India’s biggest win outside the subcontinent (by innings margin):
Margin |
Opponent |
Venue |
Season |
Captain |
Inns 92 runs |
West Indies |
North Sound |
2016 |
Virat Kohli |
Inns 90 runs |
Zimbabwe |
Bulawayo |
2005 |
Sourav Ganguly |
Inns 46 runs |
England |
Leeds |
2002 |
Sourav Ganguly |
Inns 2 runs |
Australia |
Sydney |
1977-78 |
Bishan Singh Bedi |
The defeat is the biggest ever for West Indies at home.
Margin |
Opponent |
Venue |
Season |
Inns 92 runs |
West Indies |
North Sound |
2016 |
Inns 86 runs |
South Africa |
Bridgetown |
2004-05 |
Inns 53 runs |
Australia |
Kingston |
1994-95 |
Inns 1 run |
Pakistan |
Port-of-Spain |
1957-58 |
The innings win was India's first under Virat Kohli and 35th overall. The break-up of India's innings wins is as under:
Opponent |
Inns wins |
Sri Lanka |
8 |
West Indies |
5 |
Australia |
4 |
England |
4 |
New Zealand |
4 |
Bangladesh |
3 |
Pakistan |
3 |
Zimbabwe |
3 |
South Africa |
1 |
(TOTAL) |
35 |
The win was India's only sixth Test victory in the West Indies. The first one came under Ajit Wadekar in March 1971 when the visitors won by seven wickets at Port of Spain.
Month/Year |
Venue |
Margin of win |
Captain |
Mar 1971 |
Port-of-Spain |
7 wickets |
Ajit Wadekar |
Apr 1976 |
Port-of-Spain |
6 wickets |
Bishan Singh Bedi |
Apr 2002 |
Port-of-Spain |
37 runs |
Sourav Ganguly |
Jul 2006 |
Kingston |
49 runs |
Rahul Dravid |
Jun 2011 |
Kingston |
63 runs |
MS Dhoni |
Jul 2016 |
North Sound |
Inns 92 runs |
Virat Kohli |
Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who went wicketless in the first innings, registered wonderful figures of seven for 83 in the second innings -- the best figures by an Indian bowler in the West Indies.
Bowler |
Figures |
Venue |
Season |
R Ashwin |
7/83 |
North Sound |
2016 |
Subhash Gupte |
7/162 |
Port-of-Spain |
1952-53 |
Anil Kumble |
6/78 |
Kingston |
2006 |
Bhagwat Chandrasekhar |
6/120 |
Port-of-Spain |
1975-76 |
Harbhajan Singh |
5/13 |
Kingston |
2006 |
Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who went wicketless in the first innings, registered wonderful figures of seven for 83 in the second innings -- the best figures by an Indian bowler in the West Indies.
Bowler |
Figures |
Venue |
Season |
R Ashwin |
7/83 |
North Sound |
2016 |
Subhash Gupte |
7/162 |
Port-of-Spain |
1952-53 |
Anil Kumble |
6/78 |
Kingston |
2006 |
Bhagwat Chandrasekhar |
6/120 |
Port-of-Spain |
1975-76 |
Harbhajan Singh |
5/13 |
Kingston |
2006 |
Ashwin's figures are also the third best by a spinner for a visiting side in West Indies.
The details:
Bowler |
For |
Figures |
Venue |
Season |
Ian Johnson |
Aus |
7/44 |
Georgetown |
1954-55 |
Eric Hollies |
Eng |
7/50 |
Georgetown |
1934-35 |
R Ashwin |
Ind |
7/83 |
North Sound |
2016 |
Jim Laker |
Eng |
7/103 |
Bridgetown |
1947-48 |
Subhash Gupte |
Ind |
7/162 |
Port-of-Spain |
1952-53 |
Ashwin recorded the third best figures by an Indian spinner outside India. Off-spinner Erapallia Prasanna has the best figures by an India spinner overseas as he claimed eight for 76 against New Zealand in Auckland in 1975-76, while current coach Anil Kumble is second with eight for 141 against Australia in Sydney in 2003-04.
Bowler |
Figures |
Vs |
Venue |
Season |
Erapalli Prasanna |
8/76 |
NZ |
Auckland |
1975-76 |
Anil Kumble |
8/141 |
Aus |
Sydney |
2003-04 |
R Ashwin |
7/83 |
WI |
North Sound |
2016 |
Harbhajan Singh |
7/120 |
SA |
Cape Town |
2010-11 |
Subhash Gupte |
7/162 |
WI |
Port-of-Spain |
1952-53 |
Incidentally, Ashwin's seven for 83 is also his personal best bowling figures in Test cricket, eclipsing the six for 46 against Sri Lanka at Galle in 2015. His previous best outside the subcontinent was four for 105 against Australia at Sydney in 2014-15.
Ashwin has scored a century and claimed a five-wicket haul in the same Test on two occasions. He is the first Indian to do so more than once. Vinoo Mankad and Polly Umrigar are the other Indians to accomplish this feat.
Interestingly, the previous such instance for Ashwin had also come against West Indies!
Player |
Performance |
Vs |
Venue |
Season |
Vinoo Mankad |
184 + 5/196 |
England |
Lord's |
1952 |
Polly Umrigar |
172*+ 5/107 |
West Indies |
Port-of-Spain |
1961-62 |
R Ashwin |
103 + 5/156 |
West Indies |
Mumbai WS |
2011-12 |
R Ashwin |
113 + 7/83 |
West Indies |
North Sound |
2016-17 |
Ashwin has joined some great names in accomplishing the all-round feat of scoring a century and taking a five-wicket haul in the same Test on more than one occasion.
Only Ian Botham has done so more often, having achieved the feat five times during his 102-Test career.
Instances |
Player |
Tests |
5 |
Ian Botham (Eng) |
102 |
2 |
R Ashwin (Ind) |
33 |
2 |
Shakib Al Hasan (B'desh) |
42 |
2 |
Mushtaq Mohammad (Pak) |
57 |
2 |
Garry Sobers (WI) |
93 |
2 |
Jacques Kallis (SA) |
166 |
Ashwin has taken 17 five-wicket hauls in 33 Tests. Only two bowlers had taken more five-wicket hauls at the similar stage of career – Syd Barnes (24) and Waqar Younis (19). Interestingly, Barnes played only 27 Tests.
India extended their undefeated streak against West Indies to 16 Tests. They have won nine and drawn seven of these Tests.
India are on a roll at the moment in Test cricket, having won six out of their last seven matches.
Virat Kohli's Test captaincy record reads: Matches: 11, Won: 6, Lost: 2, Drawn: 3