Quiet confidence of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla in an interview a day before the Epsom Derby 1934. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘A Maharaja’s Turf’

Thus spoke Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla in an interview on 5^th June 1934, a day before his horse Windsor Lad won the blue riband of the turf, the Epsom Derby of England:

“Every few years a Derby comes along which is dominated by one horse. Two years ago it was Orwell, six years ago it was Fairway, fifteen years ago it was The Panther. Now we have Colombo. The fate which has befallen post-war Derby “hot-pots” is causing many people now to look for something better than Colombo, although Lord Glanely’s grand colt has never been beaten.

Let us think for a moment what is needed to win the Derby. The exact distance of the race is a mile and a half and about 39 yards. The winner covers the distance in anything from 2 min. 34 sec., as did Hyperion when record-breaking last year, to 2 min. 47 sec., as did that grand colt Coronach when winning in heavy mud eight years ago.

In other words, a horse must travel at a rate of 34 miles an hour, or rather more, up hill, down dale, turning once sharp right after the start, and then sharp left at Tattenham Corner, and generally proving himself a versatile creature of high speed.

THE STAYER WINS

There is no stretch of race track in the world which demands so much of a horse as this switch-back and tortuous mile and a half over some of the best downland in Great Britain.

A horse must be a true stayer to win the Derby. The race is won too fast from the start to permit any dawdling from a horse whose rider seeks to conserve his strength for a late spurt.

It is therefore desirable, if possible, to find a colt which has won over the Derby distance, or has otherwise proved in public, his ability to stay. Colombo does not come within this category, and the mile of the Two Thousand Guineas and the Craven Stakes is the farthest he has ever travelled in a public race, though I believe he has galloped over a mile and a half on the trial ground.

Horses which come within the category I have mentioned include my own colt, Windsor Lad, who won the Chester Vase and the Newmarket Stakes; Tiberius, undoubtedly a good stayer;  Medieval Knight, who just beat Tiberius at Lingfield; and Alishah, who won over the mile and a half at Chester.

I don’t say these are the only mile-and-a-half horses in the Derby, but they are the only ones which have proved in public that they can stay well enough to win a Derby.

Naturally, I have considerable faith in my own colt, Windsor Lad. At any rate, he has won over the distance, an attribute which cannot yet be paid even to Colombo. Windsor Lad is a much improved colt, and whatever his fate at Epsom those who back him can be assured of a great run for their money.

It must not be thought that I am minimising the chances of other horses, and in this connection I well recall the year when Manna, Colombo’s sire, won both the Guineas and Derby. In doing so he confounded many critics who regarded him as a non-stayer.

Despite their forebodings, he won the Guineas easily, and in the Derby, in heavy rain and deep mud, he won many lengths from Zionist and The Sirdar, with that brilliant colt Solario beaten out of a place.

Rarely has an Epsom crowd seen such a long trailing procession in the Derby as they did behind Colombo’s sire, that supposed non-stayer, Manna. And, remembering Manna, I am not going to join in the chorus of critics who fear for Colombo’s staying power. Let the race itself decide that point. As usual, the Derby sets a difficult puzzle, especially if you adopt the age-old pastime of trying to beat the favourite.

I think Windsor Lad will not be out of the first three.”

(Author Indra Vikram Singh, grandson of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla, can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com. Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

A Maharaja’s Turf

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Published in India by Sporting Links

Fully Illustrated

Hardcover 8.75 x 11.5 x 0.6 inches (landscape)

140 Pages

MRP Rupees 1995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

The Gohil Rajput Clan - Chapter 21 of Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘A Maharaja’s Turf’

Coat of arms of Rajpipla State, ruled by Gohil Rajput dynasty for over 600 years until merger with Union of India in 1948.

Bardic tales and genealogical records suggest that in the ancient times the Gohil Rajput clan ruled over Saurashtra, Kathiawar, in present-day Gujarat. Alexander Kinloch Forbes observed in his Ras-Mala, “The Gohil Rajputs of the solar race to which belonged Ramchandra and the Vallabhi dynasty, migrated to Mewar after the destruction of Vallabhi (in Saurashtra).” The story goes that in the year 542 A.D. Vallabhi was raided and a massacre took place in which King Shiladitya was killed along with rest of the clan. The pregnant queen Pushpavati escaped because she was away on a pilgrimage. She gave birth to a boy in a cave in the mountains of Mallia, handed the baby to Kamlavati, a Brahmin lady from Birnagar, and went away to commit sati.

This orphan prince was named Muhideosur Gohadit or Guhil, derived from ‘guhu’ which means cave. His clan came to be known as Guhilputra or Guhilot, and thus a new line of Suryavanshi Rajputs came into being, which was eventually named Gohil. Young Guhil grew up among the tribal Bhils in Anandpur and when he was 11 years old became their chieftain, holding sway over a hilly forested tract near modern Idar in north Gujarat.

The dynasty flourished and Kalbhoj, who came to be known as Bappa Rawal, eighth in descent to Guhil, seized Chittor and became ruler of Mewar in 734 A.D. The Guhilots consolidated their hold over Mewar, and in 977 A.D. their chief Salivahan migrated with part of the clan to Marwar, leaving behind his eldest son Shakti Kumar in Mewar with the rest of the kinsmen. The Guhilots under Salivahan settled down at Juna Khergarh on the Luni River (present-day Bhalotra, south-west of Jodhpur). There is still a village called ‘Gohilon ki Dhaani’ that perpetuates the memory of this valiant clan in Marwar.

