Another update emerged about the name of the trophy for the upcoming England vs. India (ENG vs. IND) five-match Test series. There was a dilemma in terms of retaining the trophy. The trophy was famously known as the Pataudi Trophy, the winner between England and India awarded with the prestigious cup.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) proposed their plan to retire the Pataudi Trophy and rename it as the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. This decision from the ECB sparked controversy, and the cricket board received mixed reactions over the past few days. ECB has yet to announce their final and official decision regarding the trophy name for the series, which is scheduled to start on Friday this week.

According to the latest updates, the cricket board can carry both the names in the same tournament, but with a different approach. It is learned that the name of the main trophy can be 'Anderson-Tendulkar,' and to carry the legacy of Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, there will be a special medal for the winning team captain.

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BCCI also asked ECB to rethink

Like many cricket fans, it was previously reported that BCCI also asked ECB to reconsider their decision. BCCI expressed their desire to preserve the legacy of the former India captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi. With that aim, the board asked ECB to name one of their awards for individual performances in the upcoming series after the legendary figure of Indian cricket. 

On the other side, James Anderson and Sachin Tendulkar are both considered legends of modern-day cricket. Anderson played his last Test match for England at Lord's against the West Indies in July 2024. Throughout his career, he took 704 Test wickets in 350 innings. Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement from international cricket on November 16, 2013, after playing his 200th Test match. In 200 tests, he scored 15,921 with an average of 53.78, including 51 centuries. 

Another twist before the five-match Test series between England and India. As per some latest reports, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) asked the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to rethink scrapping the prestigious Pataudi Trophy.

The ECB has already decided to retire the Pataudi Trophy and replace it with a newly named Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy for the upcoming England vs. India Test. The decision by the cricket governing board of England received mixed reactions. Two former internationals, James Anderson and Sachin Tendulkar, also consider them as the greats of the game. Anderson played his last Test match for England at Lord's against the West Indies in July 2024. Throughout his career, he took 704 Test wickets in 350 innings. Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement from international cricket on November 16, 2013, after playing his 200th Test match. In 200 tests, he scored 15,921 with an average of 53.78, including 51 centuries. 

According to the latest information, BCCI expressed their desire to preserve the legacy of the former India captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi. With that aim, the board asked ECB to name one of their awards for individual performances in the upcoming series after the legendary figure of Indian cricket. Though nothing is official yet. In fact, the ECB has yet to officially announce the decision to retire the Pataudi Trophy, which was introduced in 2007 for the first time to celebrate India’s 75th anniversary of their first Test in 1932.

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Official confirmations yet to come

"We have requested them to name one of the post-match trophies after Pataudi, and they will revert to us. It’s the ECB that decides on whom they want to name their series. The BCCI has no role in it, as it’s their home series," a BCCI official was quoted as saying by The Indian Express. 

However, it is also known that the ECB had informed Pataudi's son and Bollywood actor, Saif Ali Khan, about the renaming of the trophy.

Former Indian cricketers have openly criticized the renaming of the Pataudi Trophy to the Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy ahead of the upcoming five-match Test series in England. The decision, made to honor Sachin Tendulkar and James Anderson — the highest run-getter and wicket-taker in the format among the two nations — has sparked backlash from those who felt the original name held historic significance. Previously, the trophy was named after Nawab Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and his son, former Indian captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi.

Saad Bin Jung, former first-class cricketer and a member of the Pataudi family, expressed deep disappointment. Speaking to Mid-Day, he said,

“It’s baffling to see a cricketer permitting a trophy to be taken away from a former Indian Test captain and renamed in his own honor. This reflects a total disregard for the cricketing community and his seniors in the game.”

He further added, “It speaks volumes about how far people are willing to go for recognition — any form of fame, even if it means overshadowing those who led Indian cricket before them. In doing so, you’ve lost all respect in my eyes and in the eyes of the entire cricket fraternity,” he added.

Calls for Respecting Cricket’s Legacy

Former India player Yajuvendra Singh echoed similar sentiments, slamming the decision to scrap the historic title.

“It is ridiculous to retire the Pataudi Trophy. Tiger, to me, was one of the greatest Indian cricketers to play the game. He led India for over a decade and played with one eye — that’s greatness personified! I can’t imagine a single international cricketer performing the way he did at the highest level. Milburn, Ranji, and many others tried and failed. The BCCI should have stepped in before the proposal came from the England and Wales Cricket Board [ECB].”

Former India spinner Venkatapathy Raju has also weighed in on the controversy, stating that replacing the Pataudi Trophy was not necessary. Raju, who represented India in 81 international matches, said (via Mid-Day):

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“Sachin Tendulkar is the highest run-scorer and Anderson the highest wicket-taker [against India], so maybe that was the reasoning behind this decision, but discarding the Pataudi Trophy entirely feels unnecessary.”

The Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy is scheduled to be unveiled ahead of the first Test between India and England, which begins at Headingley in Leeds on June 20.

