- June 23, 2025
If you’ve been an Indian cricket fan for any length of time, you have undoubtedly finely-tuned your ability to switch emotions within a few minutes. One moment, “we have this,” the next moment, “how did we lose 7 wickets in one session?” It is sad to say that we have become accustomed to India’s ability to collapse in test cricket, especially after a good start raised expectations. Some excellent starting positions, whether it is green tops away from home or spicy turners at home, have resulted in the Men in Blue throwing it all away. Here are three unbelievable batting collapses since 2022, including the recent heartbreak in Leeds.
Leeds 2025 – Dream Start, Nightmare Finish (430/3 to 471 all out)
This one’s still fresh in every fan’s mind. On Day 1 at Headingley against England, India were cruising—359/3 at stumps and looking every bit in control. Rohit, Gill, and Nair were ticking all the right boxes, playing with calm authority, and a first-innings total of 550+ looked like a question of when, not if. Momentum? All India. Trouble? Nowhere in sight—or so we thought.
India’s solid foundation cracked the moment Gill offered his wicket like an unexpected plot twist. Shardul Thakur was out just before lunch, Karun Nair scored 0, and then there was the infamous Pant brainfade that brought about a full-fledged collapse. India went from 430/3 to 471 all out, losing 7 wickets for just 41 runs. What had appeared to be a dominant position had quickly turned into handing the advantage to England on a silver platter.
Indore Implosion: When Spin Turned Friends into Foes
Home conditions? A turning pitch? It’s Advantage India, right? Wrong. There has never been a more brutal example of expectations vs reality than in the 3rd Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia. India properly started, yet opted to bat first on a raging turner in Indore. Not only should the expectations have been high, but so were the stakes. Everything seemed to have been set up for India to win.
Matthew Kuhnemann, who isn’t a headline magnet, took 5 wickets as the Indian batting order crumbled. What made it worse, it wasn’t the pitch – it was panic. From 34/1, India fell away to 109 all out, getting out 9 for 75. The second innings didn’t provide much either. India folded up again for 163, handing Australia a rare win in India.
Bengaluru 2024 – The 46 All Out Horror Show
If there was ever a match Indian fans wished to forget quickly, this was it. At M Chinnaswamy Stadium against New Zealand, Rohit Sharma lost the toss and batted – it was a disaster.
The Indian cricket team soon found themselves in dire straits at 10/3. Once I had absorbed the shock of this, they were somehow already at 31/3. Then the collapse began in earnest once Jaiswal fell. It was as though someone had reached down and pressed the self-destruct button. India only added another 15 runs, to be all out at 46 – India’s lowest score at home in Tests. And to add to the saga, another collapse (408/3 to 462) happened in the second innings.
At first glance, it might appear those were just numbers on the scoreboard. But for the fans, these numbers can feel like a gut punch. Time and again, India has followed brilliance with breakdowns.
Will Team India learn to hold their nerve when things turn in the other team’s favour, or are we ready for another emotional rollercoaster? One thing is for sure – we will be watching, hoping, and perhaps even holding our breath… but perhaps we needn’t hold our breath as long… next time.
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