The Rise and Evolution of the Indian Cricket Team

 Introduction

• Overview of the Indian Cricket Team

* In men's international cricket, India is represented by the men's national cricket team. It is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) having status for Test, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket, and it is overseen by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). India is the current Twenty20 World Cup champion and Asian champion.

After 579 Test matches, the team has won 178, lost 178, drawn 222, and tied one. India is currently rated second in the ICC Test Championship with 120 rating points as of August 2024. India participated in every World Test Championship final, coming in second in 2023 and 2021.

1. History of the Indian Cricket Team

Formation and Early Years

Test match status (1918-1970)

India was first invited to join the International Cricket Council in 1926. Under the leadership of CK Nayudu, who was regarded as the best batter in India at the time, the country played its first Test match in England in 1932.The two teams' lone Test match was place at London's Lord's. The squad lost by 158 runs at this point because their batting was lackingIn 1933, India hosted the first-ever men's Test cricket series. The visiting side that played two Test matches in Bombay (now Mumbai) and Calcutta (now Kolkata) was England. The series was won 2-0 by the visitors.Even though the Indian team was getting better throughout the 1930s and 1940s, they were unable to win an international championship at this time. Within]Additionally, it was India's first Test series that it did not play against England. In his final Australian summer, Bradman tormented the Indian bowling attack as the men's cricket team from Australia won the five-match series 4-0.After that, in 1948, India hosted their first Test series—against the West Indies, not England. The five Test series were won by West Indies 1-0.In their twenty-fourth match, India defeated England in the Test series in Madras, 1952.They triumphed in their debut Test series against Pakistan later that year. They triumphed over New Zealand in a series in 1956 as they kept up their progress during the early 1950s. Nevertheless, they suffered crushing losses against formidable English and Australian teams during the rest of the decade and did not win again. The Test match ended with India losing by an innings on August 24, 1959, culminating in England's only ever 5–0 rout. India gained a reputation as a squad with a solid home record during the ensuing ten years. They won a home series against New Zealand as well as their maiden Test series against England in 1961–1962. They were able to draw two series at home, one against England and the other against Pakistan and Australia. During the same time frame, India defeated New Zealand in 1967–68 to win its first series played outside of the subcontinent.

The Indian spin quartet of Bishan Singh Bedi, E. A. S. Prasanna, B. S. Chandrasekhar, and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan was crucial to India's bowling success in the 1970s. During this time, Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath, two of India's greatest batsmen ever, also rose to prominence. The spin quartet took use of the tendency of Indian pitches to encourage spin in order to disintegrate opposing batting lineups.Under Ajit Wadekar's leadership, these players were in charge of the West Indies and England's back-to-back series victories in 1971. In the West Indian series, Gavaskar amassed 774 runs, while Dip Sardesai's 112 was a major factor in their lone Test victory.

• One-day cricket and ICC Cricket World Cup success (1970–1985)

A new chapter in the history of cricket was written in 1971 with the introduction of men's One Day International (ODI) cricket. But at this moment, India was not seen as a formidable team in One-Day Internationals, and players like captain Gavaskar were renowned for their defensive style of batting. In the first two Cricket World Cups, India was a poor side to start in the One-Day Internationals and failed to make it past the first round.[35]In the inaugural World Cup in 1975, Gavaskar memorably blocked his way to 36 not out off 174 balls against England; India managed just 132 for 3 and lost by 202 runs.

On the other hand, India produced a formidable side in Test matches, and they were especially formidable at home, when their potent combination of attractive batsmen and alluring spinners was at its peak. With 112 from Viswanath, India pursued 403 to win in the third Test match against the West Indies in Port-of-Spain in 1976, setting a then-test record.When the team played New Zealand in Kanpur in November 1976, they set a new record of 524 for 9 declared, all without a century from a single batsman.There were six fifties, with Mohinder Amarnath having the highest at seventy.There have only been eight Test cricket innings in which every batsman among the eleven had a double figure score.

