Fidel Castro’s love for sports           

Fidel Castro was a pioneer in the field of sports in the modern world. As with the Greeks in ancient times, Castro was the first of the contemporary world political leaders who realized the value, the art, the appeal, the enthusiasm and the advantages of sports.

 Under his command, sports became a compulsory subject for every school-going child in a country of nearly 90% literacy. He encouraged the elderly to take part in chess. The modern-day popularity of walks can be traced to his influence.

The best example of his contribution to sports is exemplified by the thrice Olympic gold medal-winning boxer Felix Savon Favre.  Felix was born in Castro’s Cuba, never left the shores of his small island, trained under Cuban coaches and with local facilities. Yet was the undisputed Olympic champion for three consecutive times in 1992, 1996 and 2000. Opponents shuddered to square up to him in the heavy-weight ring. Once after the knock-out punch, he modestly claimed, “Cuba has won, not me.” Similar have been the legendary exploits of numerous Cuban sportsmen under the care of Castro’s regime.

Unfortunately Fidel Castro never received the acknowledgement due to him. The primary reason was that never compromised at the feet of the world powers. His courage and conviction made him an outcaste. The volatile, handsome personality was a singular person, as he had once said, “I prefer being in the majority of one.”

May 1977. London House, the residence of students of School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS). My friend Udayan Mukherji and I were in the company of a youth from Cuba. He had left his native land during the revolution and had gone to USA to seek a future for himself. Studied hard, did odd jobs and earned his degree in political science. Now he was well-settled and had come to UK for the first time.

While discussing the Cuban revolution, he kept harping on the influence of sports in his island nation. He kept saying that they were the best in the world at boxing, baseball and basketball. For a student of international relations to have such an exalted opinion of sports drew my attention. Here was someone speaking spontaneously without bothering to create any impression on his listeners.

Now after nearly 40 years, I can vaguely recollect our acquaintance’s name. But I distinctly remember that he mentioned that Teofilo Stevenson was a neighbour of his. That made me still more curious about the man.

 For those who are not into the world of boxing, Teofilo Stevenson was the undisputed Olympic champion in 1972 and 1976 in the heavy weight category. Later in 1980 yet again he had the gold medal around his neck. He happens to be one of the forgotten legends of the Olympic movement. His only fault being that he belonged to the ‘low-profile’ nation of Cuba.

While on Stevenson, it would be an injustice to the outstanding sportsman if his famous quote is not mentioned. Once when asked as to why he did not join the professional ring and make millions fighting Muhammed Ali and company, the man merely shook his head and uttered, “What is a million dollars’ worth compared to the love of eight million Cubans.” He never left his homeland. Shades of our own Dhyan Chand and Tensing Norgay, who refused to earn fame and fortune abroad.

We have digressed. Back to the company of our acquaintance at SOAS. Now qualified and settled, he longed to go back to his motherland. But was apprehensive of how he would be able to resettle in a communist country. Throughout the discussion he was thrilled to find that Udayan and I were quite aware of the overthrow of the dictator Batista, of the Cuban revolution, of Fidel Castro and, of course, our hero of those days, Che Guevara.

Fidel Castro was a statesman with a difference. He had a genuine love and regard for sports and sportspeople. Not the kind of annual cricket jamboree of our parliamentarians at New Delhi. Mao Tse Tung was known to have swam across broad rivers. Many British premiers have played cricket in their school and university days.  But Castro was probably the first to understand the mass appeal of sports. He once claimed that a healthy nation consists of healthy individuals.

 He did not use sports merely as a vehicle of propaganda as East Germany, Soviet Russia and Communist China had done. No, there was a distinct difference. He did not concentrate on elite sports. On the contrary he made physical education compulsory for every primary school child along with academics. Even elderly people were encouraged to take part in indoor games, particularly chess. He believed in competition certainly, but more importantly he wanted his people to take active part in non-competitive contests for the sake of health. The lawyer turned revolutionary turned political leader was certainly way ahead of his times in this respect.

Fidel Castro infused a sense of pride in his countrymen about Cuba’s sports performance at the international level. On the international sports arena he took great delight in the achievements of his fellow men particularly at athletics, boxing, basketball and baseball. According to Robert Huish, professor of international development studies, the deep respect the Cubans have for their sportspersons is reflected in the story relating to Javier Sotomayor.

Javier Sotomayor is an unique sportsperson. He is the only human being to have soared eight feet in the high jump. It is believed that the Cubans marked the height of his jumps in their doorways as he toppled one world record after another. When Alberto Juantorena (400 m and 800 m gold in the 1976 Olympic) galloped around the track, other athletes merely gaped in awe and wonder. Castro’s Cubans had cast a spell on world sports.

No other political leader can match Fidel Castro love and respect for sports. Sports symbolized Cuba’s strength, self respect and pride. How good was he at sports himself? There have been apocryphal stories of Castro’s dexterity at sports. It is said that he was very adept at baseball for he was known to have been pictured with his bat raised. He was also supposed to be an excellent pitcher. But Castro himself revealed the truth, “Never became a champion. Never had the time to practise much.”

Our SOAS acquaintance told us that Fidel Castro’s prime interest as a broad-shouldered, 6-feet-3 was in basketball. The broad-shouldered, 6-feet-3 physique had immense strength, speed in his movements and ability to think fast. Till his last breath he spoke of his love for sports. The outstanding political personality really appreciated the power of sports, which happens to be war without weapons.

Fidel Castro belonging to the unfashionable nation of Cuba never really received the acclaim he deserved. He became a rogue to the world because certain section of the powerful media tarred his image. But his ever-lasting contribution to sports cannot be erased from the annals of sports history. The phenomenal performances of his countrymen have etched his contribution to sports in stone.

 

 

                                      

                                       

 On BCCI’s Birth & Functioning                  

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), situated in the heart of Mumbai, is the Vatican of the Cricket Religion in India. Cricketers of all hues worship at its altar and follow its tenets to the last letter. Wide and deep as its popularity is, the independent institution perpetually highlights that its prime cause is all for India’s national interest.

Since public interest is the prime factor, BCCI officials should not feel upset with the appointment of special auditors as directed by the Supreme Court. In fact, they should actually welcome the presence of external auditors and financial experts to look into their books of accounts. Nothing so sanctimonious about BCCI’s functioning that it cannot come under the Right to Information Act of the country.

As responsible citizens of the nation the BCCI officials should have no qualms in accepting the dictates of the highest arbiter of justice in the land. This is an ideal way for them to show the people of India how honest and sincere they have been in handling public money. This is a great opportunity for them to prove to their critics that they are honest men of exemplary credentials.

BCCI has always been an institution full of very wealthy and influential people. Hopefully we can regard such people to be of unimpeachable integrity as far as financial dealings are concerned. They are responsible citizens of India and are fully aware that the bullions and billions that they deal in every day belong not to their own selves but to those honest lovers of Indian cricket around the globe.

This is a grand opportunity for each and every cricket administrator in India, who invariably works in an honorary capacity, to reveal to the world at large how generous he has been to devote so much of time and attention to cricket for no financial gains. This is an exposure that he should welcome with thanksgiving to whoever he wishes to. An ideal platform to prove that his true intent is all for our delight and the progress of the game.

