Former Indian captain Kapil Dev said that it is unusual to see the Pataudi Trophy rebranded as the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy ahead of India’s five-match Test series against England, which begins on June 20 in Leeds.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has renamed the Pataudi Trophy, which is handed to the victor of England’s Test series against India in England, the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Kapil saw that such a transformation had arrived after a long period.

“It feels strange…does this also happen?” But that’s fine; everything works in cricket. At the end of the day, there is no distinction. Cricket is cricket.

“The cricket on the pitch should be the same,” Kapil Dev said at a New Delhi event, according to News18.

The formal announcement was supposed to take place on the margins of the World Test Championship final at Lord’s, but it was postponed due to the Air India plane accident in Ahmedabad. According to rumours, the winning captain of the forthcoming series will be rewarded with a medal named after the Pataudi family, which has a long cricketing history in both India and England.

Former Indian cricket great Sunil Gavaskar criticised the trophy’s renaming, calling it troubling. The trophy was previously named after former Indian captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi. It was established 18 years ago and has tremendous historical value, reflecting the Pataudi family’s strong ties to the India-England cricketing landscape.

Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and his son Mansur have both captained India and played county cricket in England. While the series name has changed, the winning captain will continue to get a special medal with the Pataudi name.

“When this happened, Sachin contacted the ECB and requested that the Pataudi name remain a part of the India-England rivalry.” Mr Jay Shah was present throughout the negotiations,” a BCCI source said.