I noticed with interest the ICC People's Dream XI to commemorate the 2000th Test Match which starts this week. I must say I approve of many of the choices. After all, they are clearly giants of the sport, but all bar the incomparable Sir Don Bradman have been playing within the past thirty years. Hardly surprising since few of us could possibly remember the superstars of the pre-War years. All we can go on are statistics and a few minutes of grainy newsreel or photos of stripy blazers and trousers so starched they could stand at the crease on their own!
Of course I simply have to join in the exercise and was tempted to make my selection based purely on those I have grown up with, so basically players from the past 40-50 years. But that doesn't fit squarely with the occasion, namely the marking of 2000 Tests over a period of 134 years. So how do you compare the past and present? WG Grace vs RT Ponting? Sir Jack Hobbs vs Sir Ian Botham? They lived and played in different eras with different equipment and on very different pitches. WG would not have been seen dead chasing a ball to the boundary and even Virender Sehwag would have struggled to clump to mid-wicket a turning ball from a 'sticky dog' pitch left open to the elements as used to be the case.
And so to my own Dream Team, which clearly has to be drawn from memory as well as the aforementioned facts, figures and monochrome footage on TV. For openers, Jack Hobbs, Sir Len Hutton, Matthew Hayden, Barry Richards and Sunil Gavaskar all come into consideration. If it was for anything other than to celebrate Test history, I'd have gone for Richards but with his international career cruelly cut short by South African politics, I will pick the great Indian star and the England colossus Hutton, who dominated bowlers from the 1930s until the 1950s. What might he have achieved had WW2 not intervened? Both Hutton and Gavaskar held world records for many years and I reckon both would have prospered in each others' eras.
In the middle-order, there are so many more to choose from. Bradman is an automatic choice and so is Sachin Tendulkar. That leaves me with a couple of others. Oh, dear. Steve Waugh, Denis Compton, Graeme Pollock, Sir Garry Sobers, Ricky Ponting, Brian Lara and Viv Richards are all in the running. My heart says Viv, but I fear he is in too distinguished a company when it comes to Test cricket. Pollock's Test career, like that of fellow South African Richards, is perhaps too short, although if he had maintained his average 0f 60+ for another ten years, he would be a shoo-in. Compton was a legend and remarkable personality and just about edges out Lara, but the West Indies will be represented by Sobers, whose record Test innings of 365 beat Hutton's and lasted until Lara. Sir Garry averaged about 57 with the bat but also took more than 200 Test wickets. Always useful to have a left-hander, too.
Sobers is one brilliant all-rounder and would bat at six, which leaves room for another all-rounder at least. Botham? No. But Kapil Dev, Imran Khan and Wasim Akram all have genuine claims, as does Wilf Rhodes, who was born in the same year as Test cricket. However, I'll pick the Australian Keith Miller who was a brilliant fast bowler as well as elegant batsman spanning a Test career of ten years.
Wicket-keeper? Well, with batting so important as well as skills wearing the big gloves, Adam Gilchrist gets my vote. A shrewd reader of the game and nice guy, too. Nobody else comes close.
Lots of spin options, but for sheer volume of wickets at the top level, it comes down to the old contest between friendly rivals Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan. The Sri Lankan has the most wickets, the most unreadable deliveries, the smallest average and the biggest smile but the Aussie leg-spinner makes my team. If a spinner's wicket he'd be joined by Murali but a traditional 4 seamers + 1 spinner track leaves space for just two more fast men. Lindwall, McGrath, Donald, Ambrose, Lillee, Walsh, Waqar Younis, Marshall, Holding..... My mind is exploding just thinking how to take two from this shortlist. Glenn McGrath's superb accuracy and longevity wins him a place (at number eleven!) and for pace, guile and a wicked bouncer, Malcolm Marshall just about nudges Denis Lillee out of the team.
So my own Dream XI reads: Hutton, Gavaskar, Bradman (*), Compton, Tendulkar, Sobers, Miller, Gilchrist (+), Marshall, Warne, McGrath.
Here's to the next 2000 Tests....!
