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Ahead of the first Test between India and England in Rajkot, Rajneesh Gupta looks at the two teams and their numbers.
India will try to preserve its four-year unbeaten record at home, when they take on England in a five test series, that begins in Rajkot on Wednesday, November 9.
England were the last team to beat India at home -- in 2012, and this time around Virat Kohli & his boys will be gunning for revenge against the visitors who collapsed against Bangladesh's spinners last fortnight.
India, the World No 1 team, boasts a terrific batting line-up led by the swashbuckling Virat Kohli and his deputy, the ever-consistent Ajinkya Rahane.
There are also rocks at the top of the order: Openers Murali Vijay and Gautam Gambhir with Cheteshwar Pujara, coming in at one drop.
The bowling will be again India's forte, with spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin leading the way and Ravindra Jadeja playing the supporting role to perfection. The experienced Amit Mishra too can be a handful in helpful conditions.
Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav form a formidable pace attack for the hosts.
The numbers for the Indian team:
India
Batting and Fielding
| Matches | Innings | Not Out | Runs | HS | Avg | 100s | 50s | 0s | Ct/Stumped | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 39 | 55 | 10 | 1,510 | 124 | 33.56 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 17 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 57 | 102 | 5 | 4,125 | 206 | 42.53 | 9 | 22 | 6 | 38 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 20 | 31 | 5 | 624 | 68 | 24.00 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 17 |
| Virat Kohli | 48 | 82 | 4 | 3,554 | 211 | 45.56 | 13 | 12 | 4 | 45 |
| Amit Mishra | 20 | 31 | 2 | 648 | 84 | 22.34 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Mohammed Shami | 19 | 25 | 8 | 198 | 51* | 11.65 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| Karun Nair | 0 | |||||||||
| Hardik Pandya | 0 | |||||||||
| Cheteshwar Pujara | 38 | 64 | 6 | 2,855 | 206* | 49.22 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 28 |
| Ajinkya Rahane | 29 | 50 | 7 | 2,209 | 188 | 51.37 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 34 |
| Wriddhiman Saha | 18 | 26 | 4 | 684 | 104 | 31.09 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 25/7 |
| Ishant Sharma | 72 | 101 | 38 | 550 | 31* | 8.73 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 14 |
| Murali Vijay | 42 | 72 | 1 | 2,823 | 167 | 39.76 | 6 | 14 | 4 | 34 |
| Jayant Yadav | 0 | |||||||||
| Umesh Yadav | 21 | 24 | 8 | 137 | 30 | 8.56 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
India
Bowling
| Matches | Balls | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Best | Avg | SR |
5 Wickets in an Innings | 10 Wickets in a Match | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 39 | 10,889 | 377 | 5,344 | 220 | 7/59 | 24.29 | 49.50 | 21 | 6 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 57 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0/4 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 20 | 5,310 | 249 | 2,000 | 85 | 6/138 | 23.53 | 62.47 | 5 | 0 |
| Virat Kohli | 48 | 150 | 2 | 70 | 0 | 0/0 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Amit Mishra | 20 | 4,648 | 111 | 2,441 | 71 | 5/71 | 34.38 | 65.46 | 1 | 0 |
| Mohammed Shami | 19 | 3,688 | 92 | 2,226 | 66 | 5/47 | 33.73 | 55.88 | 2 | 0 |
| Karun Nair | 0 | |||||||||
| Hardik Pandya | 0 | |||||||||
| Cheteshwar Pujara | 38 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0/2 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Ajinkya Rahane | 29 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Wriddhiman Saha | 18 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Ishant Sharma | 72 | 13,923 | 447 | 7,674 | 209 | 7/74 | 36.72 | 66.62 | 7 | 1 |
| Murali Vijay | 42 | 306 | 5 | 147 | 1 | 1/12 | 147.00 | 306.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Jayant Yadav | 0 | |||||||||
| Umesh Yadav | 21 | 3,396 | 100 | 2,184 | 60 | 5/93 | 36.40 | 56.60 | 1 | 0 |
The Indian team's record against England
Batting and Fielding