The name Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is very appropriately coined. Yes, it is a BOARD that is very exclusive; a close-knit brotherhood. It CONTROLS every aspect of CRICKET in INDIA. What a great service this close-knit group is doing for the betterment of cricket in this vast sub-continent of ours.  This board is genuinely united. Hardly ever can they be accused of anything but unanimity. Every association member is ready and willing to oblige the power that holds the reins. No uncomfortable questions are asked; no unnecessary time is lost. Everyone seems to be happy in their own cozy world of dollars and dreams.

Some critics have condemned BCCI for not involving the north-eastern states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh into the cricket mainstream. But these cynics conveniently forget that the state of Maharashtra was gifted 3 teams (Maharashtra, Vidarbha and Bombay) as was the state of Gujarat (Saurashtra, Baroda and Gujarat). Even Andhra Pradesh has 2 teams (Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh).

Clubs like National Cricket Club and Cricket Club of India, who do not take part in first-class cricket championships, were adequately compensated with voting rights for whatever reasons. Institutional teams like Services, Universities and Railways are also represented. No one can lay the charge that BCCI did not promote cricket. They did. So concerned were they with the huge land mass of the sub-continent that their orbit did not quite reach the obscure corners of India’s north-east.

BCCI, most unfortunately, is still in a dilemma about its place and date of birth. It appears that BCCI has not paid adequate attention to its ancestry while being in pursuit of cricket promotion. Various sources have claimed its origin to be 1928; others have stuck to 1929. Some feel Bombay should be regarded as the birth-place while others opt for Delhi.

The authentic fact, however, is etched in rock that India did not have a cricket board in the summer of 1926 when Reginald Lagden, a former cricketer himself, of Calcutta Cricket Club (CCC) had sent an invitation to Lord Harris of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) through his emissaries – William Currie and Murray Robertson – to send a team to India the following winter.

The main sponsorship and organization came from the Bengal Gymkhana, a conglomeration of local Calcutta clubs which was established in 1909. Later in February 1928 Bengal Gymkhana merged into a full-fledged association, the Cricket Association of Bengal & Assam. Thus CAB came into existence in February 1928, even before the existence of BCCI.

 Former England captain Lord Harris, as a former governor of Bombay Presidency in the 1890s, was well acquainted with the Indian cricket scenario, especially with the pioneering work of CCC. He was a great patron of Indian cricket and an influential man both at MCC and ICC. He welcomed the two CCC members with open arms and confirmed MCC’s tour of India in the winter of 1926 to play several matches including two unofficial tests against an All-India XI.

Although India had no central cricket board at the time, the magnanimous visionary Lord Harris even allowed the two CCC members to sit in the ICC (then Imperial Cricket Conference) deliberations as India’s representatives in the summer of 1926 giving India an exalted position in the cricket hierarchy. Most appropriately, Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack regards 1926 to be India’s admission year at ICC.

Lord Harris accepted CCC’s invitation and sent a MCC team under Arthur Gilligan to India in the winter of 1926-27. At the time CCC was a bastion of British expatriates based at Calcutta’s Eden Gardens. CCC along with Bengal Gymkhana, Buchi Babu of Madras, Bombay Gymkhana and various other clubs as well as the princely patrons around the country, most prominent being the Maharaja Bhupindra Singh of Patiala, sponsored and helped to make the MCC tour of 1926-27 a great success. BCCI was yet to be born and obviously had no role in it.

So impressed was the MCC captain Arthur Gilligan –a gentleman of impeccable credentials and vision –with the standard of Indian cricketers and the facilities available in the major cities that he went back and prevailed upon the MCC authorities at Lord’s to involve India in official Test matches without any delay. At the time, apart from Australia and England, teams representing South Africa, West Indies and New Zealand formed the pentagon of Test cricket.

MCC’s 1926-27 visit under Gilligan was an eye-opener to the princely states around the sub-continent. Gilligan broached to them the idea that the country must have a formal board and not be solely reliant on individual donors for all its future cricket programmes. This casual interaction took place at Roshanara Club (named after Aurangzeb’s sister) in Delhi in November 1927 where he met Bhupindra Singh Maharaja of Patiala, Delhi-based businessman RE Grant-Govan and his employee Anthony D’Mello.

The rajas, the zamindars and the nawabs as well as the British businessmen were quick to realize that the game of cricket would help them to come close to the ruling Britons and curry favours. This was the genesis from which began the quest of having a national cricket board.

That same month another informal discussion of some keen cricket lovers of India took place at Delhi, where the prominent cricket centres of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were notable absentees. Present at the Delhi convention were Bhupindra Singh Maharaja of Patiala, Bhopal, Gwalior, Alwar and Baroda. Grant-Govan and D’Mello had organized the meeting.

Following year in April 1928, at Bombay Indian cricket received its first genuine cradle in the formal form of a provisional Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). A meeting was arranged by Grant-Govan and D’Mello to help in drafting the constitution. Alec Hosie, a prominent cricketer, attended on behalf of CCC and CAB which had already come into existence in February 1928. This was a provisional Board, where the following associations were present: Bombay, Madras, Central Provinces, Patiala, Calcutta Cricket Club, Rajinder Gymkhana Patiala, Roshanara Club Delhi and the Kathiawar State.

At this provisional meeting a draft of the constitution was prepared and kept aside for further discussion. It was decided that the headquarters would be at Delhi and at least 10 territorial teams of elected representatives would be required to form a Board.

Later in December 1928 again the cricket representatives met again at Bombay. Only six territorial regions –Bengal, Southern Punjab, Sind, Delhi, Northern India and Madras – with elected representatives were available Although the quorum of a minimum of 10 was not achieved, Grant-Govan and his assistant Anthony D’Mello prevailed upon the available elected representatives to become the first president and secretary of the Board themselves. They readily agreed to make Bombay the headquarters instead of Delhi as per the earlier decision.

The native gymkhanas of Bombay, who had done so much for the progress of Indian cricket in the previous 50 years, did not attend the meeting nor did they send a representative. None from CCC attended this important meeting.

The Board came into being without the presence of people who actually did the groundwork for India’s entry into ICC! The Board was formed without the presence of men who had nursed Indian cricket on the maidans of Bombay for 50 years! An irony, indeed, if ever there was one.

 The Board actually came into being by not following its own rules of having a minimum of 10 founder members! Even today BCCI is uncertain of its actual date of birth. It claims 1928 in some sources, 1929 in others!

 Moreover from the very first day, the Board started its innings with a flawed account. Jockeying for positions reached such proportions that the great patron of Indian cricket, Bhupindra Singh, the Maharaja of Patiala, stayed out of the politicking. Compromises and conspiracies held the upper-hand. Businessmen, politicians, zamindars in the guise of rajas and little-known nawabs came into limelight overnight by virtue of holding posts at the newly formed BCCI.

However, BCCI was extremely fortunate to have had the support of the Viceroy of India, Lord Willingdon. The governor of Bombay, Lord Brabourne, was another who was always ready with all kinds of assistance for the promotion of cricket in India. Both were cricket fanatics and helped Indian cricket in the formative years of the 1930s.  