The Guhilots had a chequered existence in Mewar until the seige by Alauddin Khilji’s army in 1303. The subsequent massacre of the menfolk and jauhar by the women forced the Guhilots to appoint Hamir Singh, removed by 13 generations, as chief. Hamir Singh, hailed from Mount Sisoda, and so the Mewar clan was named Sisodia. Hamir Singh seized Chittor in 1326 and assumed the title of Rana. From the Sisodias of Mewar emanated other princely states like Dungarpur, Banswara, Pratabgarh and Shahpura in present-day Rajasthan, Dharampur in Gujarat and Barwani in Madhya Pradesh. The Bhonsle rulers of Kolhapur, Satara, Sawantwadi and Nagpur trace their lineage to Mewar as also the royal family of Tanjore and the Ranas of Nepal.  

 

The Gohils continued to rule Marwar until the early years of the 13^th century when they were displaced by the Rathores who had been expelled from Kannauj following the invasions of Muhammad Ghori and the establishing of the Sultanate by the Slave Dynasty in Delhi. The Gohils marched back to Saurashtra after a lapse of five centuries, where they became governors of the Chalukyas, and then carved out their own principalities. The most famous of their chiefs during this period were Sejakji, Ranoji and Mokhdaji, and their descendants founded the princely states of Bhavnagar, Rajpipla, Palitana, Lathi and Vallabhipur.

Mokhdaji Gohil, Chief of Ghoga, with capital at Perimbet in the Gulf of Cambay.

The Ruling Princes and Chiefs of India published by The Times of India in 1930 stated, “No single portion of the vast and vulnerable land of Ind is wrapt deeper in the fascinating glory of immemorial legend, tradition and romance than is Kathiawar, the ancient territory of the Vallabhi kings. To Kathiawar journeyed the mighty Gohils, that historic Rajput tribe whose very name signifies ‘the strength of the earth’, centuries before Norman William fought Harold Saxon at Senlac. Originally, as it would seem, vassals of the Vallabhi kings, the Gohils, by degrees conquered the greater portion of Kathiawar, until they permanently rooted themselves in the soil of Saurashtra. They were fighters ever, these men - warriors to the bone and marrow. Sejakji - Ranoji - Mokhdaji - what memories of raid and foray, of pitched battle, of fierce siege do these names not recall! It was Mokhdaji, it may be remembered, who took Gogha from its Mohamedan defenders and made of Perim a royal capital. Mighty in physical stature as he was in deeds of derring do, he died fighting against Muhammad Tughlaq on Gogha soil, leaving behind him a name never to be forgotten in the annals of Saurashtra.”  

Maharana Gambhirsinhji of Rajpipla (seated second from left), with his eldest son Yuvraj Chhatrasinhji to his right, two younger sons to his left, and courtiers, in 1875.

The Gohils ruled Rajpipla until exactly 601 years after Mokhdaji’s death. It was a throne that his younger son Samarsinhji had succeeded to, assuming the name Arjunsinhji. The clan held on to the principality in the face of fierce onslaughts by the Sultans of Ahmedabad, the Mughals and the Gaekwars of Baroda. The British intervention provided welcome respite, even though it was not an easy relationship until Maharana Chhatrasinhji acceded to the gadi in 1897. And who would have thought that his son Maharana Vijaysinhji would go to Britain and win their most coveted race, thereby earning the felicitations of the King and commoners alike, and being lauded the world over as few Indian princes have ever been.

Maharaja Vijaysinhji, the last ruler of Rajpipla.

(Author Indra Vikram Singh, grandson of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla, can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com. Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

A Maharaja’s Turf

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Published in India by Sporting Links

Fully Illustrated

Hardcover 8.75 x 11.5 x 0.6 inches (landscape)

140 Pages

MRP Rupees 1995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

Manchester Dispatch report on the Epsom Derby 1934 triumph of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla

The following is an excerpt from the Manchester Dispatch report of 7^th June 1934 on the triumph of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla in the Epsom Derby as his horse Windsor Lad finished first in this blue riband of the turf.

The Derby wheel of fortune. Windsor Lad’s Victory

by Sir John Foster Fraser

Yet, after Smirke, the jockey in purple and cream sash, pressed Windsor Lad past the post, there rose a cheer as though the favourite had really won. Into the course - the long broad ribbon of green between the excited multitude - stepped the slim figure of the Maharaja, dark of feature, carrying his white topper in his hand with a red rose in his coat, bowing and smiling as he went to meet his horse. When he came into the enclosure he was mobbed by a hundred white-toppered friends. The Aga Khan, who had three losing horses in the race, patted him on the shoulder.

THE KING

Then the Earl of Harewood came and got the Maharaja out of the clutch of a crowd of interviewing journalists and took him to the King to be congratulated. For everybody was there, the King and Queen, and most of the Royal family, down to little boys from Epsom Town, who were allowed to crouch at the feet of policemen on promising to be good. The Derby is an institution as well as a race.

(This has been reproduced from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘A Maharaja’s Turf’. Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

A Maharaja’s Turf

ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

Published in India by Sporting Links

Fully Illustrated

Hardcover 8.75 x 11.5 x 0.6 inches (landscape)

140 Pages

MRP Rupees 1995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

“Bradman will be batting tomorrow”. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘Don’s Century’

While Bradman was leading Australia, Hitler’s aggression, which began with the occupation of the German Rhineland in 1936, and continued with the annexation of Austria in March 1938, was reaching its zenith. With a tentative Britain and France mute spectators in their eagerness to avoid a conflagaration like the First World War, Hitler marched on. In March 1939 his armies seized Czechoslovakia, and on September 1 attacked Poland. Britain and France could not hold back any longer, and on September 3 announced a state of war. Thus began the greatest conflict in history, which came to be known as the Second World War of 1939-45.

