Five Best Test Innings by Indian Batsmen in England

#3 Dilip Vengsarkar 126 at Lord’s 1986

Vengsarkar arguably had the best series by an Indian batsman in England in 1986

Despite the more recent exploits of Tendulkar and Dravid along with the earlier performances of Sunil Gavaskar, Vengsarkar arguably had the best series by an Indian batsman in England in 1986.

Having already had one innings featured on this list from the 1986 series, Vengsarkar’s best performance on that tour came one match earlier at the home of cricket.

On a grassy Lord’s pitch, Vengsarkar came to bat at 90-2 as India looked to establish a lead against England.

The Mumbai batsman initially built up a solid partnership with the staid Mohinder Amarnath who allowed Vengsarkar to play his shots freely. However after Amarnath was dismissed, wickets starting falling around Vengsarkar.

Yet, the Mumbai batsman continued to be at his languid best, displaying that trademark flick and his beautiful cover drives.

None of England’s bowlers could even come close to dismissing Vengsarkar on a difficult pitch. By the end of the innings (Vengsarkar stayed not-out), the Mumbai batsman had completely demoralized the English team.

India had a 47-run lead but mentally it was much more. No other player scored a fifty from that point in the game, a sign of how good Vengsarkar innings’ was.