| Matches | Innings | Not Out | Runs | HS | Avg | 100s | 50s | 0s | Ct/Stumped | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 6 | 10 | 3 | 349 | 91* | 49.86 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 11 | 20 | 0 | 739 | 179 | 36.95 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 8 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 5 | 9 | 0 | 189 | 68 | 21.00 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Virat Kohli | 9 | 17 | 1 | 322 | 103 | 20.13 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Amit Mishra | 4 | 6 | 0 | 188 | 84 | 31.33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Mohammed Shami | 3 | 6 | 2 | 79 | 51* | 19.75 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Cheteshwar Pujara | 9 | 17 | 2 | 660 | 206* | 44.00 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Ajinkya Rahane | 5 | 10 | 1 | 299 | 103 | 33.22 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Ishant Sharma | 11 | 19 | 8 | 80 | 13 | 7.27 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Murali Vijay | 5 | 10 | 0 | 402 | 146 | 40.20 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Umesh Yadav | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
The Indian team's record against England
Bowling
| Matches | Balls | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Best | Avg | SR | 5 Wickets in an Innings | 10 Wickets in a Match | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 6 | 1,634 | 51 | 838 | 17 | 3/72 | 49.29 | 96.12 | 0 | 0 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 11 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0/4 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 5 | 1,356 | 59 | 537 | 12 | 3/52 | 44.75 | 113.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Virat Kohli | 9 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Amit Mishra | 4 | 984 | 13 | 576 | 9 | 3/99 | 64.00 | 109.33 | 0 | 0 |
| Mohammed Shami | 3 | 576 | 15 | 366 | 5 | 2/128 | 73.20 | 115.20 | 0 | 0 |
| Cheteshwar Pujara | 9 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Ajinkya Rahane | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Ishant Sharma | 11 | 2,520 | 81 | 1,341 | 35 | 7/74 | 38.31 | 72.00 | 1 | 0 |
| Murali Vijay | 5 | 60 | 1 | 32 | 1 | 1/12 | 32.00 | 60.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Umesh Yadav | 1 | 180 | 4 | 84 | 4 | 3/70 | 21.00 | 45.00 | 0 | 0 |
England cannot be taken lightly.
Captain Alastair Cook is a consistent performer with the bat and has a superb record against India in Tests, scoring 1,735 runs in 20 Tests at an average of 54, with 5 100s and 7 50s.
Joe Root has a Bradmanesque record against India, averaging an astonishing 101 with 611 runs in 6 Tests, with 2 100s and 4 50s.
All-rounder Ben Stokes is formidable with both bat and ball. Moeen Ali will again look to torment India with his off-spin after his successful showing against the same opposition in 2014, claiming 19 wickets in 5 Tests.
Pacer Stuart Broad, who is just one match from a landmark 100 Tests, can produce amazing spells even on slow wickets.
England
Batting and Fielding
| Matches | Innings | Not Out | Runs | HS | Avg | 100s | 50s | 0s | Ct/Stumped | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moeen Ali | 32 | 53 | 7 | 1,546 | 155* | 33.61 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 16 |
| Zafar Ansari | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 13 | 6.50 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jonny Bairstow | 33 | 56 | 5 | 2,083 | 167* | 40.84 | 3 | 11 | 3 | 82/3 |
| Jake Ball | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 3.50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gary Ballance | 21 | 38 | 2 | 1,413 | 156 | 39.25 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
| Gareth Batty | 8 | 10 | 2 | 148 | 38 | 18.50 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Stuart Broad | 99 | 140 | 18 | 2,647 | 169 | 21.70 | 1 | 10 | 20 | 32 |
| Jos Buttler | 15 | 24 | 3 | 630 | 85 | 30.00 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 49 |
| Alastair Cook | 135 | 243 | 15 | 10,688 | 294 | 46.88 | 29 | 52 | 8 | 138 |
| Ben Duckett | 2 | 4 | 0 | 92 | 56 | 23.00 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Steven Finn | 36 | 47 | 22 | 279 | 56 | 11.16 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 8 |
| Haseeb Hameed | 0 | |||||||||