From the very inception of BCCI, it was fettered by petty considerations and inflated egos. Provincial, communal and class bias were apparent at every step. The fact that Calcutta’s British expatriates had taken the initiative to put India on the ICC map did not go down too well with the people of Delhi or with western States of India, who were the backbone of Indian cricket at the time.

Here it is relevant to point out that the Parsee community leaders of Bombay were very actively engaged in Indian cricket at the time as was Bhupindra Singh, the Maharaja of Patiala. But these men did not wish to canvas or cajole for holding posts in the BCCI. Relishing the opportunity, the busy-body D’Mello (fore-runner to other jugglers years later) got himself nominated as the first secretary and saw to it that his employer Grant-Govan become the first president of BCCI. In utter disgust, Lagden and Hosie of CCC kept themselves aloof from the machinations at work.

In 1932 BCCI was adventurous enough to send a team to England to play India’s first-ever Test. In the winter of 1933-34 an official England team (then MCC) was hosted in India. The first three Tests were held at Bombay Gymkhana, Eden Gardens and Chepauk. At the time the domestic inter-state cricket in India had not started. A communal tournament involving Europeans, Parsees, Hindus and Muslims was organized under the nomenclature of Quadrangular Tournament at Bombay and Poona.

 Initially the members of BCCI were from the presidency regions and from princely states. With every advancing year since its inception in 1929, BCCI made gains in terms of numbers. Gradually the other political and institutional entities began to infiltrate into the cricket mainstream. By 1934, BCCI was strong enough in terms of numerical strength and funds to commence its first cricket tournament at the all-India level. That was the beginning of the Ranji Trophy, when the actual trophy was donated by the Maharaja of Patiala, Bhupindra Singh, in memory of the legendary England batsman of Indian birth, Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhji, the Jam Saheb of Nawanagar.

Ironically Cricket Association of Bengal & Assam, which happens to be the first cricket association to be formed in the country in 1928, did not take part in the inaugural year of Ranji Trophy in 1934-35.Central India, Central Provinces & Berar, Northern India, Army, United Provinces, Delhi, Southern Punjab, Madras, Mysore, Hyderabad, Western India, Sind, Bombay, Gujarat and Maharashtra took part in the first season.

Madras and Mysore played the opening match on a rain-affected pitch which was over in one day! Bombay went on win the knock-out championship, a feature they were to continue with dreary routine. Bombay’s domination of Indian cricket began from the very first day.

With the independence of the nation, the abolition of princely states, the reorganization of state boundaries and the advent of newly-named states the membership of BCCI has undergone huge transformations over the years. Holkar and Nawanagar, two prime princely provinces which gave steel to the foundation of BCCI in the early days of 1930s, had to forego their pre-eminent status. Rajputana was similarly affected. As were Kathiawar and Travancore-Cochin. Baroda and Hyderabad, however, survived.

The situation became progressively complex and confusing. Whereas England had inter-county, Australia had inter-state and West Indies inter-island, in India as with Pakistan the first-class environment had no definite distinction. Names like Berar, Central Provinces vanished into thin air. Vidarbha and Saurashtra, although not states, came into reckoning. Institutional teams came into limelight. In time Assam left Bengal while Bihar and Orissa created their own associations. Tripura followed much later in the 1980s. Later Jharkhand and now Chattisgarh are in the broad picture.

To prove its worth and worthy credentials, the present-day BCC administrators should be happy that the Supreme Court has taken the initiative to put the system within a logical framework. BCCI, which has done wonders for cricket in India, should be relieved to lay bare its accounts to the special auditors appointed under SC orders for at least 30 years when ‘big money’ began to flow into Indian cricket from the mid 1980s. Why should one hesitate when there is nothing to hide? Why resort to delaying tactics and create suspicions about one’s credibility?

 States which have utilized the funds from the BCCI coffers for the promotion of the game would be delighted to present their dusty ledgers to the powers-that-be. States which organize nurseries, tournaments and camps at the district, school and college levels would be proud to show off their achievements. States which have developed grounds and stadia would be very comfortable with their new-found status. States which promote women’s cricket would be happy to reveal their figures. States which have honorarium, pension and medical insurance schemes for their senior players would be glad to bask in the limelight.

 Worthy cricket administrators of integrity would walk with their head held high. The nation would salute them for their magnificent selfless service for the cause of cricket. Since one is innocent, why should one worry about the morrow?

Let BCCI’s books of accounts and financial dealings be an open book for the world of sport to follow. Let BCCI’s transparency be a role model for the corruption-filled world of modern sports.

               

   Wriddhiman Saha and Test Cricketers from Bengal

When prominent cricketers and established cricket writers rated Wriddhiman Saha as the best wicket-keeper in the world, a new chapter was added to the history of Bengal cricket. Never before has a Test cricketer from Bengal been regarded as the best in the world.

Pankaj Roy was a prolific performer for India in the 1950s. As an opener he added 2442 notches to the nation’s run kitty for a healthy average of 33 with five centuries. Roy also held the world first-wicket record of 413 runs with Vinoo Mankad for decades. He did great service for India and received due recognition.

So did Sourav Ganguly more than three decades later. Ganguly performed brilliantly as a batsman. More so as an exceptional leader of Team India. His polished stroke-play fetched 7212 runs in 113 Tests at a distinguished average of 42 with 16 Test centuries. As an opener in over-limit cricket he was consistency personified.

Roy led India in a Test match at Lord’s in 1959 whereas Ganguly was truly outstanding as a leader of men. His phenomenal success as captain both at home and abroad made a huge impression among the connoisseurs of cricket.

But neither Roy nor Ganguly was ever ranked among the best players in their respective eras. That honour was destined for Wriddhiman Saha, the wicket-keeper-batsman who was in the India skipper Dhoni’s shadow for quite a while.

With Dhoni’s retirement from the Test arena, Saha earned the opportunity to show-case his talents. Donning the gloves on regular outings, Saha’s actual worth was laid bare to the world at large. The quiet, composed gentleman went about his task in his own inimitable way. He was the ultimate professional in the most appropriate meaning of the word. His peers and critics were delighted to see the excellence that he achieved without any fuss or mannerisms. He made wicket-keeping look like a walk in the park. His effortless glove-work reminded genuine followers of the game of Alan Knott and Bob Taylor; and old timers of Don Tallon.

 Neat and relaxed; effective and effortless Saha took us back to the golden age when wicket-keeping was a specialist’s job. In the last two decades too many gloved men have masqueraded as wicket-keepers at cricket with disastrous results. In the multi-day Test matches, pretenders have been exposed totally.

In an era when a wicket-keeper’s ability is considered secondary to his batting skills, Wriddhiman is a glorious exception. He has made it to the Test XI by virtue of his splendid glove-work. Although he is an excellent batsman, he still prefers his wicket-keeping to do the talking for him. The specialist wicket-keeper has never compromised on his wicket-keeping skills, in spite of misguided advice to do the contrary. This faith in himself is his real strength.

Recently this year Wriddhiman Saha has been rated to be the best in the business by his peers and critics around the world. Some cynics, of whom there is no dearth in India, would claim that these rankings are entirely subjective and have no firm basis. Most certainly, ratings such as these have no statistical standard of evaluation. These are basically based on one’s personal impression and well-considered opinion.

