Top three Indian Test captains with most wins in England

India are all set to play a five-match Test series against England, starting tomorrow. The cricket experts believe that we could see results in most games as the chances of draws are slim. Over the years, several Indian captains have toured England for a Test series. For a lot of them, winning a Test match was a tough task, let alone winning a series. India first toured England for a Test series in 1932. In their first six tours, India couldn't win a single Test match against the Three Lions. However, the 1971 tour marked a turning point in their fortunes.  

Under the leadership of Ajit Wadekar, India won their first Test match against England on the tour of 1971. The first two games resulted in draws but India registered a four-wicket win in the final Test of the series. It was also India’s first series win over England in their backyard. So far, only three Indian captains have won a Test series in England. Shubman Gill now has a chance to become the fourth Indian captain to achieve the feat. 

In this article, let’s take a look at three Indian captains with the most number of Test wins in England: 

1. Virat Kohli : 3 wins in 10 matches

Virat Kohli left the cricket world shocked after he announced his retirement from Test cricket in May. The former Indian captain holds the distinction of being the best Test captain the country has ever seen. He holds an outstanding record as the Test captain of the Indian team. In 64 Tests, he led India to 40 wins in the longest format with a win percentage of 58.82- the most by an Indian captain, who has led India in at least 10 Tests. 

Kohli also has the most Test wins in England as the Indian captain. In 10 Tests, he has led the Indian Test team to three wins. His first Test win came on the 2018 tour.  After losing the first two Tests of the five-match series, Kohli-led India won the third Test match by 203 runs at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. India then toured England in the year 2021 under Kohli’s leadership. India won the second and fourth Test of that series. 

2. Kapil Dev: 2 wins in 3 Tests

Kapil Dev led India to only one England tour in 1986. Under his captaincy, India won the series 2-0. In a three-match series, India won the first Test by five wickets followed by a 279-run win in the second Test match. The third and final Test resulted in a draw. Chetan Sharma topped the wickets charts with 16 wickets, while Dilip Vengsarkar was the highest run-scorer with 360 runs in six innings.

In his Test cricket career, Kapil Dev has led India in 34 Tests, winning four Tests and losing seven. As many as 22 Tests were ended in draws.  

3. Rahul Dravid: 1 win in 3 Tests 

Apart from Ajit Wadekar and Kapil Dev, the only other captain who has led India to a Test series win in England is Rahul Dravid. India toured England for a three-match Test series in 2007 under the leadership of Rahul Dravid. 

The first Test match played at Lord’s resulted in a draw. However, a collective effort with bat and ball helped India dominate England in the second Test at Nottingham. Riding on a four-wicket haul from Zaheer Khan, England were bowled out for 198. 

And, in response, India posted a massive score of 481 in the second innings. England piled on 355 in their second essay but it wasn’t enough. India chased down a meager 73-run target with seven wickets in hand. The third and final Test match of the series resulted in a draw.