India, June 6 -- India's first Test on English soil was also their first ever Test, at Lord's in June 1932. For the next 39 years and 20 further Tests, there was no light at the end of the tunnel. In that period, India lost 15 and drew six games, which meant that by the time Ajit Wadekar led his team out in July 1971 for a three-match series, the expectations were mixed.

Mixed, because there was a sense of foreboding, given that India had never won a Test in England, but also a feeling of optimism, following the unexpected 1-0 triumph in the Caribbean under the same captain, India's first Test and series victory in the West Indies, a few months previously.

There was everything to play for when the teams locked horns at The Oval; the fir...