India national cricket team

History

Early history (1700s–1918)

The British first brought cricket to India in the early 1700s, with the first cricket match played in 1721. It was played and adopted by Kolis of Gujarat who were sea pirates and outlaws who often looted the British ships. The East India Company tried to manage the Kolis through cricket and were successful. In 1848, the Parsi community in Mumbai formed the Oriental Cricket Club, the first cricket club to be established by Indians. After slow beginnings, the Europeans eventually invited the Parsis to play a match in 1877. By 1912, the Parsis, Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims of Bombay played a quadrangular tournament with the Europeans every year. In the early 1900s, some Indians went on to play for the England cricket team. Some of these, such as Ranjitsinhji and Duleepsinhji were greatly appreciated by the British and their names went on to be used for the Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy – two major first-class tournaments in India. In 1911, an Indian men's cricket team, captained by Bhupinder Singh of Patiala, went on their first official tour of the British Isles, but only played English county teams and not the England cricket team.

Test match status (1918–1970)

India was invited to the International Cricket Council in 1926, and made their debut as a Test-playing nation in England in 1932, led by C. K. Nayudu, who was considered the best Indian batsman at the time. The one-off Test match between the two sides was played at Lord's in London. The team was not strong in their batting at this point and went on to lose by 158 runs.{{cite web | access-date = 8 March 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061225022912/http://www.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/1930S/1932/IND_IN_ENG/ | archive-date = 25 December 2006 | url-status = live | access-date = 8 March 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060509070811/http://www.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/1940S/1947-48/IND_IN_AUS/ | archive-date = 9 May 2006 | url-status = live | access-date = 8 March 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060509070817/http://www.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/1950S/1951-52/ENG_IN_IND/ | archive-date = 9 May 2006 | url-status = live

The key to India's bowling in the 1970s were the Indian spin quartet – Bishan Singh Bedi, E. A. S. Prasanna, B. S. Chandrasekhar and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan. This period also saw the emergence of two of India's best ever batsmen, Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath. Indian pitches have had the tendency to support spin and the spin quartet exploited this to create collapses in opposing batting line-ups. These players were responsible for the back-to-back series wins in 1971 in the West Indies and in England, under the captaincy of Ajit Wadekar. Gavaskar scored 774 runs in the West Indian series while Dilip Sardesai's 112 played a big part in their one Test win.

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

The advent of men's One Day International (ODI) cricket in 1971 created a new dimension in the cricket world. However, India was not considered strong in ODIs at this point and batsmen such as the captain Gavaskar were known for their defensive approach to batting. India began as a weak team in ODIs and did not qualify for the knockout stage in the first two editions of the Cricket World Cup. Gavaskar infamously blocked his way to 36 not out of 174 balls against England in the inaugural 1975 Cricket World Cup; India scored just 132 for 3 and lost by 202 runs.

In contrast, India fielded a strong team in Test matches and was particularly strong at home, where their combination of stylish batsmen and beguiling spinners were at their best. India set a then Test record in the third Test against the West Indies at Port-of-Spain in 1976, when they chased 403 to win, thanks to 112 from Viswanath. In November 1976, the team established another record by scoring 524 for 9 declared against New Zealand at Kanpur without any individual batsman scoring a century. There were six fifties, the highest being 70 by Mohinder Amarnath. This innings was only the eighth instance in Test cricket where all eleven batsmen reached double figures. India performed worse in the 1979 Cricket World Cup, failing to win a single match.

During the 1980s, India developed a more attack-minded batting line-up with stroke makers such as the wristy Mohammad Azharuddin, Krishnamachari Srikanth, Dilip Vengsarkar and all-rounders Kapil Dev and Ravi Shastri. On 25 June 1983, India won the 1983 Cricket World Cup, defeating the favourites and the two-time defending champions West Indies in the final at Lord's, owing to a strong bowling performance. Bowler Roger Binny was the leading wicket taker of the tournament with 18 scalps. In spite of this, the team performed poorly in the Test arena, including 28 consecutive Test matches without a victory. In 1984, India won the inaugural edition of the Asia Cup and in 1985, won the World Championship of Cricket in Australia.

Late 20th century (1985–1999)

Despite winning major tournaments in the first half of the 1980s, India remained a weak test team. India's Test series victory in 1986 against England remained the last Test series win by India outside the subcontinent for the next 19 years. The 1980s saw Gavaskar and Kapil Dev (India's best all-rounder to date) at the pinnacle of their careers. Gavaskar made a Test record 34 centuries as he became the first man to reach the 10,000 run mark. Kapil Dev later became the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket with 434 wickets. The period was also marked by an unstable leadership, with Gavaskar and Kapil exchanging the captaincy several times. India co-hosted the 1987 Cricket World Cup, the first instance when the tournament was hosted outside England. In the semi-finals, the India was defeated by England, after having defeated them on the same stage four years prior.

