Photo of Virginia Woolf: courtesy National Portrait Gallery, Wikipedia

An English lady gave birth to modern cricket

The game of cricket began in England centuries back. Date of origin cannot be pinpointed. Even as late as mid 19^th century cricket was a rural pastime for men with under-arm lob-bowling and hockey-stick shaped bats! Betting was rampant among the spectators.

Actually cricket acquired its most important weapon – over-arm bowling – because of a lady, Christina Welles. Christina would bowl to her brother John at their backyard. Because of the fashionable billowing skirts of those days, she had difficulty in bowling under-arm and so for her own convenience she raised her arm and bowled either over-arm or side-arm. John found it difficult to play the high bouncing deliveries with the hockey-stick shaped bats.

This simple act laid the foundation of the most profound, far-reaching consequences of the game. All lovers of cricket owe a deep sense of reverence to the creative genius of a young lady.

Very sensibly John Willes followed his sister’s example and tried over-arm bowling with his men friends. He was very successful as a bowler with his over-arm action. Everyone was up in arms at this revolutionary idea. However, ultimately sanity prevailed as the men realized that over-arm bowling made the game far more interesting than mere under-arm lobs.

Thus began the prime and most radical evolution of cricket: over-arm bowling.  Naturally of course, a lady conceived and gave birth to the game as we know of it today!

***

Since cricket is full of literary efforts of men, how can women authors be in the wilderness?  It is true that while many prominent men have mentioned the game in their writings, hardly any prominent lady author in the past has put her cricketing thoughts to paper and pen.

But former journalist Soma Mukherjee – who shares wife Seema’s and my loyalties to Jadavpur University Arts College – has unearthed eminent lady author Virginia Woolf as a glorious exception of a woman mentioning the game, “…Vanessa (sister) and I were what we call tomboys; that is, we played cricket, scrambled over rocks, climbed trees, were said not to care for clothes and so on…" 

Co-researcher Seema adds that Kolkata-based writer Showli Chakraborty while interviewing the historian William Dalrymple – who himself takes pride in his Bengali connection – found that Virginia Woolf had Bengali maternal ancestry, resided in the French colony of Chandanagar in Bengal and that William Dalrymple himself is her great grandnephew.

Ladies and cricket have been the best of companions over centuries. Christina and Virginia have left their imprints on the game on and off the field!

 

 

 

 

Honest lessons from an orphan child-cricketer

 Would you remember the name of the famous West Indies spinner of the 1950s named Ramadhin?  At Delph CC in Yorkshire he was the pro at 48 (!) when I played as an amateur in 1977.

Born an orphan in Trinidad in 1929, Christian missionaries gave refuge and schooling. Would do odd jobs in sugar plantations where his forefathers had gone from Eastern India years ago. While playing rubber-ball cricket, one Barbadian cricketer Clarence Skinner saw his bowling potential and informed the Trinidad cricket authorities. Outstanding performance in 2 trials confirmed his sea voyage to represent West Indies.

His sing-song voice told me, “I discovered England in 1950!”

“Discovered England?” I stammered.

“Yes, for myself. But floating on the sea for 10 days was scary!”

In England the 20-year old’s off-spin and leg-spin – both finger-spun with the same grip – bamboozled the batters, helping West Indies to defeat England 3-1, first ever Test and series victory on English soil. Along with another youngster the left-arm orthodox Alf Valentine, they were the toast of the Caribbean supporters, who launched into their delightfully typical guitar and drum ritual:  

              Those two little pals of mine,    Ramadhin and Valentine.

This calypso is the fantastic forerunner of many more that followed.

After a successful Test cricket career Ramadhin dropped anchor at a Lancashire village in UK and owned a pub. Extremely popular he was with all and sundry because of his helpful nature. Ramadhin was the epitome of modesty and humour.

When I first met him at Delph CC, I was amazed at the great cricketer’s simplicity. I asked him a few questions about life in Trinidad and in UK. His squeaky, brown voice whispered, “Are you from Scotland Yard?”