Showing posts with label Gavaskar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gavaskar. Show all posts
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Tuesday, 19 July 2011
India in England - a Recent History
The forthcoming Test series is billed as the battle for the position of World number one, and rightly so. India have the global superstars but England seem to have the superior all-round package. In the past thirty years of so, the two nations have enjoyed some close encounters with neither side truly dominant in a series.
In 1979, the four-match rubber was decided by England's innings victory in the 1st Test, when David Gower scored an unbeaten 200. However, the series is perhaps best remembered for India's gallant chasing of a world record 438 and missing it by just nine runs. Sunil Gavaskar's 221 was a supreme effort and one of the great 'losing' innings in history. In 1982, it was Ian Botham's turn to hit a 'double' at The Oval but it was at Lord's where England won the only match of the series, thanks to a Derek Randall century and fine bowling by Botham.
Four years later, India exacted revenge in a low-scoring series. They won two of the three Tests, given the edge by Dilip Vengsarkar's runs and the bowling of Chetan Sharma and the spinners. No Bedi, Venkat or Chandrasekhar, as in their 1971 triumph, but Kapil Dev's team deserved to beat Mike Gatting's men.
The 1990 series is famed for Graham Gooch's 333 and 123 at Lord's in the First Test which England won comfortably. However, India's batsmen also accumulated plenty of runs that summer, including a young Sachin Tendulkar at Old Trafford. Ravi Shastri and Sidhu had the roles of replacing the great Gavaskar, and Ravi struck 187 at The Oval, with Kapil Dev weighing in with 110 as they forced the home side to follow on.
Another one-nil to England, and so it again proved in 1996, once more getting off to a winning start, this time at Edgbaston. Azharuddin's tourists welcomed some fresh faces in Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid in the 2nd game, the former making a debut Test century, then again reaching three figures during a 255 third wicket partnership with Tendulkar in a drawn climax at Trent Bridge.
Six years later, England again triumphed in the 1st Test, thanks to hundreds from skipper Hussain, Vaughan and Crawley. By now, Ganguly was captain of India, and had both Sehwag and Laxman in the batting line-up, plus Zaheer Khan bowling with Nehra, Anil Kumble and Ajit Agarkar. Michael Vaughan twice narrowly missed reaching 200 in the final two games and it was in the Third at Headingley where India squared the series with a demolition of England by an innings and 46 runs. Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly helped themselves to hefty hundreds, while Kumble and Harbhajan Singh tightened the screw on England.
India moved into the ascendancy four years go, securing the Pataudi Trophy one-nil. However, they had to cling on for dear life to save the First Test, achieving it thanks to a patient 76 not out by MS Dhoni. Perhaps shocked by their failure to take an instant lead, England faltered at Trent Bridge, bowled out for under 200 in their first innings. Five Indians scored half-centuries in their reply and, although Vaughan made a captain's innings second time around, it wasn't enough to stop Dravid's team winning by seven wickets. At The Oval, India won the toss and amassed 664 all out, ending any hopes of England avoiding a series defeat. Once more, all the Indian batsmen made useful contributions, led perhaps surprisingly by Kumble's one and only Test century. They didn't enforce the follow-on, presumably in the hope that their chief spinner could wreak havoc on the last day. He didn't, but his side took the trophy and went on to dominate the world - but will they still be on top come September?!
Sachin Tendulkar has a reasonable chance of overtaking Gavaskar as the leading scorer in contests between the two teams. His average so far of 61.4 is vastly superior to his predecessor's 38.2. Helped by that record-breaking game in 1990, Graham Gooch is the leading England run-maker against India, with 1725, more than 700 behind Gavaskar. However, of the leading players, it's Englishmen Botham and Vaughan who enjoyed the highest career batting averages, both above 70.
Unsurprisingly, India's ace spinners have taken more wickets than anybody else in India-England Tests. Chandra (95), Kumble (92) and Bedi (85), plus Kapil Dev, are way ahead of England's challengers, led by Bob Willis (62). Of those still playing, Harbhajan Singh has 41 and James Anderson a mere 24. However, the latter must surely boost that total this summer, especially if India's famed batting line-up struggles as it has done, Raina apart, at Taunton last weekend. Roll on, Lord's. If Dhoni's team can only thwart England at the first hurdle, history suggests it could be another triumph for India.