The addition of Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble to the national side in 1989 and 1990 further improved the team. The following year, Javagal Srinath, India's fastest bowler since Amar Singh made his debut. Under Azharuddin, India played in the 1992 Cricket World Cup, failing to make the knockout stage in the tournament for the first time since 1979. During the 1990s, India did not win any of its 33 Tests outside the subcontinent while it won 17 out of its 30 Tests at home. Notably, India won a hat-trick of Asia Cups in 1988, 1991 and 1995.

India was eliminated by neighbours Sri Lanka on home soil at the disastrous 1996 Cricket World Cup semi-final, where rioters burnt section of the stadium at Kolkata after India were set to face a crushing defeat. Tendulkar was the tournament's leading run scorer, with this the first time an Indian being one in the tournament; and Kumble leading the wicket-taking charts. Following the World Cup, the team underwent a year of change as Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, later to become captains of the team, made their debut in the same test at Lord's. Tendulkar replaced Azharuddin as captain in late 1996, but after a personal and team form slump, Tendulkar relinquished the captaincy and Azharuddin was reinstated at the beginning of 1998. India lost the final of the 1997 Asia Cup, losing the tournament for the first time in editions they had participated in. In order to play a bilateral ODI series against Pakistan, India split its squad into two and sent a weak squad to feature in the cricket tournament of the 1998 Commonwealth Games. As a result, India failed to progress from the group stage. In the inaugural edition of the Champions Trophy in 1998, India were knocked out in the semi-finals by West Indies.

The team had yet another disastrous World Cup in 1999. Despite Dravid being the tournament's leading run scorer, India failed to reach the knockouts. Following this, Tendulkar was again made captain, and had another poor run, losing 3–0 on a tour of Australia and then 2–0 at home to South Africa. Tendulkar resigned, vowing never to captain the team again.

Captaincy changes and dominance on global stage (2000–2013)

The team was further damaged in 2000 when former captain Azharuddin and fellow batsman Ajay Jadeja were implicated in a match-fixing scandal and given life and five-year bans respectively. This period was described by the BBC as "the Indian cricket's worst hour". However, the new core – Tendulkar, Dravid, Kumble and Ganguly – swore not to let this happen to them again, and led Indian cricket out of the dark times. The first three put aside personal ambitions to let Ganguly lead them into a new era.

The Indian team underwent major improvements under the captaincy of Ganguly and the guidance of John Wright, India's first foreign coach. Ganguly led India to the final of the 2000 Champions Trophy, India's first ICC final after the 1983 World Cup. Despite his century, India was defeated in the final by New Zealand. He was the leading run scorer in the tournament, and Venkatesh Prasad the leading wicket taker. In the Kolkata Test match, India became only the third team in the history of Test cricket to win a Test match after following on. Australian captain Steve Waugh labelled India as the "Final Frontier" because of his side's inability to win a Test series in India. In 2002, India took part in the 2002 NatWest Series against England and Sri Lanka, where after topping the table they faced hosts England in the final. India ended up chasing 326 to win what is widely regarded as one of the greatest ODI matches of all time, winning the series. On 30 September 2002, India and Sri Lanka were crowned undefeated joint-winners of the 2002 Champions Trophy after the final was rained off following 2 days of play. This was India's first ICC title after the 1983 World Cup, and India and Sri Lanka became the only countries to have won both the tournaments. Virender Sehwag was the tournament's leading run scorer.

India then went to the 2003 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, where they reached the final, India's third consecutive ICC final, only to be beaten by Australia. Tendulkar, the player of the tournament, set the record for the most runs scored in a single world cup. A convincing ODI series win in Pakistan in early 2006, following a loss in the Test series, gave India the world record of 17 successive ODI victories while batting second. India had poor performances at the Champions Trophies in 2004 and 2006, and most notably at the 2007 Cricket World Cup under Dravid's leadership which led to significant changes in the team's structure. India found a new core in players like MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan.

In 2007, Dhoni was made captain in limited-overs. On 24 September 2007, India won the inaugural edition of the Men's T20 World Cup held in South Africa, beating Pakistan by five runs in the final. This victory was a dominant factor in the introduction of the Indian Premier League. Despite this, India failed to reach the knockout stages of the 2009 Champions Trophy and the 2009 and 2010 editions of the T20 World Cup.

India won the 2010 Asia Cup, winning the tournament for the first time in fifteen years. Tendulkar became the first cricketer to score 200 in ODIs. On 2 April 2011, India won the 2011 Cricket World Cup by defeating Sri Lanka in the final, thus becoming the third team after West Indies and Australia to win the World Cup twice. India also became the first team to win the World Cup on home soil. This was Tendulkar's last of six world cups, having equalled Javed Miandads record of having played in the most editions of the tournament. Zaheer Khan was the joint-highest wicket taker of the tournament. Sehwag, Yuvraj and Harbhajan became the first set of players to win all three ICC white-ball tournaments. Later that year, Sehwag broke Tendulkar's record of having the highest individual score in ODIs. The following year, the team failed to reach the knockouts for the 2012 T20 World Cup, for the third time in a row.

