Cricket
Top Cricket Matches That Ended in a Tie
Cricket always makes for great entertainment, especially Test matches, where sessions can ebb and flow. There are usually plenty of subtleties and captains will often be tactical with their field placements as they chase down late wickets. In Test series, draws aren’t as uncommon as you might think. In this guide, SportsBoom will take a trip down memory lane and reveal four fascinating thrillers that resulted in a tie. Let’s see what made our final list then. Most of our picks feature England too!
Nasser Hussain of England is bowled for 16 runs by Shaun Pollock of South Africa//Getty Images
India vs England (Manchester, 1990)
India are well accustomed to draws, and between 1986 and 2024, they contested 17 matches that resulted in a tie, sharing the record with New Zealand.
In 1990, India were set a mammoth total of 408 in the fourth innings, and they appeared to be doomed when they were reduced to 183 for 6.
However, step forward future icon Sachin Tendulkar and his team-mate Manoj Prabhakar stood tall and defied the odds. Tendulkar was resolute in contributing an unbeaten knock of 119 from 189 balls, while Prabhakar chipped in with an unbeaten 67 from 128 deliveries.
This was Tendulkar’s maiden century, and India pulled off a miracle that few online sports betting sites would have predicted. Extraordinary stuff!
South Africa vs England (Johannesburg, 1995)
Plucky is a word that doesn’t do Michael Atherton any justice. England had their backs against the wall against the Proteas in Johannesburg in 1995.
With 165 overs left of the day, England were set 479 to win by the hosts, which was an improbable target. Survival was the order of the day, and England opener Atherton was equal to the task, leading from the front as captain.
Yes, Atherton weighed in with 185 runs from 492 balls, and in his innings, he was peppered with bouncers. His innings lasted over 10 hours, and his mental stamina was exceptional. While his strike rate was just over 37, Atherton charted a course to the finish line, and unsurprisingly, he was named Man of the Match.
England salvaged a draw from what seemed like the jaws of defeat. We still like to reminisce over this match today!
Australia vs England (Manchester, 2005)
Ashes series are always fiercely contested, and no inch is given by Australia or England.
While the Old Trafford game ended in a stalemate, it will go down in the cricketing annals as one of the best Test matches ever. Starting the day on 399 runs to win from 98 overs, the tourists looked like they were on the right path to victory, especially when Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting shared a partnership of 81.
Ponting, who is widely regarded as one of the best captains of all time, reached his century in 169 balls, and he batted for almost seven hours while others fell around him.
He succumbed trying to trickle a shot down the leg side, and Australia had five overs to survive. Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath were tasked with trying to get their country to safety. They did so by blocking out the final series to tie things up at 1-1, however, England would go on to claim the Ashes for the first time in 18 years.
There was also a moment of amazing sportsmanship where Flintoff shook hands with Lee and congratulated him by patting him on the back. This moment still gives us goosebumps!
India vs West Indies (Wankhede, 2011)
This game went right down to the wire and it was the tightest match based on the number of runs that were remaining.
India were chasing a target of 243 against the West Indies at the Wankhede in November 2011, but they came up agonisingly short as they finished on 242/9 – one run adrift of victory.
England are the only other team that have been one run short of a win when they were held by Zimbabwe in 1996.
Virat Kohli top-scored in India’s second innings with 63, and there was just one extra (a no-ball) during the 64 overs. Nevertheless, it was one of those matches that is worth trawling through YouTube to watch.
FAQs
Michael Atherton produced an unbeaten knock of 185 runs in an innings that lasted over 10 hours as England somehow claimed a draw against South Africa when it seemed like the odds were stacked against them.
Yes, draws in Test cricket are more common than many people might think. Test games can be dictated by factors such as weather, but some teams will often try to bat out the day when faced with a huge target to chase down to win. In Test cricket, teams will tend to be more conservative rather than in ODIs or T20Is.
REFERENCES
- 1
India’s 17 Test matches that have ended in a draw – India holds the joint record with New Zealand: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ask/cricket-qna/which-team-has-played-the-most-tied-matches?tournament=allt20
- 2
England survive and claim a draw against South Africa – Relive Michael Atherton’s remarkable innings: https://www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12123/11916380/mike-athertons-185no-how-england-openers-marathon-knock-saved-johannesburg-test#:~:text=%22It's%20the%20one%20that%20you,10%20hours%20and%2043%20minutes.
- 3
Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath scramble Australia to safety – A look back on how Lee and McGrath secured a draw for the Aussies in the 2005 Test match at Old Trafford: https://www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12123/11966998/throwback-thursday-2005-ashes-old-trafford-thriller-ends-in-stalemate
- 4
India vs West Indies scorecard in 2011: The final scorecard of this Test match at the Wankhede in Mumbai: https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/west-indies-tour-of-india-2011-12-535995/india-vs-west-indies-3rd-test-535999/full-scorecard
Charles Perrin is a highly experienced sports betting content writer with over six years of working with some of the leading sportsbooks in the UK, including bet365 and William Hill.