“No, no.” I was embarrassed.

Raised his eye-brows, “Then how do you know so much about me, Raj?”

“Because of your world-wide fame. Every cricket follower knows your cricketing credentials.”

A mischievous smile surfaced, “Well, when I first arrived in England at the seaport a newspaper reporter asked me my name. I told him Ramadhin. He said, ‘That cannot be. You must have a first name or a surname to go with Ramadhin.’

Told him, ‘One man; one name. What’s wrong with that?’

Clyde Walcott’s huge frame appeared and in his hoarse voice said, ‘We call him Sonny. That’s his first name.’

The reporter was still insistent, ‘Surely that’s his pet name. First name, please.’

Everton (Weekes) was around. Straight face, in all earnestness, he said, ‘His full name is Kantaram Tukaram Ramadhin!’ As simple as that, in a flash I became KT Ramadhin! Everton’s wit went down pretty well. Found no reason to object!”

Actually so. Doyen of cricket statisticians Roy Webber, historian Maurice Golesworthy and the former Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley in their books have kept the initials K and T prominent! Wisden however stuck to ‘Sonny’.

Reminiscing Ram added, “Oh! I tell you we were a fun-loving team. Always cracking jokes, even on the field!”

 “You know, Raju, I love the Brits. They are just crazy about cricket scores and royalty gossip! They don’t worry about anything else!”

Ram never bothered about field-placing, “I aim at the stumps and concentrate on my accuracy. Why worry about the supposed weakness of others.” In his debut series so innocent was he that once after getting Len Hutton (then world’s premier batter) out, he innocently asked who the batter was!

Always wore shirts with billowing full-sleeves buttoned at the wrists, perhaps to hide his grip. At just 5 feet 3, the frail frame looked like the Biblical David in confrontation with Goliaths. The unflappable man never bothered about reputations, situations, etc. He was always in a tension-free world of his own.

Always wore a cap when bowling! Never saw anyone else do so. When asked, promptly he reasoned, “Batters wear cap to keep the sun out, right? Same with me. Whenever I am playing in the sun, I wear my cap whether batting, fielding or bowling. If you need the shade for batting, you need the shade for bowling as well, eh?” Try to contradict that!

Simple meaningful answers. Had a mind totally free of cobwebs, my friend ‘Ram’. Went through life smiling, when not yawning!!

Ramadhin   continuation

While on Ramadhin, wife and co-researcher Seema dived deep into Wikipedia to note that KT Sonny Ramadhin’s son-in-law Willie Hogg was a first-class cricketer too. He bowled right-hand fast for Lancashire from 1976 to 1980. Later for Warwickshire from 1981 to 1983.

Still later between 2001 and 2014 Ramadhin’s grandson – Kylie Hogg – too played for Lancashire as a right-arm fast bowler. After finishing his Test career Ramadhin himself played a few seasons for his adopted county, Lancashire. That means all 3 represented Lancashire in the English County Cricket Championships.

Amazing indeed to find 3 generations of a single family playing first-class cricket. And that too for the same team! Exceptional sports genes in the family, without doubt.

Photo courtesy Getty Images. 

 

DILAWAR HUSSAIN, the unheralded scholar, activist, Test cricketer.

Lahore-born Dr Dilawar Hussain  (1907-1967) was academically the most highly qualified of all Indian Test cricketers.  His Test batting average of 42.33 is more than most Indian Test batsmen. This intellectual, social activist was neglected even in his prime by his peers, by the administrators as well as by the media!

The heavily-built, rugged wicket-keeper made his Test debut at Eden Gardens on a chilly winter morn in January 1934 against Douglas Jardine’s England. In both the innings the debutant was the highest scorer for India with 59 and 57.

In the first innings Dilawar Hussain received a nasty hit on the head from a bumper when he was on 11. He had to retire. Returning from the hospital, his dogged 59 was the highest score of the innings.

