Why India are a worthy top-ranked Test team away from home as well

It’s always tough to ascertain who is the real number one ranked Test team in the world

India won a fascinating Test series vs England 4-0, despite, having five starting players injured, losing four tosses and the opposition scoring 400+ scores thrice. Ask any fan if Men in Blue start a Test series at Australia scoring 537 runs in the first innings of the first Test, there is no way India would be losing that series this heavily.

Hence Virat Kohli’s and co batted, bowled and fielded brilliantly to take injuries, pitches and tosses out of the equation and win all 50:50 battles to ensure an 18 Tests unbeaten run. As it happens, anytime any subcontinent team does well at home, questions arise of their away record.

It’s true that India haven’t beaten South Africa, Australia or England away from home in a Test series, over the last two years. It’s also true that all three of these teams have been beaten badly in Tests in India over the last three years. So it’s always tough to ascertain who is the real number one ranked Test team in the world.

I tried digging data on which is the Test team that is indeed proving themselves worthy by winning overseas more regularly than India. The answers are revealing. As the inspirational thinker, Anthony J. D’Angelo, famously said once, ‘Reality doesn't bite, rather our perception of reality bites’.

The table below illustrates how India’s away record is better than that of its rivals over the past two years, i.e. from 23 December 2014 to 23 December 2016.

Teams	Away Tests (last 2 yrs)	Won	Lost	Draw	Success percent 1 (win) 0.5 (draw)	Runs per wicket
India	10	4	1	5	65%	40.11
Australia	12	6	6	0	50%	32.26
Pakistan	12	5	6	1	46%	32.82
England	14	4	7	3	39%	32.21
South Africa	9	2	4	3	39%	23.31
New Zealand	12	3	7	2	33%	34.76
Sri Lanka	9	2	6	1	28%	28.89
West Indies	7	0	5	2	14%	24.65

Australia away record past two years

Australia won six out of the twelve away Tests they played in the last two years, losing six also in the process. They have won at West Indies, lost and won at England, lost in Sri Lanka (where India won) and won at New Zealand. They have a 50% winning and 50% losing away record during this phase.

Pakistan away record past two years

Pakistan won five out of the twelve away Tests they played in the last two years, losing six. They have won and lost in Sri Lanka (so too have India), lost and won in England, lost badly in New Zealand and just lost a close Test in Australia. They have a 44% winning and 50% losing away record during this phase.  

South Africa away record past two years

The Proteas have won just two of the nine away Tests they have played over the last two years, losing four during this period. They drew Tests at Bangladesh, lost heavily in India and lost and won in Australia. They have a 23% winning and 45% losing away record during this phase. The two away wins were in Australia, but they have lost four too, including three in India.

England away record past two years

The Three Lions won four out of the fourteen away Tests they have played in the last two years and lost seven. They have won and lost in West Indies, South Africa and Bangladesh and lost badly in India. They have a 29% winning and 50% losing away record during this phase. 

India's away record past two years

Virat Kohli's men have won four out of the ten Tests they have played over the last two years, losing just one close game in Sri Lanka. They drew two Tests in Australia, one in Bangladesh, won and lost in Sri Lanka and also won in West Indies. That's 40% winning and 10% losing away record during this phase.

So while Pakistan drawing a series in England, or England winning a series in South Africa or South Africa winning in Australia are very credible results, two of these three teams got heavily battered in India. Each of them has also lost Test matches either in Sri Lanka or West Indies or Bangladesh.

So just one good away series win in two years doesn't really make them the best around. It's a fact that in world cricket there is no team which is consistently winning overseas and in this matter, India losing just one Test over their last ten away Tests is commendable, to say the least.

It's also worth noting that winning in Australia, England and South Africa is often taken as a benchmark for identifying and respecting a good Test team. How about winning a Test series in India or Pakistan (UAE)?

Why losing Tests in Sri Lanka is not considered a factor, while a team is adjudged great just because they won in Australia or England? Until the time any team provides a consistent away record, India deservedly are right up there. They have five more home Test matches vs Bangladesh and Australia in Feb-Mar 2017 and a chance to further widen the already massive gap between number 1 and 2 in the ICC Test rankings.