Vijay Lokapally - Speed Merchants: The Story of Indian Pace Bowling 1880s to 2019

SPEED

MERCHANTS

SPEED
MERCHANTS

THE STORY OF INDIAN PACE BOWLING
1880s2019

GULU EZEKIEL & VIJAY LOKAPALLY

BLOOMSBURY INDIA

Bloomsbury Publishing India Pvt. Ltd

Second Floor, LSC Building No. 4, DDA Complex, Pocket C 6 & 7,

Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110070

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First published in 2020

Copyright Gulu Ezekiel & Vijay Lokapally, 2020

Gulu Ezekiel & Vijay Lokapally have asserted their right under the Indian Copyright Act to be identified as the Authors of this work

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ISBN: 978-93-88271-34-9 (print); 978-93-88271-36-3 (e-book)

2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1

Cover photos: Kapil Dev (Kamal Julka), Zaheer Khan and

Jasprit Bumrah (Kamal Sharma)

Created by Manipal Digital

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Dedicated to my parents

Prof. Joe Ezekiel and Khorshed Wadia Ezekiel

Dedicated to

Narayan Rao and Sarla Lokapally

Sunanda and Akshay Lokapally

Contents

C ricket has produced some fascinating characters stylish batsmen, skillful slow bowlers, agile fielders. The ones who always caught my attention were the fast men. Running in from a distance, the final charge a breathtaking piece of motion, before delivering the thunderbolt that would rattle the batsmen. The idea was to hit the stumps but some of them did not mind hurting the man at the crease.

I had read about the ferocious fast bowlers who came to dominate the game during times when helmets were not in use. I marvel at the courage of those batsmen who stood up to the fast bowlers and even called the shots. I have heard stories of those captivating battles on the cricket field when the fast bowlers would test the resilience and the technique of the best batsmen.

Indian cricket had a few great fast bowlers about whom I read in books and heard from past stalwarts of the game. From Mohammad Nissar and Amar Singh, to the modern era when Kapil Dev led the brigade that saw bowlers like Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Jasprit Bumrah take inspiration to bowl with the new ball, Indian cricket has come to realise the potential of this aspect of the game.

It is true that India, at one point of time, did not have fast bowlers who would make the opposition duck and weave. I had heard stories of how Ramakant Desai won praise for his pace and the disconcerting bounce he could generate despite his short frame. He was known as Tiny but I am told he was a terror with the new ball. To have earned praise from Pakistan great Hanif Mohammad was proof enough of his abilities as a fast bowler.

When I began my journey as a first-class cricketer I had to face Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad in the nets. It was a fiery introduction because Srinath was quick and Prasad wily. As seasons passed, Indian cricket discovered some exciting fast bowlers and it was a matter of pride that at one point we started to have more faith in our new ball bowlers.

Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Mohammad Shami and Jasprit Bumrah should rank among some of the best India has seen. It was a nice change in trend that fast and medium-fast bowlers had come to earn their place on merit. There was a shift in Indias attack where spin was complemented by fast bowlers even though Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh served the team outstandingly.

Today, I am glad to see a horde of young fast bowlers competing for a place in the team. The one-day format has seen many new faces in the Indian team and I am sure in the coming season or two India is going to be enriched with the services of a couple of impactful young fast bowlers.

It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge the efforts of Vijay Lokapally and Gulu Ezekiel, veteran cricket journalists, in documenting the contribution of fast bowlers in Indian cricket. Gulu is a sports historian and author while Vijay, whom I have known closely since 1993, can be trusted to weave delightful stories on cricketers. I have always admired Vijays work ethics, at domestic matches and international assignments, and respect his long association with the game.

I wish Gulu and Vijay all the success and congratulate Bloomsbury India on this wonderful venture.

Rahul Dravid

W hy a book on the history of Indian pace bowling? The simple answer to that would be that it has never been done before.

Another inspiration is the brilliant book by my cricket guru David Frith on the history of fast bowling, The Fast Men, first released in 1975 and then in a couple of subsequent editions over the years. I am therefore delighted that David has contributed the introduction for this book.

For me there were two Test matches 42 years apart which I watched on TV and which could not have been more different in character that formed the genesis for this book.

The first was the infamous Kingston, Jamaica Test match in April 1976 and the second the Johannesburg Test match in January 2018.

India were battered, bloodied, bruised and beaten at Kingston and I watched with horror the highlights on TV. Then in 2018 India went in with five pace bowlers, something even the mighty West Indies sides of the 70s and 80s did not contemplate. And on a treacherous pitch where the life and limb of the batsmen was on the line and which was almost abandoned on the penultimate day as too dangerous, not only did our batsmen stand up valiantly to South Africas attack, it was our pace bowlers who captured all 20 wickets for a famous win. And 2019 has been the year of Indias fast bowling attack.

Indian cricket had indeed come full circle from the earliest days when it was our fast bowlers who dominated.

Much has been written both in books and countless articles on Indias rich spin legacy. Now it is time to pay tribute to the men of speed as well.

In this book I have written the first four chapters, starting with the late 19th century and ending in 1977. I am delighted to collaborate on this book with famed cricket writer Vijay Lokapally, who has taken the story forward from 1978when the mighty Kapil Dev debutedto the present day.

One of the highlights for me has been connecting with the family memberswidows, children, grandchildrenof some of the most famous names in Indian cricket. To honour their names and achievements has given me a great sense of fulfillment.

I hope the readers enjoy reading the history of Indian pace bowling as much as Vijay and I have enjoyed chronicling it.

PS: Since I covered the period from the 1880s to 1977, I have used the names of citiesBangalore, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Poonaas they were then known.