India vs England: Hosts suffer 4th-narrowest loss, Hartley sets new record and more stats from first Test

Tom Hartley inspired England to a remarkable 28-run win over India in the first Test in Hyderabad on Sunday with a memorable seven-wicket haul on debut. England had come into this match with several questions on the back of their minds, including how the Bazball approach would work in India and if the spinners would come good.

However, Ollie Pope (196 in second innings) and spinner Tom Hartley (7/62 in the second innings) were the standout performers as England held their nerve to overcome a late Indian resistance from the lower-order batters.

What hurt India was a consistent partnership and more importantly, someone who could bat fir a longer duration. Rohit Sharma (39) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (15) did get a lift off at  the start of the chase but the duo weren’t able to carry forward the hosts. Instead, it was Hartley who made the best use of the conditions to spin England to victory.

Several records were broken and milestones were achieved from the first Test in Hyderabad. We take a look from some of the most important stats from the first India-England Test:

• India had a lead of 190 after the completion of the first innings. This was the second highest first innings lead that resulted in a defeat for India, with a 192-run loss to Sri Lanka in Galle (2015) being the first.
• This was also the second highest first innings lead overturned by a team to win a Test in India. India themselves had overturned a 274-run lead by Australia in the famous Kolkata Test in 2001 to win the match by 171 runs.
• Their 28-run loss to England on Sunday was India’s fourth narrowest defeat by runs. The narrowest-ever defeat for India in terms of runs remains a 12-run loss to Pakistan in Chennai in 1999.
• Tom Hartley finished with figures of 7/62 on Sunday. That is the best figures by an England spinner on his debut Test in the post-war period. Robert Berry’s figures of 9/116 against West Indies in the Manchester Test in 1950 was the previous best.
• Their total of 436 in the first innings was their second-highest Test total that has come in a home defeat for India. India had posted 449 in the first innings during a Test against Pakistan in Bengaluru in 2005, which the visitors went onto win by 168 runs.