5 incredible streaks currently held by Indian athletes and teams

Paes and
Paes and Bhupathi

2017 was an excellent year for Indian sport that saw various athletes record new highs and break records. In a few instances, our teams and athletes also managed to record some incredible streaks, that completely defied expectations.

On this note, we take a look at a few streaks involving active players that you might not have known about!


#1 Paes and Bhupathi's 24-match unbeaten Davis Cup streak

The legendary Indian duo's unbeaten 24-match streak in Davis Cup Men's doubles still stands as of today. Leander Paes, who is still active on the circuit, and Bhupathi played their first game in 1995, lost twice in 1996 but have stayed unbeaten since 1997.

Their overall record is 25-2 and their last win came in 2010 when they defeated Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares. This 24-match unbeaten streak is a record that might not be broken anytime soon.

#2 Indian men's football team's 13-match unbeaten streak

Sun
Sunil Chettri in action

On Tuesday, 14th November 2017, India played Myanmar in the group stages of the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. The Group A match saw India draw 2-2 with Myanmar and this was the 13th consecutive game where India hadn't been beaten. They have also managed to close out the year without losing a match.

India came back from behind twice in that game and showed resilience. Nevertheless, this 13-match unbeaten streak is an amazing achievement, only behind Germany who currently hold the record of 19 matches unbeaten.

#3 Virat Kohli equals MS Dhoni's record for the longest winning streak in ODIs for India

Kulde
Kuldeep Yadav celebrates after dismissing Pat Cummins.

Ever since Virat Kohli took over as the captain of India, India's performance has soared upwards, across all formats of the game. Former captain MS Dhoni held the record for most consecutive ODI wins, he led his side to nine consecutive wins in 2008-09.

This record of nine wins was equalled by Virat Kohli and Co. earlier this year when he led India to an emphatic series win over arch-rivals Australia. India's phenomenal run in ODIs in 2017 meant that they are ranked 2nd in the ICC ODI ranking with 119 points. At numero uno is South Africa with 120 points.

#4 Vijender Singh's 10-match winning streak in Pro Boxing

Boxing at Macron Stadium
Vijender Singh (right)

Olympic medallist Vijender Singh won a record 10th pro boxing bout when he defeated Ernst Amuzu earlier this month. Singh was challenged by the Ghanaian to a fight which took place in Jaipur on 23rd December. Amuzu was no match for Vijender and became his 10th victim in a row.

Earlier this year, Vijender beat 23-year-old Zulpikar Maimaitiali, which was his ninth win on the trot. Fellow boxer Neeraj Goyat held the record for nine consecutive pro boxing wins but this record was taken over by Vijender as he emerged victorious in the 'Rajasthan Rumble'.

Vijender now has a 10-0 record with 7 out of the 10 bouts ending in knockouts.

#5 Indian Men's Cricket Team's unbeaten run of 16 home series

Australia v India - 4th Test: Day 4
India in action vs Australia

After defeating Sri Lanka comprehensively in the third T20, Team India set another record as they are now unbeaten in 16 home series across all formats and skipper Virat Kohli's form across all three formats has been key. India's last home series loss came in 2015 when they lost 3-2 to South Africa in an ODI series.

India has mostly played test matches in this unbeaten period and have dominated every visiting team. Ravi Ashwin has been the wrecker-in-chief, claiming 125 wickets in 20 tests. Run Machine Kohli sits atop the pile again, scoring 2062 runs at an average of 71.10. With the away series to South Africa coming soon, Team India will be looking to replicate its home form on foreign soil too.

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