On 19 June 2013, India won the 2013 Champions Trophy undefeated after overcoming England in the rain-affected final and Dhoni became the first captain in history to win all three ICC trophies in white-ball cricket, namely the Cricket World Cup, T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy. Player of the tournament Shikhar Dhawan was the leading run scorer, and won the 'golden bat'. Ravindra Jadeja won the 'golden ball' for being the highest wicket-taker.

ICC tournament drought (2014–2023)

In the 2014 T20 World Cup hosted in Bangladesh, India narrowly missed out on another ICC trophy by losing to Sri Lanka in the final. Player of the tournament Kohli was the leading run scorer, having set the record for most runs scored in a single edition of the tournament (319). In late 2014, Dhoni stepped down as captain in tests to focus on white-ball cricket, paving way for Kohli, the vice-captain, to succeed him. In a match against Sri Lanka, Rohit overtook Sehwag to become the leading run-scorer in an inning in ODIs (264), being the first player to cross 250.

India was knocked out of the 2015 Cricket World Cup in the semi-final to eventual winners Australia. With the inclusion of pacer Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Hardik Pandya in the squad, India began 2016 by winning the 2016 Asia Cup, remaining unbeaten throughout the tournament. The team were favourites to win the 2016 T20 World Cup, which was being held at home, but lost in the semi-final to eventual champions West Indies. Kohli became the first player to be player of the tournament in back to back editions of a major cricket tournament.

After Dhoni stepped down from white-ball captaincy, Kohli stepped in as full-time captain across formats. India lost to arch rivals Pakistan in the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy by 180 runs, the worst defeat in the final of an ICC ODI tournament. Dhawan again won the 'golden bat' after being the leading run scorer, becoming the first to win the award twice.

In 2018, India won a test series in Australia for the first time in their history, under Kohli and coach Shastri. After winning the 2018 Asia Cup and the 2018 Nidahas Trophy, the team's next major global tournament was the 2019 Cricket World Cup where they made the semi-finals but lost to New Zealand by 18 runs. After Dhoni's retirement, KL Rahul took over as wicket-keeper and became a team regular. Vice-captain Rohit was the highest run-scorer of the tournament with 648 runs, and set the record for most centuries scored in a tournament (5). Following being dismissed for 36 in a test against Australia, India managed to turn-around and again win a series in Australia for the second time.

India played the first ever final of the World Test Championship in 2021 against New Zealand in which they lost by eight wickets. The team had a disappointing performance at the 2021 T20 World Cup, failing to reach the knockout stage of an ICC tournament for the first time since 2012 and also notably losing to rivals Pakistan by 10 wickets, their first defeat against the team in a World Cup match. After this tournament, Kohli was sacked as captain, being succeeded by Rohit across formats; and Dravid replacing Shastri as coach. They qualified for the semi-finals in the 2022 T20 World Cup, but lost to England by ten wickets. India played the final of the 2023 World Test Championship against Australia in which they lost by 209 runs. Following these losses, Rohit notably mentioned to Dinesh Karthik that "something needed to change", and he changed to having a more aggressive batting style as well as directing a more targeting batting approach in the team.

India went on to win the 2023 Asia Cup by notably dismissing Sri Lanka for 50 runs in the final and winning by ten wickets. India also secured the gold medal at the 2022 Asian games held in 2023 due to higher seeding after the final against Afghanistan was washed out. They were deemed favourites to win the home 2023 Cricket World Cup. Rohit broke Tendulkar's record of the most World Cup centuries in the match against Afghanistan. Tendulkar conceded more records to Kohli, who overtook him to score the most centuries in ODI cricket; as well as for scoring the most runs in a single edition of the tournament (765). India was ultimately defeated in the final by Australia. Shami was the leading wicket taker of the tournament.

Resurgence (2024–present)

In January, India played the longest-ever T20i in a match against Afghanistan, which got extended to two rounds of super overs in an eventual Indian triumph. On 29 June 2024, India won the 2024 T20 World Cup by defeating South Africa in the final. They became the third team after England and West Indies to win the cup twice and also the first team to win the tournament undefeated. Arshdeep Singh (cricketer) was the joint-highest wicket taker at 17 wickets, while Bumrah became the player of the tournament. This was Rohit's last of nine T20 World Cups, having participated in every edition up until 2024 alongside Shakib al Hasan of Bangladesh. On 9 March 2025, India won the 2025 Champions Trophy undefeated. The team defeated New Zealand in the final, defeating them for the first time at this stage in an ICC tournament. This was India's third consecutive final of the tournament, as well as fourth consecutive ICC final. India became the first team to win the tournament thrice, with Rohit and Kohli being the only Indians to win four ICC tournaments.

Despite the successes in ODIs and T20Is, India had a poor season of test cricket in 2024. Following the series win against England and Bangladesh, India lost 3–0 to New Zealand in a home series, followed by failing to win a hat-trick of a test series in Australia. Due to these losses, India missed out on qualifying for the 2025 World Test Championship final, although the team was in a comfortable position to qualify prior to the 2 series, thereby failing to reach the final for the first time.