However, what is to be noted is that the opinion is based not on hearsay or media publicity. The judgement is made by hardened professional cricketers and journalists who do not need to favour or fear anyone. They evaluate on the basis of actually what they see on the cricket field. They rely entirely on their experience and knowledge; impressions and integrity. Outstanding former cricketers, including the no-nonsense Aussie Ricky Ponting, have no reason to go overboard in their praise of a low-profile and composed personality as Saha is.

To be rated as the best in the world is a unique achievement by any yardstick of evaluation. Saha’s elevation to the summit is indeed a feather in the cap of Bengal cricket. In the last 85 years of Test cricket Bengal has presented the nation with no less than 18 players, twelve of whom were locally nurtured and the other six infiltrated from other states for greener pastures. But Bengal’s very own Saha happens to be the only one –a product of Siliguri, nestling in the foothills of Darjeeling – to have received the unofficial title of numer uno of world cricket.

The first cricketer to have played Test cricket from Bengal was not Sarobindu Nath ‘Shute’ Banerjee, as CAB’s ‘roll of honour’ would make one believe. The former Bengal cricketer Shute Banerjee was representing Bihar when he made his official Test debut at the age of 37 against West Indies at Brabourne in 1948-49. Despite capturing 5 wickets he was never selected to play for India again!

Earlier in 1947-48, Prabir ‘Khokon’ Sen went with Lala Amarnath’s  India team to Australia. He went as the reserve keeper with Jamshed Khudadad Irani playing in the first two Tests. In the 3^rd Test at Melbourne, Sen made his debut becoming the first from Bengal to play in official Test cricket. Sen went on to play 14 Tests and was instrumental in India’s first-ever Test victory in 1951-52 against England (then MCC) at Chennai (then Madras). He stumped 5 batters, all off the mercurial all-rounder Vinoo Mankad.

After Sen, the next player to play Test from Bengal was Sudhangshu ‘Montu’ Banerjee, a superlative exponent of swing bowling. His first appearance for India was at Eden Gardens against John Goddard’s West Indies in 1948-49. Banerjee castled Denis Atkinson in his first over and went on to capture 5 wickets in the match. But, believe it or not, he was never selected to represent his country again. His debut and his swansong coincided.

In the following Test at Madras, Nirode ‘Putu’ Chowdhury, the medium pacer with a deceptive bounce, became the third from Bengal in the Test arena. Chowdury’s Shoaib-Akhtar like bent-arm action horrified the purists and his career did not prolong beyond two Tests.

Prominent performers from other regions like Vinoo Mankad, Dattu Phadkar and CS Nayudu played in Tests for India while giving service to Bengal in Ranji Trophy. Mankad in 1948-49 played in five Tests, while Nayudu one in 1951-52 and Phadkar in eight between 1954 and 1956.

Between 1951 and 1961 Pankaj Roy dominated the scenario both for Bengal and India. In his 43 Tests the gutsy opener faced the lightning fury and wrath of Fred Trueman, Alec Bedser, Brian Statham, Allan Davidson, Fazal Mahmood, Wesley Hall, Roy Gilchrist among others with his head held high. He was the epitome of courage and concentration. He did Bengal and India proud with his exceptional application for the cause of the team.

Unfortunately when Roy was still in his prime he was omitted from the national team. The West Indies pace bowlers –Roy Gilchrist, Chester Watson, Charlie Stayers and Lester King – who had come to play in India’s domestic tournaments in the early 1960s were unanimous in saying that Pankaj Roy was still the best Indian batsman against genuine pace.

After Roy, it was the turn of Subroto Guha and Ambar Roy to hold the banner of Bengal in international cricket. Both were outstanding performers in the domestic level, but did not do justice to their talents at the international stage. Both figured in 4 Tests each in the late 1960s.

 Guha had just 3 wickets at a bowling average of 103 and never looked the part. Neither was Ambar Roy, Pankaj’s nephew. Ambar scored a mere 92 runs at 13 and never appeared to be comfortable. But in his debut match at Nagpur against New Zealand he played a whirlwind innings or 48 with 11 boundaries.

Then followed a decade when the Bengal cricketers did extremely well but went unrepresented at the official Test level. In 1979 at the age of 32, Dilip Doshi came into limelight with the India captain Sunil Gavaskar specifically opting for his inclusion. Doshi did not disappoint. His maturity and pragmatism helped him to stay on course for 33 Tests till 1983. His 113 wickets, mainly on the docile pitches of the 1980s, reveal the man’s exceptional spinning ability and determination against odds.

In the early 1980s Pankaj Roy’s son Pronob represented India in 2 Tests scoring 71 runs. Around the same time, another import from out-station was Delhi’s Arunlal. The determined opener finished his career of 16 Tests with an average of 26. Former Test batsman Ashok Malhotra from Haryana (7 Tests at 25) also arrived in Bengal in the 1980s. But he never played in Tests while representing Bengal, although CAB credits him of having done so.

The summer of 1996 heralded a new dawn in Bengal cricket. Sourav Ganguly went to England with Azharuddin’s team. Circumstances conspired to put the 24 year old at number 3 for India in the Lord’s Test. Ganguly took up the challenge in a magnificent manner scoring centuries on his debut and followed it up with another at Trent Bridge. Without any semblance of doubt he happens to be the most successful of all the Bengal cricketers at the international level. Reams have been written on him to require any further elaboration.

While Ganguly was doing wonders, Devang Gandhi (4 Tests at 34) and wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta (8 Tests at 29; 13 victims) enjoyed short careers at the international level. Another import was Saba Karim. During the course of his debut against Bangladesh he had problems with his vision and did not get the opportunity to last the whole match. In his only innings he managed 13 and took one catch.

Saha made his debut under strange circumstances. He played his first match as a batsman and created an excellent impression with his batting and fielding skills. Since then he has been a regular reserve bench player. A perpetual under-study to his captain. Most pragmatically, he kept his mouth shut and his ears and eyes open. Today with every opportunity he is proving him his worth in no uncertain terms.

In 2013 Saha got Shami Ahmed for company in the India team. Although Shami made his debut in Test from Bengal, his early years were spent in Uttar Pradesh. He happens to be yet another migrant in the Bengal line-up.

Today Bengal can take pride in having two players in the India XI. Both are doing well in their respective jobs. But Wriddhiman’s exceptional glove-work has placed him on a very high pedestal. He has achieved a position no other Bengal player has yet done at the Test level.

Wriddhiman Saha’s character is best exemplified by the fact that he has not forgotten his early coach at Siliguri, Jayanta Bhowmik. Although he is exposed to various well-meaning coaches today, Saha is truthful enough to accept that the person who knows him the best is the portly opener who first showed him the basics and helped him to reach the pinnacle. Kudos to his coach Jayanta for not following the herd instinct of placing batsmanship above the specialist skills of a wicket-keeper.

 Saha’s manner and speech on and off the field have been exemplary. He has proved to all Indians that even an obscure town in North Bengal can produce world champions. He is an ideal role model for our young talents.

