5 times India made a strong comeback after losing the first Test of a series ft. Melbourne 2020

India went down to England by 28 runs in the first Test at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. When the Test began, there were question marks over whether England’s Bazball philosophy would work in India. By the end of the game, the queries were around how India could tackle Bazball in home conditions.

The hosts had the upper hand in the first half of the contest in Hyderabad. Bowling first after losing the toss, they restricted the Englishmen to 246 in 64.3 overs. The Men in Blue then posted 436 runs as Yashasvi Jaiswal (80), KL Rahul (86) and Ravindra Jadeja (87) played impressive knocks.

With a lead of 190, India seemed set for victory after reducing England to 163/5. However, Ollie Pope led an incredible fightback for the visitors, scoring a superb 196 under pressure in the second innings. Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley then claimed 7/62 as England bowled India out for 202 after setting them a target of 231.

India will be under pressure heading into the second Test in Visakhapatnam. However, there have been a number of instances when they have made a strong comeback after losing the first Test of a series. We revisit five such matches.

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#5 India vs England, Chennai 2021

The hosts won the 2021 series at home against England after losing the first Test. (Pic: Getty Images)

India went down to England in Chennai by 227 runs in the first Test during England's tour of India in 2021. Joe Root starred in the famous triumph with a brilliant 218. The hosts, however, fought back to clinch the second Test at the same venue by 317 runs.

Rohit Sharma scored a defiant 161 as India put up 329 batting first. Ravichandran Ashwin then claimed 5/43 as England were bowled out for 134. The ace off-spinner also scored a hundred as India set England a mammoth target of 482. The visitors were bundled out for 164 as Axar Patel picked up 5/60.

India won the next two Tests by comprehensive margins as well to clinch the series 3-1.

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#4 India vs Australia, Bengaluru 2017

Left-arm spinner Steve O'Keefe stunned India with 12 wickets in Pune in the first Test of the India-Australia series in 2017. The hosts went down by 333 runs in the contest. They, however, returned to winning ways, registering a hard-fought 75-run win in the second Test in Bengaluru.

Nathan Lyon claimed 8/50 as India were bowled out for 189 despite KL Rahul’s 90. Ravindra Jadeja then claimed a six-fer as Australia were held to 276 in response. India came up with a resolute batting effort in their second innings to put up 274. Cheteshwar Pujara top-scored with 92, while Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane contributed half-centuries.

Set to chase 188, Australia folded up for 112 as Ashwin shone with 6/41. The third Test in Ranchi ended up a high-scoring draw, but the hosts clinched the final Test in Dharamsala by eight wickets to claim the series by a 2-1 margin.

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#3 India vs South Africa, Durban 2010

India registered a famous win in Durban in 2010. (Pic: Getty Images)

India began their 2010-11 tour of South Africa on a disastrous note as they were hammered in Centurion by an innings and 25 runs. The visitors showed a lot of character to win the next Test in Durban by 87 runs and level the three-match series 1-1.

After being sent into bat in Durban, India were held to 205 as Dale Steyn picked up 6/50. Harbhajan Singh (4/10) and Zaheer Khan (3/36) led the visitors’ fightback as South Africa were bowled out for 131. VVS Laxman then scored a top-class 96 as India set the Proteas a challenging target of 303.

Zaheer again starred with three scalps and Sreesanth also picked up three as the visitors held South Africa to 215, registering a famous win. The third and final Test in Cape Town ended in a draw as the tightly contested series finished on a 1-1 scoreline.

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#2 India vs Australia, Melbourne 2020

After India were bundled out for an embarrassing 36 in their second innings in Adelaide, losing the opening Test of the 2020-21 series by eight wickets, few gave them a chance of making a comeback. They were also to be without the services of Virat Kohli, who was granted paternity leave by the BCCI.

Led by stand-in skipper Rahane, though, they made a comeback for the ages in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. Jasprit Bumrah claimed four wickets and Ashwin chipped in with three as India bowled out Australia for 195 after losing the toss. Rahane then compiled a superb 117 as India put up 326.

Another excellent bowling effort from Team India in the second innings held the Aussies to 200. India then chased down a target of 70, with eight wickets in hand, to famously level the series 1-1.

The visitors were on the verge of defeat in Sydney, but someone hung on for a draw. They then breached Australia’s fortress, The Gabba, to clinch the series 2-1 despite missing most of their senior players due to injury.

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#1 India vs Australia, Kolkata 2001

India fought back after being asked to follow on in the 2001 Kolkata Test. (Pic: Getty Images)

Australia came to India in 2001 on the back of a 15-match winning streak. They made it sweet 16 by hammering a hapless hosts by 10 wickets at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. In the second Test at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, it seemed like Australia would extend their record to 17.

Batting first, the visitors posted 445 on the back of skipper Steve Waugh’s ton, making a good recovery after Harbhajan Singh’s (7/123) historic hat-trick. India were knocked over for 171 in their first innings as seasoned pacer Glenn McGrath starred with 4/18.

Asked to follow-on, Laxman (281) and Rahul Dravid (180) then featured in one of the greatest Test partnerships ever. The duo added a mammoth 376 runs for the fifth wicket and batted through the entire Day 4 of the Test. Set to chase 384 for victory, Australia were bowled out for 212 as Harbhajan again starred with 6/73.

Riding on the momentum of the epic win, India sneaked home by two wickets in the third and final Test in Chennai, completing a famous 2-1 series triumph.