Virat Kohli and two other Indian captains who lost all tosses in a 5-match Test series

The importance of the toss in modern-day cricket is immense. Touring teams have found it hard to cope after losing tosses, and the current series between India and South Africa is a fine example where one team has dominated proceedings from the first session itself after winning the toss.

Former cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar and Sourav Ganguly have often dwelled on the importance of tosses, especially on the sub-continent pitches. On that note, here is a look at three Indian captains who lost all tosses in a five-match Test series.

#1 Lala Amarnath

Lala Amamath

During West Indies’ visit to India for a five-match Test series in 1948-49, Indian captain Lala Amarnath lost all five tosses. India ended up losing the series 1-0.

West Indias captain John Goddard certainly had some luck going his way. The visiting captain chose to bat on all the five instances.

The first match was played at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi from the 10th of November, followed by the second at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai from 9th December. The third Test was played at the Eden Gardens at Kolkata from 31st December.

The fourth match, which India lost by an innings and 193 runs, was played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai from 27th January. And the last one was played again at the Brabourne, from 4th February.

India boasted of the likes of Vinoo Mankad, Vijay Hazare and Lala Amarnath in their batting line-up. They played well to stop the West Indies team from winning more matches.

Also see – World Test Championship points table

#2 Kapil Dev

India Captain Kapil Dev holds aloft the 1983 Cricket World Cup

On the tour of West Indies in 1982-83, Indian captain Kapil Dev lost all the five tosses to Clive Lloyd. India ended up losing the series 2-0.

Clive Lloyd made India bat first on four of the five occasions. The first match was played at Sabina Park at Kingston, Jamaica from 23rd February, which India lost by four wickets. The second match saw Mohinder Amarnath come into his own and score 175 runs in the two innings combined, 58 and 117, against the likes of Michael Holding, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall and Andy Roberts. India went on to draw that match.

In the third Test at Bourda, Georgetown, played from 31st March, India rode on the magnificence of Sunil Gavaskar’s 147 to draw the match. However, despite a half-century in each innings from Mohinder Amarnath, Indian lost the 4th Test comfortably by four wickets at the Kensington Oval.

The fifth and final Test at Antigua Recreation Ground in St. John’s, played from 28th April, ended in a draw - resulting in a 2-0 series win for the home team.

Another interesting fact related to these two captains is that Kapil went on to lose all the three tosses to Lloyd in the 1983 Prudential World Cup. India, however, beat the West Indies by 43 runs in the final to win the title for the very first time.

#3 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli

On a tour that raised a few eyebrows over Virat Kohli’s captaincy as well as the batters' inability to cope with the overcast conditions in England, India lost the Pataudi series 4-1 to England in 2018. Captain Kohli lost all five tosses to England captain Joe Root.

The first match at Edgbaston, Birmingham played from 1st August was won by 31 runs by the hosts. Kohli’s knocks of 149 and 51 went in vain as no other Indian batsman could even get to fifty in either innings.

The second Test at Lord’s from 10th August was even worse for the visitors as no Indian batsman, not even Kohli, could get to a half-century. However, India tried to make a comeback with a 203-run win in the third Test at Trent Bridge at Nottingham played from 18th August.

The fourth and the fifth Tests at the Rose Bowl and Kennington Oval respectively took the same route as the first two matches of the series, with India ending on the losing side on both the occasions. The margins were 60 runs at Rose Bowl and 118 runs at Kennington Oval.

In his 50 matches as captain of the Indian Test team, Kohli has won the toss on 24 occasions.