The year 2016 has been a mix of ups and downs for the Indian cricket team. The sub-continent giants began the year with a promise of retaining their lost glory in the shortest format, and ended it with a young and charismatic captain inspiring his side to dominate the longest version of the game.
The year 2016 has been a mix of ups and downs for the Indian cricket team. The sub-continent giants began the year with a promise of retaining their lost glory in the shortest format, and ended it with a young and charismatic captain inspiring his side to dominate the longest version of the game.
Team India embarked on a challenging journey to Australia for a five-match ODI series and three-match T20I series in January. Despite some blistering performances from the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the Indian team lost the series 4-1 amid some major bowling troubles.
Their consolation win in the last ODI of the series changed the fortunes for the visitors who came out guns blazing in the T20 series. With Kohli leading from the front, the Men in Blue dominated the proceedings and avenged their ODI series loss with a 3-0 whitewash in the T20I series.
The T20 series gave India some of the biggest assets, including Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, in limited-overs cricket. Their triumph also set the tone for the ICC World T20 tournament that was hosted in India for the very first time.
Historically an ODI tournament, the Asia Cup underwent a change of format as the first ever T20I tournament. The Indian team began the tournament with a comfortable win over hosts Bangladesh and then overcame a stern test against arch-rivals Pakistan.
After taking out Pakistan for a mere 83 runs, India found themselves in a spot of bother with comeback seamer Mohammad Amir wreaking havoc on Dhoni’s men. But, Virat Kohli weathered the Amir storm with his gritty knock of 49 runs and guided his side to a five-wicket win.
Following a scare against Pakistan, the Dhoni brigade recorded comfortable wins against Sri Lanka and UAE before setting up the summit clash against Bangladesh. The rain-curtailed tie saw the hosts scoring 120 runs in 15 overs which was eventually chased down by the Indian side with eight wickets to spare.
Virat Kohli-led Indian team climbed to the no. 1 spot in Test rankings following their 2-0 series win against West Indies in August. However, the joy of Indian fans was short-lived with arch-rivals Pakistan shooting them to the top after their 2-2 draw against England in the same month.
But, the Kohli brigade came back strong in the Test series against New Zealand to reclaim the ICC Test Championship mace in October. After taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, India were guaranteed the no. 1 spot but since the rankings are updated only at the end of a series, Kohli was presented the Test mace after the conclusion of the third Test – also won by the home side to complete a 3-0 rout of the Kiwis.
Kohli became only the second Indian captain after MS Dhoni and the 10th overall to receive the mace.
New Zealand’s tour of India was the beginning of a grueling home season for the Indian team. The Virat Kohli-led side locked horns with the Kiwis in three Tests and five ODIs spanning over a month.
Cheteshwar Pujara (373 runs), Ajinkya Rahane (347 runs) and Kohli (309 runs) were the top three run-scorers in the three-match Test series that was comfortably won by India 3-0. In the bowling department, Ravichandran Ashwin reigned supreme to emerge as the leading wicket-taker in the series with a staggering 27 wickets in three games.
The ODI series saw a better performance from the visitors who continued to challenge the hosts and tied the series 2-2 with just one game left to play. The fifth and final ODI saw India posting a competitive total of 269 runs, which eventually proved a tad too much to achieve for the New Zealanders who were blown away by Amit Mishra’s magical spell of 5-18.
Record-breaking series win against England
High on confidence with Test and ODI series win against the Kiwis, India found their next opponent in England who were the last team to win a Test series on Indian soil back in 2012. But after a draw in the first Test, the visiting Englishmen lost four matches on the trot to suffer a 0-4 whitewash.
Virat Kohli was once again the driving force with 655 runs, including two hundreds and two fifties, at an average of 109.16 in five matches. His knock of 235 in the first innings of the fourth Test made him the first Indian captain to record three double hundreds in a calendar year.
The fifth and final Test saw budding talent Karun Nair breaking away from the shadows of India’s proven stars. The right-hander became the second Indian player to score a triple ton in Test cricket. His unbeaten knock of 303 in Chennai was the cornerstone of India’s highest-ever Test score of 759/7.
Ravichandran Ashwin (28 wickets) and Ravindra Jadeja (26 wickets) once again dominated the proceedings with the ball. The two spinners were responsible for 54 wickets in what turned out to be a record-breaking series for India.