Eden's Bell

          

















  India & 500 Tests: a Perspective                                 

In the euphoria of recent successes, Indian cricket seems to have forgotten those who laid the solid edifice of its massive modern structure. India began its tryst with official Test matches way back in 1932 on a cold, windy morning at Lord’s in the Marylebone district of London. The captain of the Indian team, Maharaja of Porbandar 

Natwarsinhji, in a magnanimous gesture handed over the captaincy for the inaugural Test match to the more deserving ‘commoner’ and an outstanding leader of men, C K Nayudu.

The fallacy of the much-heralded issue that the Hindus do not get along with the Muslims was exposed in next to no time as Mohammed Nissar, India’s fastest-ever fast bowler, bombarded the formidable England batting arsenal in his opening spell. The pride of the colonial masters lay in tatters at 19 for 3. Nayudu’s faith in Nissar did not go unrewarded as Nissar responded with 5 prized scalps.

That early morning spell of Nissar and Amar Singh sent a significant signal to the cricketing world that a great cricketing nation was on the horizon. Those magnificent Indian cricketers of the first two decades, 1930s and 1940s, could not form a match-winning combination as only three official Test series, all against England in England, were played before India’s independence.

With the advent of partition of the Indian sub-continent, we lost some of our stalwarts who stayed back in their homes which fell across the border. This was a mighty blow to the emergence of India as a power in the international cricketing firmament. If the land mass was not partitioned in 1947, one can well imagine the strength of the ‘undivided’ team. This political decision set back sports in the sub-continent by several decades.

Men of the calibre of Vijay Merchant, Mushtaq Ali, Lala Amarnath, Vijay Hazare and Vinoo Mankad, among others, were relegated to the footnotes of Indian cricket history. Ironically, here in India our cricketing grandfathers have never received their due recognition and reward. Men who had laid India’s strong cricketing foundation since the days of Mehallasha Pavri, Baloo Palvankar and Dinkar Balwant Deodhar came from all communities, all backgrounds and all provinces. No particular group or region can ever take the credit for the stupendous superstructure of contemporary Indian cricket.

India’s first-ever Test victory came at Chepauk in 1952. Nigel Howard’s England (then MCC) tasted an innings defeat as the world-class all-rounder Vinoo Mankad’s left-arm orthodox spin flummoxed the English professionals. Mankad’s haul of 12 wickets in the historic effort was helped by centuries from Polly Umrigar and Pankaj Roy. Jovial wicket-keeper Prabir Sen, born in Comilla (now in Bangladesh) conspired with Mankad to bring about five ‘stumpings’.

Kanpur in 1959 proved to be the Waterloo of Richie Benaud’s star-studded Australians. Under the leadership of Gulabrai Ramchand, India enacted a historic victory at Green Park as off-spinner Jasu Patel wreaked havoc, with 9 and 5 wickets in the match, after India had conceded the first innings lead.

In 1961-62 India defeated England for the first time in a series. Nariman Contractor’s men had Ted Dexter’s outfit in total disarray at Calcutta and Madras. Motganhalli Laxminarsu Jaisimha, Vijay Manjrekar, Chandu Borde and Salim Durrani were the outstanding performers in the series.

Since 1932, India went on to win 131 Tests out of the 502 played till today. Of these 131 victories, India’s performance at home, as with all other nations, is far superior to its performance abroad. So far India has won just 41 Tests abroad while winning no less than 90 Tests under familiar conditions at home.

Sadly India’s statistics of series victories abroad have not done justice to the potential of our cricketers. Series victories on foreign soil have been far and few. Just eleven series victories abroad in about 84 years of international cricket is a poor index of the worth of India’s cricketing talents. This scenario needs to be rectified soon.

Unfortunately India had to wait till 1967-68 for her first Test and series victory on foreign soil. Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi led from the front winning 3-1 against New Zealand. The Kiwis had little answer to the wiles of Bishan Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna and Bapu Nadkarni, while the batting honours went to Ajit Wadekar, gutsy Rusi Surti and the ever-reliable Chandu Borde.

The wait for 35 years to win a Test abroad is a sad echo on the undoubted abilities of our cricketers. The excellent Indian players excelled individually but failed miserably to combine as a unit. Too many groups, too many diversions, too much of bias had set in. Into that claustrophobic environment, the appearance of Tiger Pataudi, bred in England, brought about a refreshing change. Communalism and provincialism took a back seat. Young, deserving players began to feel comfortable. The cricketing ambience in the country looked bright and relaxed.

The year 1971 will always be earmarked as the turning point of Indian cricket. Indian cricket finally came into full maturity with magnificent victories over Garfield Sobers’ West Indies in the Caribbean and over England in her own backyard. Never before or after has India defeated two major powers of cricket abroad in the same year. At the time there was no system of ranking of Test teams. But India was certainly numero uno because England had just defeated both Australia and West Indies.

The great victory at Port of Spain in Trinidad against West Indies was possible because of the dexterity of an Afghanistan-born Indian cricketer, Salim Aziz Durani. The Kabuliwala was a cricketing genius who cared neither for fame or fortune. In two successive deliveries he had Clive Lloyd and Sobers on bended knees. The much-vaunted West Indians reeled under the gaze of the soft smile of the handsome artist. He did not jump to celebrate. There was no awkward gesture. Not a single curse escaped his lips. It appeared he was in empathy with the vanquished batters. This was cricket at its best: modesty in victory. He exemplified the spirit of cricket: the sport of gentlemen.

In this series we saw the rise and rise of a short-statured, broad shouldered persona named Sunil Gavaskar. Along with Dilip Sardesai, his senior Mumbai mate, he went on and on to rewrite cricketing records galore. With Gavaskar’s personality and performance on and off the field Indian cricket could no longer be taken casually.

Skipper Ajit Wadekar repeated his Caribbean victory by bearding the British lion in its own den at the Oval with Bhagawat Chandrasekhar striking venom with his vicious variety. India was actually on top of the cricketing world.

Despite the usual wins, drawn matches and defeats in the following seasons, another milestone in Indian cricket was the wins at Calcutta and Chennai against Lloyd’s team in 1974-75. Two Tests down, Pataudi’s inspiring leadership, Gundappa Viswanath’s magnificent batsmanship and Chandrasekhar’s magical spin helped India to level the series before going down in the final encounter. Both teams matched each other eyeball to eyeball. No quarters asked for; none expected in return.

In 1976 at Port of Spain India created a milestone in cricketing history. Under Bishan Singh Bedi, India chased a total over 400 runs and won a magnificent victory. Gavaskar, Viswanath and Mohinder Amarnath shone with the willow as Bedi, Srinivas Venkataraghavan and Chandrasekhar took the bowling honours.

Then again in 1981 came another superb victory at Melbourne under Gavaskar. The match was heading for a certain defeat when Kapil Dev, Karsan Ghavri and Dilip Doshi turned the apple-cart on the final day and helped India to draw the series.

In 1986 skipper Kapil Dev led India to a glorious series victory in England with convincing victories at Lord’s and Leeds. Dilip Vengsarkar was outstanding with unbeaten centuries in either Test, while Roger Binny, Chetan Sharma and Maninder Sigh among the wickets. Kapil Dev proved to one and all that his leadership qualities were no less inspiring than anybody else’s.

