The Indian cricket team has slumped to a new low in its Test cricket history, marking an unwanted first in 148 years of the sport. This dubious distinction was achieved during the first Test match against England at Headingley, Leeds, which concluded on June 24, 2025, with a five-wicket defeat for India.
While the match saw India scoring a commendable 835 runs, including five centuries across both innings, it wasn't enough to secure a victory. Rishabh Pant shone with centuries in both innings, while Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and KL Rahul each contributed a century. The abundance of centuries seemingly pointed towards a strong batting performance, effectively silencing any concerns about the Indian batting lineup after the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Despite the strong batting performance, the Indian bowling attack couldn't defend a target of 371 runs.
England's successful chase was led by Ben Duckett, who scored a remarkable 149. Zak Crawley's century and Harry Brook's near-century (99 runs) in the first innings further solidified England's dominance. This chase was England's second-highest ever, with their highest being 378 against India in 2021 at Birmingham.
The defeat in Leeds marks a historic first in Test cricket. India became the first team to lose a Test match despite having five centuries in their batting performance. Before this, the record was held by Australia, who lost an Ashes match in 1928/29 despite having four centuries. This unwanted record adds salt to the wound for India, despite the stellar individual performances.
Adding to the list of woes, India also registered another unwanted record during their first innings where they became the team with the lowest total (471) after three of their batters scored centuries. The previous record was held by South Africa, who were all out for 475 against England in 2016. This highlights a dramatic collapse, as India, at one point, were comfortably placed at 430/3, raising hopes of crossing the 500-run mark. However, they lost their last seven wickets for a mere 41 runs.
The defeat has sparked criticism of India's bowling performance, with fans expressing their disappointment on social media. Despite the strong batting display, the bowlers failed to capitalize and couldn't prevent England from achieving their second-highest successful run chase.
