Cricket is a numbers game. For some people, it is about the consistency of a player while for others it’s about the number of records held by a player on his name. The various formats of cricket bring the difference in the picture about this game of greats where Test cricket remains the format that is an ideal test for any cricketer to prove his greatness from other formats of a game or for a team to define how good they are in red-ball cricket format. A five-day game and three sessions in a day is not an easy task for a team to survive in an era where, with the advent of T20l cricket, the values and morals of Test cricket are almost on the verge of losing their existence.
In the long history of cricket, teams have racked up monumental runs on the scoreboard to define what Test cricket is all about, while there were times when teams have been crumbled down to the lowest-ever total in the history of cricket to bring a completely different picture of this game that even this could happen in cricket with any team. From the A-list teams to minnows teams, many have been bowled out at the lowest-ever total to stun the cricketing fraternity.
Recently, India bowled out at one of the lowest-ever totals in the history of cricket, turning into one of the darkest days in Indian cricket history as everyone has criticised the performance and termed it “Worst and Absurd”.
Having said that, let us take a look at the top five lowest team India totals in Test cricket.
5. 58 – India vs Australia, Brisbane, 1947:
It was a completely different era when cricket was played without the batters' modern-day equipment or kind of, if we say a bowling-friendly era. India toured Australia in 1947 for a five-match Test series, and team India had played six first-class games before the start of the first test match. The hosts (Australia) won the toss and decided to bat first at Brisbane, which was not quite a pitch for the batters to score runs. Australia batted for two days before declaring the innings at 382 runs for the loss of eight wickets. Captain Don Bradman remained unbeaten on 185, which featured 20 fours.
In response, team India was bundled out at the score of 58 runs in the first innings against the top spell of Ernie Toshack who had picked up five wickets for two in the first innings while returning with six for 29 runs to wrap up the second innings of team India at 98 runs. Australia won the match by an innings and 226 runs and series too in the end by 4-0.
4. 58 – India vs England, Manchester, 1952:
India toured England in 1952 for a four-match Test series. After winning the first two Tests, the hosts (England) decided to bat first after winning the toss, as it was the first time they won the toss in the series. England scored 347 runs in the first innings for the loss of nine wickets before declaring their innings. Opener and skipper Sir Leonard Hutton smashed a century with 104 runs.
In reply, team India was all out at the score of 58 runs in their first innings. Fred Trueman from England returned with eight for 31 runs in the first innings to destroy the opposition. With a 289-run lead in the first innings, England enforced the follow-on before team India crumbled down to 82 runs in the second innings to lose the match by an innings and 207 runs.
3. 46 - India vs New Zealand, Bengaluru, 2024:
Unlike the other lowest totals for team India, it is the shocking one. India are the dominant side at home, as they last suffered a home Test defeat against New Zealand in 1988. It was the first Test of the three-match Test series between the hosts India and the visitors New Zealand at Bengaluru, which was a part of the 2023-2025 ICC World Test Championship. After the opening day was completely washed out in rain, Indian captain Rohit Sharma chose to bat first after winning the toss.
Only the opener Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant (20) managed the double-digit scores in that innings as India were bundled out for only 46 runs. Five Indian batters scored ducks in that innings. It was just a bad dream for Team India.
4. 42 – India vs England, Lord's, 1974:
For 46 long years, it was Team India's lowest-ever total. India toured England in 1974 for a three-match Test series. After winning the first Test match, hosts England decided to bat first in the second Test, and they had posted 629 runs in the first innings with three batters scoring centuries while one batter was out for 96 runs. In response, team India was all out at 302 in the first innings before England had enforced the follow-on.
At follow-on, team India began their second innings and in a span of time, they were bundled out at the score of 42 runs and lost the match by an innings and 285 runs, and the series too in the end by 3-0. The second Test ended in 4 days. Chris Old (5) and Geoff Arnold (4) shared nine wickets to wrap up the second innings of team India, which had the batters like Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath.
More on the 42 at Lord's: India vs England 42 All Out at Lords in 1974
5. 36 – India vs Australia, Adelaide, 2020:
The start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020 was turned into a nightmare for the visitors (India) when they were bowled out for 36 runs in their second innings. After batting first, India posted 244 runs in the first innings with a valuable knock from Virat Kohli (74) as no other batters crossed the 50-run mark in the first innings. In response, the hosts (Australia) were restricted to 191 runs in their first innings, thanks to Ashwin (4/55) and Umesh Yadav (3/40), who were leading wicket-takers to wrap up the Australian innings to get the important lead of 53 runs.
On a historic day, with the lead in the first innings, team India couldn't take advantage of that and bundled out at the lowest-ever total of 36/9 in the history of cricket. As no Indian batter was able to reach the double-figure mark, team India entered the five-lowest totals in history. The Australian bowlers destroyed the batting line-up before they chased down the target of 90 runs with eight wickets in hand.
Table of India's lowest totals in Test innings
Total | Opposition | Venue | Year |
36/9 | Australia | Adelaide | 2020 |
42 | England | Lord’s | 1974 |
46 | New Zealand | Bengaluru | 2024 |
58 | Australia | Brisbane | 1947 |
58 | England | Manchester | 1952 |
