2002: Glee at Headingley

It was a bit of a comedown for the Sourav Ganguly-led Indian side after the exhilarating scenes in the finals of the Natwest Trophy at Lord’s in 2002. India’s unexpected but not uncharacteristic defeat to England in the first Test at the same venue forced a quick reality check.

A 17-year old who answered to the name Parthiv Patel somehow helped India save the second Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. Hell-raisers leapt from all quarters as England drew closer to another series win.

India had to do something different to forge an impact at Headingley, Leeds. They dared to defy conventions by opting to bat first on a two-paced wicket. The woefully out-of-form Wasim Jaffer made way for Sanjay Bangar; the latter was expected to give a serrated edge to the seam-attack and front up to the new ball for a while.

Bangar achieved more than that; he blunted England's new-ball attack with a resolute 68, and in the company of Rahul Dravid (148), who had moved to a new level, stitched a record 170-run second-wicket partnership.

“On the first day we were 300-odd for two wickets. I thought we could be in for something special in this Test if we batted well on the second day,” reminisces Parthiv Patel.

Strangely, the England bowlers couldn’t suss out the trick to bowl on this wicket. Sachin Tendulkar (193) and Sourav Ganguly (128), never the ones to miss out on the party, helped India pile 628, the highest total by either team in England v India Test matches.

Yet, the Indians knew that the mound of runs would amount for nothing if Michael Vaughan got off to a start. He had clicked into an unstoppable gear in that series and something had to be done to dislodge him quickly.

Vaughan looked set for another big one till he fell for a well-crafted 61. India had got a foot in the door and thereafter promptly put paid to any meaningful resistance. Alex Stewart tried to stem the rot with an intrepid (78) but couldn’t help England avert a follow on.

England’s second innings progressed on familiar lines. Anil Kumble chiselled away at the Englishmen’s in his customary fashion to land decisive breakthroughs. Meanwhile, Bangar scalped John Crawley and Mark Butcher to make it the most memorable game of his short Test career.

Captain Naseer Hussain dug his heels with a fighting hundred but India were always one wicket away from clinching the Test, which they won by an innings and 46 runs.

India’s new-found steel was evident in the working-over given by Zaheer Khan to Andrew Flintoff who collected a pair. The huddle was back in the Indian team. Winning overseas was no longer a miracle; it could be a natural expectation.