A graph from 1932 to September 2006 that displays India's performance in Test matches against all other Test match teams

India's batting lineup in the 1980s became more attack-oriented, including wristy players like Mahendra Singh Chopra, Dipendra Vengsarkar, and all-rounders Kapil Dev and Ravi Shastri. Thanks to an impressive bowling display, India defeated the favourites and the two-time defending champions West Indies in the final at Lord's to win the Cricket World Cup in 1983. Despite this, the team did not do well in the Test arena, going 28 Test matches without winning. India won the Asia Cup in 1984 and the World Cricket Championship in Australia in 1985. India was still a poor team outside of the Indian subcontinent aside from this. For the next 19 years, India's triumph in the 1986 Test series against England was the last time the subcontinent had won a Test series. At the height of their careers were Gavaskar and Kapil Dev (now the best all-rounder in India). Gavaskar became the first man to surpass 10,000 runs, setting a Test record with 34 hundreds. Later, with 434 wickets, Kapil Dev became the top wicket-taker in Test cricket.Another characteristic of the time was the erratic leadership of Gavaskar and Kapil, who alternated as captains multiple times.

• Late 20th century (1985–2000)

The team was considerably enhanced in 1989 and 1990 with the inclusion of Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble to the national team. The year after, India's quickest bowler since Amar Singh made his debut, Jagagal Srinath. In spite of this, India won 17 of the 30 Tests played at home during the 1990s while losing none of the 33 Tests played outside the subcontinent. The 1996 Cricket World Cup semi-final saw the team ousted by rivals Sri Lanka on home ground. This led to a year of transition for the team as new players Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, who would go on to become leaders, made their debuts in the same Test match at Lord's. Tendulkar replaced Azharuddin as captain in late 1996, however following a personal and team form downturn, Tendulkar relinquished the captaincy and Azharuddin was reinstalled at the beginning of 1998.

Anil Kumble is India's most wicket-taker in both Test and ODI cricket, with 619 wickets, ranking him fourth in the world.

Tendulkar was once more appointed captain following his team's failure to advance to the 1999 Cricket World Cup semifinals. He had another dismal run of results, losing 3-0 while on tour in Australia and 2-0 at home against South Africa. Resigning

• 21st century

Ganguly led the Indian squad to significant advances, and John Wright—the country's first foreign coach—provided direction.India became just the third side in Test cricket history to win a match after going on after the break in the Kolkata Test match.India has been referred to as the "Final Frontier" by Australian skipper Steve Waugh, given his team's inability to win a Test series there.India and Sri Lanka shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy as joint winners.They proceeded to the 2003 Cricket World Cup held in South Africa, where they made it to the championship match before losing to Australia. After losing the Test series, India set a world record with 17 consecutive victories in ODIs while batting second in early 2006 with a comprehensive ODI series triumph in Pakistan.

India defeated Pakistan by five runs in the championship match to win the inaugural ICC Men's T20 World Cup, which was hosted in South Africa in September 2007.India became the third side after the West Indies and Australia to win the World Cup twice when they defeated Sri Lanka in the final on April 2, 2011.Also, India made history by becoming the first team to win the World Cup at home.In the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy final, India triumphed over England, and team skipper M. S. Dhoni made cricket history by being the first men's team captain to win all three main ICC trophies: the ICC Champions Trophy, ICC Men's T20 World Cup, and Cricket World Cup.

In 2010, Indian athletes celebrated after they took a wicket against New Zealand.

India lost to Sri Lanka in the final of the 2014 ICC Men's World Twenty20, which was held in Bangladesh, and therefore came very close to missing out on another ICC title. Australia emerged victorious in the 2015 Cricket World Cup, eliminating India in the semifinals. India went on to win the 2016 Asia Cup and went undefeated the entire competition.The squad fell in the semi-final against eventual champions West Indies despite being the favourites to win the 2016 ICC World Twenty20, which was being played at home.In their opening match of the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, India triumphed over Pakistan; however, they were defeated by the same opponents in the final, marking their first tournament meeting since 2007.