The War was to take away eight years of Bradman’s Test career, as of many other top cricketers then, and a quarter century earlier. First-class cricket, though, continued for a while in Australia. In 1939-40, for the only time in his career, Bradman scored over a thousand runs in a Sheffield season, hitting up 1062 runs at an average of 132.75. In 9 first-class matches that season he aggregated 1475 runs at 122.91 per innings with 5 hundreds, and a highest of 267.   

Bradman enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in June 1940, was transferred to the army as a physical training instructor at Frankston, Victoria, but was released on health grounds. Sheffield Shield was now suspended, and Bradman appeared in two first-class matches in 1940-41, scoring 0, 6, 0 and 12. For the next four seasons Bradman played no first-class cricket. By now he had aggregated 22,863 runs at an average of 95.66 with 92 hundreds.

In March 1944, the code phase that informed the Allied troops of the assault on the monastery at Monte Cassino in Italy was: “Bradman will be batting tomorrow.”

Now, with the long drawn war, health issues, creeping middle-age and a growing family, whether The Don would be able to stand up to the demands of top-grade cricket and the lofty standards that he had set himself, was a riddle that few could answer. Perhaps Bradman himself was not sure. In any event, no one knew what the new world, after the devastations of a long war, would bring in its wake. The First World War ended a glorious chapter in English cricket and gave rise to Warwick Armstrong’s great Australian side. Would the Second World War have the opposite effect, and bring to a close Australia’s years of supremacy? There were more questions than answers.

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

Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

Don’s Century

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0, Fully Illustrated

French Fold 21.5 cm x 28 cm, 188 Pages

Price Rupees 995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:   

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6   

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3   

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0   

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

As Sir Garfield Sobers turned 80 in July, an excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘Don’s Century’

Just as the memorable careers of the three Ws were drawing to a close, there appeared on the stage a cricketer blessed by nature like no other. Inarguably the most versatile and complete player, with class stamped all over, the left-handed genius Garfield Sobers was the only one apart from Bradman who would walk into everybody’s all-time dream team. To state the obvious, Sobers was a powerful strokeplayer, predecessor to Brian Lara in myriad ways, not the least in hitting up the record score and highest aggregate in Test cricket; bowler of greater variety than anyone in history - genuine speed, medium-pace swing, left-arm orthodox as well as chinaman; and a superb fielder, particularly close to the wicket in the slips or at backward short-leg.  Like Bradman, the game is not likely to see another with his amazing skills.

The doyen himself, Sir Neville Cardus, described Sobers’ batting thus: “He makes a stroke with moments to spare. The sure sign of mastery, of genius of any order, is absence of strain, natural freedom of rhythm.” How aptly can this be applied to sportspersons of any discipline. Brian Johnston, legend in the commentary box, observed Sobers for years. He wrote in his book It’s Been a Piece of Cake: “…..like all the greats - he had a sound defensive technique, but in attack with a high backlift and perfect timing the power of his strokes had to be seen to be believed. His sizzling drives and crashing hooks were hammered to the boundary, leaving the fielders helpless to stop them.”

Sobers never wore a thigh pad, and except for early in his career had no use for a cap, batting or fielding. His rasping cuts were facilitated by a light bat weighing around 2 lb 4 oz. There was no less power in his shots than seen today by those wielding the chunky modern day bludgeons. That is one of the reasons why there are not many players today who can play genuine horizontal bat shots like the cut, pull and hook with authority. Sobers rarely went down the wicket to the spinners, either using his long reach to drive or playing right back.

For someone who was pitchforked into the Test arena as a 17-year-old left-arm spinner in 1953-54 after just two first-class appearances, it is quite amazing that Sobers went on to become one of the greatest batsmen in history. Four years after his debut, he recorded his first Test hundred against Pakistan at Kingston, an unbeaten 365, the top score at the highest level, surpassing Len Hutton’s mark of two decades earlier. He added 446 for the second wicket in the company of Conrad Hunte, just five runs short of the then all-time high for any wicket put up by Ponsford and Bradman in 1934. Sobers celebrated his achievement by hammering a century in each innings - 125 and 108 not out - in the Georgetown Test. He finished the series with 824 runs at an average of 137.33. The legend of Sobers had been launched.

In 1959-60 against England, Sobers hit up 709 runs at an average of 101.28, crashing 226 at Bridgetown, 147 at Kingston and 146 at Georgetown. He put on 399 for the fourth wicket with Worrell in the Georgetown Test. Though a natural successor to Worrell, Sobers was not as diligent a captain as Bradman. From 1966 to 1967-68, Sobers had a golden run with the bat, averaging over 100 in two successive series, and 90 in the third. During the 1966 tour of England, he scored 722 runs at an average of 103.14 in five Tests, took 20 wickets at 27.25 apiece and held 10 catches. England were again given a 3-1 hammering, and Sobers once more hit up three centuries - 161 at Old Trafford, 163 not out at Lord’s and 174 at Headingley. He then went to India in 1966-67, scoring half-centuries in all his five innings with a highest of 95, aggregating 342 runs and averaging 114. By now the West Indies were the best side in the world. In 1967-68 against England at home, Sobers knocked up 545 runs in five Tests at 90.83 per innings but his over-confident declaration in the fourth Test at Kingston - 215 to win in 165 minutes - handed the series to England, who won that game with three minutes to spare, and the crown slipped.

