5 amazing series wins for India after starting on a wrong note

Comebacks in any sport are not easy. Sport, no matter how many strategies have been chalked up and how much training and conditioning has been done, is still comprised of emotions at its core, which can make or break a situation.That perfect away-swinger which gets the big breakthrough, that counter-attacking surge that brings a dominating bowling attack back on its knees, those stunning flying catches which cannot really be practiced and can be pulled off only in a moment of inspiration mixed with luck – cricket is awash with examples of unbelievable stunts pulled off in the middle.Comeback wins are amazing because a cricket series is about momentum more than ability, more often than not. It is very hard to turn around the tide within a series once a tone has been set, almost like painting a new colour over a wall that already has another bright colour as opposed to a primer-white. India has had its fair share of comeback wins as well. The recently concluded 2-1 win against Sri Lanka is only their third series win ever and the first away from home after being down a game. That puts into perspective how unique the victory is. There have been some other instances as well where India didn’t exactly start off on the right note but went on to win the series.Here are five amazing series wins for India – hard-fought, hard-earned victories that’ll always be savoured.

#5 1972, England\'s tour of India. India won 2-1

A still from the series between England and India in 1972 which the hosts India won 2-1

What makes the victory incredible: India lost the first Test in Delhi by six wickets and it looked like Wadekar’s golden run might come to an end before the turnaround happened.

The Awe factor: BS Chandrasekhar and BS Bedi took five-wicket hauls as Indian spinners accounted for 19 out of the 20 England wickets to draw level.

The second Test that India won to level the series after losing the first was a low-scoring affair. India having scored 210 in their first innings, had a slender 36 run lead which turned out to be decisive. The hosts set England a target of 192 and bundled them out for 163 in 91 overs.

The combination of Bedi’s off-spin and Chandrasekhar’s leg spin at Eden Gardens, Calcutta (now Kolkata) bamboozled the England batsmen. Once again the top-scorer for India in the Test overall was Farokh Engineer whose 75 took India from 100 for five to 210 in the first innings, with the next highest being Wadekar’s 44. India won the match by 28 runs.

The third Test at Chepauk, Madras (now Chennai) was equally sensational. BS Chandrasekhar took a six-wicket haul once again to restrict England to 242 allowing India to take a lead of 74 when they scored 316, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi scoring an excellent 73.

England were all out for 159 in their second innings, this time the off-spinners Erapalli Prasanna and Bishan Singh Bedi taking four-wicket hauls. India chased down 86 but lost six wickets in the process. It was and still remains one of India’s greatest series comeback wins in its cricket history.

#4 1971, India\'s tour of England. India won 1-0

Ajit Wadekar led India to it’s first series win in England in 1971.

What makes the victory incredible: This was India’s first series victory in England and it’s third overall that came during a very impressive period. It was also India’s first Test win in England.

The Awe Factor: India lost six Test series in England prior to this, being whitewashed the last two times, 0-5 and 0-3. This was Ajit Wadekar’s second series after he had taken over as captain from the legendary Nawab of Pataudi Jr. He won the first one as well against West Indies in West Indies, a brief golden phase for India.

There are many reasons why this series is epic, besides the aforementioned. India drew the first Test of the series with the skin of their fingernails, finishing at 145 for eight on the last day.

In the final Test, India had conceded a first innings lead of 71 but BS Chandrasekhar set the game up nicely for India when he took 6-38 and effected a run-out as England were bundled out for 101. India chased down the target of 173 for the loss of six wickets taking 101 overs to reach the target.

Wadekar played well but missed out on another half-century like in the first. Farokh Engineer, India’s charismatic wicket-keeper played important cameos in both innings.

#3 2007, India\'s tour of England, India won 1-0

India won the four-Test series 1-0

What makes the victory incredible: It was India’s first Test series win in England since 1986.

The Awe factor: India drew the first Test with great difficulty, its last four wickets playing out 49 overs with the last pair of Sreesanth and MS Dhoni (76 not out), a newcomer at the time, holding fort for five overs. That draw helped India win the series in effect.

