India in ICC World Test Championship
India were one of the best performers in the inaugural edition of the ICC World Test Championship that ran for two years between 2019 and 2021. Virat Kohli and his men qualified for the Grand Finale against New Zealand at the iconic Lord’s after bossing the WTC points table throughout that period of two years. India, however, lost the final pretty badly as they went down to the Kiwis by eight wickets.
But there were plenty of moments to cherish on their way to the final. The Indian team registered a memorable series win in Australia even after losing many key players due to injuries.
The youngsters stood up in their absence and powered the Asian giants to a memorable 2-1 win Down Under. They also registered a commanding performance against England in the following series at home and thus crushed the English team’s chances of making it to the WTC Final.
Who Holds the World Test Championship Records for India?
Middle-order batter Ajinkya Rahane was the highest run-scorer for India in the inaugural World Test Championship Cycle (2019-20). Rahane amassed 1159 runs in 18 matches at an average of 42.92, including three centuries and six fifties.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were next in the list of most runs for India in that cycle, with 1094 and 934 runs to their names respectively. Kohli holds the record for the highest score by an Indian in a WTC cycle though. He scored an unbeaten 254 against South Africa in Pune in 2019.
As far as the bowling records go, Ravichandran Ashwin finished as the highest wicket-taker, not just for India but in the entire WTC cycle. Ashwin picked up 71 wickets in just 14 matches, at a superb average of 20.33. He best bowling effort in the cycle, figures of 7/145, came against South Africa at home in 2019.
While that is the record for the best bowling figures in an innings by an Indian in that WTC cycle, the record for the best bowling figures in a match is held by Axar Patel. The left-arm spinner picked up 11/70 against England in Ahmedabad in 2021.
How Are India Performing in the World Test Championship?
India are currently sitting in third place in the ongoing World Test Championship (2021-23) Cycle with a Percentage of 58.33. They have also played the most number of matches among all teams so far. India have won six, lost three and drawn two out of the 12 matches they have played in this WTC cycle, with one match yielding no result at all.
In the current cycle, KL Rahul is India’s highest run-scorer with 541 runs at an average of 38.64. That includes two hundreds and an equal number of fifties.
Rishabh Pant is second in the list with 517 runs to his name whereas Rohit Sharma is in third place with 458 runs. In terms of bowling, Jasprit Bumrah is leading the charts with 40 wickets at an average of 18.65. Mohammed Shami is in second place with 30 wickets to his name whereas Ravichandran Ashwin is third with 29 wickets.
