An alphabetical recall of Test matches at the spiritual headquarters of cricket
Test debutant Sourav Ganguly in full flow during his century for India against England at Lord’s on June 22, 1996
Azharuddin. A bittersweet Lord’s Test in 1990 because Mohd Azharuddin won the toss and inserted the opposition. Thank you very much, said Graham Gooch as he and his fellow batsmen thrived. Azhar responded with a splendid hundred; according to him, his finest at the time.
Bedi. Cricket manager Bishan Singh Bedi was not in favour of his captain Mohd Azharuddin’s decision to bat first at Lord’s in 1990 and Bedi’s disapproval reached the media.
Cottari. Two brothers with the same first name figured in the 1936 Lord’s Test — all-rounder CK Nayudu and leg-spinner CS Nayudu. CK captained India in the inaugural Test in 1932, after which Wisden described him as “a man of high character and directness of purpose.”
Dada. A Test debut to remember for Sourav ‘Dada’ Ganguly in 1996. Walking in at No. 3 for his first taste of Test cricket as a batsman, Ganguly hit an imperious 131. Fellow debutant Rahul Dravid missed his hundred by five runs in the same innings. A maiden Test century at Lord’s for Dravid came 15 years later in 2011.
Edrich. England’s No.3 batsman John Edrich missed his century by four runs when he was trapped LBW by Bedi in the 1974 Test. Had Edrich got to his hundred, he would have been the fourth centurion of the first innings after Dennis Amiss, Mike Denness, and Tony Greig.
India’s Rahul Dravid works his way to a hundred in the 2011 Lord’s Test. PICS/GETTY IMAGES
Forty-two. That’s all Ajit Wadekar’s Indian team could manage in the 1974 Test, while following on. It was the country’s lowest Test score before Kohli & Co’s 36 in the Adelaide Test in 2020-21.
Gooch. Should have been walking back with 36 to his name in 1990, but wicketkeeper Kiran More dropped a regulation catch off hapless seamer Sanjeev Sharma and Graham Gooch went on to carve a career-best 333.
Hutton. England’s captain Len Hutton in the 1952 Test led from the front, with a 150 in the first innings, and a fighting unbeaten 39 in the second.
Ishant. Inspired by what fellow pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar (6-82) did in the first innings, Ishant Sharma demolished England in their second innings with a match-winning 7-74. He tops the Indian list for the best bowling performance in an innings at Lord’s.
Jadeja. Edgbaston witnessed two good performances with the bat, but Ravindra Jadeja is short of scalps. He had only three wickets to show in his two Tests at Lord’s in 2014 and 2021; wicketless in the last one.
Kapil. The spiritual headquarters of cricket was kind to India’s 1983 World Cup-winning captain. In the 1990 Test, he hit four consecutive sixes off Eddie Hemmings to help India avoid the follow-on.
Laxman. While Eden Gardens has seen five Test tons from the blade of VVS Laxman and Sydney was blessed with three, Lord’s did not see the best of Laxman. His best in the three Tests he played there was in 2002 — a 74 amidst a 126-run partnership with centurion Ajit Agarkar.
Mankad. Pulled out of the English league to rescue his country, Vinoo Mankad made the 1952 Test his own — 72 and 184 and 5-196 in England’s first innings.
‘Mankad’s Test’ the media justifiably called it, although India lost.
Nursery. The Nursery End of the ground has often been brought up in commentary. But the ground behind the massive media centre is a beehive of activity with fans enjoying their cricket breaks on the grass.
Old. Yorkshireman Chris Old destroyed India with a match haul of nine wickets in 1974. John Woodcock in The Cricketer magazine said that Old was “fast and lethal.”
Panesar. After sending back RP Singh for two in the dying moments of the 2007 Test, Monty Panesar fancied his chances of doing the same to last man S Sreesanth, but a loud LBW appeal was turned down by umpire Steve Bucknor. Bad weather ended the Test at 6.20 pm.
Queen. Her majesty Queen Elizabeth II was a regular at Lord’s to meet both teams. Farokh Engineer said that she informed him about the birth of his daughter after arriving during the 1967 Test.
Rahane. Wisden called the 2014 Test pitch “the greenest surface served up at Lord’s in living memory.” Yet, Ajinkya Rahane scripted a century, the second of his career. The Mumbai man survived a vehement LBW appeal from Stuart Broad just before he could reach three figures.
Shami. Mohd Shami proved that he could be a sticky customer with the bat in the 2014 Nottingham Test, where he got 51. At Lord’s in 2021, his 56* played a major hand in England being set a 272-run victory target. A 151-run win for India followed.
Tendulkar. Allan Lamb won’t forget the catch Sachin Tendulkar took to dismiss him in the second innings. In journalist David Frith’s words, the amazing one-handed catch “deserved isolated billing.”
Unleash. Then chief coach Ravi Shastri revealed recently that skipper Virat Kohli urged his bowlers to “unleash hell” on England who ultimately folded for 120 in 2021.
Vengsarkar. The Lord of Lord’s title sits well with Dilip Vengsarkar. The only overseas player to score three consecutive Test tons at the fabled venue is a feat that will be difficult to emulate considering longevity is a rare aspect in today’s cricket.
Wait. India ended their 54-year wait for a Lord’s Test victory when Kapil Dev & Co overwhelmed David Gower’s side in 1986. India’s next Test win there came in 2014.
X-Factor. Should we expect something special from that man who answers to the name Ben Stokes?
Yardley. England all-rounder Norman Yardley made three Test appearances at Lord’s — all three (1947 vs South Africa, 1948 vs Australia and 1950 vs West Indies) as captain.
Zaheer. Who knows if India would have lost the 2011 series 0-4 had Zaheer Khan not suffered a hamstring injury in his 14th over of the Test? He played no further part in the series.
mid-day’s Deputy Editor Clayton Murzello is a purist with an open stance. He tweets @ClaytonMurzello
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The views expressed in this column are the individual’s and don’t represent those of the paper.
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