Full list of Indian captains who have won a Test match in England ft. Virat Kohli

Team India are currently in England for a five-match Test series, which will be played from June 20 to August 4. The visitors will be led by young batter Shubman Gill, who was named new Test captain after Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the red-ball format last month. Keeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been named as Gill's deputy.

India will also be without the services of senior batter Virat Kohli in England. Like Rohit, Kohli also announced his retirement from Test cricket last month. Further, spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin quit international cricket midway through the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.

Gill will have a massive challenge on hand in the upcoming Test series. India have taken a young team to England plus they also do not possess a great record in the country in red-ball cricket. The visitors have only won nine Test matches in England so far. In the build-up to the upcoming series, we take a look at all the Indian captains who have won a Test match in England.

---

Ajit Wadekar (1971)

The late Ajit Wadekar was the first Indian captain to win a Test match in England. India beat England by four wickets at The Oval in the third Test of the three-match series in 1971. With the triumph, the visitors also created history, registering their maiden Test series win in England.

England batted first in the Test and posted 355, while India replied with 284. Bhagwath Chandrasekhar then claimed 6-38 as the English side were bundled out for 101 in their second innings. Chasing a target of 173, got home in 101 overs. Wadekar top-scored with 45, while Dilip Sardesai contributed 40.

---

Kapil Dev (1986)

Under the legendary Kapil Dev, India registered a famous 2-0 Test series triumph in England during the 1986 tour. Kapil led from the front as India beat the hosts by five wickets in the opening Test at Lord's. He claimed five wickets in the Test and scored an unbeaten 23 off 10 in the second innings.

Bowling first, India held England to 294 despite Graham Gooch's 114 as Chetan Sharma picked up five wickets. India responded with 341 as Dilip Vengsarkar top-scored with 126. Kapil picked up 4-52 in the second innings and Maninder Singh 3-9 as England were held to 180. Set to chase 134, India got home in 42 overs.

India took an unassailable 2-0 in the series by registering a 279-run win in the second Test in Leeds. Batting first, India were held to 272. Roger Binny (5-40) and Madan Lal (3-18), however, combined to restrict England to 102. Vengsarkar hit 102 in the second innings as India set England a target of 408. The hosts were bowled out for 128 as Maninder starred with 4-26.

---

Sourav Ganguly (2002)

Sourav Ganguly led India to a thumping victory by an innings and 46 runs in Leeds in the third Test of the four-match series in 2002. Batting first, the visitors put up a mammoth 628-8 on the board before declaring their innings. Makeshift opener Sanjay Bangar scored a defiant 68, while Rahul Dravid (148), Sachin Tendulkar (193) and Ganguly (128) hit tons.

England were bowled out for 273 in their first innings as the Indian bowlers shared the spoils. Asked to follow-on, the hosts were all-out for 309 as Anil Kumble picked up 4-66 in 29.5 overs.

---

Rahul Dravid (2007)

With Rahul Dravid as captain, India beat England by seven wickets in Nottingham in 2007 in the second Test of the three-match series. India went on to win the series 1-0. This remains their last Test series win in England.

Bowling first, India knocked over England for 198 as Zaheer Khan claimed four scalps and Kumble three. India responded with 481 as five of their top six notched up half-centuries. England made 355 in their second essay even as Zaheer claimed five. The visitors needed 73 for victory, which they chased with ease.

---

MS Dhoni (2014)

A struggling Indian side registered an unexpected 95-run win at Lord's in 2014 in the second Test of the five-match series. Batting first, India scored 295 as Ajinkya Rahane top-scored with 103. Bhuvneshwar Kumar's 6-82 held England to 319. In the second innings, India made 342 as Murali Vijay top-scored with 95. Set to chase 319, England were all-out for 223 as Ishant Sharma claimed 7-74.

---

Virat Kohli (2018, 2021)

Kohli holds the record for having won most Tests by an Indian captain in England - three. He led India to victory in one Test in 2018 and two Tests in 2021. India beat England by 203 runs in Nottingham in 2018 in the third Test of the five-match series. Kohli led from the front, scoring 97 in the first innings and 103 in the second. Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah also starred with five-fers.

India beat England by 151 runs at Lord's in the 2nd Test of the five-match series in 2021. KL Rahul scored 129 as India batted first and put up 364. England made 391 as Joe Root hit 180*. India declared their second innings on 298-8 and set England 272. The hosts were all-out for 120 as Mohammed Siraj claimed 4-32.

Kohli-led India also beat England by 157 runs at The Oval in the fourth Test of the 2021 tour. Batting first, the visitors were bowled out for 191. England responded with 290. Rohit’s 127 saw India post 466 in their second innings. Chasing 368, England were all out for 210 as India's bowlers shared the wickets.