5 Indian bowlers with most Test wickets against England
The England versus India Test battle is all set to begin when both the teams take the field on August 1 for the 1st of the 5 match Test series. The series promises to be an evenly contested one as both the teams have their own set of positives as well as some unanswered questions which might come to bother them as the series progresses. With India vying for the tag of best visiting side in the world, a series win in England would be a perfect start to the quest.
On the other side, England test side will try and not give anything away to the opposition. Given the brand of cricket that England plays, they won’t allow the Indians to settle in and gain an upper hand in any of the matches. Home conditions will be a big advantage for the Englishmen and they would try and exploit the conditions to the maximum and put Indian batsmen under pressure.
Usually it is the 1st Test in a long series that sets the tone for the rest of the narrative, this series seems to be no different. It is the bowlers that help win Test matches, as one should have the bowling attack to take 20 wickets to think of winning a Test match. Below are 5 Indian gentlemen who have picked the most Test wickets against England.
#5. Vinoo Mankad (1946-1952)
Vinoo Mankad, at best, was a batting all-rounder. He was not famous for his slow left-arm bowling. However, it is no secret that England have always found it difficult to play against the spinners and Mankad’s accurate line and length was enough to castle English batsmen.
Best known for his world record opening partnership of 413 runs with Pankaj Roy, Mankad scored 231 runs against New Zealand at Chennai in that innings, and looked in absolute control of all the shots that he played. The record opening stand between the duo lasted 52 years and Mankad’s 231 was the highest Individual Test Score by an Indian batsman until Sunil Gavaskar surpassed it.
Against England, Mankad picked up 54 wickets in 11 matches at a healthy average of 23.12, the best bowling average featuring in this list, and a much better average than Mankad’s own career average of 32.32- a testimony to England’s batting woes against spin bowling. Mankad also went on to have reasonable amount of success with the bat against England.