India next series win over Sri Lanka in 1993-94 did not cut much ice as Sri Lanka was still regarded to be among the minnows as were the ‘away’ wins over Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

But a unique occasion was the magnificent victory over Steve Waugh’s Australians at Eden Gardens in 2000-01. Despite following-on, Rahul Dravid (180) and VVS Laxman (281) took up the challenge and posted a lead to aid Harbhajan Singh to run through the Aussie innings with a hat-trick. Skipper Saurav Ganguly led from the front as the next Test was also won and consequently the series. In the annals of Test cricket, the Eden Gardens win was just the third occasion of a team winning after following on. This was surely among the greatest victories recorded in Indian cricket.

The next series win ‘away from home’ was against Pakistan in 2003-04. Deputy captain Rahul Dravid drew the first blood at Multan as the tour captain Ganguly completed the operation at Rawalpindi giving India her first taste of a series victory on Pakistani soil.

Rahul Dravid, genteel and gracious, never got the credit for doing a yeoman job as India’s captain. He was the captain when India won a series victory against Brian Lara’s West Indies in 2005-06 and then later overwhelmed Michael Vaughan’s England in 2007. He himself was outstanding with the bat as well as in handling his peers. Unfortunately, the gentleman that he is, he has forever remained in the background because of his impeccable conduct and low profile. He is the only Indian captain to have helped the nation to win three Test series abroad. Other Indian skippers have done extremely well at home, no doubt, but Dravid was exemplary in leadership under difficult and non-familiar conditions ‘away from home’.

Virat Kohli and his mates deserve our kudos for India’s recent ‘away’ series victory in the Caribbean as well as the current series at ‘home’ against the weak Kiwis. Now it is up to these talented modern-day stars to rectify India’s poor record of series victories abroad. They have given us a taste of it and every indication that Indian cricket is about to set sail in full steam in the years ahead.

With Anil Kumble as the guiding spirit, hopefully the emphasis on team ahead of self will come to the forefront. The two Ks of Indian cricket – Kumble and Kohli – will surely help India to be the King of world cricket.

 

  ON TEST  SELECTORS

Only a test cricketer is qualified to select another test cricketer.  So goes the candid logic. Extremely convincing, indeed. By the same token of analogy  should an alleged criminal be judged only by a judge with criminal antecedents? By the way, should a cardiac specialist be a former heart patient himself? Who should do the post-mortem on dead bodies?

BCCI has taken another step ahead. The national selector should not be more than 60 years of age. Why 60 and not 55 or 65 has not been specified yet. This pronouncement means that men like Sunil Gavaskar and Bishen Bedi are not qualified to be Indian national selectors at present. Probably some powerful lobbies feel that Sunil having crossed 60 has become senile. More likely, that ‘brash’ Bishan cannot be pressurized.

Now the question that crops up is very simple. If a selector is considered to be too old at 60, what about the administrators themselves?

In the 85 years of India’s participation in test cricket, this season for the first time ever the national selectors are being selected on the basis of applications received in response to an advertisement. Very fair, no doubt. In this system, every eligible candidate was given a fair chance to submit his credentials.

But then again a simple query arises. Are the officials, who are picking the test selectors, former test players themselves? Since the BCCI wants former players to select the current international cricketers, it stands to reason that the test selectors themselves should also be appointed by men who have played for India.

 Earlier for decades the national selectors were appointed by the powers-that-be without any definite guidelines. Every nomination or appointment depended upon the whims and fancies of the respective zones. Invariably enough, most national selectors would be malleable men who could be easily influenced.

To escape from that ridiculous system, the current BCCI administrators thought of a system to rectify that scenario. Very praiseworthy indeed. But then the present system hardly reveals any advancement on the previous one. BCCI should realize that a selector should be a man of integrity, of knowledge, of sincerity. He must have the courage of conviction and be willing to devote time and attention to his job tirelessly. Very important, he must be totally unbiased and think of the national interest first, last and always.

How many tests or international matches the selector has played cannot be the primary concern. His age is of no consequence. The man’s character and personality are of paramount importance for this very responsible job.

Hundreds of ridiculous instances concerning our national selectors over the years can be cited. Here are a few that would give the reader a chance to know the kind of men we have had as our national selectors.

 Raj Singh Dungarpur had never represented India but was almost single-handedly responsible for a 16 year old son of a low-profile Marathi poet to make his test debut in 1989. In a span of about 25 years, SRT went on to erase all possible batting records. Without Rajbhai’s selectorial wisdom, Sachin’s advent at the international level would have been delayed. Former first-class cricketer Raj Singh Dungarpur did more for cricket than any Indian test cricketer or BCCI administrator ever did. Non test cricketer Raj Singh had every conceivable quality a selector should possess.

Manindra Nath Bechu Dutta Ray had no credentials as a player. But he was a first-class umpire with the critical eye of a gem expert. He was the person who pitchforked the young Sardar from Amritsar into the test team in 1967 at Eden Gardens. Since that day the left-arm spinner went on to become one of the finest left-arm spinners in world cricket. Dutta Ray showed little prejudice at the national level, but was highly biased when it came to local club cricket. If any young, deserving player from Bengal aspired to play for India then he had to play for Bechu Babu’s Sporting Union Club in Calcutta.

On the other extreme, we have had former test cricketer-turned national selector Ramesh Saxena who did not even know the names of the players he helped to select. Former test stars Dattu Phadkar and Pankaj Roy, by turns represented east zone in the selection panel in the 1970s. Neither ever bothered to watch east zone at play.

On the 1936 tour of England, Baqa Jilani was chosen for the final XI on the morning of the Oval test because he willingly insulted and abused CK Nayudu publicly on the specific instruction of his captain Vizzy! Shute Banerjee, who was way ahead in performance and potential, was sidelined from the playing XI because he refused to carry out such a vile order.

CK Nayudu on his part as a national selector acted in a very high-handed manner to omit Vinoo Mankad from the 1952 touring team to England. Mankad was at the time the leading all-rounder in the world and had just helped India to win her first-ever test victory with 12 wickets at Chepauk. Mankad had gone to UK to play in the Lancashire Leagues when the Indian test team was to be selected for the forthcoming tour of UK. Chief selector CK Nayudu insisted that Mankad should come back to India to take part in a trial match! Mankad could not come to India as he was engaged with his club and would have lost his contract. Promptly CK Nayudu dropped him from the squad!

After India lost the first test match at Leed’s, the manager of the team Pankaj Gupta cabled Mankad in Lancashire at the time to join the team for the 2^nd test at Lord’s. Gupta did not even bother to ask the selectors for permission. As it transpired, in that test Mankad dominated the proceedings in such a manner that the test match came to be known as ‘Mankad’s Test’. Mankad with 72 and 184 runs as well as 5 wickets was simply superlative. Just goes to show that a non-test player’s vision (Pankaj Gupta’s) was far superior to that of CK Nayudu.

Highly principled captain Polly Umrigar resigned from the test captaincy on serious differences with the selectors just before the start of the Chennai test in 1958-59. For the 1959 tour the selectors opted for DK Gaekwad as captain who was not even a regular India player at the time. India had just Surendranath and Ramakant Desai as genuine pacers for the 4-month tour of England! The series was lost 0-5. The national selection committee included former test cricketers like Lala Amarnath, C Ramaswami and LP Jai with Dutta Ray, a first-class umpire and non-cricketer.