The 2019 Cricket World Cup was the Indian team's next major international competition. They placed first in their group, winning seven games and losing just one, to the host country, England. They advanced to the semifinals but fell to New Zealand by an innings. With 648 runs, Rohit Sharma was the team's top scorer. India defeated by eight wickets to New Zealand in the 2021 ICC World Test Championship Final contested in Southampton.[68]India lost to England by 10 wickets in the 2022 T20 World Cup, despite having advanced to the semi-finals.

following a 3-1 series victory on home turf over Australia.[69] India defeated by 209 runs to Australia in the 2023 ICC World Test Championship final contested at The Oval.India defeated Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in the 2023 Asia Cup final at R. Premadasa Stadium.With nine wickets, Kuldeep Yadav was named the tournament's best performer. Due to better seeding, the Indian men's cricket team won a gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games despite losing to Afghanistan in the final.

India had an unbeaten campaign in the 2023 Cricket World Cup, starting with a win over Australia with six wickets. They stormed after defeating Sri Lanka by a commanding score of 302 runs to go to the final, and then defeating New Zealand by 70 runs in the semi-final. Virat Kohli broke the previous record set by Sachin Tendulkar to become the first player to ever reach 50 ODI centuries during the game. In the ODI World Cup, Mohammed Shami also recorded the highest bowling figures for an Indian, 7/57.. But Australia ended up defeating them in the final by the same amount of wickets—six wickets—that they had defeated them by.With 765 runs, the greatest run total in a single World Cup edition, Virat Kohli finished as the top scorer of the ODI World Cup.

In the final, India defeated South Africa to win the 2024 T20 World Cup.They became the first team to win the tournament without a loss and the third team, behind England and the West Indies, to win the cup twice.With 17 wickets, Arshdeep Singh tied for the most wicket taker..

2. Major Achievements

• World Cup Victories

The third Cricket World Cup competition was held in 1983, with the tournament's official name being the Prudential Cup '83. India emerged victorious from the June 9–25, 1983, events that took place in England and Wales. There were eight participating nations. The West Indies, Pakistan, India, and England advanced to the semi-finals. Each nation played the other twice in its group during the preliminary matches, which were split into two groups of four teams each. Each group's top two teams advanced to the semifinals.

Each innings in the contests lasted 60 overs, and red balls were used along with conventional white attire. All of them were performed during the day.

-The International Cricket Council (ICC) was in charge of organising it. The 2007 ICC World Twenty20 was the competition's first edition. India triumphed by a five-run margin over Pakistan. The teams had earlier faced off in a tournament Group-D encounter that India had also won.

-Matches were held for the first time in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and India. India became the first nation to win the Cricket World Cup final on home soil when they defeated Sri Lanka by six wickets in the event final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

-

3. Key Players Through the Years

• Legends of Indian Cricket

* Kapil Dev: an Indian former cricket player, was born on January 6, 1959. Considered as one of the finest all-around players in cricket history, he excelled as both a middle-order batsman and a fast-medium bowler. The only player in cricket history to have both taken over 400 wickets (434 wickets) and amassed over 5,000 runs in Test matches is Dev.

Dev became the first Indian captain to win a Cricket World Cup when he led the Indian cricket team to victory in the 1983 edition of the tournament. At twenty-four, he remains the youngest captain of any team to win the World Cup.[6] He became the first player to reach 200 ODI wickets when he retired in 1994.  He also held the record for the most wickets taken in Test cricket worldwide, until Courtney Walsh broke it in 2000.Up until 2023, Kapil Dev was the player with the highest individual score (175*) in One-Day Internationals when batting at number five or lower., when Glenn Maxwell took its place. He was also a member of the Indian cricket team that won the World Championship in 1985.

He coached the Indian national team from September 1999 to September 2000 after retiring.

Dev received the Padma Shri in 1982 and the Padma Bhushan in 1991. Wisden named him the Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002. Dev was admitted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame on March 11, 2010.[12]The greatest accolade bestowed upon a former player by the BCCI, the C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award, was given to him in 2013.

