3 highest run-scorers for India against England in Test cricket
India and England are gearing up to lock horns in a 4-Test series, which promises to be a cracker given the superstars on both sides and their recent form.
Among current players, Indian captain Virat Kohli has scored the most runs against England in Test cricket. He has 1,570 runs in 19 Tests at an average of 49.06, which are remarkable numbers when you take his dismal 2014 tour into consideration.
Cheteshwar Pujara, with 1,339 runs in 18 Tests at an average of 44.63, is next in line. The third-highest scorer against England among India's squad for the first two Tests is surprisingly Ravichandran Ashwin, with 781 runs.
Interestingly, Kohli has 5 batsmen ahead of him on the list of India's top run-scorers against England. In this article, we take a look at the 3 batsmen who've made merry against one of the better teams in world cricket over the years.
#3 Rahul Dravid - 1,950 runs
After making his Test debut against England at Lord's and scoring 95, Rahul Dravid had an extremely successful career against the team. In 21 Tests, he tallied 1,950 runs at an average of 60.93, with 7 hundreds to his name.
Incredibly, Dravid averaged a whopping 68.8 in Tests he played in England with 6 of his 7 hundreds coming away from home. He notched up 3 centuries each on India's England tours of 2002 and 2011, with his 148 at Headingley and double century at The Oval being particular standouts.
#2 Sunil Gavaskar - 2,483 runs
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar holds impressive records against most top teams of his time like Australia and West Indies. While England didn't see him as consistent as he was against the other sides, he still amassed a healthy 2,483 runs from 38 Tests at an average of 38.2.
Gavaskar crossed the 3-figure mark on 4 occasions against England, and his average in England (41.14) was significantly higher than his average at home (35.97).
Gavaskar's average against plummeted in the last years of his career - 24.66 in 1982, 17.5 in 1984/85 and 29.16 in 1986. However, he remains India's second-most successful batsman against the 2019 World Cup winners.
#1 Sachin Tendulkar - 2,535 runs
To no one's surprise, Sachin Tendulkar, with 2,535 runs, is India's leading run-getter against England in Test cricket. The Master Blaster played 32 Tests against England, and scored these runs at an average of 51.73 while registering 7 hundreds.
As a testament to his quality, like the other batsmen on this list, Tendulkar averaged more in England (54.31) than he did in India (48). The year 1996 saw him score two Test centuries against this opposition, but the last five series of his career - 2005/06, 2007, 2008/09, 2011, 2012/13 - saw him make only one hundred.
Tendulkar's record against England will likely stand for another few years at least.