The irrepressible Sobers became the first batsman in first-class cricket to hit 6 sixes in an over for Nottinghamshire against Glamorgan, smashing a bewildered Malcolm Nash at St Helen’s Ground, Swansea in 1968. It was in the evening of his career that Sobers played what Sir Donald Bradman described as the best innings he had seen in Australia, comparing it to Stan McCabe’s superb 232 at Trent Bridge in 1938. He slammed 254 for the Rest of the World against Australia at Melbourne in 1971-72 against a young and lightning fast Dennis Lillee. It was an amazing display of pyrotechnics, and when it reached its crescendo, rousing applause came from the spectators and fielders alike. 

When a damaged knee ended his 20-year Test career, Sobers had become the highest rungetter in his 93 appearances with 8032 runs at an average of 57.78, having blazed 26 hundreds, second behind Bradman’s 29. He had captured 235 wickets at 34.03 each, and snapped up 109 catches. It would be fair to say that had he batted higher than the no. 6 that he often did as captain, and if the West Indies did not have bowlers of the calibre of Wesley Hall, Charlie Griffith and Lance Gibbs, Sobers would have had many more runs and wickets to his credit. Gary Sobers was a cricketer beyond compare. It was just a matter of time before knighthood was bestowed on him.

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

Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

Don’s Century

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0, Fully Illustrated

French Fold 21.5 cm x 28 cm, 188 Pages

Price Rupees 995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:   

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6   

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3   

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0   

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

My tribute to the original little master Hanif Mohammad. Excerpt from my book ‘Don’s Century’

From another corner of the earth came Hanif Mohammad. Renowned for occupying the crease for long periods, he surpassed Bradman’s record first-class score of 452 not out, piling up 499 runs for Karachi versus Bahawalpur in 1958-59 on home ground before running himself out in his quest to reach a milestone that only Brian Lara did 35 years later. Hanif was a prodigy and by far the best Pakistan batsman of his time. Hailing from a family of five cricketing brothers, four of whom played for Pakistan - Hanif’s son Shoaib too played Test cricket - Hanif’s name was synonymous with Pakistani batting until the likes of Majid Khan, Zaheer Abbas and Javed Miandad began performing their sterling deeds on the international stage.

If Sachin Tendulkar toured Pakistan in 1989 at the tender age of sixteen, Hanif had came to India as a regular opener with his country’s first Test team in 1952-53 when he was just seventeen. In the inaugural first-class match against North Zone, Hanif scored 121 and 109 not out. Later he made a superb unbeaten 203 versus Bombay. He showed immense promise in the five Tests, scoring 51 on debut at the Ferozshah Kotla. He was unlucky to miss his maiden Test hundred by just four runs in the third Test at the Brabourne Stadium, and carved out another half-century in the final Test at the Eden Gardens.
                              

The epitome of sound technique and intense concentration, he left such a profound impression on Indian minds that, it is said, the distinguished Bombay coach Vasu Paranjpe used him as a model when he was mentoring Sunil Gavaskar in the 1960s. It is a fascinating tale of the two little masters of the sub-continent, and Hanif went on to establish several records for his country. He played what is still the longest innings in Test cricket, against the West Indies at Bridgetown in 1957-58, progressing to 337 in what is officially accepted as 16 hours and 10 minutes, but what was earlier believed - and still maintained by Hanif - to be 16 hours and 39 minutes. In first-class cricket, Himachal Pradesh captain Rajiv Nayyar played a longer innings against Jammu and Kashmir at Chamba only in 1999-2000, occupying the crease for just five minutes under 17 hours in his leisurely 271.

Hanif notched up centuries in each innings - 111 and 104 - of the Dacca (now Dhaka) Test of 1961-62 against England. His 12 Test hundreds were a record for his country at the time, as was his aggregate of 3915 runs at an average of 43.98 in his 55 Tests, 11 as captain. In first-class matches Hanif logged up the most runs in a Pakistan season, 1250 at an average of 59.52 in 1961-62. Hanif was indeed the pioneer among classy Pakistani batsmen and in terms of technical proficiency the forbear to Mohammad Yousuf.

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

Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

Don’s Century

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0, Fully Illustrated

French Fold 21.5 cm x 28 cm, 188 Pages

Price Rupees 995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:   

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6   

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3   

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0   

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567, Email varietybookdepot@gmail.com.

On Sunil Gavaskar’s 67th birthday, a flashback to his momentous debut Test series. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘Don’s Century’

Gavaskar’s arrival was indicative of the fact that Indian cricket had come of age. The spin quartet of Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, Srinivas Venkataraghavan and Bishen Singh Bedi were at the height of their powers. Gavaskar showed that fast bowling could not only be tackled but also scored off, in a prolific if not dominant fashion. Before him, Indian batsmen, with some notable exceptions, had the dubious reputation of stepping away to leg when confronted with genuine pace, and floundering against swing. Gavaskar changed it all.

There was a new captain at the helm, Ajit Wadekar, on that path-breaking tour of the Caribbean in 1971, ending at least for the time being the Pataudi era which had also begun in the West Indies nine years earlier. The signs were ominous as India won the second Test at Port of Spain by 7 wickets. It was India’s first victory over the West Indies in six series, home and away, and helped clinch the rubber, with the other four Tests drawn. Gavaskar scored 65 and 67 not out on debut, and gave solid starts in both innings along with Bombay (now Mumbai) colleague Ashok Mankad.

Two other Bombay stars made it a habit of pulling India out of troubled waters. In the first Test at Kingston, with India tottering at 75 for five, Dilip Sardesai (212) and Eknath Solkar (61) put on 137 runs to help raise a respectable total of 387. With no play on the first day, the follow-on could be enforced in the four-day Test with a lead of 150 runs, and Wadekar in his maiden Test as captain inflicted this ignominy on the hosts. The ageing Rohan Kanhai and skipper Garfield Sobers brought back memories of their halcyon days in a match-saving fourth-wicket partnership of 173 runs. Kanhai scored 56 and 158 not out, and Sobers 44 and 93. It seemed that the experienced middle-order would have to see the West Indies through, for the bowling was depleted, with Sobers having to bowl long stints.

