India and New Zealand have played some memorable Test matches over the years right from the time they first met in Hyderabad in 1955 in a drawn encounter.
From then on, both sides have met in more than 60 matches in the longest format of the game.
India and New Zealand also met each other in the final of the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship at the Rose Bowl in Southampton in 2021 with the Kiwis winning the contest by eight wickets.
However, the overall Test head-to-head record is in India’s favour with 22 wins from 62 matches. While New Zealand have won 13 Tests, 27 games have ended in draws.
With that in mind, let us take a look at all the key India vs New Zealand Test records and stats in detail.
India vs New Zealand head-to-head in Tests
|
Matches |
India won |
New Zealand won |
Draws |
|
62 |
22 |
13 |
27 |
India vs New Zealand Test records and stats
Highest team total
New Zealand holds the record for the highest total in an innings in Test matches between the two sides with a mammoth 680/8d in a Wellington Test in 2014. India were leading by 246 runs after the first innings and knocking on the doors of a memorable overseas win after reducing the home side to 94/5 in the second innings.
But New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum’s excellent triple century (302) and his 352-run partnership with BJ Watling (124) for the sixth wicket changed the course of the game. Jimmy Neesham too scored an unbeaten century as the match ended in a draw.
India’s highest total against New Zealand stands at 583/7d which came in a Test match at Ahmedabad in 1999.
Lowest team total
The Indian cricket team holds the unwanted record for the lowest team total in India vs New Zealand Test fixture. India were bundled out for 46 against New Zealand in the first innings of the first Test at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru in October 2024.
Electing to bat first, India lost wickets at regular intervals to record their lowest Test total at home. Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant top-scored for India with 20 while Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) was the only other batter to reach double figures.
For New Zealand, Matt Henry was the wrecker-in-chief as he bagged a five-wicket haul while fast bowler William ORourke picked up four wickets.
Most Runs
Rahul Dravid leads the list of batters with the most runs in India-New Zealand Tests with 1,659 runs from 15 matches.
The former India batter has scored six hundreds and six fifties from a total of 28 innings and has an impressive average of 63.80 against the Kiwis. Dravid’s 222 in a drawn test at Ahmedabad in 2003 is his highest individual score against New Zealand.
Sachin Tendulkar is second on the list of highest run scorers with a tally of 1,595 runs from 24 matches.
Most wickets
Ravichandran Ashwin leads the bowling charts in Test matches between India and New Zealand with 66 wickets from nine matches. The off-spinner has an impressive average of 15.43 runs per wicket and picks up a wicket every 35.71 balls.
Ashwin has six five-wicket hauls and three ten-wicket match hauls against the Kiwis with best bowling figures of 7/59 in an innings, which came in an Indore test in 2016.
Sir Richard Hadlee is second on the list of bowlers with the most wickets with 65 wickets from 14 matches in India-New Zealand Tests.
Highest individual score
Brendon McCullum’s marathon knock of 302 off 559 balls in a Wellington Test in 2014, which powered New Zealand to their highest score in Tests against India, is the highest individual score by a batter in this fixture. His knock was studded with 32 fours and four sixes and lasted for five minutes under 13 hours.
Vinoo Mankad’s 231 in a Chennai Test in 1956 is the highest score by an Indian in this contest.
Best bowling figures in an innings
Ajaz Patel holds the record for the best bowling figures in an innings in Tests between India and New Zealand. The left-arm spinner’s magical figures of 10/119 came in a Test match at the Wankhede Stadium in 2021.
Though he picked up the wickets of all the Indian batters in the first innings of that match, New Zealand endured a batting collapse and lost the contest by 372 runs. Furthermore, he also took four Indian scalps in the second innings and finished with figures of 14/225, which is the best bowling figures in a match in India vs New Zealand Tests.
Former off-spinner S Venkataraghavan has the best bowling figures among Indian bowlers in India-New Zealand Test matches with his 8/72 coming in a Delhi Test in 1965.
Highest partnership
Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy’s 413-run partnership for the opening wicket in the fifth and final Test of a five-match series in 1956 remains the highest partnership for any wicket in India-New Zealand Tests.
The openers made merry with Mankad (231) scoring a double hundred and Roy (173) scoring a big hundred to set up India’s huge win by an innings and 109 runs. Mankad struck 21 fours during his knock, while Pankaj Roy hit 12 boundaries.
Photo Credits: Imago