For India’s first-ever official tour of England in 1932 the Indian selectors opted for the Maharaja of Porbandar Natwarsinhji, who supposed to ‘have more Rolls-Royce cars than runs’ as a cricketer. His deputy was the Maharaja of Limbdi Ghyanashyamsinhji, another man of very modest cricketing acumen.

 But Natwarsinhji was magnanimous enough to drop himself and ask the far more deserving ‘commoner’ CK Nayudu to lead the team in the inaugural test at Lord’s. This generous gesture of Natwarsinhji has been lost in the footnotes of India’s cricketing annals. What the prominent former players and national selectors (Kanga, Hosie and Ashan ul Haq) were unable to do, was done in a relaxed manner by the designated captain himself. This is indeed unique in world cricket.

During his tenure between 1969 and 1972, chief selector Vijay Merchant, well beyond the age of 60, showed the gumption to select young talents and the future of Indian cricket blossomed. Players of the calibre of Sunil Gavaskar, Gundappa Viswanath and Eknath Solkar, among others, came into limelight with the ‘old and senile’ Merchant holding forth in the selection committee meetings. It is not a man’s age but his worth that makes the difference.

Ghulam Ahmed (61), Chandu Borde (49) and Bishan Bedi (37) belonged to  different age-brackets and eras when they were entrusted with the selection of the 1983 world cup squad. Such was India’s disinterest in one-dayers at the time that selectors from east and central zones (Pankaj Roy and Chandu Sarwate) did not even bother to attend the selection committee meeting! This was actually a blessing in disguise for Bedi, Borde and Ghulam Ahmed. The three very sincere, unprejudiced minds chose ‘horses for courses’ and the rest is history, as the cliché goes. Just goes to show that when India first won a world championship actually 3 national selectors did the splendid job, although they were 5 in number. The emphasis cannot be on the number of selectors. Nor on one’s date of birth.

Today Indian cricket is at a crossroads. The caravan has travelled for 85 years since 1932 participating in 500 tests around the globe. Unfortunately India’s performance abroad has not done justice to its actual potential. We have won a mere 11 series away from home including one in Bangladesh and another in Zimbabwe. 41 victories have been achieved on foreign soil whereas 87 on the familiar pitches at home. This poor statistic needs to be altered for India to earn respect abroad as a test team.

 Ironically Indian test captains who have done very well abroad have always been deprived of their due recognition. Ajit Laxman Wadekar led India to two magnificent series victories against West Indies in the Caribbean and against England in their own den in 1971. Yet he is always regarded as a ‘lucky’ captain whatever that means! He is more remembered for the disastrous 1974 England tour.

Another under-rated India captain is the mercurial Kapil Dev Nikhanj. After the 1983 world cup triumph, he led India to a most convincing 2-0 test series victory in England in 1986. His inspirational leadership never earned any kudos. Why are we so miserly in praising his leadership skills?

Similar is the case with Rahul Dravid. He happens to be the sole India captain who has led India to three series victories abroad against strong opponents. Deputising for Sourav Ganguly at Multan in 2004, Rahul made the initial foray into Pakistan territory till the captain-designate Ganguly came round to seal the series triumph at Rawalpindi.

After taking over, Rahul’s leadership paid immediate dividends in terms of series victories against strong oppositions on their own backyard. He defeated Brain Lara’s Calypso men in 2005-06 and the following year upset the apple-cart of Michael Vaughan’s England. Yet the name of Rahul Dravid hardly figures when leadership skills are discussed. Is it because of his low profile and his diffident nature?

Today with Anil Kumble as the navigator and Virat Kohli in the driver’s seat, the trend of India’s performance overseas requires urgent rectification. Hopefully the encouraging results of the innumerable ‘home’ tests this season would not make us complacent. Let the duo get the appropriate support from our national selectors and help India to reverse our statistical record away from home. 

Between 1932 and 1952 India would have just 3 selectors to do the job of selecting the national team. Then from 1953 began the trend of having 4 selectors. This pattern continued till 1970. From 1971 the national selection committee comprised 5 men, one each from the respective zones.

Hence the exact number of selectors is not of primary concern. Nor their age or the number of test matches they have played for India. The principal issue is to have men of integrity, sincerity and knowledge. Men who are unprejudiced and would do their duty with the national interest in mind. Without fear or favour.

Norman Pritchard

 Norman Pritchard

Will the real Norman Pritchard please stand up? No way. For years he has been dead and buried. Ignored and forgotten for ages.

Pritchard’s name and fame rests on a tiny piece of statistic. He is credited to have won the silver medal in 200 metres sprint and in 200 metres hurdles more than a century ago in the Olympic Games at Paris in 1900.

Then, what is his relevance today? Plenty. He happens to be the first Indian to win an Olympic medal.

 Most unfortunately Norman Pritchard’s qualification of being from India is being questioned. Initially, the Olympic records acknowledged that Norman Pritchard represented India at the Paris Olympic in 1900. By that reasoning he becomes India’s first medal winner at the Olympics.

But recently Olympic authorities are unwilling to pass on the credit to India as they feel that Pritchard should be considered a British athlete as his parents were from England.

Since Pritchard’s life has never been properly documented there is good reason to feel that the son of English parents should be considered to have represented England. But at the same time let there be no doubt that whatever little information is available about Norman Pritchard points to the fact that he was a Calcutta-based man since birth.

Born in Alipore, then an exclusively British part of Calcutta, Pritchard studied at St.Xavier’s Collegiate School in Calcutta. Sports researcher Gulu Ezekiel has discovered that he stayed at Lansdowne Road (now Sarat Bose Road) and worked for Bird & Co, both at Calcutta.

There is no doubt that while at the Paris Olympic, Norman Pritchard was very much a Calcutta lad. Pritchard excelled both at football and rugby. A popular man, he was also the secretary of Calcutta Football Club (CFC, now CC&FC). He also became the secretary of Indian Football Association (IFA). Hence to regard a man, who was born at Calcutta and spent all his active years in India, an England representative at the Olympic Games is grossly unfair.

With such strong recommendations to back his candidature as an Indian representative, it is indeed rather surprising that he is recently being dragged away from India under extremely unpalatable circumstances. The trail of Norman Pritchard was lost during the 1^st world war. It became impossible to trace the latter part of the life of the outstanding athlete and prominent sports administrator.

About ten years ago while researching at the Goethall’s Library of St Xavier’s College, Calcutta, I came across a newspaper cutting mentioning that Norman Pritchard had gone across to United States and settled down. This piece of information helped in getting to know the actual fate of the great athlete from Calcutta. In the US, the athlete Norman Pritchard became a movie actor! He was an extremely popular star and acted in numerous films under the name of Norman Trevor. Unfortunately he led a reckless life and died in penury. He has been forgotten ever since.

The late lamented Reverend Cecil Leeming, a priest of English parentage at Calcutta St.Xavier’s, who was good enough an athlete himself to be called for the 1936 Berlin Olympic trials, always maintained that although Pritchard had British parents, he was an inspiration to a generation of Calcutta athletes and would never have considered himself to be anything but a ‘pucca’ Bengali.

