India's incredible journey to invincibility: A look back at record 11 successive Test series wins at home
Team India's phenomenal rise in the longest format of the game saw Virat Kohli and his men achieve their 11th consecutive Test series win at home.
Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag were still active cricketers and more than half of the current lot, including Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma had not made their debut then; that's how long and dominating India have been on home turf. The journey had started in the February of 2013, when MS Dhoni was still the captain, hoping to make a strong comeback against the mighty Australians after the unanticipated English domination at home. The script has now entered record books as Virat Kohli-led India defeated South Africa in Pune by an innings and 137 runs to win the second Test of the three-game series and subsequently registered an unprecedented 11th successive series win on home turf. Australia's twin 10 consecutive series win in the format was deservedly considered stuff of legends, but history will record India's present run of 11 straight wins, as godly.
A look back at India’s last 10 Test series win
Australian in India, 2013 - 4-0 (4): MS Dhoni was under the radar when Michael Clarke's Australia had arrived in India in the February of 2013. Dhoni had become the first Indian skipper in 28 years to lose a home series to England, just months after being blanked in England and Australia. But in a period of just one month, the home team put all doubts to rest as they completed an impressive 4-0 sweep to clinch the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India did face a major disadvantage as Dhoni lost four tosses in a row, urging them to chase in every match, but the bowlers - especially the spin combination of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, did enough in the third innings to keep the target low for themselves. Among the batsmen, opener Murali Vijay and Chestehwar Pujara were pick of the lineup amid the presence of legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. The two, in fact, had two astounding partnerships during the series - 370 for the second wicket in the second Test and a match-winning 289 in the third. Besides, the series also witnessed the debut of present Indian stars like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane.
West Indies in India, 2013 - 2-0 (2): For Indian cricket lovers the series will forever be known as the one in which Sachin Tendulkar signed off from the cricket field. India had comfortably whitewashed the visitors with debutant Rohit Sharma scoring back-to-back tons while Ashwin once again emerging as the key wicket-taker, but the joy of a second consecutive Test series win at home had submerged in the tears of Sachin's farewell speech.
South Africa in India, 2015 - 3-0 (4): After two impressive wins, India's toughest job was yet to come, against the then No.1 ranked Test team -- South Africa, who were unbeaten on the road for nine straight years. But against the formidable spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin, who picked more than half of the South African wickets that fell, the visitors failed to withstand as they lost 3-0 in the four-game series with the second Test being washed out due to strong and persistent rain.
New Zealand in India, 2016 - 3-0 (3): Ashwin was once again the star with 27 wickets in the three-game series as Kohli's India mauled New Zealand at home. Besides Ashwin, the skipper too hogged limelight with his twin double centuries as he became the first captain to achieve this feat in a Test series.
England in India, 2016 - 4-0 (5): Kohli's India scripted a sweet revenge for their defeat at home four years back as they beat the Alastair Cook-led side 4-0 to win the Anthony de Mello trophy. With the series win, India extended their unbeaten win to 18 consecutive Test victories, while also finishing the year with nine wins, the most ever for India.
Bangladesh in India, 2017 - 1-0 (1): Jadeja's impressive four-fer and Ishant Sharma's reverse-swing ensured India folded Bangladesh for just 250 in their improbable chase to 459 and managed a 208-run win in Hyderabad. The win saw India extending their unbeaten run to 19 as Kohli went past Sunil Gavaskar's tally of 18 such victories.
Australia in India, 2017 - 2-1 (3): Steve Smith 109 and Steve O'Keefe's 12-wicket haul helped Australia stun India on a rank turner in Pune in the opener, ending their 19-match winning streak. But the hosts bounced back in style to win their seventh Test series in a row.
Sri Lanka in India, 2017 - 1-0 (3): Just four months after registering a historic win in Sri Lanka, Kohli's India once again defeated the Islanders to extend their winning streak in the format.
Afghanistan in India, 2018 - 1-0 (1): It was a historic one-off for the minnows who were making their debut appearance in the format, but were thrashed by a colossal margin of an innings and 262 runs as the game ended in just under two days. After Dhawan and Vijay's respective centuries powered India to 474, the bowlers folded the Afghans for 109 in the first innings that lasted between lunch and tea, and then for 203 in the second innings that did not stretch long. The Indian bowlers took all the 20 wickets in just 66.3 overs.
West Indies in India, 2018 - 2-0 (2): Prithvi Shaw's impressive debut, Jadeja's maiden century and Umesh Yadav's 10-wicket haul were the three key moments in India's yet another comfortable home series win against West Indies.