In the 2025 Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy, India drew the 5 match test series 2–2 with England. Later in the year, India comfortably won 2–0 at home against the West Indies, and then lost 0–2 at home against South Africa.

Gallery

File:CK Nayudu 1930s.jpg|C. K. Nayudu, India's first Test cricket captain File:Lala_Amarnath_at_Lord's_1936.jpg|Lala Amarnath batting during a match against Middlesex at Lord's, c. 1936 File:Probir Sen with Queen Elizabeth II.png|Elizabeth II with members of the Indian cricket team during their tour of England in 1952 File:President Giani Zail Singh receiving the Indian cricket team after the World Cup victory.jpg|Kapil Dev with then Indian President Zail Singh after the team's return to India post winning the 1983 World Cup. They are holding the Cricket World Cup Trophy File:Indian Cricket Team Test Results.svg|Graph showing India's Test match results against all Test match teams from 1932 to September 2006 File:India Vs New zealand One day International, 10 December 2010 (6159883395).jpg|Indian players celebrating after taking a wicket against New Zealand in 2010 File:Kumble edited.jpg|With 619 wickets, Anil Kumble is the world's fourth highest wicket-taker in Tests and India's highest Test and ODI wicket-taker File:Mahendra Singh Dhoni batting.JPG|MS Dhoni batting against South Africa during the group stage match of 2013 ICC Champions Trophy File:Roger Binny 2018.jpg|Roger Binny played for the national cricket team File:Indian cricket team with cup.jpg|The Indian national cricket team posing with a cup after a series win File:Rohit Sharma Hoists Indian Flag in Barbados.jpg|Rohit Sharma hoists the Indian flag at Kensington Oval, Barbados after winning 2024 Men's T20 World Cup final

Governing body

Main article: Board of Control for Cricket in India

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the governing body for the Indian cricket team and first-class cricket in India. The Board has been operating since 1929 and represents India at the International Cricket Council (ICC). Its headquarters is situated in the 'Cricket centre' at Churchgate in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Amongst the richest sporting organisations in the world, it sold media rights for India's matches from 2006 to 2010 for $612,000,000. Roger Binny is present BCCI president and Devajit Saikia is secretary.

The International Cricket Council determines India's upcoming matches through its future tours program. However, the BCCI, with its influential financial position in the cricketing world, has often challenged the ICC's program and called for more series between India, Australia and England which are more likely to earn more revenue as opposed to tours with Bangladesh or Zimbabwe. In the past, the BCCI has also come into conflict with the ICC regarding sponsorships.

Selection committee

Main article: India national cricket team selectors

Selection for the Indian cricket team occurs through the BCCI's zonal selection policy, where each of the five zones is represented by one selector and one of the members nominated by BCCI as the chairman of the selection committee. This has sometimes led to controversy as to whether these selectors are biased towards their zones.

Until 18 November 2022, Chetan Sharma was the chief selector and Debashish Mohanty, Harvinder Singh and Sunil Joshi were members. The entire panel was sacked after the unsuccessful performance of the team in 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. On 7 January 2023, Sharma was again appointed as the chief selector along with Shiv Sunder Das, Subroto Banerjee, Salil Ankola, and Sridharan Sharath. On 17 February 2023, Sharma resigned from his post after a sting operation by a private news channel saw him make several loose comments on the Indian team with Shiv Sunder Das replacing him and acting as an interim chief selector. On 4 July 2023, Ajit Agarkar was appointed as the new chief selector and replaced Sharma. He joined Das, Banerjee, Ankola and Sharath on the selection committee.

Team colours

India plays its Test cricket matches with the traditional cricket whites with navy blue caps and helmets. The uniforms worn in limited-overs matches have different shades of blue for ODIs and T20Is, sometimes with a splash of the colours that are present in the Indian flag.

During the 1992 and 1999 Cricket World Cups, the Indian team's kit was sponsored by ISC and Asics respectively, but was without an official kit sponsor until 2001. With no official kit sponsor for the Indian team, Omtex manufactured the shirts and pants for the team, while some players chose to wear pants provided to them by their individual sponsors like Adidas and Reebok until December 2005. In December 2005, Nike outbid its competitors Adidas and Reebok, and acquired the contract for five years which started in January 2006 ahead of Indian team's tour to Pakistan. Nike was a long time kit supplier to team India with two extensions for a period of five years each time; in 2011 and 2016 respectively.

After Nike ended its contract in September 2020, MPL Sports Apparel & Accessories, a subsidiary of online gaming platform Mobile Premier League replaced Nike as the kit manufacturer in November 2020 ahead of Indian team's tour to Australia, which was supposed to run until December 2023.

