Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium was stunned on Thursday as Will O'Rourke and Matt Henry helped New Zealand to bundle out Rohit Sharma's men for an embarrassing 46 runs. India's first Innings lasted just 31.2 overs with none other than Yashasvi Jaiswal (13 off 63 balls) and Rishabh Pant (20 off 49 balls) crossing the two-digit mark. Half of the dismissed men, including Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, failed to score a run as the NZ bowlers produced a flawless effort.
Later the day, when the Kiwis set out to bat, there were no hiccups as they finished the day strongly at 180/3 in 50 overs -- establishing a 134 run lead over the home side with three days of cricket left. The first day of the game was lost due to incessant rains in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
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Meanwhile, 46 runs is not the lowest Test total in the history of Indian cricket. They have been dismissed for even lesser scores twice in history with the worst performance coming in the not-very-far-past. It was under Virat Kohli that India was dismissed for their lowest Test score ever in 2020 by Australia. The Down Under humiliation was worse than what happened at the Lords' in 1974 when India was dismissed for just 42 runs by England.
However, the Chinnaswamy disaster is the lowest total ever registered by an Indian team in home soil, record books show.
As Rohit Sharma's men prepare for a Herculean task against the Kiwis at Bengaluru, here is how the story ended in 1974 and 2020 after India were bowled out for their lowest totals in histroy:
36 all out; vs Australia in 2020
India's lowest total in Test cricket was recorded against Australia at the Adelaide Oval in 2020. Although India recorded a famous 2-1 Test series win, the campaign began with the hosts claiming the first Test.
Batting first, India made 244 runs on the board with captain Virat Kohli leading from the front with a 180-ball 74. Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins claimed 4 and 3 wickets respectively.
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The Aussies, in response, could only manage 191 runs with no batters other than captain Tim Paine (73 not out) and Marnus Labuschagne (47 from 119) crossing the two-digit mark. Ravi Ashwin (4/55), Umesh Yadav (3/40) and Jasprit Bumrah (2/52) shared the spoils amongst them.
India had the upper hand when they set out to bat in the second innings on Day 2. However, Australia had other plans and managed to dismiss India to its lowest Test total in history the following day! None of the famous Indian batting lineup managed to score 10 runs or more as Josh Hazlewood (5/8 in 5 overs) and Pat Cummins (4/21 in 10.2 overs) ran riot. When the innings came to a close in 21.2 overs, there was just 36 runs on the board.
The Australians needed 90 runs to win the opening Test and did so on the third day with eight wickets to spare. A Test match to remember for both sides for contrasting reasons.
42 all out; vs England in 1974
When India toured England in 1974, the Three Lions registered a whitewash in both formats (3-0 in Tests, 2-0 in ODIs) of the game. It was during the second Test at the Lord's that the Ajit Wadekar-led Indian side faced a humiliating defeat after they were bowled out for just 42 runs by Chris Old and Co.
Batting first, centuries by opener Dennis Amiss (188 from 303), captain Mike Denness (118 from 220) and Tony Greg (106 from 180) helped England post a huge 629 on the board before they were bowled out. Bishan Bedi picked up six wickets for India but couldn't effectively contain the English onslaught.
India finished Day 2 strongly with openers Sunil Gavaskar and Farokh Engineer remaining unbeaten after a 50-run partnership. However, the English bowlers managed to bundle out the visitors for 302 runs to impose a follow-on. After Gavaskar (49 off 104) and Engineer (86 off 118), only Gundappa Viswanath (52 off 127) and Eknath Solkar (43 off 126) could offer some resistance against Chris Old and Mike Hendrick who picked up 4 and 3 wickets respectively. Derek Underwood, Tony Greig and Geoff Arnold picked one wicket each.
However, Old was not done yet. On June 24, when India returned to bat after a day of rest, he claimed a fifer (8-3-21-5) while Arnold picked four (8-1-19-4) to wrap up the Indian innings in just 17 overs. Solkar, who remained unbeaten in 18, was the only Indian to cross the two-digit mark as England claimed an unassailable lead in the series.
India's lowest totals in Tests: Top 10:
- 36 against Australia at Adelaide in 2020 (Australia won by 8 wickets; POM: Tim Paine)
- 42 against England at Lord's in 1974 (England won by an innings and 285 runs)
- 46 against New Zealand at M Chinnaswamy in 2024 (Match in progress)
- 58 against Australia at Brisbane in 1947 (Australia won by an innings and 226 runs)
- 58 against England at Manchester in 1952 (England won by an innings and 207 runs)
- 66 against South Africa at Durban in 1996 (South Africa won by 328 runs; POM: Andrew Hudson)
- 67 against Australia at Melbourne in 1948 (Australia won by an innings and 177 runs)
- 75 against West Indies at Delhi in 1987 (West Indies won by 5 wickets)
- 76 against South Africa at Ahmedabad in 2008 (South Africa won by an innings and 90 runs; POM: AB de Villiers)
- 78 against England at Leeds in 2021 (England won by an innings and 76 runs; POM: Ollie Robinson)