This was just the second time in cricket history that India had managed to win four Tests in a series. This was India’s fifth series win in a row, which is also India’s joint longest stretch of series wins. This streak started against Sri Lanka with a 2-1 win last year. India then beat South Africa at home by 3-0, West Indies 2-0 away and New Zealand 3-0 at home before this series’ win.
Virat Kohli winning Man of the Series for his prodigious performance
Virat Kohli won the Man of the series award for the first time in Test cricket, for his outstanding performance with the bat. He scored 655 runs in five matches at an average of 109.16 in the series. In doing so, he became the first Indian player to win a Man of the series award in all three formats. Karun Nair won the Man of the match award for his record breaking knock of 303* runs in the fifth Test.
Lokesh Rahul and Parthiv Patel added 152 runs in India’s first innings for the opening wicket, which is the most by an Indian opening pair against England in Tests, played in India. The previous best was 135 added by Farokh Engineer and Sunil Gavaskar at Mumbai (BS) in 1973.
Overall, it was the third highest opening partnership for India against England in Tests. The last century opening partnership for India before this Test came in June 2015, when Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan added 283 runs against Bangladesh in Fatullah. Rahul and Patel became the sixth Indian opening pair to register a century stand in their first partnership.
KL Rahul became the ninth player to be dismissed on 199 in Tests. He became only the second Indian batsman after Mohammad Azharuddin to be dismissed on 199 in Tests. Azharuddin was dismissed on 199 against Sri Lanka at Kanpur in 1986. He became only the fourth opener in Tests to be dismissed on 199 after Mudassar Nazar (1984), Matthew Elliott (1997) and Sanath Jayasuriya (1997).
Kannaur Lokesh Rahul palyed 199 runs astonishing inning
KL Rahul’s 199 in India’s first innings is also the most by an Indian opening batsman against England after Sunil Gavaskar’s 221 runs at the Oval in 1979. This is also KL Rahul’s personal best in Tests, surpassing 158 runs which he made against West Indies at Kingston this year.
Scored his Triple hundred in debut match
Karun Nair became the second Indian batsman to make a triple-hundred in Tests after Virender Sehwag. Sehwag achieved the feat twice in his Test career: 319 runs against South Africa at Chennai in 2007-08 and 309 runs against Pakistan at Multan in 2003-04. Nair became only the third batsman to convert a maiden Test century into a triple century. Nair’s 303 in this Test is also the third highest by a batsman batting at number five or lower in Tests. Nair took just three innings to make his first triple century in Test cricket, which is the least by any batsman. The quickest batsman to achieve that feat before him was Len Hutton, who made his first triple-century in nine innings. Nair scored 232 runs on the fourth day of this Test, which is the third most by any Indian batsman in a day’s play in Tests. The most runs by any batsman in a day’s play in Tests is 309 scored by Don Bradman, against England at Leeds in 1930 on the first day. Nair became the sixth Indian player to score a century in this series, the joint most for India in a Test series. India had six against New Zealand in 1955-56, against England in 1964-65 and against West Indies in 1978-79.
India made 759/7d in their first innings which is their highest innings total in Tests. Their previous highest total was 726/9d which they made against Sri Lanka at Mumbai (BS) in 2009. Overall, this was the seventh highest innings total in Tests. The highest innings total in Tests is 952/6d made by Sri Lanka against India at Colombo (RPS) in 1997.
Ravichandran Ashwin became the fifth player to score 300 runs and take 25 wickets in a Test series. The others who have achieved the feat are George Giffen (in 1894/95 v Eng), Aubrey Faulkner (in 1909/10 v Eng), Richie Benuad (in 1957/58 v SA) and Ian Botham (in 1981 v Aus). Ashwin scored 306 runs and took 28 wickets in the recently concluded Test series against England.
Ravindra Jadeja took 10 for 154 in this Test and it was his first ten-wicket haul in Test cricket. His figures of 7 for 48 in England’s second innings are his best figures in Tests. His previous best innings figure was 6 for 138 at Durban in 2013-14. Jadeja also became the first ever player in Test history to score a fifty, take a ten-wicket haul and take four catches in a Test match.