In November 2022, MPL Sports decided to exit the deal before the end of their contract and hand over their rights to Kewal Kiran Clothing Limited (KKCL). In January 2023, MPL appointed Kewal Kiran Clothing Limited (KKCL) and Killer Jeans (a brand owned by KKCL) as interim sponsors until May 2023. In February 2023, it was announced that Adidas will begin a five-year sponsorship deal in June 2023 ahead of ICC World Test Championship final, replacing KKCL. In May 2023, BCCI officially announced Adidas as their kit sponsor for the next five years running until March 2028.

Sponsorship

Team sponsorship

Apollo Tyres is the new official sponsor of Indian cricket team from 16 September 2025. Apollo Tyres first international mileage will be in the two-match home Test series against the West Indies, which begins on October 2. Sponsorship period is set to run until 2027. Dream11 (Sporta Technologies Pvt. Ltd.) was announced as the sponsor for the team on 1 July 2023. Their sponsorship was supposed to run until 31 March 2026 for a period of three years, but ended prematurely in August 2025, when Dream11 pulled out following the passage of the Online Gaming Act. Previously, Byju's was the sponsor for the Indian team from 5 September 2019 until 31 March 2023, after Oppo handed over the rights to them. Oppo's sponsorship was supposed to run from 2017 until 2022, but they handed over to Byju's. On 7 March 2022, Byju's extended its sponsorship for one year. Previously, the Indian team has been sponsored by Byju's from September 2019 until March 2023, Oppo from May 2017 until August 2019, Star India from January 2014 until March 2017, Sahara India Pariwar from June 2001 until December 2013 and ITC Limited (with Wills and ITC Hotels brands) from June 1993 until May 2001.

Official partners

On 9 January 2024, BCCI announced Campa and Atomberg Technologies as official partners for its domestic & international season during 2024–26. On 20 September 2023, BCCI announced SBI Life as the official partner for its domestic & international season during 2023–26. In August 2023, IDFC First Bank replaced Mastercard as the current title sponsor for all international and domestic matches played in India for the 2023–26 season. The title sponsorship was initially given to Paytm for all matches played between 2015 and 2023 but they handed over to Mastercard in 2022. On 30 August 2019, following the conclusion of the expression of interest process for official partners' rights, the BCCI announced that Sporta Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (Dream11), LafargeHolcim (ACC Cements, and Ambuja Cements) and Hyundai Motors India Ltd. have acquired the official partners' rights for the BCCI International and Domestic matches during 2019–2023. Disney Star and Airtel have been title sponsors previously.

Official broadcasters

JioHotstar is the official broadcaster until March 2028 for all the men's international and domestic matches played in India. Star Sports telecasts the international and domestic matches on TV, while it is live streamed on JioHotstar as OTT (over the top) platform.

Fixtures

International grounds

Main article: List of international cricket grounds in India}}There are numerous world-renowned cricket stadiums located in India. Most grounds are under the administration of various state cricket boards as opposed to being under the control of the BCCI. The [[Bombay Gymkhana Ground]] was the first ground in India to host a full-scale cricket match featuring an Indian cricket team. This was between the Parsis and the Europeans in 1877.{{cite web, [Chepauk]] in [[Chennai]]. The [[Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium]] in [[Delhi]] was the first stadium to host a Test match after independence, a draw against the West Indies in 1948, the first of a five-Test series. There are 21 stadiums in India that have hosted at least one official [List of Test cricket grounds, [Test]] match. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of world-class cricket stadiums in India.{{cite web](test-match-in-recent-years-there-has-been-an-increase-in-the-number-of-world-class-cricket-stadiums-in-india-ref-cite-web)

India currently has the world's largest cricket stadium (which is also the world's largest stadium), The Narendra Modi Stadium, located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It is currently recognised as one of the world's premier cricket venues and has hosted several high-profile matches. Eden Gardens has hosted the most Tests, and also has the third-largest seating capacity of any cricket stadium in the world. Founded in 1864, it is one of the most historical stadiums in India, having hosted numerous historical matches. Other major stadiums in India include the Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium, which was established in 1883 and hosted memorable matches including Anil Kumble's ten wickets in an innings haul against Pakistan.

The Bombay Gymkhana Ground hosted the first Test match in India which is the only Test it has hosted to date. Wankhede Stadium, established in 1974, has a capacity to hold 33,100 spectators and is currently the most popular venue in the city. It has hosted 24 Test matches. It also hosted the 2011 World Cup final, in which India became the first team to win the World Cup at home soil. It was the unofficial successor of the Brabourne Stadium, which is also located in Mumbai. Mumbai is often considered the cricketing capital of India because of its fans and the talent it produces via the domestic Mumbai cricket team. Thus the stadium regularly hosts major Test matches. The M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai is also considered to be an important historical Indian cricket ground, established in the early 1900s, it was the site of India's first Test victory. The first ODI match in India was hosted by the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad during the series against England on 25 November 1981. India played the first T20I match in India at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on 20 October 2007 against the visiting Australian team.