Sachin Tendulkar  —  a former cricket player for India who captained the national team, was born on April 24, 1973. He is considered by many to be among the best batsmen in cricket history.With almost 18,000 and 15,000 runs in ODI and Test cricket, respectively, he is the all-time top run scorer in the sport and is hailed as the most prolific batsman in history.In international cricket, he also has the record for most player of the match accolades won.Tendulkar was a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha by presidential nomination from 2012 to 2018.

• MS Dhoni:( July 7, 1981) is a professional cricket player from India who alternates between bowling and hitting right-handed. Recognised as one of the most successful wicket-keeper batsman and captains, he captained the Indian cricket team from 2008 to 2014 in test cricket and from 2007 to 2017 in limited overs formats. Being the most successful Indian captain, Dhoni has led his country in the most international games. In the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, the 2011 Cricket World Cup, and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, he guided India to triumphbeing the first captain to triumph in three separate ICC limited-overs competitions. In addition, he captained the Asia Cup winning teams in 2010 and 2016, and he was a part of the 2018 championship team.

* Dhoni, who was born in Ranchi, made his Bihar team debut in 1999. He played his first test match for the Indian cricket team against Sri Lanka a year after making his debut on December 23, 2004, in an ODI against Bangladesh. He took over as captain of the ODI team in 2007 and eventually assumed command of all forms by 2008. Dhoni played limited overs cricket until 2019 after retiring from test cricket in 2014. In international cricket, he has amassed 17,266 runs, with over 10,000 runs at an average of over 50 in one-day formats.

Dhoni represents the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), taking them to ten finals and winning five of them (2010), (2011), (2018), 2021, and 2023. In 2010 and 2014, he guided CSK to two Champions League T20 victories. In addition to being the first wicketkeeper to reach 5,000 runs in the IPL, Dhoni is one of the select few batsmen who has accomplished this feat.

The Government of India presented Dhoni with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, the highest sporting honour in India, in 2008. He was granted the third-highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhushan, in 2018 and the fourth-highest civilian honour, the Padma Shri, in 2009. The Indian Army bestowed onto Dhoni the honorary title of Lieutenant Colonel in the Parachute Regiment of the Indian Territorial Army in 2011. He is among the most well-liked cricket players worldwide.

• Current Stars
• Highlight current players making an impact:
• Virat Kohli: ( on November 5, 1988) is an Indian international cricket player who represents the country in Test and One-Day International matches. After India won the 2024 T20 World Cup, Kohli, a former captain of the team in all competition formats, announced his retirement from the T20I format. He is a right-handed hitter as well as an infrequently seen right arm fast bowler. One of the best batsmen of all time and the best of the modern age, Kohli is revered. He is the highest-scoring player in the IPL, third in the T20I, third in the ODI, and fourth overall in international cricket.[4]In addition, he is second in the list of most international hundreds scored and owns the record for most centuries scored in one-day international cricket.

The Indian side that won the 2011 Cricket World Cup, the 2013 Champions Trophy, and the 2024 T20 World Cup featured Kohli as a vital player. Kohli also led India to victory in the ICC Test series in 2017, 2018, and 2019.He plays cricket for Delhi in domestic cricket and the Indian Premier League's Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

In the 2013 ICC rankings for ODI batsmen, Kohli held the top spot. In 2015, he attained the peak of T20I rankings.He became the first Indian cricket player to be ranked number one in all three formats of the game in 2018 when he was named the best Test batsman. In a decade, he is the first player to reach 20,000 runs scored. He was selected the male cricketer of the decade by the International Cricket Council in 2020.

