3 reasons why the Lord's Test of 2021 was India's best win under Virat Kohli's captaincy
Virat Kohli was the most successful skipper for team India in Test cricket. During his stint as a skipper in the Tests from 2014 to 2022, the team won 40 of the 68 Tests.
The Indian team had many memorable wins under the captaincy of Kohli. One of them was at Lord's in 2021, where India secured a victory by 151 runs and went 1-0 up in the five-match series after the first Test ended in a draw.
On the occasion of the second anniversary of the victory, here is a look at three reasons why the victory at Lord's is India's best under Virat Kohli.
#1 Fast bowlers picking up 19 of the 20 English wickets
The Indian pace bowling quartet comprising Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Ishant Sharma created havoc in the English batting line-up and picked up 19 of the 20 English wickets during the game.
Siraj, the most inexperienced of the four pacers was the chief destroyer picking up four wickets apiece in both the innings.
Ishant Sharma was at his lethal best and picked up five wickets, with the first innings victims including Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, and Sam Curran. In the second innings, he dismissed Haseeb Hameed and Jonny Bairstow and was one of the architects during the famous win.
Jasprit Bumrah went wicketless in the first innings. However, he made his presence felt in the second innings and picked up three wickets including the prized scalp of the skipper Joe Root.
Mohammed Shami picked up three wickets in the Test and provided breakthroughs at a crucial juncture for team India during the Test.
All in all, the pacers were instrumental in India's success at Lord's in 2021 having picked up 19 of the 20 wickets and Kohli handed all four pacers well in the Test. The only other wicket was of Mark Wood, who was run-out in the first innings.
#2 Openers laying down the foundation in tough English conditions
England won the toss at Lord's and put India into bat in testing conditions. The Indian openers, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul batted patiently for more than 43 overs and put on 126 runs for the first wicket.
Rohit Sharma was the dominant run-getter in the opening partnership and contributed 83 before he was dismissed. Thereafter, Rahul got in a groove and crafted a masterful century, and guided India to a match-winning first-innings total of 364. Rahul scored 129 off 250 balls, with 12 boundaries and a maximum.
One of the highlights of the Test was that the openers occupied the crease for a long period of time and negated the advantage for the English fast bowlers.
#3 All 11 members contributing to the triumph
The win at Lord's was a collective team effort. Apart from the fast bowlers and the openers, every other member of the team was instrumental in India's triumph at Lord's.
The skipper Virat Kohli was spot on with his every move as a captain and especially with the bowling changes. He also contributed with the bat and scored 62 runs across both innings and took four catches during the game.
Ajinkya Rahane scored a crucial 61 in the second innings and guided India to a respectable total. Cheteshwar Pujara compiled a patient 45 in the second innings and laid down the basis of a strong foundation. Ravindra Jadeja batted well with the tail and scored a handy 40 in the first innings.
Pant took three catches in the second innings and scored 59 runs during the Test.
Overall, the win was a team effort and undoubtedly the best overseas victory under the reign of Virat Kohli.