6 times when 'extras' top-scored for India
'Extras' as the name clearly suggests, is the cricket term given to runs acquired by a lack of discipline by the bowling team or the ones that are not scored off the bat, through wides, no-balls, byes, leg-byes and the like.
However, there have been numerous occasions in cricket when the so-called 'extras' proved to be the saving grace for a batting side that had succumbed to a collective failure. In such situations, the passively scored runs through extras have outscored the total number of runs scored by the entire eleven in the batting order in a completed inning.
Of the 39 such occurrences in ODIs, the team at the receiving end of this misery happened to win only thrice; in Tests, on three occasions out of the nineteen, the 'extra' runs helped teams win the match.
India has faced this plight on six occasions in international cricket, twice in Tests and four times in ODIs. Let's have a look at these matches when 'extras' out-scored the 'ordinary' Indian batting order.
#1 India v Windies, Mohali Test 1994
In December 1994, in the final match of the 3-Test series, the visiting team put on 443 on the board after winning the toss and India replied with 387 in the first innings. The Windies then declared with 301 on the board, leaving India with a target of 358 to achieve victory.
The Indian wickets fell like a pack of cards as no-one managed to score beyond 17, the score managed by both Javagal Srinath and Sanjay Manjrekar. Had it not been for the 22 extras dished out by the Windies' bowlers, the Indians would have folded out for less than hundred as they eventually did so for just 114.
The Windies won the match by 243 runs and levelled the series 1-1. It is worthy to mention, though, that this was their last Test win on Indian soil till date.