India won this Test by an innings and 75 runs and this was their eighteenth consecutive Test without a defeat which is now India’s longest ever unbeaten run. India’s previous longest unbeaten run was between September 1985 and March 1987 of 17 Tests.
Kohli has now led India in 18 successive Tests without a defeat, which is also the joint most for any Indian captain along with Sunil Gavaskar, who had also led India in 18 consecutive Tests without a defeat from 1976 to 1980. This was teh fourteenth win for Kohli in his first 22 Tests as a captain of India – the most for an Indian captain after 22 Tests.
This was India’s ninth win in Tests this year, which is also the most for India in a calendar year in Tests, going past eight victories in 2010. On the other hand, this was England’s eighth Test loss this year, which is the joint second most for any team behind Bangladesh’s nine in 2013.
India have found a terrific captain in Kohli who prioritized the team goals ahead of personal milestones which helped his young side achieve its full potential and win matches on a consistent basis. A record year in Tests saw India win nine out of the 12 matches that they played this year which helped them reclaim the top spot in the ICC Test rankings, which is also the most by the team in a calendar year, eclipsing the eight victories out of 14 in 2010. . Dhoni on the other hand, suffered a few losses at the beginning of the year but then managed to pull things back and clinch the Asia Cup title along with series wins against Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and New Zealand. The ODI series loss in Australia and the semi-final heartbreak in the World T20 were the two low points in Dhoni’s captaincy this year.
Jadeja (7/48) became the first all-rounder to post a fifty, capture 10 wickets or more and take four catches in a Test match. In the series, Ravichandran Ashwin (306 runs and 28 wickets) and Jadeja have provided the first instance in Test annals of two all-rounder’s achieving the double of 200 runs and 25 wickets in the same Test series. the second innings of the Chennai Test, Jadeja captured Alastair Cook’s wicket for the sixth time in the rubber — the most occasions a bowler has claimed his wicket in a Test series.
Jadeja is the fourth Indian all-rounder after Kapil Dev (thrice — once each vs Australia, Pakistan and England), Vinod Mankad and Ashwin to manage 200 runs or more and bag 20 wickets or more in the same Test series.
Nair is only the third batsman after the legendary Sir Garfield Sobers and Bob Simpson to have converted his debut Test hundred into a triple ton.
At 25 years and 10 days, he is the sixth-youngest batsman to record this triple ton feat. And having achieved this feat in just his third innings in Test cricket, he has become the quickest batsman to score his maiden triple ton.
Virat Kohli received his first Player of the Series award in Tests for totaling 655 runs at an average of 109.16, including two hundreds. England, with defeats at Mumbai and Chennai Tests, have earned a dubious distinction of recording successive defeats by an innings margin despite scoring 400 or more runs in both the matches — the first team to do so.
SOME PERFORMANCE OF TEAM INDIA
T20I Series in Australia: India sweep series 3-0
Team India vanquish Australia
After a disappointing ODI series against Australia, Dhoni and his boys came back fighting in the following T20I series. India lost four ODIs on-the-trot at first but then won the final ODI thanks to Manish Pandey’s unbeaten maiden hundred which helped the Men in Blue chase down a mammoth target of 331. Virat Kohli then took over and stole the show in the subsequent three-match T20I series, scoring half-centuries in all the matches as India whitewashed the Aussies 3-0 to end their tour Down Under on a high.
T20I Series vs Sri Lanka: India won 2-1
Winning series against Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka then came to India in February for a short three-match T20I series which gave both teams a chance to prepare for the Asia Cup in Bangladesh in March. The visitors immediately made a mark by hammering India by 5 wickets in the first match in Pune. Dhoni quickly realized that the Lankans meant business. A star-studded Indian team which included the likes of Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra and Suresh Raina along with Kohli, Dhoni and Ashwin then sorted out the flaws in their game and hit back in the next two games, winning by 69 runs and 9 wickets at Ranchi and Vizag respectively as India took the series 2-1
ODI Series vs New Zealand: India won 3-2
Winning series against Kiwis
After hammering New Zealand in the three-match Test series, Dhoni’s team came up against a determined Kiwi side who had payback on their mind. After losing the first ODI by 6 wickets, New Zealand hit back hard and clinched the second match in Delhi to register their first win on the tour. The see-saw battle continued as India won the third match while the Kiwis took the honors in the fourth game to setup a thrilling final at Vizag. Throughout the series New Zealand’s performance was at par with the hosts but they lost all steam in the summit clash which proved to be a one-sided affair. Amit Mishra completely destroyed the Kiwi batting lineup with his five-wicket haul as India won the match by 190 runs to take the series 3-2 and end their limited-over’s campaign on a high.
