Tests at the Eden Gardens, Calcutta
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by Mohandas Menon
The Eden Gardens is the oldest cricket ground in India and is also considered one of the finest in the world. The history of the Indian Cricket is irrevocably bound up with that of Calcutta Cricket Club, which did the pioneering work in cricket not only in Calcutta but in the whole of the eastern region of India. The present Eden Gardens Cricket Club came in existence some time in the year 1864. It is not certain as to whom the land belonged to although some records show that it was the property of then Maharaja of Cooch-Behar while some other records state that it belonged to the Auckland Family. However, the fact remains that the land was effectively passed into the hand of the Governor General's family who in turn presented it to the citizens of Calcutta for recreation. In course of time Calcutta Cricket Club established with its headquarters at the Eden Gardens. The pavilion was built in 1871 and cricket was played for a long period in Sylvan surroundings.
The first ever first-class match to be played here was in 1917-18, while the first Test match was against Douglas Jardine's MCC in January 1934. Since then the ground has hosted 30 Tests matches - the maximum at any venue in India. In February 1987, the stadium hosted its first ODI match - against Pakistan. In all 16 ODI matches have been held here.
As a part of modernization of the stadium during the 1987 World Cup, where the final match was held, covered stands were built all around, with a modern Club House and pavilion. The Club House now houses the offices of the Cricket Association of Bengal. In November 1993, a five-nation tournament was played in India to celebrate the CAB Diamond Jubilee, where day-night one-day international matches were played at this ground, thanks to the installation of four gigantic floodlights. It can now also legitimately boast of having one of the largest accommodation (nearly 100, 000) in the world for viewing the game.
| SUMMARY OF MATCHES | ||||
| Test No. | Start Date | Last Date | Opponents | Result |
| 1 | 5th Jan 1934 | 8th Jan 1934 | England | Drawn |
| 2 | 31st Dec 1948 | 4th Jan 1949 | West Indies | Drawn |
| 3 | 30th Dec 1951 | 4th Jan 1952 | England | Drawn |
| 4 | 12th Dec 1952 | 15th Dec 1952 | Pakistan | Drawn |
| 5 | 28th Dec 1955 | 2nd Jan 1956 | New Zealand | Drawn |
| 6 | 2nd Nov 1956 | 6th Nov 1956 | Australia | Aus won by 94 runs |
| 7 | 31st Dec 1958 | 4th Jan 1959 | West Indies | WI won by inn & 336 runs |
| 8 | 23rd Jan 1960 | 28th Jan 1960 | Australia | Drawn |
| 9 | 30th Dec 1960 | 4th Jan 1961 | Pakistan | Drawn |
| 10 | 30th Dec 1961 | 4th Jan 1962 | England | Ind won by 187 runs |
| 11 | 29th Jan 1964 | 3rd Feb 1964 | England | Drawn |
| 12 | 17th Oct 1964 | 22nd Oct 1964 | Australia | Drawn |
| 13 | 5th Mar 1965 | 8th Mar 1965 | New Zealand | Drawn |
| 14 | 31st Dec 1966 | 5th Jan 1967 | West Indies | WI won by inn & 45 runs |
| 15 | 12th Dec 1969 | 16th Dec 1969 | Australia | Aus won by 10 wickets |
| 16 | 30th Dec 1972 | 4th Jan 1973 | England | Ind won by 28 runs |
| 17 | 27th Dec 1974 | 1st Jan 1975 | West Indies | Ind won by 85 runs |
| 18 | 1st Jan 1977 | 6th Jan 1977 | England | Eng won by 10 wickets |
| 19 | 29th Dec 1978 | 3rd Jan 1979 | West Indies | Drawn |
| 20 | 26th Oct 1979 | 31st Oct 1979 | Australia | Drawn |
| 21 | 29th Jan 1980 | 3rd Feb 1980 | Pakistan | Drawn |
| 22 | 1st Jan 1982 | 6th Jan 1982 | England | Drawn |
| 23 | 10th Dec 1983 | 14th Dec 1983 | West Indies | WI won by inn & 46 runs |
| 24 | 31st Dec 1984 | 5th Jan 1985 | England | Drawn |
| 25 | 11th Feb 1987 | 16th Feb 1987 | Pakistan | Drawn |
| 26 | 26th Dec 1987 | 31st Dec 1987 | West Indies | Drawn |
| 27 | 29th Jan 1993 | 2nd Feb 1993 | England | Ind won by 8 wickets |
| 28 | 27th Nov 1996 | 1st Dec 1996 | South Africa | SA won by 329 runs |
| 29 | 18th Mar 1998 | 21st Mar 1998 | Australia | Ind won by inn & 219 runs |
| 30 | 16th Feb 1999 | 20th Feb 1999 | Pakistan | Pak won by 46 runs |
| SUMMARY OF RESULTS | ||||
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Draw |
| Australia | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| England | 9 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| New Zealand | 2 | - | - | 2 |