In 1900 the Olympics at Paris coincided with the international exhibition at Paris at the time and had stretched over many a month. Those days at the Olympics the question of nationality did not arise because there were no official Olympic committees of individual countries and that the participants participated on their own.

Pritchard went to the Paris Olympic in 1900 on his own. He was sent neither by India nor by Britain. Hence Pritchard’s two silver medals remain his very own. Since he was born and   bred   in Calcutta, there is no earthly reason to think that he went to Paris as an England representative.

If Pritchard is now considered to be an England athlete, then what would be the status of cricketer Ranjitsinghji? Ranji was not born in England nor did he have English parentage. Yet, based in England, he represented England. India accepted that he was an England cricketer by residential qualification.

If Ranji is considered an England cricketer by residential qualification, then Pritchard most certainly would qualify to be an athlete representing India for the very same reason. Let sanity be restored. Norman Pritchard, the Calcutta lad, is India’s first medallist at the Olympic Games.

In this year of Olympic Games, let all genuine sports lovers not forget the name of the man who first brought laurels to India at the Olympic Games.

Sir  Learie  Constantine

At Eden the other day when Carlos Brathwaite was plundering the England attack with those towering sixes, one could see the ghost of Learie Constantine hovering around him.The power and precision-timing of Brathwaite’s bat merely exemplified the spirit of the man who was among the first to entertain the cricket world with incredible and uninhibited stroke-play.

At the turn of the 19^th century, WG Grace had laid the foundation of classical cricket technique. Ranji had revealed the artistry of the Orient with his wrist-work. Trumper had shown the fearlessness of youth. Jack Hobbs his technical perfection under all conditions, even on the ‘stickiest’ of pitches. But with the arrival of Constantine from the Caribbean a novel dimension was added to the repertoire of cricket: entertaining cricket without a bother for the morrow.

The West Indies squad for the world T20 championship seemed to reflect the varied charms of the master entertainer, Learie Constantine. Gayle’s big-hitting with gay abandon, Russel’s boundless energy, Bravo’s variety in bowling, Samuel’s cool planning, skipper Sammy’s perpetual smile were all reminiscent of the man. Constantine represented not a region, but a race. He represented not an era but an aeon that went beyond a century. Constantine’s charisma has rubbed off on his cricketing grand-children and great-grand-children.

His ebony complexion and curly hair reflected the soul of his land. Life was short and was to be enjoyed. Live life to the full: sports and spirits; dance and drums. Enjoyment and entertainment are to complement each other. The spontaneous effort was all that mattered. The outcome, even if successful, was totally secondary to the creative urge. The result was less important than the means. Constantine took his front-foot wide outside the off-stump and swatted the ball over the mid-wicket fence! Sacrilegious in the 1920s. The coach shouted, “Look where your feet are.” A broad grin emerged, “Sir, look at the ball, forget the feet.”

He was indeed a revolutionary in the ethos of the time. The contemporary Englishmen depended on well-tested conventional techniques and strategies. The South Africans were in the Brit mould. The Aussies were a little different. They relied on orthodox ideas but were distinctly more aggressive. But with the arrival of the coloured West Indian, the whole perspective of cricket underwent a radical change. The transformation was the signature tune of Learie Constantine.

When not swatting the ball, he would hurl thunderbolts at the batters and laugh at the latter’s discomfiture. If the batter was a dear friend, then he would get more bouncers and guffaws from his friend ‘Conny’. Once, Wally Hammond had a taste of the chilling fury of his close pal. A well-directed, menacing bouncer split open Hammond’s chin, the mark of which was to last a lifetime.

Constantine had the uncanny habit of sweeping the ball behind the wicket-keeper. If it took his fancy he would bowl spin off a long run-up or bowl pace from a few strides. For providing unalloyed excitement, Learie Constantine had very few parallels. Sir Don rated him to be the most enterprising of cricketers.

Learie Constantine is dead and buried. Long gone into the sands of time. But the spirit of the radical lives on. Every Caribbean cricketer is born with a big enough drop of Constantine’s blood. The crimson with an electric hue.

Physical power he possessed in abundance. The lithe elastic body carried a bundle of energy. Seemed to be in a state of perpetual motion. Even after the end of the run-up, Constantine would scamper to field the ball wherever it was. With every movement, he appeared to be accumulating energy. Once Constantine actually caught Andy Sandham off his own bowling when the defensive prod had popped the ball just about three yards down the pitch!

 Muscular yet supremely supple, he released the ball at fearsome pace yet never lost his cool. Highly respected not only for his brilliant mind, but more so for his magnanimous nature. No opponent has ever been so revered, except perhaps his own protégés like Frank Worrell and Gary Sobers.

Although the Trinidadian was ever ready to laugh at his own follies and failures, he was till the last day a rebel in approach. This was the difference between him and the other great pioneers of the game. Constantine would never seek self-glory or self-publicity. Would never disrespect others. Would be the first to stick his neck out, especially on race-relations and other social issues. Learie Constantine completed his bar-at law and later became the high commissioner of Trinidad in Britain. An exemplary role model from all angles. Unfortunately today in the world of cheap publicity, his happens to be a long-forgotten name.

Cricket-wise he came under the guidance of English coaches as a youngster in Trinidad. But he went far beyond conventional thinking and classical techniques. He adapted the game to his genes. A very high back-lift and a complete follow-through of the bat between the shoulder blades. Jumped out, even to pace bowlers, to lift the ball high, wide and handsome.

Between the wickets no leopard could out-run the born athlete. He was without a trace of doubt the best fielder of his generation and beyond. From 75 yards his unerring throw would be on top of the bails. Incredible catches he took through sheer athleticism.

The typical West Indies mould developed with the arrival of Constantine. He was a child of nature. Gave full vent to his feelings. No inhibitions, no anxiety, no theory ever bothered him. Today’s West Indies cricketers follow the pattern set by him in 1920s. It is in their genes. The spirit of adventure is what sets the West Indies cricketers apart from all others. They are spontaneous, highly spirited, fun loving, born entertainers.

Constantine is still rated to be the best-ever performer in the Lancashire Leagues, the precursor to the over-limit format. Not only because he was very successful but because his presence would guarantee entertainment for the spectators. His sole intent was for the benefit of the audience.

Following his tenets, West Indians in the following generations have proved themselves to be among the most prominent entertainers. Time and again they dominated the world cricket scenario, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s, but their real appeal lay in their entertainment value in all formats of the game.

West Indies cricket has suffered for over the last two decades for various reasons. Now with the new-found successes – men’s team, women’s team and u19 team – it may appear that a turnaround is just round the corner. Whether West Indies as a team is successful or not, there is no semblance of doubt that individually the Caribbean cricketers are still the most entertaining and exciting of all.

The West Indies team may not be able to replicate its earlier successes but the entertainment value of the Caribbean cricketer will never falter. The spirit of Constantine is still in full flow in their veins. The charisma of Sir Learie Constantine (knighted in 1962) has gone beyond boundaries, has traversed a century. He stands supreme among the great entertainers of the cricketing pantheon. Sir Learie is the fount from which spring the enterprise, the excitement and the entertainment value of the Caribbean cricketers.


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