The summer of 1959 concluded with a commanding display by England against India at The Oval, the final Test of a challenging tour for the Indian side. Battling conditions and an in-form English team, India were bundled out twice, while England amassed a big first-innings total to seal a dominant win by an innings and 27 runs.
Led by Datta Gaekwad, India fought with heart, but England’s balanced attack and productive batting partnerships etched another result in their favour as they completed a 5-0 series whitewash.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | England vs India, 5th Test |
| Dates | 20–24 August 1959 |
| Venue | The Oval, London |
| Toss | India won the toss and elected to bat |
| Result | England won by an innings and 27 runs |
| Match Format | 5-day Test Match |
| Umpires | D. E. Davies & F. S. Lee |
| Significance | Final Test of India’s 1959 tour of England (England 5–0) |
Note: England completed a clean sweep of Test matches on this tour.
Team Lineups
| India (Playing XI) | England (Playing XI) |
|---|---|
| Pankaj Roy | Geoff Pullar |
| Nari Contractor | Raman Subba Row |
| Abbas Ali Baig | Colin Cowdrey |
| Bapu Nadkarni | Mike Smith |
| Chandu Borde | Ken Barrington |
| Datta Gaekwad (Captain) | Ted Dexter |
| Jayasinghrao Ghorpade | Ray Illingworth |
| Naren Tamhane (wk) | Roy Swetman (wk) |
| R. Surendranath | Fred Trueman |
| Subhash Gupte | Brian Statham |
| Ramakant Desai | Tommy Greenhough |
India 1st Innings – 140 all out
India’s first innings was a struggle against potent English seamers. Few batters got starts, and Naren Tamhane’s 32 offered some resistance before England took control with incisive bowling.
| Player | Runs | Dismissal |
|---|---|---|
| Pankaj Roy | 3 | b Statham |
| Nari Contractor | 22 | c Illingworth b Dexter |
| Abbas Ali Baig | 23 | c Cowdrey b Trueman |
| Bapu Nadkarni | 6 | c Swetman b Trueman |
| Chandu Borde | 0 | b Greenhough |
| Datta Gaekwad (c) | 11 | c Barrington b Dexter |
| Jayasinghrao Ghorpade | 5 | b Greenhough |
| Naren Tamhane (wk) | 32 | c & b Statham |
| R. Surendranath | 27 | c Illingworth b Trueman |
| Subhash Gupte | 2 | b Trueman |
| Ramakant Desai | 3* | not out |
| Extras | 6 | |
| Total | 140 all out |
Top Bowlers:
- Fred Trueman 4/24
- Brian Statham 2/24
- Ted Dexter 2/24
- Tommy Greenhough 2/36
England 1st Innings – 361 all out
England responded dominantly. A huge 94 from Raman Subba Row and 98 from Mike Smith laid the foundation, while contributions from others took the score past 350.
| Player | Runs | Dismissal |
|---|---|---|
| Geoff Pullar | 22 | c Tamhane b Surendranath |
| Raman Subba Row | 94 | b Desai |
| Colin Cowdrey | 6 | c Borde b Surendranath |
| Mike Smith | 98 | b Desai |
| Ken Barrington | 8 | c Gaekwad b Gupte |
| Ted Dexter | 0 | c Tamhane b Surendranath |
| Ray Illingworth | 50 | c Gaekwad b Nadkarni |
| Roy Swetman (wk) | 65 | c Baig b Surendranath |
| Fred Trueman | 1 | st Tamhane b Nadkarni |
| Brian Statham | 3* | not out |
| Tommy Greenhough | 2 | c Contractor b Surendranath |
| Extras | 12 | |
| Total | 361 all out |
Top Bowlers for India:
- Surendranath 5/75
- Desai 2/103
- Bapu Nadkarni 2/52
- Gupte 1/119
India 2nd Innings – 194 all out
Following on, India showed more fight. Bapu Nadkarni’s patient 76 was the standout, but England’s bowling attack kept taking wickets regularly.
| Player | Runs | Dismissal |
|---|---|---|
| Pankaj Roy | 0 | lbw b Statham |
| Nari Contractor | 25 | c Trueman b Statham |
| Abbas Ali Baig | 4 | c Cowdrey b Statham |
| Bapu Nadkarni | 76 | lbw b Illingworth |
| Chandu Borde | 6 | run out |
| Datta Gaekwad | 15 | c Swetman b Greenhough |
| Jayasinghrao Ghorpade | 24 | b Greenhough |
| Naren Tamhane (wk) | 9 | b Trueman |
| Surendranath | 17* | not out |
| Subhash Gupte | 5 | c Greenhough b Trueman |
| Ramakant Desai | 0 | c Swetman b Trueman |
| Extras | 13 | |
| Total | 194 all out |
Top Bowlers for England:
- Fred Trueman 3/30
- Brian Statham 3/50
- Tommy Greenhough 2/47
- Ray Illingworth 1/43
England won by an innings and 27 runs.
Highlights of the Match
- India’s batsmen struggled to build big partnerships on both days.
- England’s Subba Row and Smith anchored a massive first-innings total.
- Surendranath was India’s best bowler with a five-wicket haul.
- Nadkarni provided India’s top score in the second innings with a gritty 76.
- The win completed a 5-0 whitewash for England on the tour.