A young Indian side has left The Oval with the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy shared, and KL Rahul is happy to file the 2-2 result alongside the national team’s most cherished Test moments.
“For us, as a team that wasn’t given a chance in this series, for us to fight back and to fight in every game and to get a result which is 2-2 might seem like a draw, but for us and for Indian Test cricket going in the future, I think this will rank right at the top,” Rahul said moments after India squeezed home by six runs on the final morning.
Key facts, first. Five Tests, all stretching into the fifth day; India winning at Lord’s and The Oval, England at Headingley and Old Trafford; no side taking more than a one-match lead. Weather threatened to intervene only briefly. In the end, the margins were thin – 23 wickets fell on day four at The Oval – but the ledger stayed level.
Rahul reckons the series has answered a wider question about the format itself. “I’ve played cricket for a while, I have won the Champions Trophy, I’ve seen India lifting the World Cup. I mean, nothing compares with lifting the World Cup, but so many doubts, so many questions from everybody about whether Test cricket would stay or not. I think both the teams with the way we’ve played in this series, I think we’ve answered that question.”
India’s dressing-room view is simple: a drawn scoreline on English soil still counts as progress for a squad missing several long-serving names. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin retired earlier in the year, leaving Rahul – on his third Test tour of England – to shoulder extra weight at the top of the order. He responded with 532 runs at 53.20, third on the series list behind Joe Root and Ollie Pope.
“Yes, it hit me when I joined the team,” he said of the trio’s absence. “I was here about two weeks earlier playing for India A and it didn’t hit me back then, but once I joined the team and I looked around and I didn’t have a Rohit, a Virat, an Ashwin.
“But yeah, that’s when it hit me that everyone else is looking at me, coming to me to ask about English conditions, what they need to do, how they need to prepare. That’s when it hit me that, ‘okay, I’ve stepped into a different role now and it’s time for me to help the younger guys, use all the experience I’ve had of playing Test cricket and international cricket over the years and really put my hand up and stand up for this team.’”
The series itself was draining. “Feeling is hard to describe,” he told the host broadcaster. “Been here, toiled for 25 days. It took every inch out of us. Everything that we had, physically, mentally, emotionally, this Test series has taken everything away from all of us. And I think at the end of 25 days, we’re standing here 2-2, absolutely proud of ourselves.
“So satisfying to be here and draw the series. Would have loved to win this series. But for a young team to come here and for a lot of us to step up and show the world that we can compete, we can win games outside of India. Yeah, it’s truly a testament to what this team is and what Indian cricket means.”
Tactically, India relied on an attack built around Jasprit Bumrah’s pace and Axar Patel’s control, while England leaned on their familiar blend of new-ball movement and middle-order counter-punching. No captain got every call right, which is hardly a surprise when each Test swung repeatedly. Analysts will argue for years about Ben Stokes’ decision to declare at 275 for 8 in Leeds; Indian observers will point to missed chances on the fourth evening at Old Trafford that let Jonny Bairstow turn a chase into a cruise.
Still, perspective matters. This was the first five-Test tour India have completed in England without a defeat since 2007. Rahul hopes it becomes a habit. “This moment almost feels like this is a young team that’s going to stay there for a long time.”
The next challenge? A two-match home series against New Zealand in November, followed by an away trip to South Africa. Whether the Oval finale proves a launchpad or a high-water mark will only be clear after those tours, but Rahul’s verdict is already on the record. “And this is where the change begins and the Indian Test team will go on to create many things and win many more series outside of India.”