My father witnessed the match at Eden Gardens, “Salute to the guts and the tenacity of the man. Blood dripping, forehead in bandage, team in tatters, stern captain Jardine showing no mercy. But our man stood up like a real freedom fighter. He took the deliveries on his body. Did not flinch even once. Showed exemplary bravery and patience to hold fort. A genuine patriot. That’s the real spirit of sports.” Those days the Indians took pride in speaking in terms of struggles against the colonial masters.

Inspired by dad’s words, as I delved into Dilawar Hussain’s life, I could only marvel at the magnificent all-round personality and his immense contribution to society.

Following-on, the brave man – head still swathed in bandage – came out to bat with India reeling at 129 for 5. Batting alongside the descending order, Dilawar contributed 57, again the highest scorer. Instead of creating a lasting impression, this achievement was never highlighted.

Next Test at Chepauk, again Dilawar played two tenacious innings of 13 and 36 but could not save India from a massive defeat.

In 1936 he was an obvious choice for the England tour. But the whimsical selection policy left the team rudderless. Two debutant keepers –Hindlekar and Meherhomji – shared the duties in the first 2 Tests. By the 3^rd Test both were injured. Suddenly someone remembered that Dilawar was also in England. Yes, he was in England for his doctoral studies at Cambridge University.

In the final Test at Oval, yet again he was his determined self with scores of 35 and 54. In England’s imposing total of 471, he gave not a single bye. For all his courage and contribution, the name of Dilawar Hussain was never heard of again as a Test cricketer! Omitted just after 3 Tests without a single failure!

At 6 feet 2 inches, his bulk and his bald pate gave him an imposing presence! Dilawar came from an academically-oriented, financially sound family. Excellent student, to him cricket was only a pleasant diversion. Became involved with socio-political activities while at college. Later with the nationalist movement gaining ground in the country, his concentration towards cricket receded.

Dilawar was a victim of jealousy of his peers. Intellectually superior, he was too scholarly for them. He aligned neither with the provincial groups nor with the communal-minded characters. He was nobody’s crony.

After the partition, Dilawar Hussain was a founder-member of the Pakistan cricket administration. Also served as Pakistan’s national selector.  Later became the principal of Muslim Anglo Oriental College in Lahore. A degree in Law and a ‘double MA’ were only after-thoughts!

The successful cricketer was involved with cricket, yet not quite into it. The brilliant activist was involved with serious politics, but stayed away from its corruptible influences. The esteemed academician was a friend of his students, not a pedagogue.

An ideal persona of an erudite, non-ambitious gentleman. A role-model whom we have ignored continuously and totally!

.

 

Heroic warrior-sportsman

A heroic Indian soldier created a world-wide sensation at cricket in 1963-64. On his Ranji Trophy debut for Services the right-arm pacer shot down 3 batters in 3 consecutive deliveries. Not satisfied enough, in the following match the army man’s deadly marksmanship targeted 7 batters, including two separate hat-tricks in the same innings!

Yes, you read right: 2 hat-tricks in 1 innings! 3 hat-tricks in 2 matches!

Decades ago a devotee-ashramite at Sai Baba’s Puttaparthi opened my eyes. Then the director of Chaitanya Jyothi Museum, Col Samir Bose asked, “Raju, have you heard of JS Rao, the hat-trick wonder?”

Bose-da – former civil engineer with the Indian army – went on to say that JS Rao was as well a heroic figure with gallantry awards in India’s victorious wars of 1965 and 1971. Major General JS Rao was Bose-da’s contemporary in the Indian Army.

Wisden – Cricketers’ Bible – of 1996 highlighted that JS Rao’s dual feats of debut hat-trick and 2 hat-tricks in the same innings of the next match ‘is not merely unequalled; it may never be equalled’.

