India's Triumph at Lord's: Vengsarkar Shines and Kapil Dev Dominates England

Starting with their maiden Test in June 1932, India had played 10 matches at Lord’s when Kapil Dev led his side to England in the summer of 1986 for a three-Test series. At what’s often referred to as the Headquarters of Cricket, India had found little joy – eight losses and two draws. India’s form going into that series too was less than encouraging. Their last Test win had come in November 1984, also against England, at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, after which they had endured ten winless outings.

Under David Gower, who had masterminded a come-from-behind 2-1 triumph in India in 1984-85, England had a formidable batting unit that included Graham Gooch, Mike Gatting and Allan Lamb, so it came as a bit of a surprise when Kapil chose to bowl first. Openers Gooch and Tim Robinson got the hosts off to a cracking start, putting on 66 as the wisdom of fielding first was questioned when, through Chetan Sharma, India staged a spectacular fightback.

Just two months previously, Chetan had made the news for all the wrong reasons, being at the receiving end of a last-ball six by Javed Miandad that took Pakistan to a famous victory in Sharjah. Presented with the opportunity to sing the redemption song, the 20-year-old grabbed it with both hands, winkling out Gower, Gatting and Lamb, the heart of the England batting, within six runs after Maninder Singh’s left-arm spin had accounted for Robinson.

England were in strife at 98 for four when a familiar tormentor linked up with the man touted as the next Ian Botham. Gooch hadn’t yet become India’s nemesis – that would come when he would sweep them out of the World Cup semifinal in 1987 and follow it up with a triple-hundred at Lord’s in 1990 – but alongside Derek Pringle, the Nairobi-born all-rounder, he repaired the damage with a stand of 147 for the fifth wicket. Pringle contributed a patient 63 and Gooch completed a brilliant century but for the second time in the innings, India rallied splendidly. Roger Binny, the 1983 World Cup hero, stepped in to clean up the lower order once Chetan clean bowled Gooch, England losing their last six wickets for 49 runs to be bowled out for 294 with Chetan returning a second five-wicket haul in Tests.

India’s top-five responded in kind with patience as the watchword. Sunil Gavaskar batted nearly three hours in stitching together 34, while No. 3 Mohinder Amarnath’s 69 spanned four hours. But the man who hogged the limelight was the tall, majestic Dilip Vengsarkar, the elegant No. 4. On his two previous visits to Lord’s in 1979 and 1982, he had weighed in with 103 and 157 respectively. This time, he waltzed to a boundary-laden 126, making him the first overseas batter to strike three Lord’s hundreds, and that too on the bounce. A middle-order wobble meant India didn’t build handsomely from 232 for three; 341 all out game them a lead of 47 when it could have been so much more.

Kapil's burst

England’s second innings flourished all too briefly through Gatting and Lamb, whose 73-run fourth-wicket partnership nullified Kapil’s three-wicket burst with the new ball. But when Ravi Shastri snapped the threatening stand by having Lamb caught behind, India regathered focus with Maninder spinning a wicked web. In a stunning exhibition of left-arm spin bowling, he snaffled three for nine from 20.4 top-class overs, ensuring that England’s riposte ended at 180.

With England’s second innings having ended at the stroke of stumps on day four, India had a whole day to knock off the 134 runs needed for a magnificent first triumph at Lord’s. The task appeared straightforward but small targets are often tricky, and even though India had great batting depth, the top order endured a nervous night. The apprehensions of their fans, more than the team’s, grew when K Srikkanth fell for a ten-ball duck to Graham Dilley but with handy contributions from Gavaskar and Vengsarkar, India made reasonably promising progress.

Mohammad Azharuddin’s dismissal for ten, run out following a mix-up with Shastri, meant only the all-rounders were left in the hut with 24 needed and five wickets remaining. Enter Kapil to leave his, and India’s, authoritative imprint on the Lord’s turf. In just ten deliveries, India’s mercurial leader breezed to an unbeaten 23 with four fours and a six, turning a potentially nervy hour to an 18-minute celebratory romp. At the same venue where, three years previously, he had held aloft the 60-over World Cup trophy, Kapil fired another shot announcing India’s cricketing upswing, taming Lord’s and helping his side open up a 1-0 lead. India would go on to win the series 2-0, their first series triumph in Old Blighty for 15 years.

Brief scores: England: 294 all out in 128.2 overs (Graham Gooch 114, Tim Robinson 35, Derek Pringle 63; Roger Binny 3-55, Chetan Sharma 5-64) and 180 all out in 96.4 overs (Mike Gatting 40, Allan Lamb 39, Paul Downton 29; Kapil Dev 4-52, Maninder Singh 3-9) lost to India: 341 all out in 137 overs (Sunil Gavaskar 34, Mohinder Amarnath 69, Dilip Vengsarkar 126, Mohammad Azharuddin 33, Kiran More 25; Graham Dilley 4-146, Pringle 3-58) and 136/5 in 42 overs (Vengsarkar 33; Dilley 2-28) by five wickets. Player of the Match: Kapil Dev.

Read more news like this on The News Pulse