India has not achieved a single victory at the Old Trafford Cricket Ground in Manchester
Trailing in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy by 2-1 after losing the nail-biting match at Lord's, India's next and fourth game of the series is at the Old Trafford Cricket Ground, an iconic venue in the history of Test cricket where India has never registered a victory.
However, this venue is historic for India as well, despite its share of draws and defeats. This is the ground where India achieved many firsts—facts from Indian history that today's fans may not be aware of.
The year was 1936—India was playing its first Test against England at Old Trafford. The English team had an upper hand in the pre-independence era, reducing India's batting lineup to a mere 203 in the first innings.
In response, the Indian bowling couldn't do much either. England batters ploughed through the efforts of the Indian bowling side, scoring 571 against India's 2023.
(Credit- ESPNcricinfo Ltd)
India had a monumental task, and in the minds of many, the game was lost before it even began. However, the late Vijay Merchant and later Mushtaq Ali were determined not to give up. Playing one ball at a time, Merchant faced 255 deliveries and scored 114 runs. On the other hand, to keep the scoreboard rotating fast, Ali hit 112 runs in 150 balls.
Suddenly, India were back in the game, securing a draw with their first two overseas centuries.
Another first for India, i.e., the first fifers overseas, also took place at Manchester. 10 years after the draw, India visited England for another tour in 1946. England had chosen to bat first, hoping to bash the Indian bowlers, as the team had done on multiple previous occasions.
(Credit- ESPNcricinfo Ltd)
Sadly, England's plans were thwarted by the duo of Lala Amarnath and Vinoo Mankad. Amarnath, after bowling 51 overs, picked five wickets at an economy of 1.88, whereas Mankad also picked five at an economy of 2.19. Together, the bowlers dismantled England, who managed only 294 runs in their first innings.
The game ended in a draw.
This achievement wasn't the team's but rather that of an individual player who was equivalent to the team for nearly three decades. Before going into his ninth Test game, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar had three fifties, but the youngster was desperately looking for a 100.
In the 1990 England versus India game, England posted 519 runs in their first innings. India responded with Sanjay Manjrekar's 93 and Mohammad Azharuddin's 179. Tendulkar, too, had scored 68 runs, but despite the effort by three players, India succumbed to 432.
(Credit- ESPNcricinfo Ltd)
The second innings saw England score 320, but the top order of the Indian lineup faltered. That's when a young Sachin Tendulkar stepped up and scored a not-out 119 runs at Old Trafford, marking his arrival in style in front of the English crowd.
India did not win the game, but Tendulkar's batting prowess in the second innings saved India from defeat.
