India had many heroes at the 1983 World Cup in England. Kapil Dev was the biggest of them all. But for his 175 not out against Zimbabwe, the Indians’ journey in the tournament would have been brief, just as it was in both the previous editions of the World Cup when they took the flight home right after the league stage.
We have all heard about how Kapil’s astonishing 175 not out helped them claw back from 17 for five to make 266 for eight in 60 overs (not a bad total in those days before the power-hitting of T20 cricket). Kapil’s innings was the greatest ODI innings until Glenn Maxwell hit 201 not out against Afghanistan in the 2023 World Cup.
Historic knock
Kapil’s unbeaten 175, however, will remain the innings that changed world cricket forever. Without it India would not have won the World Cup and become the epicentre of international cricket. While every cricket fan remembers that monumental innings from the Indian captain, the second-highest scorer is often forgotten. Syed Kirmani may have only made 24 not out, but it was his unbroken ninth-wicket stand of 126 that helped India go past 200.
He is, of course, better known for his wicketkeeping. He was, in fact, chosen as the best wicketkeeper of that World Cup.
In Stumped, in his autobiography that he has co-authored with Debashish Sengupta and Dakshesh Pathak, Kirmani gives fascinating insights into that immortal ninth-wicket partnership and India’s unlikely triumph in the tournament.
Kirmani tells us the story of that incredible partnership laced with humour. Since India’s batting line-up was pretty long in that World Cup thanks to the presence of so many all-rounders, such as Ravi Shastri, Roger Binny and Madan Lal, who would follow the main batters, he was relaxed and intent on having a nice breakfast and a shower.
A toast was in his hands and a towel on his waist. Both dropped, as he exclaimed, looking at the scoreboard, “17 for five, my God!”
Kirmani was blissfully unaware of the spectacular collapse of India’s top and middle order, until he was asked by one of India’s reserve players to put his batting pads on.
Playing anchor
When he reached the middle, Kapil reminded Kirmani that there were 30 overs still remaining. He told his captain, “You go for it, you are the best hitter in the Indian team…”
Kirmani says he could watch one of the greatest innings in cricket from just 22 yards away. Nobody outside the ground could see it as the match was not televised. This writer had followed the innings on the BBC radio; one could still recall the Zimbabwean commentator Bob Nixon describing that stupendous knock from Kapil.
Kirmani had formed an enduring partnership with Kapil the bowler, too. His agile wicketkeeping ensured the all-rounder’s swing was well rewarded. ‘c Kirmani b Kapil Dev’ was a recurring line in the scoreboard featuring Tests and ODIs played by India those days.
Kirmani was, of course, as good, if not better, keeping wicket to the magnificent Indian spinners. Through the book, he tells us how he became a world-class ‘keeper from the little boy who used bricks as his gloves in Bangalore.
Ups and downs
The book works best in the portion in which Kirmani tells us, with admirable honesty, about his life in cricket and the disappointments, and even entirely undeserved insults, he had to go through after retirement. How a player of his stature had to plead for a benefit match, and how he was probably short changed about it, does not make pleasant reading. He is equally honest about how he was treated unfairly as an administrator.
The book also has some interesting tributes paid to Kirmani by his teammates and rivals. Anil Kumble provides an insight into the man’s character, when he talks of how he washes even his shoelaces. In the foreword, Sunil Gavaskar tells us how Kirmani used to walk backwards after deplaning, so as to keep his thinning hair from flying about.
The book, however, suffers from errors, misspelling of names – Venkat Raghavan, Shiv Ramkrishnan, Geoffrey Dujon — and repetitions, all of which could easily have been avoided.
The writer is Deputy Editor-Sports, The Hindu
About the book
Title: Stumped: Life Behind and Beyond the Twenty-Two Yards
Author: Syed Kirmani with Debashish Sengupta and Dakshesh Pathak