Captains

Main article: List of India national cricket captains

A total of 35 men have captained the Indian men's cricket team in at least one Test match, although only six have led the team in more than 25 matches, and six have captained the team in men's ODIs but not Tests. India's first captain of the men's cricket team was C. K. Nayudu, who led the team in four matches against England: one in England in 1932 and a series of three matches at home in 1933–34. Lala Amarnath, India's fourth captain of the men's cricket team and the first Indian to score a century in Test cricket while playing for India, led the team in its first Test match after Indian independence. He also captained the side to its first Test victory and first series win, both in a three-match series at home against Pakistan in 1952–53. From 1952 until 1961–62, India men's cricket team had a number of captains such as Vijay Hazare, Polly Umrigar and Nari Contractor.

The Nawab of Pataudi, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, was the men's team's captain for 36 Test matches from 1961–62 to 1969–70, returning for another four matches against West Indies in 1974–75. In the early years of his captaincy tenure, the team was whitewashed in the West Indies, England and Australia. However, in 1967–68, Pataudi led India men's cricket team on its maiden New Zealand tour, which ended in India winning the Test series 3–1. In 1970–71, Ajit Wadekar took over the captaincy from Pataudi. Under Wadekar's captaincy, India registered its first Test series win in the West Indies and England. India played its first men's ODI in 1974, also under his captaincy. India won its first men's ODI under the captaincy of Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan in the 1975 World Cup, against East Africa. Between 1975–76 and 1978–79, Bishan Singh Bedi captained the team in 22 men's Tests and four ODIs, winning six Tests and one ODI.

Sunil Gavaskar took over as men's Test and ODI captain in 1978–79, leading India in 47 Test matches and 37 ODIs, winning nine Tests and 14 ODIs. He was succeeded by Kapil Dev in the 1980s, who captained for 34 Test matches, including four victories. Kapil Dev led India to victory in 39 of his 74 ODIs in charge, including the 1983 Cricket World Cup. Kapil Dev also captained India's 2–0 Test series victory in England in 1986. The captaincy shuffled between Dev and Gavaskar, with Gavaskar captaining India to triumph in the inaugural 1984 Asia Cup and 1985 World Championship of Cricket.

Between 1987–88 and 1989–90, India had three captains in Dilip Vengsarkar, Ravi Shastri and Krishnamachari Srikkanth. Vengsarkar took over the captaincy from Kapil Dev after the 1987 World Cup. Although he started with two centuries in his first series as captain, his captaincy period was turbulent and he lost the job following a disastrous tour of the West Indies in early 1989 and a stand-off with the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI).

India has had six regular Test captains of the men's cricket team since Mohammad Azharuddin took charge in 1989. Azharuddin led the team in 47 Test matches from 1989–90 to 1998–99, winning 14, and in 174 ODIs, winning 90. He was followed by Sachin Tendulkar, who captained the men's cricket team in 25 Test matches and 73 ODIs in the late 1990s; Tendulkar was relatively unsuccessful as a captain, winning only four Test matches and 23 ODIs.

Sourav Ganguly became the regular captain of the men's team in both Tests and ODIs in 2000. He remained captain until 2005–06 and became the then most successful Indian captain, winning 21 of his 49 Test matches in charge and 76 of his 146 ODIs. Under his captaincy, India became the joint-winners of the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka, and through three consecutive ICC finals - the Champions Trophy finals of 2000 and 2002 along with the World Cup final of 2003. India lost only three Tests at home under Ganguly and managed to draw Test series in England and Australia.

Rahul Dravid took over as men's Test captain in 2005. In 2006, he led India to its first Test series victory in the West Indies in more than 30 years.

In September 2007, MS Dhoni was named as the new captain of the men's ODI and T20I teams, after Dravid stepped down from the post. Soon after taking up the captaincy, Dhoni led the team to the inaugural T20 World Cup title. Anil Kumble was appointed Test captain in November 2007, but retired from international cricket in November 2008 after captaining in 14 Tests. Dhoni succeeded him as the men's Test captain, making him the captain in all formats. Under the captaincy of Dhoni, the Indian men's cricket team held the number one position in the ICC Men's Test Team Rankings for 21 months (from November 2009 to August 2011), and set a national record for most back-to-back ODI wins (nine straight wins). Dhoni also led the team to victory in 2011 Cricket World Cup and 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. Thus, Dhoni became the first captain in history to win all three major ICC trophies. Dhoni also took the team to the final of the 2014 T20 World Cup. However, the team performed poorly in away Tests from 2011 to 2014 and Dhoni retired from Test cricket in December 2014, with Virat Kohli being named as the new Test captain. Dhoni resigned as captain of the ODI and T20I teams in January 2017 and Kohli succeeded him at the position.

Under Kohli's captaincy, India was unbeaten in 19 Test matches, starting from a 3–0 series win over New Zealand and ending with a 2–1 series win over Australia. India also had an unbeaten streak of winning nine consecutive Test series, starting with a 3–0 series win over Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka and ending with a 1–0 series win over Sri Lanka at home. India also became only the third team after Australia and South Africa to have won their most recent Test series simultaneously against all the other Test-playing nations. As per winning percentage in Test matches, Kohli was India's second most successful Test captain, behind Ajinkya Rahane, having won more than 58% of Test matches (at least two games). He took India to the 2017 Champions Trophy and 2021 World Test Championship finals.

