 3,000 runs and 400 wickets in Test cricket.
It was a memorable Test match for Jos Buttler too, for he scored his maiden Test hundred in England's second innings. It is interesting also to note that Buttler’s 103 was only England’s third century in the eight Test matches they’ve played so far in 2018.
Trivia: Four of Jos Buttler’s six highest scores in Test cricket are against India. He averages 43.67 from 9 Tests against India – with one century and 3 fifties – while he averages 29.55 from 14 Tests against all other opponents.
Courtesy India’s win, the series remains alive as the teams head to Southampton for the fourth Test, which will begin on 30 August 2018.
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