Since the start of 2010, India have travelled to England on three occasions, returning without a single Test series win. Most players from the current side, set to feature in five Tests from August to September 2021, have played in the country before and will be eager to carry forward their experience.

Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav, Mayank Agarwal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Wriddhiman Saha, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur and Mohammad Siraj are yet to play Tests in England.

*Only records against England in England have been considered.

Virat Kohli (2014, 2018)

10 matches: 727 runs @ 36.35

After a disastrous run in 2014, where Kohli managed scores of 1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, 0, 7, 6 and 20 to end with an average of 13.50, India’s Test captain roared back in style with 593 runs on his next tour with two hundreds and three fifties. Kohli, who had admitted to being mentally bogged down in 2014 after his struggles against James Anderson – where the quick dismissed him four times – was at his threatening best four years later. Kohli, who was troubled by the outswingers in 2014, left the ball better on his next tour. The fact that he did not get out to Anderson even once in 2018 shows his massive improvement.

Ajinkya Rahane (2014, 2018)

10 matches: 556 runs @ 29.26

Rahane’s 103 at Lord’s in just his third innings in England had set up a memorable win for India back in 2014. However, that remains the middle-order player’s only ton in the country. Though the player did score a crucial 81 in Nottingham in 2018 in yet another win, his inconsistent returns remain a worry. Rahane has six single-digit scores in 20 innings in the country and a total of 13 scores below 30.

Cheteshwar Pujara (2014, 2018)

9 matches: 500 runs @ 29.41

Pujara was dropped from the first Test at Edgbaston in 2018 after a poor run, with KL Rahul replacing him at three. However, the senior pro was back in the XI for the next game. Pujara ended with a high score of 132* in the series last time that came in a defeat at Southampton. However, his overall figures in England leave much to be desired. He has faced 1,236 balls in nine Tests in the country, scoring at a steady strike-rate of 40.45 — less than his career number of 44.64.

Rohit Sharma (2014)

1 match: 34 runs @ 17

The opener was slotted in the middle order in his maiden Test match in England way back in 2014, but knocks of 28 and 6 in the 3rd Test at Southampton meant he was not given a go again. He was not selected in the squad for the 2018 tour.

KL Rahul (2018)

5 matches: 299 runs @ 29.90

Rahul was given a go to play all five Tests in 2018 and repaid the faith with a cracking 149 in the last Test at The Oval. However, he had a poor run prior to that, with scores of 4, 13, 8, 10, 23, 36, 19, 0 and 37 in nine innings. He was dismissed bowled or leg-before seven times on the tour.

Rishabh Pant (2018)

3 matches: 162 runs @ 27

Brought into the team for the last three games, Rishabh Pant hardly created any impact until his last innings at The Oval. Set a total of 464 for a win, the visiting side were struggling at 121-5 before Pant got together with Rahul. His fighting knock of 114 off 146 balls had 15 fours and four sixes.

Hanuma Vihari (2018)

1 match: 56 runs @ 28

Vihari played a solitary game in the 2018 Test series at The Oval, scoring a fine 56 in 124 balls after the team had collapsed to 160-6 in the first innings.

Ravindra Jadeja (2014, 2018)

5 matches: 276 runs @ 30.66, 16 wickets @ 42.37

One of only two batsmen from the current crop to average over 30 in England (Kohli is the other), Jadeja just played a solitary Test on the last tour following Ravichandran Ashwin’s injury. He scored 99 runs in the game and picked up seven wickets, including a four-for. Overall, Jadeja has two fifties and two three-wicket hauls in the country, besides his 4-79 at The Oval in 2018.

Ravichandran Ashwin (2014, 2018)

6 matches: 14 wickets @ 32.92

The off-spinner was largely criticised on the last tour after his below-par returns at the Ageas Bowl, where he returned with three wickets in a game where all-rounder Moeen Ali had match figures of 9-134. The Indian spinner could not get much turn in the game as he was not bowling slow enough, and the subtle variations were missing. However, he does not have the worst record in the country and had shown glimpses of what he can do in the first Test in 2018, where he made the drift work in his favour.

Ishant Sharma (2011, 2014, 2018)

12 matches: 43 wickets @ 33.90

The highest wicket-taker from the current crop of quicks from India, Ishant is also the only player to have played more than 10 Tests in England. He first toured the country in 2011 and has been crucial in both matches that India have won in the country since. He averages 21.54 in wins in England and has best figures of 7-74, which came in the historical win at Lord’s in 2014.

Mohammad Shami (2014, 2018)

8 matches: 21 wickets @ 47.04

Mohammad Shami has the poorest bowling average in England by a large margin, when it comes to the countries he’s visited. In no other country except England does Shami average more than 35.60, which is only evidence of his struggles. He is also yet to get a five-for in the country on his last two tours.

Jasprit Bumrah (2018)

3 matches: 14 wickets @ 25.92

The fast bowler has the best average among the current lot of quicks in England. He picked up at least a wicket in five of the six innings he bowled in 2018.

Umesh Yadav (2018)

1 match: 3 wickets @ 25.33

The quick played the Birmingham Test in 2018 as Jasprit Bumrah was not fit to take the field. He ended with an economy rate of 3.16 in the game.