Being the most decorated player in the history of international cricket, Kohli has won 10 ICC Awards, more than any other player. In 2012, 2017, 2018, and 2023, he claimed the title of ICC ODI Player of the Year four times. Additionally, he was the recipient of the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy twice, in 2017 and 2018, which is awarded to the ICC Cricketer of the Year. He made history in 2018 by being the first player to win Test Player of the Year and ICC ODI accolades in the same year. In addition, from 2016 to 2018, he was recognised as the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World for three years in a row.In all three forms combined, Kohli has won the second-most and most "Player of the Match" and "Player of the Series" trophies, respectively. Nationally, Kohli received the Arjuna Award in 2013, the Padma Shri in 2017, and the Kel Ratna Award—India's highest athletic honor—in 2018. He was listed as one of the 100 most important persons in the world by Time magazine in 2018.

Kohli declared his retirement from Twenty20 International cricket after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup and being named Player of the Match in the Final..

• Rohit Sharma: Born on April 30, 1987, Rohit Gurunath Sharma is an Indian international cricket player who captains and plays for the squad in both Test and One Day International (ODI) formats. Prior to retiring from Twenty20s in June 2024, he had also captained the squad in Twenty20 International (T20I) matches and spearheaded India's victory in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[4][5]The right-handed batsman, who is regarded as one of the best of his generation and among the all-time great opening batsmen,[6] is renowned for his poise, grace, and leadership qualities. He also has a sixth-hitting ability.

The most runs in Twenty20 Internationals, the most sixes in international cricket, the most double hundreds in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) (7), the most centuries at Cricket World Cups (7), and the joint most hundreds in Twenty20 Internationals (5) are just a few of the batting records he owns. The first player to score five centuries in T20I is him.[8]In addition, he is the only player in history to have scored three double hundreds in One Day Internationals (ODIs). He also holds the record for the most hundreds (five) scored in a single Cricket World Cup, an accomplishment for which he was named the 2019 ICC Men's ODI Cricketer of the Year. He is the only player in T20Is history to win 50 games while captain.

In the Indian Premier League (IPL) and domestic cricket, he plays for the Mumbai Indians and Mumbai cricket team, respectively. He was the Mumbai Indians' previous captain, and during his tenure, the team won five Indian Premier League championships in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020. This makes him, along with MS Dhoni, the most successful captain in IPL history.. Playing in both tournament finals, Rohit Sharma was a part of the Indian squad that won the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy and the 2007 T20 World Cup. He is also one of just two players to have participated in every T20 World Cup, starting in 2007 and ending in 2024.[b]The only player from India to win two T20 World Cups is him. When he guided India to victory in the 2024 T20 World Cup, he became the second Indian captain to win a T20 World Cup.

The Indian government has bestowed upon him two national honours: the coveted Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in 2020 and the esteemed Arjuna Award in 2015. Under his leadership, India won the 2018 Nidahas Trophy, their second overall and first in T20I format, as well as the 2018 and 2023 Asia Cups, their seventh and eighth national championships in ODI cricket.

Sharma actively supports efforts for animal welfare outside of cricket. He is a participant in People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and the official rhino ambassador for WWF-India. He has contributed to PETA's effort to bring attention to the suffering of India's homeless dogs and cats.

Selection committee

The BCCI's zonal selection policy is used to choose the Indian cricket squad. One selector and one member appointed by the BCCI to serve as the selection committee chairman represent each of the five zones. This has occasionally given rise to debate regarding whether or not these selectors have a bias in favour of their zones.

- Chetan Sharma served as the head selector until November 18, 2022, and the other members were Debashish Mohanty, Harvinder Singh, and Sunil Joshi. Following the team's poor performance in the 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, the entire panel was fired.

Sharma was reappointed as the head selector on January 7, 2023, alongside Shiv Sunder Das, Subroto Banerjee, Salil Ankola, and Sridharan Sharath.

- Sharma resigned from his position on February 17, 2023, following a sting operation by a private news channel that exposed him making a number of careless remarks against the Indian team. Shiv Sunder Das took over as chief selector in an interim capacity.

- Sharma was replaced as chief selector on July 4, 2023, by Ajit Agarkar.[84] He was added to the selection committee together with Das, Banerjee, Ankola, and Sharath.