It was not to be. Sobers and Kanhai did not fire in the second Test, and Clive Lloyd was a disappointment through the series. India won the Test with ease, heralding one of the happiest phases in their history, and marking the beginning of the end of Sobers’ days as leader. The brilliant side that he had inherited from Worrell, and which flowered under him in the mid-sixties, had all but disintegrated. In that triumph at Port of Spain, after Gavaskar’s promising debut, once again Sardesai (112) and Solkar (55) added 114 for the fifth wicket to give India a handsome first innings lead. Then as Wadekar, in a master-stroke, brought on the tall left-arm spinner Salim Durrani who castled Lloyd (15) and Sobers (0), India were on the road to victory. Gavaskar ultimately brought up the win in the company of Abid Ali.

That was the point when Indian cricket earned its self-respect, and emerged from the shadows onto the world stage. The man to show the way was the little opener. Rarely has one man done so much to change the fortunes of a nation’s sport. Inevitably, Gavaskar’s maiden Test century came in the next innings. He scored 116, once again laying a solid foundation to the Indian innings along with Mankad, and helping India take the first innings lead. It took an unbroken 170-run fourth-wicket stand between Charlie Davis and Sobers, unbeaten with 125 and 108 respectively, to save the day for the West Indies. Sobers’ declaration provided the opportunity to Gavaskar to score his third sixty. This time he clocked up an unbroken century stand with Mankad, worth 123 when stumps were finally drawn.

The only innings in which Gavaskar failed in the series was at Bridgetown when he was caught at mid-wicket off debutant paceman Uton Dowe for 1. Yet again Sardesai (150) and Solkar (65) retrieved the situation, this time from an even more abysmal 70 for six, faced with a huge West Indies score of 501 for five declared. Sobers had scored a monumental unbeaten 178 and put on 167 for the fourth wicket with Davis. On this occasion Sardesai and Solkar were associated in a 186-run partnership. The tailenders held on with Sardesai to save the follow-on. Sobers set India a target of 335 to win in a little over five hours. The run chase was never on and Gavaskar, in his own words, played “purely a defensive innings” of 117 not out, though he did fire a few rousing shots including a hooked six off Dowe. The Test was saved.

On the eve of the six-day final Test, again at Trinidad, Gavaskar developed severe toothache and spent a sleepless night. He had to wait for his troublesome tooth to be extracted till the Test was over and was denied pain-killers even at night on the plea that they would make him drowsy during play. Mankad had fractured his right wrist fending off a Dowe snorter in the second innings at Bridgetown, and his replacement Kenia Jayantilal broke his thumb in the intervening match at Dominica. As a result Abid Ali accompanied Gavaskar at the top of the order. Sobers, under pressure to square the series, opened the bowling, sending down a torrid spell. Abid Ali fell for 10 and Wadekar for 28. Gavaskar and Sardesai then put on 122, the little opener batting through the pain to score 124.

Sobers was indeed a determined man. He hit up 132, putting on 183 for the fifth wicket with Davis (105). West Indies piled up 526, a lead of 166. The pressure was on India. Gavaskar was now weak and worn out, still in pain, unable to eat or sleep properly, and having fielded for long hours in hot and humid conditions. Sobers was again sharp with the new ball, trapping Abid Ali early. Wadekar, though, helped Gavaskar add 148 runs.

The battle lines were drawn on the fifth day as Gavaskar soldiered on. He completed his second century of the Test to a huge ovation, with some of the spectators invading the pitch. He began the final day on 180, in very poor physical condition. And when he cover-drove Dowe to bring up his double hundred, all hell broke loose. The delirious crowd hoisted him high and literally played around with the little fellow. It was only the second time in Test history, after Doug Walters’ 242 and 103 against the West Indies in 1968-69, that a hundred and double hundred had been scored in the same game. Gavaskar had progressed to 220 when he finally chopped a ball on to his stumps. The next highest was Wadekar’s 54. Now at last Gavaskar could get his tooth extracted. It was a painstaking effort, literally, that ensured a landmark series triumph for the country. 

The West Indies needed 262 to win with time running out. In the end their ninth-wicket pair hung on precariously to eke out a draw. Such was Gavaskar’s memorable, and phenomenal, initiation in Test cricket. No one had scored so many runs, 774, on first appearance. That was in just four Tests, and his average of 154.80 would have made Bradman proud. The entire cricketing world was now talking about this 21-year-old. Over the next sixteen years Gavaskar earned the admiration and respect of players, critics and fans alike, and came to be rated as one of the greatest opening batsmen ever.

It might not have been a top-class West Indies bowling attack and Sobers may have dropped him on a couple of occasions, but Gavaskar displayed a wonderful technique, a wide range of strokes, patience, determination, resilience and a tremendous will to battle on in the face of acute physical discomfort. Surely, this little young man was out of the ordinary.

His great predecessor Len Hutton paid Gavaskar the ultimate tribute, naming one of the chapters of his book Fifty Years in Cricket, ‘Gavaskar and Other Greats’. Hutton wrote: “I have the feeling that if he had been born English or Australian, many of the better judges would have been tempted to bracket him with Bradman. Gavaskar is not as good as Bradman, but very close, which automatically puts him in the very highest class of batsmen of all time. He is a small, compact man, thicker set than Bradman, but of a similar height, and, like all the true champions, can play off both feet with equal facility. He uses a medium-weight bat and hits the ball hard enough with precise accuracy to beat the fieldsman, but not hard enough to knock it out of shape. He cuts, pulls and drives the half-volley beautifully, often through mid-wicket, and to back his natural accomplishments, he has the concentration, willpower and temperament of a record-breaker. I admire too, the positive and quick movements of his feet and the almost feline grace with which he gets into position to deal with the bouncer.”