ODI Series in Australia: India lost 1-4
Dhoni’s captaincy came under the scanner in the very first assignment of the year as India faced Australia in a five-ODI series Down Under. Even though the batsmen hit form and players like Rohit and Kohli scored more runs than any other batsmen from either side, it was India’s bowling which suffered the most. In fact bowlers from either side had a series to forget as the pitches on offer were flat and completely in favor of the batsmen. The first two matches of the series saw India posting totals in excess of 300 but they still ended up on the losing side while in the third game the Aussies chased down 295 to take an unassailable series lead. Manish Pandey’s unbeaten maiden hundred in the final game saw India register a consolation win as Australia took the series 4-1.
World T20: India knocked out in semi-finals
India’s campaign in the World T20 began with a disappointing loss against New Zealand in the opening match. India has never beaten New Zealand in T20Is and the unfortunate record still stands. But India bounced back with a bang in the next three games and they defeated arch-rivals Pakistan, Bangladesh and then hammered Australia in the quarter-finals thanks to a Virat Kohli master class which was probably one of the best T20 knocks anybody has ever seen. Kohli smashed an unbeaten 82 in the match to power India to a six-wicket win in Mohali and setup a semi-final clash against the West Indies.
Kohli fired once again with an unbeaten 89 while crucial contributions from openers Rohit Sharma 43 and Ajinkya Rahane 40 propelled India to 192 in 20 overs. But Lendl Simmons, who plays for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, blew away the hosts with a brutal knock of 82 from 51 balls at the Wankhede to take his team into the finals. The 2012 champions then hammered England in the summit clash to become the first team in history to win the World T20 title twice. Indian cricket fans were left heartbroken after the home side’s exit in the last-four stage but West Indies’ victory in the final brought the smile back on their faces thanks to the Caribbean players’ popularity here in India.
MICROMAX ASIA CUP T20 2016
India won the match by defeating host Bangladesh. India won the match by 8 wickets.
Under MS Dhoni’s able leadership, India have won eight multi-nation tournaments. He finds himself in the fourth place in that regard.MS Dhoni also became the first Indian to thump 300 international sixes.MS Dhoni has ended a T20I with a six on three occasions now (successful run-chases).This is also the second occasion that India have won the Asia Cup, with MS Dhoni as the captain.India have now won all their eight encounters batting second in T20Is in Mirpur. This was the first time, India took part in a rain curtailed game in T20Is. The Indian camp would be pleased that they ended up on the winning side.It is also their seventh successive victory in T20Is. It equals India’s best run in this format of the game.This is already the most number of matches that India have won in a calendar year in T20Is.
India have been on a roll in the shortest format of the game, in recent times. They have won 10 out of their last 11 encounters. Their only loss in that period came against Sri Lanka in Pune. This is the sixth time, India have won the Asia Cup. As a result, India have now won the most number of Asia Cups. India also had emerged triumphant in the inaugural Asia Cup in 1983-84 in Sharjah (50-over format).
Man of the Series: Sabbir Rahman; He scored 176 runs across 5 matches, at a SR of nearly 124.
Man of the Match: Shikhar Dhawan; He scored 60 off 44 balls, at a SR of 136.36. He smashed 9 boundaries and 1 six.
ACHIEVEMENTS BY WOMEN CRICKET TEAM OF INDIA
The Women’s Asia Cup T20 2016 trophy has been bagged by the Indian cricket team who has emerged out to be the winner of the tournament for the sixth time in the history. Defeating Pakistan in the finals by a margin of 15 runs, the team has earned one more feather to their cap.
Indian Women Cricket Team Winning Asia Cup by vanquishing Pakistan
However, the journey of the team had not been a bed of roses with as many as 6 Asian teams participating in tournament. Along with India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and Thailand too were in utter conflict to win the tournament.
