Gavaskar’s Finest Hour

AS SUNIL GAVASKAR turns 75, we look back at his finest hour—the 1971 victory against the West Indies, when he announced himself to the world with 774 runs in the series, establishing himself as India’s foremost batter for the next decade, and more.

“If anyone told me at the start of the series that I would score 774 runs in the Test matches after missing the first Test and score more than 1,000 runs on the tour, I would have laughed it off. Of course, it exceeded my own expectations, and that too by a country mile,” Gavaskar said. “In fact, you know what? I wouldn’t mind if I had scored 350–400 runs less in the Test matches and passed on the rest of the 400 runs to ML Jaisimha and Salim uncle. Jaisimha, as you know, was my childhood hero and it wasn’t great to see him struggle and not score. Salim uncle was a special man and I would have been happier if I could pass on the 400 runs between them, which would have ensured that the two of them made the cut for the England tour later on in the year.”

Gavaskar started the tour with a well-made 82 in the warm-up game in St Kitts, an early indication of what he was capable of. With skipper Ajit Wadekar notching up a century, India were always in control of this game and were left with 57 to get off 12 overs to register their first win of the tour on the last day. That’s when, as KN Prabhu reported, the crowd witnessed the free-flowing side of the 21-year-old sensation. “Gavaskar proved that he could open the innings in the orthodox fashion as we last saw him and also bat like a gay cavalier,” wrote Prabhu. “The six he hit off [Elquemedo] Willett put the issue beyond doubt for India. But a cover drive to a ball wide outside his off-stump was visually the most thrilling stroke of the day. He should go forth to his first Test match in Trinidad inspired by the same spirit that permeated his innings today.”

In a subsequent dispatch titled, ‘India Has Reason to Feel Optimistic’, Prabhu argued that the pitch at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad, was likely to suit the Indian spinners more than the West Indian quicks. He rounded off the piece by saying Gavaskar, who was making his Test debut, had already proved his credentials and was going into the match with an average of over 100 in the series, something the West Indians would have been conscious of.

When asked what his mental make-up was like ahead of his Test debut, an issue he had touched upon to a degree in Sunny Days, Gavaskar was unnaturally modest: “I am no longer a spring chicken, you know. It has been 53 [years],” he said. “I hardly think back to my debut anymore.” Upon seeing me unswerving, he started to open up. “When we left for the West Indies, the chairman of the selectors, Vijay Merchant, had addressed the team at the Cricket Club of India,” he recalled. “Much to my surprise, he picked me as the player he hoped would score a lot of runs in the Caribbean. I had not even made my debut and here the legendary Vijay Merchant had reposed faith in me. It was both exciting and daunting at the same time. To be honest with you, there was a degree of apprehension in my mind because I had not played the Duleep Trophy before I played Test cricket. I had played school, college, and university cricket and, thereafter, I was fast-tracked to play Ranji Trophy for Bombay. What I had not played was the Duleep Trophy and, in those days, the best players always played in the Duleep Trophy. In the only opportunity that I had of playing the Duleep Trophy, West Zone lost in the very first game in what was a knockout format and it meant I had no further opportunity to test myself at the highest level back home. This had left me with a degree of apprehension as we travelled to the West Indies and, ahead of the Test match, I did think back to the question of whether I was ready to open for India at this level.”

Trinidad not only provided answers to Gavaskar himself but also to the rest of the world. His 65 and 67 not out in the first and second innings, respectively, were indication that India had finally found their successor to Merchant and, to echo Prabhu, someone who had the ability to be an all-time great of the game.

With Abid Ali for company, Gavaskar guided India to the target on day 4 of the Test and sealed the win with minutes of the day remaining. “I vividly remember the last partnership with Abid and the winning stroke. Firstly, Abid was one of the fittest members of the team and also a great fielder. We speak of Solkar all the time but I can tell you that Abid at short fine leg was never far behind. And as a runner, he was brilliant. He would just drop the ball and run. Abid would actually steal runs from right under your nose, if you know what I mean. Most importantly, he was equally good both when he was on strike and also when he was running for his partner. Because of Abid we were able to run a number of singles, which may not have been possible with some of the others. With very few runs to defend, it forced the West Indians to concede overthrows because we would just dab and run and put the fielders under pressure,” chuckled Gavaskar.

“Finally, when the leg spinner Arthur Barrett dropped one short, I dispatched it to the mid-wicket fence to finish the game. Scoring the winning runs for India against the West Indies in Trinidad on debut— no cricketer could have asked for more! As we were walking back to the pavilion, Sir Gary came across and congratulated me. It was Sir Gary, the greatest of them all. I had grown up seeing and reading about Sir Gary and Rohan Kanhai. And here I was playing against them and winning a Test match for my country against them for the very first time.” There was elation in Gavaskar’s voice, even after 53 years of the victory.

Syed Abid Ali had an interesting aside to add to the story. “At Port of Spain, I allowed Sunil [Gavaskar] to hit the winning runs,” he disclosed. “I had ample opportunities to finish the match at Port of Spain myself but restrained myself from doing so. [Garfield] Sobers had bowled a full toss and I played it for a single which allowed Sunil to get back on strike to Arthur Barrett. He was a little surprised and asked me, ‘Why did you do that?’ I said, ‘Sunil, you have batted so well in this Test that you deserve it.’”

That the victory was special was evident when manager Keki Tarapore, normally calm and composed, couldn’t hold himself back at the end of the match and run on to the ground embracing and lifting Sunil Gavaskar in full view of the packed stadium, much to the embarrassment of the debutant.

1971cricketCricket Club of IndiaIndia-West Indies seriesSunil GavaskarTest cricketVijay Merchant