Three memorable bowling spells by Indian bowlers at Old Trafford in ODI cricket
Team India have played 12 ODIs at Old Trafford, of which eight have been during World Cups. Their remaining four games were played during different bilateral series against England.
As per stats, the hosts enjoy a clear advantage, having won on three occasions (1986, 1996 and 2007). The Men in Blue, on the other hand, registered their lone victory only recently during their 2-1 series win over England. It was their first win over England at the ground since 1983.
Over the years, Old Trafford has proven to be a happy hunting ground for Indian bowlers in ODIs. With that in mind, here are three memorable spells by Indian bowlers at the ground.
#1 Venkatesh Prasad- 5/27 against Pakistan in 1999
Team India did not have a memorable 1999 World Cup, failing to advance to the semi-finals of the said tournament. However, they had a memorable outing against arch-rivals Pakistan in the Super Six stages at Old Trafford.
Batting first, the Men in Blue scored 227 runs for the loss of six wickets in 50 overs, with Rahul Dravid being the top scorer (61).
Pakistan never really looked comfortable in the chase and lost wickets at regular intervals. Venkatesh Prasad was the pick of the bowlers. His first victim was Saleem Malik, who was trapped leg before wicket. Saeed Anwar was the next to go. The southpaw was caught by Azharuddin off Prasad's bowling, reducing Pakistan to 65 for the loss of four wickets.
The right-arm seamer claimed three more wickets to completely derail Pakistan's chase. Prasad picked up the wickets of Moin Khan, Inzamam ul Haq, and Wasim Akram, producing a match-winning spell of 5/27 in his 9.3 overs.
Pakistan eventually fell short of the target by 47 runs and India emerged victorious.
#2 Mohammed Shami- 4/16 against West Indies in 2019
Mohammed Shami was at his lethal best during a group league fixture against the West Indies during the 2019 World Cup on June 27.
Batting first, the Men in Blue scored 268 runs for the loss of seven wickets, riding on half-centuries from the then skipper Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni.
West Indies were reduced to 16 for 2 in the run chase. Shami was brutal in his opening spell and dismissed the dangerous Chris Gayle for just 6 and thereafter clean-bowled Shai Hope, who was batting on 5.
Shami on fire 🔥🔥
West Indies 16/2 after 7 overs bcci.tv/icc-cricket-wo… #CWC19 https://t.co/6n54EprfmV
He continued his hot run, picking up the wickets of Shimron Hetmyer and Oshane Thomas. Thanks to his fiery spell, the Windies batters were bundled out for a paltry total of 143 runs.
India won the encounter by 125 runs, with Shami being the pick of the bowlers, picking up four wickets for just 16 runs in 6.2 overs.
#3 Hardik Pandya- 4/24 against England in 2022
Over the years, Hardik Pandya has reinvented himself as the perfect all-rounder in white ball cricket. He played a vital role in India's win over England at Old Trafford in 2022.
He used the short-pitched delivery effectively to pick up the wickets of the dangerous Jason Roy and Ben Stokes in his first spell.
He returned to dismiss the well-set pair of Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone in the same over. Both batters were looking to take the game away from India and had already added 49 runs. Yet again, it was the short-pitched delivery that did the trick, as the duo were caught at deep square leg by Ravindra Jadeja.
Innings Break!
England are all out for 259 in 45.5 overs.
Hardik Pandya was pick of the bowlers with figures of 4/24 in 7 overs.
Scorecard - bit.ly/ENGvIND-3RDODI #ENGvIND https://t.co/RvZQvaPCqT
Hardik finished with impressive figures of 4/24 from seven overs that included three maiden overs. He also contributed 71 runs from 55 balls with the bat and shared a match-winning partnership with Rishabh Pant to seal the game for his team.