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

Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

Don’s Century

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0, Fully Illustrated

French Fold 21.5 cm x 28 cm, 188 Pages

Price Rupees 995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:   

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6   

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3   

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0   

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567.

How good were the South African star batsmen Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards? Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘Don’s Century’

Graeme Pollock

Barry Richards

The South African Graeme Pollock was also a top-class left-handed strokeplayer like Sobers, but that is where the comparison ended. In almost every other way Pollock was different. Tall, strongly built and seemingly laboured, he was not athletic, unlike Sobers, and it showed in his running between wickets, and fielding, where he was at best a safe catcher. Stooping low into his stance, with legs spread apart, the power in his shots came from timing, quite the anti-thesis of Sobers who had a big backlift and played his shots with a flourish.

Pollock was also considered primarily an off-side player, like another big man Wally Hammond, but could get the ball away on the on-side, particularly with his short-arm pull shots. His 3 lb bat, very heavy for those times, was like a club as he drove and cut in awesome fashion. Inzamam-ul-Haq was perhaps, in some ways, a mirror image of Graeme Pollock for their laidback style, but that was an illusion because they spotted the ball early and had plenty of time to play their strokes. That explained their unhurried movements. The Pakistani batsman though was more aesthetic, with footwork quite nimble for a burly physique, and apt to hit straighter.    

Prodigiously talented, one of Pollock’s finest innings was at Nottingham in 1965. With the ball seaming around, South Africa were reduced to 80 for five. He put on 98 with skipper Peter van der Merwe, whose contribution was 10. Pollock slammed the English bowlers for 21 boundaries all over Trent Bridge, clocking up 125 runs off 145 balls.

His finest hour came at Durban in 1970. In the company of Barry Richards, he flayed the Australian attack. Pollock went on record the highest Test score for South Africa, a tremendous 274 that demoralised the opposition. At 26 years he was at the height of his powers when, soon after, South Africa were banished from Test cricket for their policy of apartheid. It was a cruel blow, for Pollock had aggregated 2256 runs in only 23 Tests for an average of 60.97, the best-ever barring Bradman, among those who have played at least 20 innings.

Barry Richards suffered an even worse fate. That was the only Test series he got to play. In those four games he scored 508 runs, averaging 72.57, with two hundreds. His highest of 140 was in that scintillating stand with Graeme Pollock at Durban when they blasted 103 runs in an hour after lunch on the first day. Richards reached his century in the first over after lunch off just 116 deliveries. Several observers have rated him among the best batsmen ever. Brian Johnston watched him at close quarters, not only in that 1969-70 home series against Australia, but for long years in county cricket for Hampshire, where his opening partner was a West Indian named Gordon Greenidge.

Johnston wrote in It’s Been a Piece of Cake: “He had, and played, every stroke off the front foot and the back. With a high backlift he played beautifully straight, and used his feet far more than the others I have mentioned (Sobers, Hutton, May, Cowdrey, Greg Chappell and Viv Richards), with the exception of Bradman, Hammond and Compton. He would even dance down the wicket to the fast bowlers. Barry’s technique was backed by his supreme confidence in his own ability, and an insolent contempt for all bowlers.” The little master himself, Sunil Gavaskar, made a telling observation in The Times of India in 1995: “Barry Richards was the first batsman I saw playing the lofted shot over extra-cover. This was in the Sunday League in England in 1971. Till he demonstrated how to do it, batsmen tended to hit the ball over the infield on the legside if they wanted quick runs. The inside-out shot over extra-cover is more difficult, for one has to really get to the pitch of the ball to be able to hit it away from the fielders. Since there used to be no fielders posted on the extra-cover boundary, it was easy to pick up boundaries there and soon this shot was being copied by other batsmen effectively and is now a normal shot in all kinds of cricket.” That is a stamp of genius.  

In his very first season for Hampshire in 1968, Richards topped their run chart with 2395 runs. The next highest for the county was by Barry Reed with a tally of 990. He scored heavily each year in county cricket, though he had moderate success for the Rest of the World, who replaced the banned South African team, for the 1970 tour of England. Richards went Down Under to play in the Sheffield Shield, and he was sensational. In 1970-71, he hit up 356 for South Australia against Western Australia, 325 of which were scored on the first day of the match. In 1977 he signed up for Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket. Even though he was past his prime, Richards performed exceedingly well, confronted as he was with quality opposition once again.

It is, therefore, not altogether a surprise that Bradman chose him to partner Arthur Morris in his All Time XI. For a man of Richards’ calibre it became increasingly difficult to motivate himself to continue playing the inferior trundlers at the first-class level. He walked away from it all, frustrated at being kept out of Test cricket.

Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards were part of a brilliant South African team that continued the process begun by the supremely talented West Indies teams led by Frank Worrell and Gary Sobers, and finally and emphatically did away with the supremacy of England and Australia for the first time in the 90-year history of Test cricket. Under Peter van der Merwe and Ali Bacher, South Africa defeated England 1-0 in 1965 in an away series, and then trounced Australia twice at home, 3-1 in a five-Test series in 1966-67, and a 4-0 whitewash in 1969-70. Coming off a comfortable 3-1 triumph in India, Bill Lawry’s Australian side was handed a mauling of frightening proportions by the South Africans. The margins of defeat were 170 runs, innings and 127 runs, 307 runs, and 323 runs. It was humiliating, to put in kindly, and a far cry from the heady days of Bradman. South Africa could now justifiably claim to being the no. 1 Test team in the world, even as their apartheid regime resulted in prevention of face-offs with the ‘coloured’ nations.