The upcoming five-Test series between England and India is to mark the beginning of an era of cricketing competition with the launch of the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy. The series, which is to start on June 20 in Headingley, is to pay tribute to two contemporary greats—India's batting kingpin Sachin Tendulkar and England's greatest fast bowler James Anderson. This change is a break with the past since the series will no longer be contested for the Pataudi Trophy, which had been the emblem of India-England Tests in England since 2007.

The Pataudi Trophy was introduced to celebrate 75 years of Test cricket between the two countries and honored the legendary Pataudi family. Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and his son Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi both led India and have left a lasting mark on the game. The retirement of the Pataudi Trophy has evoked responses from all over the cricketing universe, especially from retired Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar, who has criticized the move as insensitive to the contributions of the Pataudis to cricket in both nations.

In spite of the controversy, the new Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy seeks to honor two icons who defined the contemporary age of Test cricket. Tendulkar, the record run-scorer in Tests with 15,921 runs, and Anderson, the leading fast bowler of all time with 704 wickets, played 14 Tests against each other. Anderson particularly bowled out Tendulkar nine times—the most by any bowler—which made their tussle a bookend saga of 21st-century cricket.

Tribute or Tradition: Trophy Renaming Debate

Sunil Gavaskar's criticism is part of a larger debate regarding cricket's changing attitude towards paying tribute to its icons. While the ECB and BCCI might consider the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy an apt tribute to two superstars of the game, there are people who consider the retirement of the Pataudi Trophy a decision that forgets greater historical context.

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Notably, this modification is following a similar pattern as England and New Zealand did by substituting their series name with the Crowe-Thorpe Trophy this year. As the supporters get ready to witness an intense series, the new trophy also lends an emotional and historic dimension to the matches to come.

Indian Cricket Team are going to travel to England to play the bilateral series against England Cricket Team which starts on 20th June. The winner's Trophy which was presented was known as Pataudi Trophy. It was named after the Pataudi family which gave India the two best players and captain Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi [nicknamed Tiger Pataudi].  Both of them have great service to the Indian Cricket team. 
The Pataudi Trophy was awarded in 2007 to winners of a Test series played between India and England in England, the main cause of this was to commemorate 75 years after the first India vs England Test, but it's its beenbeingby about the ECB might be changing the trophy name, which has created a huge spark over this. Even a former Indian captain has shaded his voice against it. 

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Legend Sunil Gavaskar Upset Over ECB Decision
Despite widespread outrage for the ECB, even legendary batsman and former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar has been vocal about it and has shown his disappointment with the action taken by the ECB. The legend says it clearly shows the lack of sensitivity towards the contributions made by the legendary Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi in the game. 

Do you know the story behind the #PataudiTrophy? 🏆

Well, here's @SanjanaGanesan to talk about its inception ahead of the 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭 🤩#TeamIndia #ENGvIND #SirfSonyPeDikhega pic.twitter.com/VAgx67LLGD

— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) June 29, 2022

He moves on saying The recent news that the ECB is going to retire the Pataudi Trophy, given to the winners of the Test series between England and India in England, is disturbing indeed. There may well be a new trophy named after more recent players, and here’s hoping that if an Indian player has been approached, he will have the good sense to politely decline so that tomorrow they may retire that too. 
The ECB is fully entitled to name the trophy after one of their own players, but I, along with loads of Indian cricket supporters, fervently hope that any other Indian cricketer will have the smarts to decline, lest history repeats itself as it has with the Pataudi Trophy. 
India To Play England In June
It stated that the Pataudi trophy was awarded during India's tour to England in 2007, India was the first winner of the trophy under the leadership of Rahul Dravid, who won the test series by 1-0 in, 3 match bilateral series, But after that the trophy has been mostly clinched by England, who won in 2011, 2014 and in 2018 too. The last test series played by these two teams ended in a draw. 

A recent report from Cricbuzz claimed that the Pataudi family had been informed by the ECB about the decision to retire the trophy. Now the test series played by these two teams will be not called as Pataudi Trophy. 

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is reportedly considering retiring the Pataudi Trophy, contested between England and India in Test series played in England. Sources indicate that the Pataudi family has been brought up to date on the issue, which appears to have divided the cricket community.

The Pataudi Trophy’s Legacy

Pursuant to Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, one of India’s most remembered captains, the trophy was created in 2007 to commemorate the 75th year since India’s inaugural Test tour to England. Over the years, it showcased the intense competition between the two cricketing superpowers, like India’s historic series victory in 2007, England’s supremacy in the game in 2011 and India’s revitalisation in 2018. 

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Why Retire the Trophy?

The ECB has yet to make an announcement about the initiative or provide any reasoning. Nevertheless, some have speculated that the ECB has opted to change the branding of the series as the context of cricket changes rapidly in light of T20 leagues. Another consideration could be that the cup naming of "trophy" is asymmetric and appears odd as to where one would play for the Pataudi Trophy in England while playing for the Anthony de Mello Trophy in a series in India.

If the old trophy is indeed retired, then a trophy could be reinserted that would simply rescale the naming and signify something juxtaposed with a common historical milestone.

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This move comes with a scheduled five-Test tour for India to England in June of 2025, making an announcement likely given its positioning within the calendar. Regardless of whether there is a trophy, the series contest will likely personify one of the greatest rivalries in cricket between England and India.