| Adil Rashid | 5 | 9 | 1 | 182 | 61 | 22.75 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Joe Root | 48 | 88 | 11 | 4,103 | 254 | 53.29 | 10 | 23 | 3 | 60 |
| Ben Stokes | 27 | 47 | 0 | 1,557 | 258 | 33.13 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 17 |
| Chris Woakes | 14 | 23 | 8 | 521 | 66 | 34.73 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
England
Bowling
| Matches | Balls | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Best | Avg | SR | 5 Wickets in an Innings | 10 Wickets in a Match | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moeen Ali | 32 | 5,537 | 139 | 3,489 | 88 | 6/67 | 39.65 | 62.92 | 2 | 0 |
| Zafar Ansari | 1 | 150 | 0 | 112 | 2 | 2/76 | 56.00 | 75.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonny Bairstow | 33 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Jake Ball | 1 | 210 | 12 | 88 | 1 | 1/51 | 88.00 | 210.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Gary Ballance | 21 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0/0 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Gareth Batty | 8 | 1,598 | 38 | 849 | 15 | 3/55 | 56.60 | 106.53 | 0 | 0 |
| Stuart Broad | 99 | 20,466 | 763 | 10,255 | 360 | 8/15 | 28.49 | 56.85 | 15 | 2 |
| Jos Buttler | 15 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Alastair Cook | 135 | 18 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1/6 | 7.00 | 18.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Ben Duckett | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Steven Finn | 36 | 6,412 | 190 | 3,800 | 125 | 6/79 | 30.40 | 51.30 | 5 | 0 |
| Haseeb Hameed | 0 | |||||||||
| Adil Rashid | 5 | 1,150 | 13 | 765 | 15 | 5/64 | 51.00 | 76.67 | 1 | 0 |
| Joe Root | 48 | 1,331 | 53 | 664 | 13 | 2/9 | 51.08 | 102.38 | 0 | 0 |
| Ben Stokes | 27 | 4,157 | 125 | 2,366 | 71 | 6/36 | 33.32 | 58.55 | 2 | 0 |
| Chris Woakes | 14 | 2,288 | 96 | 1,164 | 45 | 6/70 | 25.87 | 50.84 | 2 | 1 |
The England team's record against India
Batting and Fielding
| Matches | Innings | Not Out | Runs | HS | Avg | 100s | 50s | 0s | Ct/Stumped | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moeen Ali | 5 | 6 | 0 | 124 | 39 | 20.67 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Jonny Bairstow | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 9.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Gary Ballance | 5 | 7 | 0 | 503 | 156 | 71.86 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Stuart Broad | 12 | 13 | 2 | 325 | 74* | 29.55 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Jos Buttler | 3 | 3 | 0 | 200 | 85 | 66.67 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 |
| Alastair Cook | 20 | 35 | 3 | 1,735 | 294 | 54.22 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 22 |
| Steven Finn | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4* | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Root | 6 | 9 | 3 | 611 | 154* | 101.83 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 6 |
| Ben Stokes | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Chris Woakes | 3 | 3 | 2 | 33 | 26* | 33.00 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
The England team's record against India
Bowling
| Matches | Balls | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Best | Avg | SR | 5 Wickets in an Innings | 10 Wickets in a Match | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moeen Ali | 5 | 742 | 16 | 437 | 19 | 6/67 | 23.00 | 39.05 | 1 | 0 |
| Jonny Bairstow | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gary Ballance | 5 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0/0 | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| Stuart Broad | 12 | 2,419 | 113 | 1,074 | 46 | 6/25 | 23.35 | 52.59 | 2 | 0 |
| Jos Buttler | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Alastair Cook | 20 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1/6 | 6.00 | 12.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Steven Finn | 1 | 234 | 8 | 118 | 4 | 3/45 | 29.50 | 58.50 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Root | 6 | 96 | 4 | 38 | 1 | 1/5 | 38.00 | 96.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Ben Stokes | 2 | 527 | 16 | 232 | 7 | 3/51 | 33.14 | 75.29 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Woakes | 3 | 426 | 21 | 217 | 5 | 3/30 | 43.40 | 85.20 | 0 | 0 |