Ranking every named trophy between Test-playing sides
The upcoming England-India series is set to be played for the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy for the first time, after the Pataudi Trophy was renamed. But where does the new name rank?
The news that the famed Pataudi Trophy would be renamed to the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy for each ensuing series between England and India in England caught everyone on the hop.
Don’t get me wrong - Sachin Tendulkar and Jimmy Anderson are two of the finest players the sport has ever been lucky to witness, and both have claims to being the greatest in their country’s history.
But why change a winning formula? Not only did the Pataudi Trophy pay homage to the Pataudi family’s legacy - Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi played for both countries, the only man to do so in Tests, while his son Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi captained India in the 1960s and 70s - but it just sounds like a good trophy.
‘Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy’ hardly rolls off the tongue.
So, where does the new name rank, for those Test series that have a named trophy? There are 17 around between the 12 Test nations - although some countries, like Ireland and Afghanistan, don’t play for any.
17. Sir Vivian Richards Trophy - SA v WI
No disrespect to the legendary Sir Viv, one of the most destructive batters to play the sport. However, in my opinion, if a trophy between two teams is named after a player, it should honour both countries, and there is no mention of South Africa’s best players, such as Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock, or Graeme Smith.
Plus, as we’ll come to find, this is not the only trophy Sir Viv has under his name.
Since the trophy’s inception in 1998, South Africa has won every series, most recently a 2-0 triumph at home in 2023.
Current holders: South Africa
16. Clive Lloyd Trophy - WI v ZIM
Like the previous one, no mention of any notable Zimbabwe greats. The likes of Grant or Andy Flower would be candidates to make the cut. Gets boosted above last place because Clive Lloyd is an underappreciated player, so it’s good to see him getting his dues.
The West Indies have won every series between the nations, who last played in 2023 (1-0).
Current holders: West Indies
15. Anthony De Mello Trophy - IND v ENG
You might be wondering: “Hasn’t the India-England trophy been renamed?” You’d be right, of course, but the newly minted Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy will only be played for in England.
When the teams meet in the subcontinent, the Anthony De Mello Trophy is up for grabs, named for former administrator De Mello, who was one of the founders of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). A curious name given he never played international cricket.
First played for in 1951, India are the current holders after winning 4-1 in 2023-24.
Current holders: India
14. Sobers-Tissera Trophy - WI v SL
I’ll confess to having to look up who Michael Tissera, former Ceylon and Sri Lanka captain, is. He played before Sri Lanka had Test status - captaining Ceylon to victory over India in 1965, their first win over a Test nation.
Garfield Sobers, of course, is one of the best all-rounders of all time, who broke the record for the highest Test score with 365 not out in 1958.
Due to Tissera’s relative obscurity, this slides down the list. Sri Lanka holds the trophy at the moment, winning 2-0 in the last series in 2022.
Current holders: Sri Lanka
13. Benaud-Qadir Trophy - AUS v PAK
Richie Benaud and Abdul Qadir were two very fine players, although likely neither immediately comes to mind when thinking about Australia and Pakistan’s greatest cricketers.
Each helped pioneer leg-spin in their respective countries, while Benaud went on to be a superb commentator. Ironically, Qadir’s son Usman had a brief stint for Western Australia and in the Big Bash and had intentions to play for Australia before his Pakistan debut.
The trophy was launched in 2022 and Australia have won both series for it, most recently in 2024.
Current holders: Australia
12. Southern Cross Trophy - AUS v ZIM
Now we’re talking. The first trophy on this list not named after a former player or administrator. The Southern Cross Trophy, played for between Australia and Zimbabwe, pays homage to the Southern Cross constellation visible in both countries.
While it is original, it doesn’t seem overtly creative. Plus, despite the Southern Cross being on Australia’s flag, it’s nowhere to be found on Zimbabwe’s. The name may have worked better between Australia and New Zealand.
It has been contested twice, with Australia winning in 1999 and 2003.
Current holders: Australia
11. Trans-Tasman Trophy - AUS v NZ
Another trophy that cites geography as the inspiration behind it. Australia and New Zealand have long been rivals on the sporting field and in cricket play for the Trans-Tasman Trophy, taking its name from the Tasman Sea that splits the island nations.
Like No. 12 on this list, it is original without standing out, which relegates it down the list somewhat.
First played for in 1985, Australia have been dominant and held the trophy since 1993, most recently defeating the Black Caps 2-0 in 2024.
Current holders: Australia
10. Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy - ENG v IND
Enough has been said about this name. While Sachin Tendulkar and Jimmy Anderson are phenomenal players, the renaming of the cup from the Pataudi Trophy removes a lot of the meaning behind it.
Since its inception in 2007, the trophy, which is only played for in England, has been dominated by the hosts, who have not relinquished it since its original year.
The last series in 2021 was drawn - the fifth Test of which was played in 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Current holders: England
9. Richards-Botham Trophy - WI v ENG
Such is the legend of Sir Viv Richards that the great West Indian has two cups named after him.
This is another trophy that has undergone a name change in recent years - previously known as the Wisden Trophy after John Wisden, who founded the well-known cricket almanack. In 2021, it was changed to honour Richards as well as Sir Ian Botham, one of England’s best all-rounders and players.
England holds the trophy after a 3-0 victory in 2024.