Rao Joginder Singh (mistakenly recorded as Joginder Singh Rao while at NDA), born in 1938, belonged to the Services team comprising cricketers of the Indian armed forces.  An unfortunate ankle injury in a parachuting accident terminated his cricket career to just one season of 5 first-class matches.

JS Rao deviated to golf and represented India in France and Pakistan. The exceptional cricketer became an international golfer, no less. The heroic multi-dimensional achiever went on to become a Major General of the Indian army and sacrificed his life for our safety. But we, in turn, have totally forgotten him!  

Apart from one or two sincere journalists, the sports media has had no time for him. Nor do the administrators. The former cricketers in the ‘expert box’ have not even heard of him!  He was neither a sponsor nor a publicity agent. Not even an influential politician. So nobody actually needed him!

JS Rao’s amazing achievement no other cricketer in the world has ever been able to replicate. His prize? No rewards. No recognition. Not even a remembrance.

Such is the fate of a unique Indian warrior-cricketer-golfer, who actually lived and died for the nation! The superlative achiever bid adieu to our ungrateful selves at just 56 in 1994.

At a time when megalomaniacs are busy naming sports stadia in their own names, no one thought of naming at least a part of our numerous sports arenas or at least a stadium gate in his honour.

Brave warriors do not die, they merely sleep. Softly they tread in time to refresh our memories…

 

 

P

 Wodehouse and Cricket

 

The creator of ‘Jeeves’ was an ardent cricket fan. This might not be a surprise considering that Wodehouse was an Englishman and was up at Dulwich College, an English public school, at the turn of the 19^th century.

 

But the link between England’s arguably greatest comic writer and England’s national passion runs much closer than that. PGW actually appeared in flannels no less than six times at the Lord’s cricket ground. In fact, his first captain at the cricketing Mecca was none other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes.

 

Pelham Grenville Wodehouse was knighted in 1975, long overdue at the age of 93. He died just 45 days later. Perhaps the comical irony of the situation overpowered him. He adored the game just as he adorned literature. He needed no title. The burden of the award literally took away the simple pleasures of life that he loved and treasured.

 

PGW gave birth to Jeeves, the patron saint of all butlers in English literature. The name ‘Jeeves’ he pilfered from that of a Warwickshire county cricketer, who had lost his life at war in 1916 in France. However Wodehouse, typical of his whimsicality, always maintained that he saw Jeeves playing for Gloucestershire!

 

He played regularly for Dulwich College as a medium pacer. He once observed that while he began with the new ball, from the other end bowled Knox, the future Test cricketer. And then in his self-deprecating style added, “Yes, Knox was 10 at the time.” Actually, Wodehouse was 18 and Knox 15.

 

Later even when he had settled in USA, his attention was never diverted from his juvenile passion. Wodehouse has written on cricket with deep interest, wide knowledge and ardent feelings. Revealed a distinctive style entirely his own: the laid back approach of a sensitive, enquiring, observant mind.

 

No sensationalism clouded his vision; no excitement rattled his composure. He was always his own man. An elegant writer of fluid style. His wit is typically dry British humour, but with a dash of originality that elevates him beyond the realms of the humourous story-tellers.

 

In 1941 he was in an internment camp in Upper Silesia. At the time he was 59, but the love for cricket still raged. Wodehouse surprised his guards and other inmates as he turned his arm to bowl slow leg spin. His batting never really flowered. He said that he was very consistent with zero as his favourite score! He further added, “I would have made a century if the boundaries had been closer.”

 

 

Eden Gardens & Arthur Gilligan

 

Eden Gardens achieved its legendary status because of the credentials of its groundsmen. Certainly not for any player or official as the publicity machinery will have you believe.

Almost 100 years ago was established the iconic status of Eden Gardens. In December 1926 the England (then MCC) captain Arthur Gilligan said aloud that this ground was at par with Lord’s and MCG. The saga began…

But we have gone far ahead of our story. In the winter of 1926-27 for the first time ever a representative MCC cricket team from England arrived in India. The brilliant England all-rounder Arthur Gilligan was the captain and the strong team included quality cricketers of the calibre of Andrew Sandham and Maurice Tate. The former England captain Gilligan had basically come to report back to MCC the actual standard of cricket played in India.