In 1979, the four-match rubber was decided by England's innings victory in the 1st Test, when David Gower scored an unbeaten 200. However, the series is perhaps best remembered for India's gallant chasing of a world record 438 and missing it by just nine runs. Sunil Gavaskar's 221 was a supreme effort and one of the great 'losing' innings in history. In 1982, it was Ian Botham's turn to hit a 'double' at The Oval but it was at Lord's where England won the only match of the series, thanks to a Derek Randall century and fine bowling by Botham.
Four years later, India exacted revenge in a low-scoring series. They won two of the three Tests, given the edge by Dilip Vengsarkar's runs and the bowling of Chetan Sharma and the spinners. No Bedi, Venkat or Chandrasekhar, as in their 1971 triumph, but Kapil Dev's team deserved to beat Mike Gatting's men.
The 1990 series is famed for Graham Gooch's 333 and 123 at Lord's in the First Test which England won comfortably. However, India's batsmen also accumulated plenty of runs that summer, including a young Sachin Tendulkar at Old Trafford. Ravi Shastri and Sidhu had the roles of replacing the great Gavaskar, and Ravi struck 187 at The Oval, with Kapil Dev weighing in with 110 as they forced the home side to follow on.
Another one-nil to England, and so it again proved in 1996, once more getting off to a winning start, this time at Edgbaston. Azharuddin's tourists welcomed some fresh faces in Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid in the 2nd game, the former making a debut Test century, then again reaching three figures during a 255 third wicket partnership with Tendulkar in a drawn climax at Trent Bridge.
Six years later, England again triumphed in the 1st Test, thanks to hundreds from skipper Hussain, Vaughan and Crawley. By now, Ganguly was captain of India, and had both Sehwag and Laxman in the batting line-up, plus Zaheer Khan bowling with Nehra, Anil Kumble and Ajit Agarkar. Michael Vaughan twice narrowly missed reaching 200 in the final two games and it was in the Third at Headingley where India squared the series with a demolition of England by an innings and 46 runs. Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly helped themselves to hefty hundreds, while Kumble and Harbhajan Singh tightened the screw on England.
India moved into the ascendancy four years go, securing the Pataudi Trophy one-nil. However, they had to cling on for dear life to save the First Test, achieving it thanks to a patient 76 not out by MS Dhoni. Perhaps shocked by their failure to take an instant lead, England faltered at Trent Bridge, bowled out for under 200 in their first innings. Five Indians scored half-centuries in their reply and, although Vaughan made a captain's innings second time around, it wasn't enough to stop Dravid's team winning by seven wickets. At The Oval, India won the toss and amassed 664 all out, ending any hopes of England avoiding a series defeat. Once more, all the Indian batsmen made useful contributions, led perhaps surprisingly by Kumble's one and only Test century. They didn't enforce the follow-on, presumably in the hope that their chief spinner could wreak havoc on the last day. He didn't, but his side took the trophy and went on to dominate the world - but will they still be on top come September?!
Sachin Tendulkar has a reasonable chance of overtaking Gavaskar as the leading scorer in contests between the two teams. His average so far of 61.4 is vastly superior to his predecessor's 38.2. Helped by that record-breaking game in 1990, Graham Gooch is the leading England run-maker against India, with 1725, more than 700 behind Gavaskar. However, of the leading players, it's Englishmen Botham and Vaughan who enjoyed the highest career batting averages, both above 70.
Unsurprisingly, India's ace spinners have taken more wickets than anybody else in India-England Tests. Chandra (95), Kumble (92) and Bedi (85), plus Kapil Dev, are way ahead of England's challengers, led by Bob Willis (62). Of those still playing, Harbhajan Singh has 41 and James Anderson a mere 24. However, the latter must surely boost that total this summer, especially if India's famed batting line-up struggles as it has done, Raina apart, at Taunton last weekend. Roll on, Lord's. If Dhoni's team can only thwart England at the first hurdle, history suggests it could be another triumph for India.
Monday, 28 February 2011
Sunil Gavaskar - the First 'Little Master'
Sachin Tendulkar is a living legend, no question. He's the most complete run-maker of the modern era and holds almost every batting record there is. His haul of 51 Test centuries so far may never be beaten but the man whose achievement Tendulkar surpassed in 2005 held that record for 19 years. Quite astonishing given the explosion in Test series that happened in that intervening period. That man was not a Boycott, Richards, Border, Miandad or Lara, but another Indian, Sunil Gavaskar.