Current holders: England
8. Frank Worrell Trophy - WI v AUS
While Frank Worrell only played Tests for the West Indies, he left behind a special legacy as the first black man to captain the West Indies when he did so in 1960, his side touring Australia.
The first match of the series finished as a tie - the first ever in Test cricket - and a trophy to be played between the teams was commissioned as a way to remember the occasion. The Frank Worrell Trophy incorporates a ball used in the tied Test and was named after Worrell to celebrate his achievement.
Australia are the current holder, retaining the trophy after a 1-1 draw in 2024.
Current holders: Australia
7. Warne-Muralitharan Trophy - AUS v SL
Two magicians, absolute geniuses with the ball in hand, who could pitch it on a dime and turn it the width of the cut strip if they wanted.
The Warne-Muralitharan Trophy, played between Australia and Sri Lanka, is suitably named after the two top wicket-takers of all time, who played at the same time and went blow-for-blow, wicket-for-wicket on the field. It features casts of both bowlers’ right hands and a match-used ball for each.
Plus, you can’t argue with the coolness of the name “Muralitharan.”
Australia hold the trophy after a 2-0 win at the start of this year.
Current holders: Australia
6. Border-Gavaskar Trophy - AUS v IND
The BGT has quickly become one of the most hotly-contested trophies in world cricket after India’s win on Australian soil for the first time in 2018-19, backed up in 2021-22.
Named for legendary batters Allan Border and Sunil Gavaskar, it is one of the most prestigious bilateral trophies, and the rivalry between the countries has been extremely heated at times.
Australia are the current holders after a 3-1 win in 2024-25.
Current holders: Australia
5. Crowe-Thorpe Trophy - NZ v ENG
While the Crowe-Thorpe Trophy not only celebrates two iconic batters from New Zealand and England, it also remembers two wonderful people who lost their lives far too early.
Martin Crowe died in 2016 after a long battle with cancer, aged 53, while Graham Thorpe tragically passed away last year at just 55. They played a combined 177 Tests, scored more than 12,000 runs and amassed 33 centuries.
England won the first series for the trophy in 2024, 2-1.
Current holders: England
4. Freedom Trophy - IND v SA
It’s no coincidence that three of my top four trophies are not named after people, and none are an amalgamation of two names. It just sounds better.
The Freedom Trophy, also known as the Gandhi-Mandela Trophy, is dedicated to the famous freedom fighters Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. First played for in 2015, it has changed hands a number of times over the years.
South Africa holds the trophy currently, retaining it after a 1-1 draw in 2024.
Current holders: South Africa
3. Basil D’Oliveira Trophy - ENG v SA
While trophies named after two cricketers aren’t my favourite, the Basil D’Oliveira Trophy is unique in that D’Oliveira himself has heavy links to both nations.
D’Oliveira lived for the first 29 years of his life as a coloured man in apartheid-era South Africa, before emigrating to England to play cricket and pursue a better life. He made his Worcestershire debut in 1964, and an England Test cap soon followed in 1966.
In 1968, he was controversially omitted from England’s squad to tour South Africa, with public outcry from English fans claiming he was left out for political reasons. When he was named as an injury replacement, South African politicians complained on the same grounds. The tour would later be cancelled.
Since the trophy’s inception in 2004, it has been hotly contested - England is currently in possession after a 2-1 win in 2022.
Current holders: England
2. Tangiwai Shield - NZ v SA
Most outside New Zealand are unlikely to know much about the Tangiwai Disaster - when a railway bridge collapsed underneath a passenger train at Tangiwai, in NZ’s North Island, on Christmas Eve 1953.
151 people were killed - including Nerissa Love, the fiancée of New Zealand fast bowler Bob Blair, who was away with his country touring South Africa. After learning of his beloved’s death, it was announced that Blair would take no further part in the ongoing Test.
However, he walked out at the fall of the ninth wicket on Boxing Day to partner Bert Sutcliffe at the crease, with the crowd standing in silence and players from both sides in tears. The courageous Blair and Sutcliffe added 33 off 20 balls for the last wicket, South Africa going on to win the Test by 132 runs, but New Zealand winning the hearts of fans.
The trophy was first played for in 2024, New Zealand winning 2-0.
Current holders: New Zealand.
1. The Ashes - AUS v ENG
Nothing in cricket is more iconic than The Ashes.
Debate all you like - it is the single biggest thing in cricket. The history between arch-rivals Australia and England is beyond anything else in the world game.
The name was coined in a satirical obituary in a British newspaper after Australia’s victory in 1882 at The Oval, stating: “English cricket has died. The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia."
England captain Ivo Bligh promised to “recover those Ashes” on the 1882-83 tour of Australia - his side won the series 2-1, and Bligh was presented with an urn, reportedly containing the ashes of a wooden bail, humorously described as “the ashes of Australian cricket.”
The trophy the teams now play for is a replica of that urn which was donated to the MCC by Bligh’s wife after his death in 1927.
The name is so iconic that England and Australia’s women’s teams play for “The Women’s Ashes”, and the respective rugby leagues of the nations play for the rugby league Ashes.
Australia are the holders after winning the urn back in 2017 and not relinquishing it since. The next part in this trophy’s famed history will take place Down Under later this year.
Current holders: Australia
It’s so contrived to just name after a couple of good players.