Road to the cricket World Cup 2019. Reigning champions crash to one-run defeat. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011’

AUSTRALIA v INDIA    

CHIDAMBARAM STADIUM, CHEPAUK, MADRAS,

9 OCTOBER 1987

Ice Man Steve Waugh celebrating the nail-biting one-run win over India.

There was great excitement all around Chepauk as the reigning champions took on Australia on home turf. As many as six players had survived from Kapil Dev’s 1983 winning squad, while the solitary Aussie link to the previous World Cup was skipper Allan Border. In other words, here was a home team brimming with confidence, ready to take on a relatively inexperienced side which was not expected to give a very tough fight.

As the game got under way it gradually dawned upon the partisans that this was a very determined Australian team. David Boon and Geoff Marsh put on a century partnership for the first wicket. Then Marsh combined with the belligerent Dean Jones, and took the score to 174.

Marsh carried on calmly and notched up his third century in One-day Internationals. He took his side to a formidable position even though they lost a few wickets towards the end trying to accelerate the scoring. During the interval, adjudicator Hanif Mohammad converted a four into a six. This was to prove decisive. A total of 270 in 50 overs was a very large one by any standard and had the home supporters worried.

Sunil Gavaskar and Krishnamachari Srikkanth, however, gave a flying start. For once Gavaskar outscored his unorthodox big-hitting partner. The crowd went into raptures as the legendary Gavaskar and local boy Srikkanth treated the attack with disdain. When Gavaskar fell, 69 runs had been put up on the board. His place was taken by Navjot Singh Sidhu whose clean hitting had been a revelation in the run-up to the tournament. Soon he began carrying his new-found reputation forward. Srikkanth and Sidhu butchered the bowling and, suddenly, 271 did not seem an unattainable target.

Srikkanth was leg-before for 70, but that only let Sidhu loose. With the experienced Dilip Vengsarkar playing in mature fashion at the other end, Sidhu attacked with gusto. He hit five towering sixes which created a carnival atmosphere in the stadium. At 207 for two, victory seemed just a few big blows away.

That was when India began to mess it up. The Australians kept cool and bowled intelligently. Their fielding was outstanding. Wickets crashed at regular intervals. In the panic, there were two needless run outs at crucial stages. Soon the score was 265 for nine.

There were six runs left as Steve Waugh began the final over to last man Maninder Singh. Suddenly the tied Test played between the two teams at the same ground a year earlier flashed into everyone’s mind. In that Test too, Maninder had been the batsman in the firing line. He managed four runs off the first four balls. The excitement was unbelievable. Two runs were needed, and there were two balls left with one wicket in hand. But it was Waugh who kept his head and was bang on target.

Maninder was bowled off the fifth ball. Waugh was nonchalant: "It was just a confidence thing. Allan Border thought I could do it. I knew I could do it." India had lost by a solitary run. For the second time running the reigning champions had been beaten in their opening encounter.

Australia        : 270 for 6 wickets (50 overs)

India               : 269 all out (49.5 overs)

(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

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Indra Vikram Singh’s books are available at attractive prices on Amazon:

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166840

Crowning Glory

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

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Don’s Century

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

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A Maharaja’s Turf

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

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Indra Vikram Singh’s forthcoming books:

Indian Spring, on India’s triumph in the cricket World Cup 2011

Wonder Down Under, special souvenir on the cricket World Cup 2015

The Cricket World Cup - Classic Matches…..5 : Excerpt from ‘The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011’ by Indra Vikram Singh

JUST A RUN AGAIN BETWEEN TWO OLD CHAMPIONS

Australia v India  •  Woolloongabba, Brisbane, 
1 March 1992

The winners of the last two World Cups did not begin the present tournament on a happy note. Australia, who started as one of the fancied teams, were beaten by New Zealand and South Africa to the dismay of the home crowds. India lost narrowly to England, and a supposedly easy match against Sri Lanka was washed out.

Both teams were, therefore, eager to register a win at the Gabba. The Australians elected to bat. But they were jolted by Kapil Dev as he removed both openers Geoff Marsh and Mark Taylor with just 31 on the board. David Boon and Dean Jones settled down to a fine partnership. They added 71 for the third wicket. Jones hit a typical 90 off 108 balls, characterised by hard running and flashing shots. He crashed 6 fours and 2 sixes. He explained his approach: "I try to come across as a player who enjoys the game and has a good time. The kids who see that will want to play the game as well. If you are full-on aggressive it gets through to people." Steve Waugh and Tom Moody also made valuable contributions. Then the Indian medium-pacers led by Manoj Prabhakar got into the swing of things. From 230 for five, Australia slumped to 237 for nine at the end of their 50 overs.

It was then that a flawed rule regarding interruption of play by rain began to cast a shadow over the tournament. As the weather gods intervened, three overs were lopped off the Indian innings, but the target score was reduced by only two runs. The reasoning behind this absurd rule was that while deducting the number of overs, the ones to be taken into account were those in which the team batting first had scored the least number of runs. So going through the scoring pattern of the Aussies it was found that in the three overs that they had scored the least, a sum total of two runs had accrued. This rule was to provoke much derisive laughter and anguish later in the tournament. Conventional logic, taking average scoring-rate into consideration, would have reduced India’s target to 224. But now India's target was 236 off 47 overs.

India made a dismal start as Krish Srikkanth was bowled for a duck. But skipper Mohammad Azharuddin was in prime form. On either side of the rain break, he was helped by Ravi Shastri and Sachin Tendulkar in rebuilding the innings. Kapil Dev, promoted up the order, scored a quick-fire 21. Then Sanjay Manjrekar joined his captain, and the two put on 66 for the fifth wicket.

Azharuddin was run out for a brilliant 93 off 103 balls with ten boundaries. Then the Indian innings began to come unstuck. Ajay Jadeja went for one, and Manjrekar too was run out for 47 off 42 balls with 3 fours and a six. India needed 13 off the final over with three wickets in hand. Strangely, the 6 feet 8 inches non-regular bowler Tom Moody sent down the pulsating last over. Kiran More flicked the first two balls to square-leg for fours. Now five runs were required off four deliveries. More got carried away, missed, and his middle stump broke into two. A single was scampered off the fourth ball. But Prabhakar was run out off the fifth.

Four runs were needed off the last ball. Javagal Srinath swung hard and high but straight to Steve Waugh who dropped the catch. But he recovered quickly and threw the ball back. Venkatapathy Raju was going for the run that would have tied the scores. The throw beat him and Australia won a dramatic match by one run. For the second time in the World Cup, Australia pipped India by this razor-thin margin.

Australia        : 237 for 9 wickets (50 overs)

India               : 234 all out (47 overs)

(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

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