But fortune favors the brave and so it did for the Indian team who emerged out to be the ultimate winners. Here’s the journey of Indian cricket team in the tournament, where they did not face even a single defeat:
1st Match: India Women vs. Bangladesh Women
Indian Women won the match hands down by margin of 64 runs
2nd Match: India Women vs. Thailand Women
Indian Women won the match by 9 wickets after containing Thailand on 69 runs.
Player of the Match: Mansi Joshi
3rd Match India Women vs Pakistan Women
Indian Women won the match by 5 wickets
Player of the Match: Harmanpreet Kaur
4th Match: India Women vs. Sri Lanka Women
Indian Women won the match by a margin of 52 runs
Player of the Match: Mithali Raj
5th Match: India Women vs. Nepal Women
Indian Women won by 99 runs having contained the opposition to a score of 21 runs.
Final: India Women Vs Pakistan Women
Indian Women team won the match by 17 runs and subsequently won the tournament.
Player of the Match: Mithali Raj
The Player of the Series award was bagged by Indian opener Mithali Raj for her spectacular contributions with the bat in almost every match.
PERFORMANCE OF UNDER19 CRICKET TEAM OF INDIA
Riding on an impressive all-round performance by skipper Abhishek Sharma (29 runs and 4/37), India colts beat Sri Lanka to win the ACC Under-19 Asia Cup title in Colombo on Friday. With the victory, India completed a hat-trick of Asia Cup titles as they had won the previous one in UAE (2014) and shared the inaugural tournament with Pakistan in Malaysia (2012).
Winner of U19 Asia Cup 2016
India, coached by the batting legend Rahul Dravid, defeated the hosts by 34 runs in final.
Chasing a 274-run target, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 239 in 48.4 overs. Sri Lanka started the chase in top gear, scoring 27 for no loss in three overs, but soon lost Vishva Chathuranga in the fourth. The wicket did not slow the chase though as Reven Kelly and Hasitha Boyagoda took Sri Lanka to 75/1 after ten overs. The introduction of spinners slowed down the Lankans and while trying to increase the run rate they lost Boyagoda (37) to Abhishek Sharma in the 19th over to be at 105/2.
Kelly continued to play solidly and with his captain Kamindu Mendis took Sri Lanka over 150-run mark. But after reaching his fifty, Kelly became the second victim of Sharma in the 31st over. Kelly’s watchful knock of 61 came off 101 balls and included a six and five boundaries.
The scale kept tilting in favour of the Lankans as Mendis and Krishna Arachchige scored freely, before spinner Rahul Chahar took a brilliant catch off his own bowling to dismiss Arachchige for 14. The hosts’ situation worsened with another wicket soon, this time through a run out, to be stranded at 201/5 in the 41st over.
Sharma then removed his counterpart Mendis for 53 and made Weerasingha his fourth scalp to finish his spell at 10-1-37-4. Chahar complimented his captain well as he reduced Sri Lanka to 225/9 with a double strike in one over and finished with impressive figures of 3/22 in ten overs.
Earlier after electing to bat first, Himanshu Rana and Shubman Gill scored impressive fifties to help India post a competitive total of 273/8. The duo added a crucial 88 runs for the second wicket after Rana gave India a good start with opening partner Prithvi Shaw (39).
India openers took the score to 67 before Praveen Jayawickrama dismissed Shaw in the 12th over. Shaw hit six boundaries in his 36-ball knock, whereas Rana smashed a six and six fours to top the scoring list with 79 off 71 balls.
India enjoyed a decent stand again when Gill stitched 43 for the third wicket with Sharma, who played a watchful innings of 29 off 44 balls. But the wicket of Gill in the 44th over after scoring 70 off 90 balls, with India at 224/4, ensued a middle-order collapse as they lost next three wickets in one over to pacer Nipun Ransika. Ransika’s (3/50) triple strike reduced India to 245/7 in 46.5 overs from 244/4 after 46 overs.
A late charged by Kamlesh Nagarkoti, 23 off 14 balls, who hit a six and a four, guided India to a challenging total.
Brief Scores: India 273/8 (Rana 71, Gill 70; Ransika 3/50) beat Sri Lanka 239 by 34 runs (Kelly 62, Mendis 53; Sharma 4/37)
Man of the Match: Abhishek Sharma (Captain)
Man of the Series: Himanshu Rana (Opener of team); He got a century in the semi-final and a half-century in final match.
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