In a significant U-turn, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has confirmed that the upcoming five-Test series between India and England will continue to be played for the Pataudi Trophy, shelving a controversial plan to rename the prestigious title.
“The upcoming series will be the Pataudi Trophy,” an ECB spokesperson stated.
This decision marks a reversal from the ECB’s earlier move, just two months ago, to retire the Pataudi Trophy — a tribute to Mansur Ali Khan (Tiger) Pataudi, the former India captain and son of Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, the only cricketer to play Tests for both England and India. The Pataudi Trophy has been the symbol of India-England Test rivalry in England since 2007, initially introduced by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) to commemorate the 75th anniversary of their first Test series in 1932.
Pushback from cricketing icons and Pataudi family
The original plan to rename the trophy reportedly involved replacing the Pataudi legacy with a new title honoring modern greats — Sachin Tendulkar and James Anderson — two of the most celebrated Test cricketers in their respective nations. It remains unclear whether Tendulkar was approached or if he declined involvement, but the backlash was swift.
Sharmila Tagore, veteran actress and wife of the late Tiger Pataudi, criticized the move and called on the Indian board to take a stand.
“If the BCCI wants to or does not want to remember Tiger’s legacy, it is for them to decide,” she told Hindustan Times at the time.
Former India captain and Pataudi’s teammate Sunil Gavaskar was even more outspoken, slamming the decision in his Sportstar column:
“It shows a total lack of sensitivity to the contribution made by the Pataudis to cricket in both England and India. Here’s hoping that if an Indian player has been approached, he’ll have the good sense to politely decline — not only out of respect for two former India captains but also to avoid the same fate of having a trophy named after him retired after he is gone.”
Sources indicate that the MCC may have intervened behind the scenes, quietly discouraging the renaming of a trophy that they themselves had instituted. A senior cricket administrator was reportedly contacted before the reversal took place.
Honoring Tiger Pataudi’s enduring legacy
Tiger Pataudi remains one of Indian cricket’s most iconic figures. Despite losing vision in one eye following a car accident, he went on to play 46 Tests from 1961 to 1975, captaining India in 40 of them. He scored 2,793 runs at an average of 34.91 and became India’s youngest Test captain at the age of 21 years and 66 days.
This year, as India prepares to tour England once again, it will be under the leadership of Shubman Gill — set to become one of the youngest to captain India in a Test series since Pataudi himself.
When told of the ECB’s decision to retain the Pataudi Trophy after all, Sharmila Tagore told Hindustan Times:
“It’s good, if they have retained the Pataudi Trophy.”
