I recently came across this interesting topic and really enjoyed the picks from others. Here, I will give my choice restricting myself to Test Matches which I have seen on TV or heard on radio. One dayers for another day.As I started to make my list I realized how difficult it must’ve been for Wisden to come up with a top 100 of all time.
VVS Laxman(281), 2001 vs. Australia at Kolkatta This innings will be in everyone’s list I guess for the sheer positive intent with which it was played and its effect on the result of the match and the series. Following on 274 runs behind, Laxman hit 44 boundaries, did not hit an uppish shot in the entire innings and batted with immense concentration for almost 6 sessions. Rahul Dravid(180) played a crucial supporting cast and then Harbhajan and Tendulkar bowled with purpose while the Australians batted like amateurs to wrap up a wonderful turnaround, only the third time in history that a team following on has gone on to win the match.
S. Gavaskar(221), 1979 vs. England at Oval One of my first vague memories of cricket was listening to this innings on radio. I would not have remembered much of it had I not seen a video footage of it on TV a few years later. India trailed by 103 runs in the first innings and were set a target of 438 in the last innings of the match in 150 overs. Even survival for a draw was being ruled out till Gavaskar played a classic. Striking 21 boundaries in 443 balls, he brought India to within a whisker of what would have been a great victory. India were 410-4 at one stage when usual Indian nerves led to some quick wickets and the match ended in a draw with India 9 runs short of the target with 2 wickets in hand.
R. Dravid(233), 2003 vs. Australia at Adelaide When Australia scored 556 in the first innings at home and had India at 85-4 with Tendulkar gone, no one really expected another Kolkatta-but it happened with with the roles reversed this time. Dravid and Laxman put on 303 for the 4th wicket and Dravid carried on to take India to within 33 runs of the Australian score. It was again a chanceless innings with 23 fours and a six filled with wonderful cuts and pulls off 446 balls. Agarkar produced the spell of his life bundling the Aussies out for 196 and Dravid again with an unbeaten 72 guided India to a historic win.
S. Gavaskar(96), 1987 vs. Pakistan at Bangalore Another favourite innings amongst the reviewers. India were chasing 220 to win in the final innings on a pitch which was turning square and probably not Test match standard. India as usual had let the opposition tail off the hook and the last 2 Pak wickets added 51 in a low scoring match. India eventually lost the match by 16 runs but the reason they got so close was Gavaskar putting in every trick he had learnt in 16 years and displaying immense concentration. He was out to a dubious decision and missed out the chance to lead India to a win with a century in his last Test match.
K. Dev(119), 1986 vs. Australia at Madras After Australia had scored 574 in the first innings and had India 245-7 a follow on and a rare home defeat looked a real possibility. But Kapil tore through the fast and slow bowlers alike to hit 21 fours in his 119 off 138 balls and took India to a safer 397. Border made a sporting declaration leaving India with 348 to get off 87 overs. They managed 347 for a historic second tie in test matches.
S. Tendulkar(136), 1999 vs. Pakistan at Chennai Fighting back spasms and from a seemingly hopeless 82-5 chasing 271 to win, Tendulkar scripted a great comeback in Nayan Mongia’s company. Starting off very slowly, Sachin produced some of the best cricketing shots I have seen in an innings. There were cuts, pulls, lofted drives and sweeps in the 18 fours he struck. Many blame Sachin for the ultimate loss by 12 runs, but if the last 3 wickets cant score 16 it cant be pinned on Sachin who produced a modern masterpiece a back to the wall situation.
R. Dravid(270), 2004 vs. Pakistan at Rawalpindi An innings which epitomises what Dravid stands for and his contribution to Indian cricket’s fortunes. Out of form in the first 2 tests, Dravid started the decider very scratchily and never looked like going on for too long. However, he stuck it out playing ugly cricket at first and then launching into some of the most complete strokeplay I have seen. His epic 270(495 balls) with 34 fours and a six took India to 600, a lead of 376, so they could wrap up the series comfortably. The importance and difficulty of the innings can be gauged from the fact that the next highest score in the match was 77.
M. Azharuddin(115), 1997 vs. South Africa at Cape Town A back to the wall classic. India were 58-5 in reply to SA’s 529 when Azhar joined Tendulkar and took part in a gloriously entertaining partnership of 222 in 40 overs with Azhar’s 115 coming off 110 balls with 19 fours and a six. It was the sheer audacity of his strokeplay which has made me choose Tendulkar’s brilliant 169 in the same innings. Not a natural player of the hook shot, he played some lovely ones besides the usual recipe of flicks to midwicket and booming off drives. And it was all over in 2 and a half hours. India lost heavily by 282 runs.
S. Tendulkar(155), 1998 vs. Australia at Chennai Although Sidhu started Warne’s demolition, it was this innings which settled the issue. Clouts over midwicket, inside out strokes through cover and lofted drives, the innings had it all and more because of the psychological impact on the Aussies specially after Warne had got Tendulkar out for 4 in the first innings. India came back strongly from a 71 first innings deficit to win the Test by 180 runs thanks to another Kumble special.
V. Sehwag(309), 2004 vs. Pakistan at Multan If Tendulkar wounded Shoaib Akhtar in the 2003 world cup, Sehwag did a perfect job of rubbing salt to his wounds here and hopefully the ghosts of Calcutta when Akhtar yorked Tendulkar and Dravid off succesive deliveries were buried. The audacity and power with which the fastest bowler in the world was hit all over the ground with his stooges makes this one a classic. 39 fours and 6 sixes, and 375 balls was all it too for Sehwag to record the first triple hundred by an Indian. With Tendulkar for company they managed to take India to 675, enough to bowl Pakistan out twice for the first win on Pakistani soil.
So, a job well done! That was my top 10. Its obviously missing innings before 1980 which I do not remember including Viswanath’s 97 described as a classic against the WI. A few others which I omitted after endless debates with myself are Dravid’s 148(vs.England 2002, Headingly), Vengsarkar’s 102(vs. England 1986, Headingly), Gavaskar’s 236(vs.WI, 1983, Madras), Tendulkar’s 169(vs.SA, 1997, Cape Town), Dravid’s 180(vs.Aus, 2001, Kolkatta), Azhar’s 121(vs.England, 1990, Lords), Sidhu’s 201(vs.WI, 1997, Port of Spain), Tendulkar’s 119(vs.Eng, 1990, Manchester), Dravid’s 148(vs.SA, 1997, Johannesburg), Dravid’s 190(vs.NZ, 1999, Hamilton), and Kapil Dev’s 129(vs.SA, 1992, Port Elizabeth)
Thanks for reading through this and comments/suggestions are always asked for and welcome. I am sure there are people who will not agree with my choice, but thats what makes choices and specially choices and preferences in cricket so much fun.