At Mumbai (then Bombay) for the Hindu team CK Nayudu, an erect ebony warrior of steel, welcomed them with an innings that included 13 sixes! The Indian spectators on the periphery of the Bombay Gymkhana ground went into raptures as the whip-lashing of the colonial masters took place.

In MCC’s following encounter against an All-India XI, one Sanskrit professor from Pune – by name Dinkar Balwant Deodhar – batted for four hours to register a patient 148 as India took the lead against the excellent bowling attack. This match at Bombay Gymkhana ground from 16 to 18 December, 1926, is on record as India’s first unofficial Test match.

MCC came to Kolkata (then Calcutta) over the new year of 1927 to play the 2^nd of the unofficial Tests. So impressed was Gilligan with the lush  green turf at Eden Gardens that he personally congratulated the chief curator Faguram, “This ground is among the best in the world, at par with Lord’s and MCG.” The billiard-table top outfield and the pitch with a light green hue completely floored the magnanimous gentleman. The saga of the iconic Eden Gardens began from that day.

Arthur Gilligan was highly impressed to find the sterling qualities that the Indians had at cricket. They could hit hard and often as well as they could defend for hours with impeccable temperament and technique. The cricket facilities and the Indian hospitality had few equals.

 He realized there and then that India was ready for international cricket as a Test-playing nation. Arthur Gilligan stressed on the need for a central body to control cricket in India. His well-considered suggestion led to the formation of the BCCI in 1928.

Arthur Gilligan came from a distinguished family with his education extending to Cambridge University. Deeply respected for his liberal views and credentials, the brilliant Test captain was extremely popular for his sportsmanship and lack of bias.

It was Gilligan’s unbiased observation that led to the iconic status of our favourite Eden Gardens and the formation of BCCI.

 

 

Olympic and Hollywood Hero

India’s first Olympic medal was won by a Calcuttan, Norman Pritchard. India’s first Hollywood hero was also a Calcuttan, Norman Trevor. However, both the Normans happened to be the same individual.

Born in Calcutta of British parentage in 1875, Norman Pritchard studied at St Xavier’s School and College. Stayed at Lansdowne Road till 1915 and was in the thriving jute industry in Bengal around the late 19th century. An Indian national by birthright and citizenship.

At the Paris Olympiad of 1900 Pritchard won two silver medals, 200 metres flat race and 200 metres hurdles. Those days sportsmen went to Olympics on their own as there were no national organizations to select or fund them.

While at Calcutta Xavier’s, he was an outstanding football player as well, achieving the first hat-trick in India. He was also the IFA secretary for a period.

One of my own gurus, the late lamented Cecil Leeming a priest of English parentage at Calcutta St.Xavier’s, always maintained that he would never have considered himself to be anything but a ‘pucca’ Bengali, “My dad used to say that Pritchard loved his luchees, kawsha-mangsho and misti-doi. A typical Bong he was!”

Later Pritchard went off to Britain to act in Shakespearean dramas on the London stage, where he changed his name to Norman Trevor. Here too he was an immediate success.

Next step was to be at Hollywood, where again his multi-faceted talents brought him the rare honour of being cast as a hero in numerous silent movies of those bygone days. Thus he became the first Indian to be a Hollywood film hero.

Thus he achieved the unique fame of being the first Olympian medalist to become a Hollywood movie hero. Unfortunately his over-exuberant life style led him into penury and worse. Expired in 1929.

Unfortunately film historians in India have never given this man his due recognition. No one in the film circles seems to have heard of him! The worlds of sports and films in modern India have no time for their own history and heritage. Pathetic scenario indeed! Old folks are best left buried…

 The name of Norman Pritchard should be written in letters of gold in the annals of Indian sport and movie history.