What Happened When India Last Played A Test Match At The Oval?

Aakash Saini

India last played a Test at The Oval back in mid-2023 [Source: @ICC/x]India last played a Test at The Oval back in mid-2023 [Source: @ICC/x]

Team India will be locking horns against England in the fifth and final Test of the five-match series at The Oval in London from Thursday, July 31 onwards. Trailing 1-2 in the series, the Indian cricket team needs to win the impending decider to level the 2025 Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.

Ahead of India’s highly-anticipated showdown, here is a look at the time when Team India last played a Test match at the London-based venue.

India’s Last Test Match At The Oval In London

Team India last played a Test match at The Oval in London back in June 2023 for the 2021-23 World Test Championship (WTC) final. The Indian cricket team went up against Australia between June 7 and June 11, after finishing second on the championship points table with 10 wins, five defeats and three draws from 18 matches.

The upcoming match against England at The Oval will mark India’s return to the venue after a gap of more than two years.

India Humbled By Travis Head At The Oval In 2023

Chasing WTC title glory in the 2023 final, then Indian captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first. Australia batted out the opening day and beyond to aggregate 469 runs from 121.3 overs in the first innings, with Travis Head (163 off 174) and Steve Smith (121 off 268) plundering majestic centuries.

The Indian team folded up for just 296 in 69.4 overs in response to concede a 173-run advantage to the Australians. Australia carted 270-8d in 84.3 overs to set India a record target of 444 runs with a day-and-a-half to spare. Despite reaching a lively 164-3 by stumps on Day 4, the Indian team was shot out for just 234 as Australia won the 2023 WTC title by 209 runs.