India’s First Test Series Wins in Each Country

India played their first-ever Test match in 1932, but it took them 20 years to register their first Test match win. Also in 1952, they registered their first Test series win, which came in India.

In this article, we will talk about India’s first Test series win in each Test-playing country.

1. In India | 1952

After making their Test debut in 1932, India had to wait for 20 long years to register their first Test series win. A five-match Test series against Pakistan in 1952 was won by India 2-1 under the captaincy of Lala Amarnath.

India won the first Test in Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, by an innings and 70 runs. Pakistan made a terrific comeback in the second Test at Lucknow, beating India by an innings and 40 runs, while India won the third Test at Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai, by 10 wickets, taking the lead in the series.

The last two Test matches of the series were drawn at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, and Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

Waqar Hasan was the highest run scorer of the series with 357 runs in 8 innings for Pakistan at an average of 44.6, while the highest number of wickets were taken by left-arm spinner Vinoo Mankad with 25 wickets in the series.

2. In New Zealand | 1968

India registered their first away Test series win in 1968 in New Zealand, beating them by 3-1 in a four-match Test series under Nawab of Pataudi.

India started the tour with a 5-wicket win at Dunedin. New Zealand bounced back in the second Test, beating India by 6 wickets at Christchurch, but India won the last two Test matches convincingly by 8 wickets at Basin Reserve and by a huge margin of 272 runs at Eden Park.

Graham Dowling was the highest run scorer of the series with 471 runs in 8 innings at an average of 58.8, whereas Ajit Wadekar scored the most runs for India. And the Indian spinners Erapalli Prasanna and Bishan Bedi ruled the wickets chart with 24 and 16 wickets, respectively.

3. In West Indies | 1971

India won a five-match Test series by 1-0 against the West Indies in 1971, registering their first Test series win in the West Indies under Ajit Wadekar.

Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar played a huge role in India winning the Test series. He scored 774 runs in 8 innings at an average of 154.8, with 4 centuries to his name.

It was not only his runs but also his defensive knocks to draw the matches that were a major contribution. Off-spinner Srinivas Venkataraghavan picked up 22 wickets, the most in the series.

The West Indies managed to draw the first Test after being asked to follow on. India won the second Test by 7 wickets, with Sunil Gavaskar scoring fifties in both innings. The last three Tests of the series were drawn.

Also Read | Top 5: Most Wins by a Captain in Test Cricket

4. In England | 1971

Under the captaincy of Ajit Wadekar, India registered their first Test series win in England in 1971. India won the three-match Test series 1-0.

The series was tied at 0-0 after the first Test, but the third match at Kennington Oval, London, was won by India by 4 wickets.

Brian Luckhurst scored the most runs in the series with 244 runs in 6 innings at an average of 40, and Ajit Wadekar top scored for India with 204 runs in 6 innings at an average of 34.

Indian spinners Srinivas Venkataraghavan, Bhagwath Chandrasekhar, and Bishan Bedi were the highest wicket-takers.

5. In Sri Lanka | 1993

Mohammad Azharuddin led India to their first Test series win in Sri Lanka in 1993, winning the three-match Test series by 1-0.

The first Test at Kandy was drawn, but India won the second match at SSC, Colombo, by a margin of 235 runs, and the third Test ended in a draw at P Sara Oval, Colombo.

Aravinda de Silva and Vinod Kambli were the highest run-getters, whereas Anil Kumble and Manoj Prabhakar picked up the most wickets in the series.

6. In Bangladesh | 2000

India won the Test series in Bangladesh in 2000, when Bangladesh were making their debut in Test cricket. The one-off Test match series was won by India.

India won the match by 9 wickets at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka, with Sunil Joshi picking up a total of 8 wickets and scoring 92 runs with the bat.

From Bangladesh, Aminul Islam scored 145 runs, and Naimur Rahman picked up a six-wicket haul in the first innings. 

Also Read | Top 5: Most Five-Wicket Hauls in Test Cricket

7. In Pakistan | 2004

In 2004, India were touring Pakistan after a gap of 14 years for a 3-match Test series, and they had never won a Test in Pakistan before this. Under Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, India won the series.

Dravid was leading the team in the first match, which India won by an innings and 52 runs at the Multan Cricket Stadium, and after losing the second Test, India again beat Pakistan by an innings and 131 runs at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

Virender Sehwag scored a triple hundred in the first match, and he was the highest run-scorer in the series, while Anil Kumble picked up the most wickets.

8. In Zimbabwe | 2005

India toured Zimbabwe for a 2-match Test series in 2005 and registered their first Test series win there. Under the captaincy of Sourav Ganguly, India won the first Test by an innings and 90 runs at Bulawayo and won the second Test by 10 wickets at Harare.

Rahul Dravid scored 175 runs in the two matches, and Irfan Pathan picked up 21 wickets in two matches at an average of 11.2 and scored 84 runs in 2 innings. Irfan was also named the Player of the Series.

9. In Australia | 2018-19

India toured Australia 11 times from 1947 to 2015 but never won a Test series. Finally, under Virat Kohli’s leadership, India won the 4-match Test series in Australia in 2018-19 by 2-1.

India won the first Test of the series at the Adelaide Oval, but Australia made a great comeback at Perth. India again bounced back in the Boxing Day Test at MCG, winning the match by 137 runs, and the fourth Test was drawn due to rain.

Cheteshwar Pujara scored 521 runs in the series in 7 innings, and Jasprit Bumrah picked up 21 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 17.

10. India has never won a Test series in South Africa!