Next week sees the 40th anniversary of his Test debut in the West Indies. In that series, he scored an amazing 774 runs in only four Tests, a record for a debutant that still stands today. His average in the series was a mammoth 154.80, not bad for an opening batsman brought up on the sticky wickets of Mumbai!
At 5 feet 5 inches, he was (and presumably still is!) the same height of his illustrious successor and had the same range of strokes, especially at the beginning of his career. His first international opportunity came on the Indians' tour of the Caribbean in early 1971, opening the batting towards close of play of the Second Test on 6th March in Port of Spain. I'm not sure why he missed the first game but he was rarely if ever dropped thereafter in a 16-year career at the very top.
In that debut he scored 65 and 67 not out, followed in the next match by 116 and 64. He failed in the 4th Test, scoring just 1, but more than compensated by compiling centuries in each of the next three innings, climaxing with a 220. The West Indies opposition at that time were not the formidable outfit they were to become a few years later, especially in the bowling department, but Gavaskar was to be the first real Indian superstar. At that time, they were usually easy meat on away territory but relied on spinners like Bedi, Venkat, Chandrasehkar and Prasanna to give them a sniff of victory on their home wickets. World-class batsmen from the sub-continent were rare in those days, but 'Sunny' Gavaskar changed all that and was to become possibly the finest opening batsman of all time.
His achievements were all the more special because he had to bear the brunt of so many superb but aggressive fast bowlers throughout the 1970s and early '80s. Roberts, Holding, Croft, Lillee, Thomson, Imran, Marshall, Sarfraz, Snow, they all did their best to unsettle him. Indeed, the fiery English paceman at Lord's in 1971 even resorted to barging him when going for a single but Gavaskar simply carried on regardless, his half-century ensuring India saved the match. Indeed, that was largely Sunny's role for India: staving off defeat. His natural elegance and flair was often sacrificed in favour of carefully constructing big innings to occupy the crease for as long as possible. It didn't always win him fans, and his infamous 36 not out against England in the inaugural 60-over World Cup has gone down in history as one of the most bizarre one-day innings ever! ODIs were not Gavaskar's bag. Indeed, in more than 100 matches, he scored just one century, and he left that until his penultimate game at Nagpur against New Zealand, struck in only 88 balls. I'm sure he would have relished playing alongside the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly. With licence to play his shots, he'd have made a fabulous World Cup opening partner for Sehwag!
However, it was in the five-day format that he was such a formidable batsman. More than half his 125 Tests were played in India, yet his best average came against West Indies. The most frequent of his opponents were England, but against them his average was a moderate 38. It was undoubtedly his playing of fast bowling which singled him out for such praise. His footwork and swift reactions could get him out of trouble and he wasn't afraid to hook bouncers. His biggest score was 236 not out, achieved in Madras (as was) against an attack consisting of Marshall, Holding, Roberts and Davis. However, probably Gavaskar's finest moment of many came at The Oval in 1979.
As usual, India were losing the Test series against England and, set a daunting 438 to win in just over a day's play, another certain defeat loomed. However, the talismanic opener put on a double-century partnership with Chauhan and, with Dilip Vengsarkar, progressed the score to 366-2. I remember watching this match and thinking, blimey, they might actually do this! Vengsarkar fell for 53, followed quickly by the young Kapil Dev for a duck. However, while Gavaskar remained at the crease, an amazing fifth day victory looked possible, but time was running out. Then with 49 still needed, Sunny was caught by Gower off Botham and England sensed blood. nevertheless, India still had six wickets in hand and went for the win. Wickets began to tumble but they held on for the draw, just nine runs short of what would have been a world-record fourth innings for a victory. Without Gavaskar's fabulous innings, India would surely have crumbled. Even as an English teenager, he became a bit of a hero of mine that day and he rightly remains revered in his own nation, probably more so than Kapil Dev but perhaps overshadowed by the second Little Master. Tendulkar may be the focal point of India's rise to become the finest cricketing nation in the world in 2011, but it was Sunil Gavaskar who really first put them on the map, all starting 40 years ago in Trinidad.
