As India plays its 500th Test match, a great milestone in any country’s cricketing history, it would be an irresistible temptation to look back at the alleys of success that the team has ventured into. However, celebrating the lows is just as important as celebrating the highs. As a team that started out as nothing more than a practice-pony for top teams like England, Australia and West Indies, India has certainly come a long way – a dominant side now in all three forms of the game – with arguably the richest and most powerful cricket board.
But, in terms of pure cricket, the Indians have brought something to the game no one else has – passion. No one plays with their heart on their sleeves like Indians do, probably with the exception of West Indies. Yet, India have had their fair share of heartbreaks. 7 times, India lost a match with the opposition chasing down targets with 4 wickets or fewer left. 10 times India have lost chasing, by fewer than 50 runs.
India has been the part of a rare Test match tie. India had to deal with draws where they could have won many a time coming to within 10 runs of the target and not making it thrice. Here, we look at 5 matches where India should have won but couldn’t get past the finishing line.
#1 Chennai, January 1999, Lost to Pakistan by 12 runs
Probably Sachin Tendulkar’s greatest regret and probably the biggest heartbreak in India’s Test cricket history, this match is also one of the greatest Test matches ever played. It was a see-saw of a tussle that wasn’t decided until the last hour. The match also witnessed one of the most open-minded and generous gestures from the crowd which gave Pakistan a standing ovation despite the shattering heartbreak of India’s loss.
Pakistan batted first and were fizzled out for 238 on the first day. Had it not been for two half-centuries from Moin Khan and Mohammad Yousuf, that score would’ve been deplorable. Anil Kumble picked up 6 wickets.
India’s reply wasn’t great either. Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid scored half-centuries to push India to 254 and Saqlain Mushtaq picked up a five-wicket haul including a rare Sachin Tendulkar duck. Pakistan’s second innings experiment worked as Shahid Afridi bludgeoned a 191 ball 141 pushing them to 286 despite a 6-for by Venkatesh Prasad, setting India a target of 271 runs.
India were 82 for 5 but no one switches off TVs in India when Sachin is still at the crease. Battling bad back and the Chennai heat, Sachin scored one of the finest centuries ever in the fourth innings. He added 136 for the sixth wicket with Nayan Mongia. India still needed 53 when Mongia got out in search of quick runs, hoping to end the match before Sachin’s back gave way.
Sachin’s calculated chase eventually gave in to the bad back as Saqlain had the prized scalp and the Little Master fell with India needing just 17 runs. However, India lost its next three wickets for 4 runs, Saqlain ending up with yet another 5-for. A great run chase set up by a great innings under pressure and pain came to an undeserving end. That was also one of the rare occasions when Sachin didn’t even come to collect his Man of the Match award.
#2 Chennai, September 1986, Match Tied With Australia
In more than 2000 Tests, this is one of the only two Tests ever tied. This was not exactly a match India were supposed to win. This was a match India almost snatched out of the jaws of defeat. Almost.
Batting first Australia scored a mammoth 574 thanks to a double century by Dean Jones and two centuries from Allan Border and Boon. India scored 397 all out. K Srikkanth gave them a blazing start with a 62 ball 53 but none of the batsmen could capitalize on their starts. Kapil Dev scored a 138 ball 119 to push the score to respectability. Nevertheless, the huge deficit meant Australia could declare after 49 overs scoring 170 to set India a target of 348 in 87 overs.
India chased fabulously thanks to excellent contributions from the top order, including a 90 by Gavaskar. Ravi Shastri took India to the doorstep with a 40 ball 48. However, he was stranded at the non-striker’s end and the whole of India held its breath when Maninder Singh was out LBW off the penultimate ball of the match. It is still spoken about in the cricketing world as the ‘tied Chennai Test’.
#3 Johannesburg, January 1997, Match drawn with South Africa
This could’ve been one of the greatest Test victories for India on foreign soil. Pitted against one of the strongest Test teams of all times, and down 0-2, India posted 410 in the first innings thanks to a very young Rahul Dravid, who scored 148 and added 145 for the fourth wicket with Sourav Ganguly who scored 73. Dravid was the last man to be dismissed after adding 144 for the last four wickets.
South Africa managed 321 after being 147-5 at one point. India declared on 266 in their third innings, Dravid and Ganguly scoring half-centuries again. India set South Africa a target of 356 runs and had them in deep trouble at 78 for 6 and then 95 for 7. The match was pretty much in India’s bag but rain played spoilsport. Thanks to the massive rain interruption, India had only 72 overs to get South Africa out and Daryll Cullinan played a great knock, unbeaten on 122 adding 127 for the eighth wicket with Lance Klusener.
Allan Donald survived 16 balls and play was halted due to bad light with 4 overs still left. India were 2 wickets short of a great victory but that was never meant to be. A win against Cronje’s men in their own den, especially in the 1990s which probably represented one of India’s weakest phases would’ve been a memorable one!
#4 Wellington, April 2009, Match drawn with New Zealand
This is one of those Test matches India had in their kitty but they threw it away. One of the closest draws India has been part of, the match was set up by their first innings score of 379, thanks to half-centuries from Sachin, MS Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh. New Zealand were skittled out for a mere 197, with Zaheer Khan picking up a 5-wicket haul and Harbhajan cleaning up the Kiwi middle-order.
After a massive 182 run lead, India batted on, painful and bizarrely for 116 overs scoring 434 runs for 7 wickets, Gautam Gambhir top-scoring with 167. India set New Zealand a massive target of 617.
They had plenty of time, they thought and victory looked certain at the end of Day 4 when New Zealand were in a spot of bother at 167 for 4 in 56 overs. But only 38 overs were possible on the final day thanks to rain intervention and the match ended as a draw with New Zealand 281 for 8 in 94.3 overs, Ross Taylor scoring 107. India’s bizarre lack of proactivity could be explained by the fact that they did win the series 1-0.
But, this apathy towards potential winning situations was badly exposed in a game that they had no right ending with a draw.
#5 Eden Gardens, Calcutta, January 1979, Match drawn with West Indies
The 70s was a great time for the Indian Test team. India registered many a famous victory against opponents in their own dens. However, Sunil Gavaskar’s men fell short of a classic victory against a visiting team to India that boasted of a skipper like Alvin Kallicharan. Batting first India made 300 and conceded a deficit of 27 to West Indies who were propped up by Basil Williams’ 111 at the top.
India posted a mammoth 361 for 1 in their second innings thanks to a 344 run second-wicket partnership between Sunil Gavaskar (182*) and Dilip Vengsarkar (157*). West Indies were set a target of 335 and they slipped from a comfortable 133-2 to 183-8. Some lower order resistance and 8 precious deliveries played out by the 11th man Sylvester Clarke ensured that West Indies were 197 for 9 in 105.1 overs. India had two quality spinners in S Venkataraghavan and Bishan Singh Bedi along with Kapil Dev who took the new ball.
West Indies still managed to save the game playing out more than an entire day thanks largely to David Murray and Kallicharan, the skipper himself. That rarely happens on a fifth day track in sub-continents.
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