The nucleus of the 1965-70 South African teams comprised the allrounders, former skipper Trevor Goddard and Eddie Barlow, arguably the greatest-ever cover fielder Colin Bland, wicketkeeper-batsman Dennis Lindsay, pace duo of Graeme’s elder brother Peter Pollock and the wrong-footed in-swinger Mike Procter, who was also a tremendous batsman, and two star rungetters Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards. It is such a pity that their Test careers had to be halted abruptly in their prime.

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

Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

Don’s Century

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0, Fully Illustrated

French Fold 21.5 cm x 28 cm, 188 Pages

Price Rupees 995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:   

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6   

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3   

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0   

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Distributed in India by:  Variety Book Depot, AVG Bhawan, M-3, Middle Circle, Connaught Circus, New Delhi-110 001, India. Tel. + 91 11 23417175, 23412567.

Books by Indra Vikram Singh published between 1992 and 2015

Indian Spring

This definitive collector’s edition celebrates India’s win in the cricket World Cup 2011, a tournament that was a colourful commercial extravaganza.

ISBN 978-81-901668-7-4

Published by Sporting Links, 2015

Format:  Paperback

Pages:  216

Dimensions:  11 inches x 8. 5 inches x 0.4 inch

Fully illustrated with 60 colour photographs.

Write-ups on 10 Classic Matches and 12 Memorable Performances in different matches.

Hall of Fame section featuring 29 stars.

Scorecards of all the 49 matches.

Batting and Bowling Averages of all the players who appeared in the event,

Sidelights and trivia.

Detailed Records and Statistics of all World Cup tournaments from 1975 to 2011.

Curtain raiser to the ICC World Cup 2015.

Crowning Glory

A 44-page fully illustrated supplement on India’s win in the cricket World Cup 2011.

ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

Published by Sporting Links, 2011

Format:  Paperback

Pages:  44

Dimensions:  11.25 inches x 8. 5 inches x 0.25 inch

Crowning Glory brings forth the highlights and the stars, statistics and records, and colour photographs. The tenth edition of One-day cricket’s biggest show returned to the sub-continent for the third time. Never had the hosts won on home soil, but in 2011 the favourites India, despite a few stutters, jubilantly lifted the glittering ICC World Cup at Mumbai on 2nd April. This was not only the crowning glory for an Indian team that had striven hard to reach the no. 1 spot in Test cricket the previous year, but also the missing jewel in the amazing career of the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. It was a fairy-tale come true, the real significance of which will be understood in the years and decades to follow. Crowning Glory replays the highlights of the ICC World Cup 2011 and its stars, complete with colour photographs and records. This special supplement is also available complimentary with The Big Book of World Cup Cricket (ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3).

Don’s Century

Biography of Sir Donald Bradman and a panorama of batting from the 1860s to present times.

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Published by Sporting Links, 2011

Format:  Paperback French Fold

Pages:  188

Dimensions:  11 inches x 8. 5 inches x 0.4 inch

Weight:  0.5 kilograms

Written in 2008, the year of the birth centenary of the peerless Don Bradman, the book takes a relook at his cricket career, relives the trial and tribulations of his personal life, and assesses the merits of other great batsmen from the 1860s to the present times. The questions still asked are: how great was Bradman actually, was he just a run-getting machine or was he truly the best there has ever been, have there been other batsmen as good or better than Bradman. Don’s Century analyses Bradman’s batting technique, brings forth his amazing achievements with the willow, aided by comments from the finest writers and players down the ages, supported by comprehensive statistics, and illustrated by classic photographs in sepia brown from the top photographers and agencies of the world. The panorama of batting presents many other legends from Grace, Ranji, Trumper and Hobbs to Richards, Tendulkar, Lara and Ponting, and so many more, focussing on their contribution, and in fact tracking the evolution of the game over the last century-and-a-half. The vicissitudes of Bradman’s own life, his persona and quest for excellence, the detractors, friends and family are all featured in this tribute to the unquestioned king of kings of the crease.

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011

A 544-page definitive, fully illustrated hardbound collector's edition on the cricket World Cup from its inception in 1975 till 2007, with a preview of the ICC World Cup 2011.

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Published by Sporting Links, 2011

Format:  Hardback

Pages:  544

Dimensions:  11.5 inches x 8.75 inches x 1 inch

Weight:  2 kilograms

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket is a definitive, fully-illustrated all-colour collector’s edition that contains virtually everything about all the cricket World Cups from 1975 to 2011.

Beginning with a story of every tournament from 1975 to 2007, including the commercial facet, sponsorship and prize money, logos and mascots, it carries a preview of the 2011 event as well. There are highlights and sidelights, drama and controversy, and the stars of the biggest event in One-day cricket.

Featured are 49 classic matches, those nail-biting encounters and stunning upsets, and 51 memorable individual performances by players in different matches. The Hall of Fame section showcases 93 top players in the World Cup and also comprises interviews with Cup-winning captains Kapil Dev, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting.

The statistics sections comprise a wide range of records, and performances of all the 19 teams that have appeared in the first nine editions of the World Cup, detailed scorecards of all the 303 matches played from 1975 to 2007, and batting averages, bowling averages and fielding data of all the 823 players who turned out in the premier event.