Next week sees the 40th anniversary of his Test debut in the West Indies. In that series, he scored an amazing 774 runs in only four Tests, a record for a debutant that still stands today. His average in the series was a mammoth 154.80, not bad for an opening batsman brought up on the sticky wickets of Mumbai!
At 5 feet 5 inches, he was (and presumably still is!) the same height of his illustrious successor and had the same range of strokes, especially at the beginning of his career. His first international opportunity came on the Indians' tour of the Caribbean in early 1971, opening the batting towards close of play of the Second Test on 6th March in Port of Spain. I'm not sure why he missed the first game but he was rarely if ever dropped thereafter in a 16-year career at the very top.
In that debut he scored 65 and 67 not out, followed in the next match by 116 and 64. He failed in the 4th Test, scoring just 1, but more than compensated by compiling centuries in each of the next three innings, climaxing with a 220. The West Indies opposition at that time were not the formidable outfit they were to become a few years later, especially in the bowling department, but Gavaskar was to be the first real Indian superstar. At that time, they were usually easy meat on away territory but relied on spinners like Bedi, Venkat, Chandrasehkar and Prasanna to give them a sniff of victory on their home wickets. World-class batsmen from the sub-continent were rare in those days, but 'Sunny' Gavaskar changed all that and was to become possibly the finest opening batsman of all time.
His achievements were all the more special because he had to bear the brunt of so many superb but aggressive fast bowlers throughout the 1970s and early '80s. Roberts, Holding, Croft, Lillee, Thomson, Imran, Marshall, Sarfraz, Snow, they all did their best to unsettle him. Indeed, the fiery English paceman at Lord's in 1971 even resorted to barging him when going for a single but Gavaskar simply carried on regardless, his half-century ensuring India saved the match. Indeed, that was largely Sunny's role for India: staving off defeat. His natural elegance and flair was often sacrificed in favour of carefully constructing big innings to occupy the crease for as long as possible. It didn't always win him fans, and his infamous 36 not out against England in the inaugural 60-over World Cup has gone down in history as one of the most bizarre one-day innings ever! ODIs were not Gavaskar's bag. Indeed, in more than 100 matches, he scored just one century, and he left that until his penultimate game at Nagpur against New Zealand, struck in only 88 balls. I'm sure he would have relished playing alongside the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly. With licence to play his shots, he'd have made a fabulous World Cup opening partner for Sehwag!
However, it was in the five-day format that he was such a formidable batsman. More than half his 125 Tests were played in India, yet his best average came against West Indies. The most frequent of his opponents were England, but against them his average was a moderate 38. It was undoubtedly his playing of fast bowling which singled him out for such praise. His footwork and swift reactions could get him out of trouble and he wasn't afraid to hook bouncers. His biggest score was 236 not out, achieved in Madras (as was) against an attack consisting of Marshall, Holding, Roberts and Davis. However, probably Gavaskar's finest moment of many came at The Oval in 1979.
As usual, India were losing the Test series against England and, set a daunting 438 to win in just over a day's play, another certain defeat loomed. However, the talismanic opener put on a double-century partnership with Chauhan and, with Dilip Vengsarkar, progressed the score to 366-2. I remember watching this match and thinking, blimey, they might actually do this! Vengsarkar fell for 53, followed quickly by the young Kapil Dev for a duck. However, while Gavaskar remained at the crease, an amazing fifth day victory looked possible, but time was running out. Then with 49 still needed, Sunny was caught by Gower off Botham and England sensed blood. nevertheless, India still had six wickets in hand and went for the win. Wickets began to tumble but they held on for the draw, just nine runs short of what would have been a world-record fourth innings for a victory. Without Gavaskar's fabulous innings, India would surely have crumbled. Even as an English teenager, he became a bit of a hero of mine that day and he rightly remains revered in his own nation, probably more so than Kapil Dev but perhaps overshadowed by the second Little Master. Tendulkar may be the focal point of India's rise to become the finest cricketing nation in the world in 2011, but it was Sunil Gavaskar who really first put them on the map, all starting 40 years ago in Trinidad.
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