The Indian cricket team’s jersey has changed multiple times over the years. The Indian kit history goes back to the first time when the ‘Men in Blue’ were spotted in coloured clothing in 1985. Since then, the Indian cricket team has experimented with a different shade of blue on different occasions, from contemporary blue to azure, to Oxford blue and navy blue.
In the 1990s, the kit changed quite frequently, on a series-by-series basis. However, the mid-2000s witnessed the rise of kit sponsors such as Nike, which brought consistency in the team jersey colour.
Indian cricket fans are always intrigued with even the minor details about their favorite sport and their team. They bleed blue in support of the Indian cricket team. So, here’s more about how the Indian jersey has changed over the years and some interesting facts about it that wouldn’t fail to grab your attention.
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Indian Cricket Team Jersey History
It was in 1985 that the Indian cricket team gave up the conventional whites and were spotted in coloured clothing at the Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket held in Australia. Team India has been seen in different hues and designs, but today the Indian cricket team players are identified as Men in Blue. Let’s take a look at the iconic historical moments of the Indian cricket kit:
Indian Team’s Current Jersey
The Indian Cricket team’s current kit is a throwback to the 1992 Cricket World Cup. The retro jersey is inspired by the kit which was donned by the Indian team in the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992. The jersey has appealed to many cricket fans who went ahead and bought the jersey online.
The first Coloured Jersey
The 1985 Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket was the first time the Indian team traded their white jersey for a light blue and yellow coloured kit. The team wore a light blue jersey with a yellow stripe in the middle and on the collars. The kit didn’t have any sponsors in those times and lacked the team name, player names, emblems, and logos. India won the match against Pakistan in the iconic first coloured kit.
1992 Indian Cricket Jersey
The first time every team wore coloured jerseys was in the first edition of the quadrennial tournament, the Benson & Hedges World Series, held in Australia and New Zealand in 1992. The jersey was navy blue in colour with a multi-coloured stripes pattern across the shoulders. Team India’s new kit resurfaced in the 2020-21 Australian tour as a retro kit inspired by the jersey donned in the 1992 World Cup, which became famous for the best jerseys ever made.
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The 1994 World Cup Jersey
In the 1994 India’s tour of New Zealand, team India donned a new jersey colour – yellow and blue. The kit was a blend of the two colors, marking the yellow front-line theme for Team India. The jersey stayed for multiple series till the 1999 World Cup and is one of the most stylish jerseys of the Indian team. The jersey was coloured in yellow in the upper half and navy blue in the lower half. The match was marked by Sachin Tendulkar opening for the first time in ODIs against NZ.
Launch of The Tricolour
In a quadrangular tournament that featured Australia, India, South Africa, and hosts New Zealand in the 1995 Bank of New Zealand Centenary Series, the Indian tricolour made its appearance on the Indian jersey for the first time. The jersey featured a giant Ashok Chakra from the Indian flag on the sleeves.
The Classic World Cup Jersey
Taking a detour from the usual 4-year gap between World Cups, this tournament was held just three years after the prior World Cup. The Indian jersey for this World Cup resembled the 1996 edition. India wore a sky blue colour jersey with a BCCI emblem. The jersey design also featured a diagonally yellow pattern with a black border across the chest. The jersey still holds an appeal amongst cricket fans as its replicas are still sold.
BCCI Logo on the ODI Kit
In the 1999-2000 Carlton and United ODI tri-series, where Australia played against Pakistan and India, the BCCI found its place on the jersey. The stylish jersey featured a huge BCCI logo in yellow and black right in the middle of the jersey.
The Memorable 2003 World Cup
The 2003 World Cup was one of the most memorable ones for cricket fans in Indian cricket history. The team wore a darker shade of blue from the previous editions and was loved by the fans. The jersey also dropped the yellow colour. However, the BCCI couldn’t display Sahara India on the jersey due to a conflict with one of the main kit sponsors, South African Airways.
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India’s Darkest Phase
One of the darkest phases of India was in the 2007 World Cup, where they crashed out in the group stage. The team wore a light shade of blue with the tricolour on the right side and ‘India’ written across the middle of the jersey.
The First ODI Double Hundred
This time the Indian team donned a darker colour of the jersey that was worn in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. The dark blue shade jersey had tri-colour swirls on the right with saffron straps on the back and neck. Across the middle was Sahara India in White and Saffron. The jersey proved to be lucky for the legend Sachin Tendulkar who scored his first-ever ODI double hundred against South Africa.
The Champion’s Kit
One of the unforgettable moments for India was the 2011 World Cup when the team won the coveted title after 28 years. The Dhoni-led team wore a sky blue shade kit with saffron fonts that denoted players’ names and numbers. The Men in Blue wore the jersey during the title-winning campaign, and that’s something no Indian cricket fan can ever forget.
The Kit made out of Recycled Plastic Bottles
The 2015 World Cup was memorable for India; however, the team was knocked out in the semi-finals by Australia, which eventually won the world series. The iconic jersey that the team wore was made out of 33 recycled plastic bottles and was sponsored by Nike. The design was similar to India’s light blue colour jersey from the 2011 World Cup; however, the kit also had patterns of a darker blue color across the jersey. The team also had India written in a Saffron font with a white border in the middle.
The Away Jersey for the Team
The time when Orange was the new Blue for India. After a long time, India ditched the complete blue look for the 2019 World Cup against England. This time the team got an ‘Away jersey’ to avoid England’s blue kit in the Edgbaston league match. The kit was designed in a predominantly orange color on the sleeves and back and a dark blue colour on the front. Nike was the kit sponsor for India’s ‘Away Jersey’. However, the home jersey for India resembled the previous editions of the tournament.
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Interesting Facts about Cricket Jerseys History
Here are a few intriguing facts about the cricket jerseys for international cricket:
- Australia was the first country to introduce colored kits in international cricket.
- In 1992, it was Australia who made modifications to the team jersey and added team name and player name on it. The modification was soon adopted by other teams and was quite pleasant for scorekeepers.
- The 1992 World Cup jersey is still quite famous amongst fans, and the replicas of the jersey are one of the bestsellers.
- The yellow and navy blue jersey worn by Sachin Tendulkar in his first innings as an opening batsman in Auckland remains to be one of the most memorable among cricket fans. He scored an unfathomable 82 off 49 balls in the 1994 match.
- In the 1997 tour of Sri Lanka, the team donned a light blue and yellow colour jersey and witnessed Robin Singh score his only century.
It is interesting to observe the changes in the jerseys in different cricket formats and years. Every change in the jersey implied a significant change or meaning for the team. Some of the jerseys have continued to remain popular amongst cricket enthusiasts and have been a pride for the Indian team. India’s cricket jerseys over the years are reminiscent of the historical moments and several spectacular records of cricket legends. Cricket fans love purchasing the prominent jerseys from memorable matches as a keepsake for the remarkable performances of their favorite players.
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