| Pakistan | 5 | 1 | - | 4 |
| South Africa | 1 | 1 | - | - |
| West Indies | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| India | 30 | 5 | 8 | 17 |
| HIGHEST TEAM TOTALS | |||||
| Totals | For | Against | Inn | Test | Series |
| 633-5d | India | Australia | 1st | 2nd | 1997-98 |
| 614-5d | West Indies | India | 1st | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| 565-9d | India | West Indies | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| 530-5d | West Indies | India | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| 462-9d | New Zealand | India | 1st | 2nd | 1964-65 |
| LOWEST TEAM TOTALS | |||||
| Totals | For | Against | Inn | Test | Series |
| 90 | India | West Indies | 2nd | 5th | 1983-84 |
| 124 | India | West Indies | 1st | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| 132 | India | New Zealand | 1st | 4th | 1955-56 |
| 136 | India | Australia | 1st | 3rd | 1956-57 |
| 136 | India | Australia | 2nd | 3rd | 1956-57 |
| 137 | India | South Africa | 2nd | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| 154 | India | West Indies | 2nd | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| 155 | India | England | 2nd | 2nd | 1972-73 |
| 155 | India | England | 1st | 2nd | 1976-77 |
| The lowest by a visiting team: | |||||
| 163 | By England | 2nd | 2nd | 1972-73 | |
| 163 | By England | 1st | 1st | 1992-93 | |
| TESTS HUNDREDS (listed chronologically) | ||||||
| Player | Runs | For | Against | Inn | Test | Series |
| EdeC Weekes | 162 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1948-49 |
| EdeC Weekes | 101 | WI | Ind | 2nd | 3rd | 1948-49 |
| CL Walcott | 108 | WI | Ind | 2nd | 3rd | 1948-49 |
| Mushtaq Ali | 106 | Ind | WI | 2nd | 3rd | 1948-49 |
| DG Phadkar | 115 | Ind | Eng | 1st | 3rd | 1951-52 |
| DH Shodhan | 110 | Ind | Pak | 1st | 5th | 1952-53 |
| JR Reid | 120 | NZ | Ind | 1st | 4th | 1955-56 |
| Pankaj Roy | 100 | Ind | NZ | 2nd | 4th | 1955-56 |
| GS Ramchand | 106* | Ind | NZ | 2nd | 4th | 1955-56 |
| RB Kanhai | 256 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| BF Butcher | 103 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| GStA Sobers | 106* | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1958-59 |
| NC O'Neill | 113 | Aus | Ind | 1st | 5th | 1959-60 |
| MC Cowdrey | 107 | Eng | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1963-64 |
| ML Jaisimha | 129 | Ind | Eng | 2nd | 3rd | 1963-64 |
| B Sutcliffe | 151* | NZ | Ind | 1st | 2nd | 1964-65 |
| BR Taylor | 105 | NZ | Ind | 1st | 2nd | 1964-65 |
| MAK Pataudi | 153 | Ind | NZ | 1st | 2nd | 1964-65 |
| RC Fredericks | 100 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1974-75 |
| GR Viswanath | 139 | Ind | WI | 2nd | 3rd | 1974-75 |
| AW Greig | 103 | Eng | Ind | 1st | 2nd | 1976-77 |
| SM Gavaskar | 107 | Ind | WI | 1st | 3rd | 1978-79 |
| AB Williams | 111 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1978-79 |
| SM Gavaskar | 182* | Ind | WI | 2nd | 3rd | 1978-79 |
| DB Vengsarkar | 157* | Ind | WI | 2nd | 3rd | 1978-79 |
| GN Yallop | 167 | Aus | Ind | 1st | 5th | 1979-80 |
| CH Lloyd | 161* | WI | Ind | 1st | 5th | 1983-84 |
| M Azharuddin | 110 | Ind | Eng | 1st | 3rd | 1984-85 |
| RJ Shastri | 111 | Ind | Eng | 1st | 3rd | 1984-85 |
| M Azharuddin | 141 | Ind | Pak | 1st | 2nd | 1986-87 |
| CG Greenidge | 141 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| AL Logie | 101 | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| CL Hooper | 100* | WI | Ind | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| DB Vengsarkar | 102* | Ind | WI | 1st | 3rd | 1987-88 |
| M Azharuddin | 182 | Ind | Eng | 1st | 1st | 1992-93 |
| AC Hudson | 146 | SA | Ind | 1st | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| G Kirsten | 102 | SA | Ind | 1st | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| M Azharuddin | 109 | Ind | SA | 1st | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| G Kirsten | 133 | SA | Ind | 2nd | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| DJ Cullinan | 153* | SA | Ind | 2nd | 2nd | 1996-97 |
| M Azharuddin | 163* | Ind | Aus | 1st | 2nd | 1997-98 |
| Saeed Anwar | 188* | Pak | Ind | 2nd | 3rd | 1998-99 |
| Note: 42 hundreds have been scored at this venue, with Rohan Kanhai's 256 being the highest. | ||||||
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