The tailenders bring forth the lighter moments and trivia. As many as 250 photographs, mostly in colour, from the world's leading agencies and photographers Patrick Eagar, Getty Images and Pradeep Mandhani embellish this mammoth effort.

The piece-de-resistance is a handwritten letter of Sir Donald Bradman received by the author in 1999, which led him to dedicate the book to The Don.

A special 44-page fully-illustrated colour supplement Crowning Glory (ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7, Sporting Links, 2011) published at the conclusion of the ICC World Cup 2011, capturing the highlights and focusing on the stars of the tournament, and updated records, is available complimentary with The Big Book of World Cup Cricket.

A Maharaja's Turf

A fully illustrated hardbound collector's edition on the triumph of the author’s grandfather Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla in the Epsom Derby of England in 1934, his horse Windsor Lad finishing first.

ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

Published by Sporting Links, 2011

Format:  Hardback

Pages:  148

Dimensions:  8.75 inches x 11.5 inches x 0.6 inches

Weight:  1 kilogram

This collector’s edition brings alive the exhilarating triumph of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla in the Epsom Derby of England in 1934, the only Indian owner ever to win the blue riband of the turf in its history dating back to 1780. The dapper Indian prince’s horse Windsor Lad left the hitherto undefeated favourite Colombo trailing in third place in the presence of royalty led by King George V and Queen Mary, and a multitude of an estimated quarter to half a million people on that damp afternoon of 6th June. This extensively researched story written by the Maharaja’s grandson, embellished with rare photographs, captures the era between the two World Wars, of imperial times and a royal lifestyle, also going back centuries into history, connecting the past and the present and depicting the march of time, even as the thrilling race remains the central theme.

The Little Big Book of World Cup Cricket, edition II

A handy guide to all the cricket World Cup tournaments played from 1975 to 2007, with a preview of the ICC World Cup 2011.

ISBN 978-81-731422-0-8

Published by Media Eight, 2011

Format:  Paperback

Pages:  288

Dimensions:  7.6 inches x 5 inches x 0.75 inches

Weight:  500 grams

The Little Big Book of World Cup Cricket, edition II 2011, is the updated version of the 2007 edition of the book with the same title.

Attractively designed in a manner that reflects the modern game, the book narrates the story of all the nine cricket World Cups from 1975 to 2007, and carries a preview of the 2011 ICC World Cup which was staged in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Like the shorter version of the game, the book gives a snapshot of the tournament, thereby affording brisk, easy reading.

There are 49 classic matches from the exhilarating one-wicket victory of the West Indies over Pakistan at Edgbaston in 1975 to another nail-biting one-wicket triumph by England at the expense of the West Indies in Brian Lara's swansong at Bridgetown in 2007.

The 51 amazing individual performances include the blitzkrieg by Vivian Richards and Collis King in the 1979 final and the onslaught by Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn in the 2003 final.

The exploits of 50 legends of the World Cup comprising the likes of Kapil Dev and Lance Klusener are chronicled in precise words.

To sum up this showpiece event is the 80-page records section that brings to the aficionado all the highlights and the glorious achievements of superstars like Sachin Tendulkar and Glenn McGrath. It is a handy book that provides a panoramic view of cricket's ultimate test in One-day cricket.

The Little Big Book of World Cup Cricket

A chunky and comprehensive guide to all the cricket World Cups played from 1975 to 2003, and a preview of the ICC World Cup 2007.

ISBN 81-901668-2-4

Published by Sporting Links, 2007

Format:  Paperback

Pages:  656

Dimensions:  4.5 inches x 7 inches

Weight:  500 grams

Story of every tournament from 1975 to 2003, including the commercial facet, sponsorship and prize money, logos and mascots, and a preview of the 207 event.

Write-ups on 41 Classic Matches and 40 Memorable Individual Performances.

Hall of Fame showcasing 74 top players in the World Cup, and exclusive interviews with World Cup-winning captains Kapil Dev, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting.

Sidelights (lighter moments and trivia).

Full scorecards of all 252 matches.

Performances of all the 17 teams that appeared in the first eight World Cups.

Detailed records and statistics.

Batting and bowling averages, and fielding records of all 684 players.

World Cup Cricket

Illustrated preview in the run-up to the cricket World Cup 2003

ISBN 81-7167-947-1

Published by Rupa & Co., 2002

Format:  Hardback

Pages:  184

Dimensions:  8.5 inches x 11 inches

Writer Indra Vikram Singh, book designer Peter Murray and statistician Rajesh Kumar got together to produce an illustrated preview embellished with crisp write-ups and comprehensive statistics about cricket World Cups played from 1975 to 1999 and all its stars, assessing the prospects of all the teams participating in the 2003 event.

Test Cricket – End of the Road?

Debating the future of Test cricket in the 1990s and beyond.

ISBN 81-7167-080-6

Published by Rupa & Co., 1992

Format:  Paperback

Pages:  141

Dimensions:  8.5 inches x 5.5 inches x 0.375 inches

In the late 1980s and early 1990s there was a raging debate whether the era of Test matches was over and whether One-day Internationals were the future of cricket. Young Indra Vikram Singh explored the subject in detail, and not only came up with his verdict but also offered suggestions to make Test cricket more attractive for spectators and television audiences. The book brought forth the ethos of the game and the lessons youngsters could derive from it. Test cricket has evolved from the Victorian era to the 21st century but it remains largely the same game, and carries on serenely despite the frenetic march of time and the prophesies of the cynics. That is what makes this book relevant even in the age of Twenty20.

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

Indra Vikram Singh's books published by Sporting Links are distributed in India by Variety Book Depot, Connaught Place, New Delhi – 110 001, Phones + 91 11 23417175 and 23412567.