Reminiscing India’s maiden test win at the Lord’s

 

Reminiscing India’s maiden test win at the Lord’s

Last week the Indian cricket team kept us glued to the television sets like a reader to a thriller novel. The cricket especially on the fifth day of the Lord’s test made the match intriguing and fascinating. The snobbery of the English players in the second innings was evident and perhaps resulted in their own demise.

Joyously for us, the win at Lord’s had succeeded another famous win at the Gabba against the Aussies earlier this year. However, off the 19 test matches India has played at the Lord’s, this was only our third win after almost half a decade of trying. The victory at Lord’s was a rare win which we as fans would remember for a long time.

When I rewind my memory further, India’s first ever test match win at this venue comes to my mind. The world cup victory in 1983 gave us something profound than just a world cup win. It gave us an identity. Likewise, the maiden test match win at Lord’s in 1986 gave the Indians a belief that they could compete against best teams playing away.

Moreover, this victory mattered more because it was from an erstwhile era. It was the time when Indian cricket didn’t have the IPL glitz. Unlike Kohli, Kapil Dev was quieter but the hunger to win was no less. That was an era of black and white television, watching a live cricket was a dream and the latest scores were available only in the newspapers the next day. Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar formed the backbone of the Indian team and these heroes were passed onto us by our respected elders. Such was the fascination that it made us paste their pictures from newspapers in scrap books. I am really glad to thus reminisce the first ever test match win at the home of cricket.

On the first morning of that test match, Kapil Dev and David Gower walked in for the toss. As Dev stepped on to the turf, he gave a customary look at the English skies.

Grey clouds or not you always bowl first at the Lord’s!!!

Having called correctly, he sent England in.

The twenty-year old prodigy Chetan Sharma troubled the batters by constantly bowling outside the off stump. It is amazing how bowlers do that all the time. The margin is tiny but they keep at it. The experts call it the corridor of uncertainty. It is like a flickering light inside a dark tunnel which the bowlers chase by switching off everything else.

That day the English openers Graham Gooch and Tim Robinson almost touched the truth outside the off stump on a number of occasions but didn’t nick it.

After Maninder Singh got Robinson, Gower was removed by Chetan Sharma. Against Mike Gatting, Sharma bowled an unplayable delivery which castled his off stump. Allan Lamb, a fine player of fast bowling would always look to attack but that day he gifted away his wicket to Sharma too.

England were 98/4 at one stage and by the time Sharma got Gooch after a careful hundred, the score was 245-5. The English tail wagged a bit and they managed to score 294. Sharma got a fifer and Roger Binny snarled three.

The Indians lost both the openers Gavaskar and K Srikkanth when the score was 90/2 while Mohinder Amarnath was trying to settle down.

As I watched the video of this match on YouTube, I notice Dilip Vengsarkar fondly known as the Colonel walking onto the crease at the fall of the second wicket with a stoic, determined face.

After some playing and missing, he started playing his shots. Our man belonged to a unique clan of Indian batsmen who can make difficult look effortless. Not paying any heed to temptations, he went after those deliveries which most batsmen would leave.

When India’s last wicket fell on 341 and Vengsarkar’s wonderful effort of 126 enabled India to get a handful lead of 47. With this century he earned a rare feat of scoring three centuries at the Lord’s.

At the outset of the England innings, the drift Dev provided to the ball made him unplayable and in no time Robinson, Gooch and Gower were back to the dressing room. England were reduced to 35/3.

With Kapil grabbing 4 and Maninder Singh taking 3 wickets, the Poms were all out for 180. At 31/2, and requiring 134 to win, Vengsarkar rose to the occasion yet again. He was little restrained this time around putting a value to his wicket but without losing elegance he played he wanted to, to ensure India get the required runs.

Kapil Dev for his brilliant spell that morning to remove the English top order won the man of the match award.

It was a sweet victory which would last forever in my mind. Such victories show why we adore test cricket.

With India winning another one at the Lord’s last week, to everyone who has been calling for test cricket’s obituary, the writing is on the wall - Test cricket is still hale and hearty.