Anderson-Tendulkar trophy or Pataudi trophy - what are England and India competing for?

Five-match Test series that begins on Friday has a bit of an identity issue

Former India captain Rahul Dravid is presented with the Pataudi trophy by the late Tiger Pataudi in the 2007 Test series in England. Getty Images

The five-match series between England and India that begins in Leeds on Friday will mark the beginning of a new era.

The series is the start of a new Test cycle and a fresh journey for India under the captaincy of Shubman Gill following the sudden retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the longest format.

England will also be hoping to make a mark in the new Test campaign, having finished the previous in fifth position despite a mid-course correction.

This will be a series without some very big names; apart from Kohli and Rohit, pace greats James Anderson and Stuart Broad have also retired. So has India spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin.

There is one more big change – the name of the trophy for which the two teams will be competing.

The Anderson-Tendulkar trophy

The England Cricket Board have unveiled the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy – a new silverware to be given to the winners of the England v India Test series.

The move was done to honour the legacy of two of the greatest cricketers the world had seen – the all-time leading Test wicket-taker among seamers – Anderson – and all-time highest Test run-scorer – Sachin Tendulkar.

Anderson said it was a huge honour to have such an important piece of silverware named after him.

“It's a huge honour,” Anderson told ESPNcricinfo. “I still can't quite believe it. Sachin is someone I looked up to when I was growing up.

“I remember watching him, an absolute legend of the game, and I played against him a lot as well. So to have this trophy is a huge honour for me, and I couldn't be more proud.”

There is a bit more to it. The series was earlier called the Pataudi trophy – a name coined in 2007 for all Test series between the two nations played in England. The decision was made to commemorate the 75th anniversary of India's first Test.

That name was originally given in honour of Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, who is the only cricketer to have represented both India and England in Tests.

His son Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, also known as Tiger Pataudi, captained India with great distinction and represented the country from 1961 to 1975, having also played in England at lower levels.

The Pataudis have a deep connection with cricket and the royal families of both countries, which made it an apt name for the series trophy.

However, of late, bilateral Test series have started to be named after top players of each nation; Australia and India compete for the Border-Gavaskar trophy, New Zealand and England face off for the Crowe-Thorpe trophy, and the Aussies and Sri Lanka play for the Warne-Muralitharan trophy.

Similarly, you have the Benaud-Qadir trophy (for Australia v Pakistan) and the Botham-Richards trophy (England v West Indies).

The England board also decided to join the growing trend. The new trophy name was set to be unveiled during the recent World Test Championship at Lord's, but was postponed following the Air India crash in Ahmedabad that resulted in the loss of Indian and British lives.

Is it the end of the Pataudi trophy?

The Indian cricket board is looking to keep the Pataudi name alive. According to reports, the Indian cricket board and Tendulkar wanted Pataudi's name associated with the series in some capacity, as a memento to the winning captain or for the player of the series.

There is another twist in the naming tale here. India's home series against England has a different trophy – one which only the most ardent cricket fans know of.

India's home Test series against England is played for the Anthony de Mello trophy – named after one of the founding members of the Indian cricket board and an influential figure of the game in the country.

So, it is one bilateral series with three different names.