In November 2021, Rohit Sharma was appointed as the new T20I captain of the Indian men's cricket team after Kohli resigned from the role. Kohli led India one last time in T20Is at the T20 World Cup 2021. Under Rohit Sharma's first series as permanent captaincy, India whitewashed New Zealand at home in the T20I series 3–0. In December 2021, Sharma was also appointed as the new ODI captain of the Indian men's cricket team, replacing Kohli ahead of their away series against South Africa. Kohli later quit as Test captain as well, after their Test series loss to South Africa. Sharma replaced Kohli as Test captain before the Test series against Sri Lanka and was then the full-time captain of the Indian men's cricket team. Rohit took India to the finals of the 2023 World Test Championship and 2023 World Cup, and victories in the 2024 T20 World Cup and 2025 Champions Trophy. Sharma was then succeeded as Test and ODI captain by Shubman Gill, and T20I captain by Suryakumar Yadav.

Most matches as captain in all formats

Current squad

The BCCI released the list of their 2023–24 annual player contracts on 28 February 2024. Players can still be upgraded to a Grade C annual player contract on a pro-rata basis by meeting the criteria of playing a minimum of three Tests or eight ODIs or ten T20Is in the specified period (1 October 2023 to 30 September 2024).

This is a list of every active player who is contracted to BCCI, has played for India since November 2024 or was named in the recent Test, ODI or T20I squads. Uncapped players are listed in italics.

Last updated: 30 November 2025

;Key

Pay grade

BCCI awards central contracts to its players, their pay is graded according to the importance of the player. Players' salaries are as follows:

• Grade A+ –
• Grade A –
• Grade B –
• Grade C –
• Grade F – Fast Bowling Contracts ;Match fees Players also receive a match fee of per Test match, per ODI, and per T20I.

Coaching staff

Tournament history

A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within India

Cricket World Cup

Main article: Men's Cricket World Cup, India at the Cricket World Cup

T20 World Cup

Main article: Men's T20 World Cup, India at the Men's T20 World Cup

World Test Championship

Main article: World Test Championship

Champions Trophy

Main article: ICC Champions Trophy, India at the Champions Trophy

Asia Cup

Main article: Asia Cup

Asian Games

Main article: Cricket at the Asian Games

Commonwealth Games

Main article: Cricket at the Commonwealth Games

Defunct tournaments

Honours

ICC

Titles

• World Test Championship
  • Runners-up (2): 2019–2021, 2021–2023
• World Cup
  • Champions (2): 1983, 2011
  • Runners-up (2): 2003, 2023
• T20 World Cup
  • Champions (2): 2007, 2024
  • Runners-up (1): 2014
• Champions Trophy
  • Champions (3): 2002, 2013, 2025
  • Runners-up (2): 2000, 2017

Awards

• ICC Test Championship Mace
  • Winners (5): 2010, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2019
• ICC ODI Championship
  • Winners (1): 2013

ACC

• Asia Cup
  • Champions (9): 1984, 1988, 1990–91, 1995, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2023, 2025
  • Runners-up (3): 1997, 2004, 2008
• Asian Test Championship
  • Third place (1): 1998–99

Multi-sport events

• Asian Games
  • Gold medal (1): 2022

Statistics

Main article: India national cricket team record by opponent

Tests

Main article: List of India Test cricket records

Head-to-head record

Most Test runs for India

Most Test wickets for India

One-Day Internationals

Main article: List of India One Day International cricket records

Head-to-head record

Most ODI runs for India

Most ODI wickets for India

Twenty20 Internationals

Main article: List of India Twenty20 International cricket records

Head-to-head record

Most T20I runs for India

Most T20I wickets for India

Individual records

Main article: List of India One Day International cricket records

Sachin Tendulkar, who began playing for India as a 16-year-old in 1989 and has since become the most prolific run-scorer in the history of both Test and ODI cricket, holds a large number of national batting records. He holds the record of most appearances in both Tests and ODIs, most runs in both Tests and ODIs and most centuries in Tests. The highest score by an Indian is the 319 scored by Virender Sehwag in Chennai. It is the second triple century in Test cricket by an Indian, the first being a 309 also made by Sehwag although against Pakistan. The team's highest ever score was a 759/7 against England at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai in 2016, while its lowest score was 36 against Australia in 2020. In ODIs, the team's highest score is 418/5 against West Indies at Indore in 2011–12. India scored 413–5 in a match against Bermuda in 2007 World Cup which was the highest score ever in Cricket World Cup history at the time. In the same match, India set a world record of the highest winning margin in an ODI match of 257 runs.