India weren’t great travellers and away series wins were few and far in between. However, Rahul Dravid continued Sourav Ganguly’s legacy by winning in West Indies and then in England. India drew the first and third Tests, the former being something of a great escape.

In the second Test, Zaheer Khan’s 4-59 bundled England out for 198. India amassed 481 thanks to four of their top five scoring half-centuries with Sachin top-scoring with 91. Michael Vaughan helped England to 355 with a century in the second innings, but Zaheer once again proved the nemesis for the hosts picking a five-wicket haul in a Man of the Match winning performance.

That ensured India had to chase down just 73 in the final innings which they did losing three wickets, their skipper and ex-skipper at the crease when the winning runs were scored.

#2 2015, India tour of Sri Lanka, India won 2-1

India won the last two Tests against Sri Lanka winning the series 2-1

What makes the victory incredible: This was Virat Kohli’s first series as full-time Test captain. He had captained India in two Tests prior to this in Australia and once in Bangladesh without success. For an inexperienced captain to win an away series coming back from 0-1 down, is a feat hard to surpass.

The Awe factor: This is India’s first series victory away from home since 2011 and the first one ever after being a game down. It was also India’s first series victory in Sri Lanka in 22 years.

There are many reasons why this series win should be celebrated. India could have won the series 3-0 dominating most of the first Test as well but losing the game due to a couple of bad sessions. Importantly, India are in a state of transition which can be noticed from the fact that every Test had a different opening pair.

Two different No.3s were tried after Rohit Sharma was moved down and Ajinkya Rahane promoted. Two different wicket-keepers played the game after Wriddhiman Saha, the first choice had to return home after the second Test due to injury. Stuart Binny, not in the initial squad was flown down as India desperately searched for a batting all-rounder.

Amidst all this melee, India managed to find many heroes. Ajinkya Rahane stroked a classy century in the second innings of the second Test helping India build the lead needed to win the game. In the third, Cheteshwar Pujara, making a comeback became only the fourth Indian opener to carry his bat and the first in international cricket since David Warner in 2011. His 145 not out helped India get a good score in the first innings making a win possible even though almost a day of cricket was lost to rain.

Ravichandran Ashwin and Amit Mishra, India’s spin twins, picked up 21 and 15 wickets respectively in the series. While Ashwin was the Man of the Series, Mishra also scored two crucial half-centuries in both wins, making him a reliable tail-end batsman. Ishant Sharma’s five wicket haul in the final Test showed India could finally win a series with more contributions from its bowling unit than with the batting.

#1 2001, Australia\'s tour of India. India won 2-1

The winning moment – India defeated Australia 2-1 in the three-Test series

What makes the victory incredible: Steve Waugh’s ‘invincibles’ extended their Test victory run to 16 matches and looked all set to breach the “final frontier” when they won the first Test comprehensively by 10 wickets and then asked India to follow-on in the second Test at Kolkata with a lead of 274.

The Awe Factor: VVS Laxman played probably one of the top 5 Test innings of all time. His 287 scripted a fight-back that almost enters the realms of fantasy, complemented well by Rahul Dravid. Harbhajan Singh took 7, 6, 8 and 7 wickets in each of the last four innings of the series.

Very few who watched that game will ever forget that series. India had scores of 176 and 219 in their humiliating loss in the first Test. In the second Test, they were all out for 171, VVS Laxman top-scoring with 59.

In an inspired move, Laxman was sent to No.3 where he scored 287. India still hadn’t cleared the deficit when they were 232 for four. However, Rahul Dravid, who scored 180, added 376 runs for the fifth wicket as India eventually declared with the score on 657. Chasing 384, Australia were all out for 212 with Harbhajan Singh taking 6-73.

The third Test was set up by a Sachin Tendulkar century as India scored 501 with renewed vigour taking a lead of 110. Harbhajan Singh took 8-84 in 42 overs to add to his 7-133 as Australia were all out for 264. India were in a spot of bother chasing 155 but eventually reached there, Laxman scoring 66.