India has also had some very strong bowling figures, with spin bowler Anil Kumble being a member of the elite group of four bowlers who have taken 600 Test wickets. In 1999, Kumble emulated Jim Laker to become the second bowler to take all ten wickets in a Test match innings when he took 10 wickets for 74 runs against Pakistan at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi.

Many of the Indian cricket team's records are also world records, for example Tendulkar's century tally (in Tests and ODIs) and run tally (also in both Tests and ODIs). Dhoni's 183 not out against Sri Lanka in 2005 is the world record score by a wicketkeeper in ODIs. The Indian cricket team also holds the record sequence of 17 successful run-chases in ODIs, which ended in a dramatic match against the West Indies in May 2006, which India lost by just one run.

Tendulkar was the first batsman to score 200 runs (he was unbeaten on 200 from 147 deliveries including 25 fours and 3 sixes) in a single ODI innings, on 24 February 2010 against South Africa in Gwalior. On 8 December 2011, this achievement was eclipsed by compatriot Virender Sehwag, who scored 219 runs from 149 deliveries (25 fours and 7 sixes) versus the West Indies in Indore. On 13 November 2014 the record was broken by another Indian opening batsmen, Rohit Sharma, who scored 264 runs from 173 deliveries (33 fours and 9 sixes) against Sri Lanka in Kolkata, West Bengal. In 2013, Dhoni became the first captain in history to win all three major ICC trophies- ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011, ICC World Twenty20 in 2007 and ICC Champions Trophy in 2013.

In 2014, Kohli became the first cricketer to win back-to-back Man of the Series awards in the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 and 2016 ICC World Twenty20. Rohit is the most runs scorer in T20Is and also hold joint most T20I centuries. In 2017, Ravichandran Ashwin became the fastest cricketer in history to reach 250 wickets.

Fan following

Main article: Cricket in India

Owing to the massive Indian diaspora in nations like Australia, England and South Africa, a large Indian fan turnout is expected whenever India plays in any of these nations. There have been a number of official fan groups that have been formed over the years, including the Bharat Army, the Indian equivalent of the Barmy Army, that were very active in their support when India toured Australia in 2003–04. They are known to attribute a number of popular Indian songs to the cricket team.

Fan rivalry and cross-border tension has created a strong rivalry between the Indian and the Pakistani cricket teams. In tours between these two nations, cricket visas are often employed to accommodate for the tens of thousands of fans wishing to cross the border to watch cricket. This intense fan dedication is one of the major causes of the BCCI's financial success.

However, there are downsides to having such a cricket-loving population. Many Indians hold cricket very close to their hearts and losses are not received well by the Indian population. In some cases, particularly after losses to Pakistan or after a long string of weak performances, there have been reports of player effigies being burnt in the streets and vandalism of player homes. In many cases, players have come under intense scrutiny from the media for negative reasons. This has been considered one of the reasons for Ganguly being left out of the Indian team. At times, when a match is surrounded by controversy, it has resulted in a debacle. For example, when India slid to defeat against Australia at Brabourne Stadium in 1969, fans began throwing stones and bottles onto the field as well as setting fire to the stands, before laying siege to the Australian dressing rooms. During the same tour, a stampede occurred at Eden Gardens when tickets were oversold and India fell to another loss; the Australian team bus was later stoned with bricks. A similar event occurred during the 1996 Cricket World Cup, where India were losing the semi-final to Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens. In this case, the fan behaviour was directed at the Indian team in disappointment at their lacklustre performance. An armed guard had to be placed at the home of captain Mohammad Azharuddin to ensure his safety. In 1999, a riot occurred in a Test against Pakistan at Eden Gardens after a collision with Pakistani paceman Shoaib Akhtar saw Sachin be run out, forcing police to eject spectators and the game to be played in an empty stadium. In 2006, a string of low scores resulted in Tendulkar being booed by the Mumbai crowd when he got out against England.

Often, fans engage in protests regarding players if they believe that regionalism has affected selection, or because of regional partisan support for local players. In 2005, when Ganguly was dropped from the team, Ganguly's home town Kolkata erupted in protests. India later played a match against South Africa in Kolkata. The Indian team was booed by the crowd who supported South Africa instead of India in response to Ganguly's dropping. Similar regional divisions in India regarding selection have also caused protests against the team, with political activists from the regional Kalinga Kamgar Sena party in Odisha disrupting the arrival of the team in Cuttack for an ODI over the lack of a local player in the team, with one activist manhandling coach Greg Chappell. Similar treatment was handed to Sunil Gavaskar in the 1987 World Cup semi-finals by crowds at Wankhede Stadium when he got bowled by Phillip DeFreitas.

A successful string of results, especially victories against the arch-rival Pakistan or victories in major ICC tournaments such as the World Cup, the T20 World Cup and the Champions Trophy are greeted with particular ecstasy from the Indian fans. Test rivalries include the Border–Gavaskar Trophy with Australia, the Gandhi–Mandela Trophy with South Africa, and the Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy with England.

Notes

Virat Kohli

References

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