Citizendia

Ravi Shastri

India
Personal information
Batting style Right-handed batsman (RHB)
Bowling style Slow left-arm orthodox (SLA)
Career statistics
Tests ODIs
Matches 80 150
Runs scored 3830 3108
Batting average 35. The Indian cricket team is an international Cricket team representing India. Test cricket is the longest form of the Sport of Cricket. It has long been considered the ultimate test of playing ability between cricketing nations Note Most of the information here pertains to men's cricket ODI matches are also played in Women's cricket. Batting average is a Statistic in both Cricket and Baseball measuring the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters, respectively 79 29. 04
100s/50s 11/12 4/18
Top score 206 109
Overs 2625. In the sport of Cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession 1 1102. 1
Wickets 151 129
Bowling average 40. In the sport of Cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings Meanings of wicket Set of stumps Primarily the wicket Bowling average is a Statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the Sport of Cricket. 96 36. 04
5 wickets in innings 2 1
10 wickets in match 0 n/a
Best bowling 5/75 5/15
Catches/stumpings 36/0 40/0

As of 24 June 2005
Source: [1]

Ravishankar ("Ravi") Jayadritha Shastri pronunciation (help·info) (born 27 May 1962 in Mumbai (Bombay), India) is a former Indian cricketer. An inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of Sports &ndash most notably Cricket and Baseball during For other uses see Stump (disambiguation Stump is a term used in the Sport of Cricket where has three different meanings Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 927 - Simeon the Great, Tsar of Bulgaria, dies 1120 - Richard III of Capua is anointed Year 1962 ( MCMLXII) was a Common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Mumbai ( Marathi:,, IPA: formerly Bombay, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the financial India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The Indian cricket team is an international Cricket team representing India. Cricket is a bat-and-ball team Sport that originated in England and is now played in more than 100 countries He was an all–rounder who batted right–handed and bowled left arm spin. An all-rounder is a Cricket player who excels at both batting and bowling. Andrew-Strauss-Cricketer-detailjpg|thumb|right|250px| Andrew Strauss batting for England during the 2005 NatWest Series]] In the Sport of Cricket, batting Darren_Gough_bowlingjpg|thumb|250px|right| Darren Gough bowling]] In the Sport of Cricket, bowling is the action of propelling the ball toward Left-arm orthodox spin is a style of bowling in the sport of Cricket. His international career started when he was 18 years old and lasted 12 years. He started his career purely as a bowler but gradually became more of a batsman who could bowl. Muralijpg|thumb|250px|right|The world's leading off-spin bowler Muttiah Muralitharan sends down a delivery]] A bowler in the Sport of Cricket is usually Mike Powell cricketerjpg|thumb|200px| Warwickshire batsman Mike Powell]] A batsman in the sport of Cricket is depending on context Any

As a batsman, he was essentially defensive with the "chapati shot"[1][2] (a flick off the pads) being his trademark shot, but could raise his strike rate when required. Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven It is known for its rich terminology Strike rate refers to two different statistics in the Sport of Cricket. Due to his above-average height (he stood 6' 3" tall) and an upright stance, he had a limited number of shots against fast bowling, but was able to put the lofted shot to good use against spin bowling. Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the Sport of Cricket. Spin bowling, sometimes known as slow bowling, is a technique used for bowling in the Sport of Cricket. Shastri played either as an opening batsmen or in the middle order.

The highlight of his career was when he was elected the Champion of Champions in the World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985. The Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket was a One Day International tournament held from 17 February to 10 March 1985 in Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) In the same season, he equalled West Indian Garry Sobers's record of hitting six sixes in an over in first class cricket. The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as The Windies or The West Indies, is a multi-national Cricket team representing Sir Garfield St Auburn Sobers, AO (born 28 July 1936 in Bridgetown, Barbados) often known as Garry Sobers (though earlier in his life he preferred Boundary has two distinct meanings in the Sport of Cricket; (i the edge or boundary of the playing field and (ii a manner of scoring In the sport of Cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession First-class cricket refers to the class of Cricket matches of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players and officially adjudged first-class by He was regarded as a potential captain, but his image outside cricket [3], injuries and tendency to lose form at crucial times meant that he captained India in only one Test match. Test cricket is the longest form of the Sport of Cricket. It has long been considered the ultimate test of playing ability between cricketing nations

In domestic cricket, he played for Bombay and led them to the Ranji Trophy title in his final year of playing. The Mumbai cricket team is a Cricket team representing the city of Mumbai in Indian domestic cricket The Ranji Trophy is a domestic First-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides equivalent to the County Championship He also played four seasons of county cricket for Glamorgan. County cricket is the highest level of domestic Cricket in England and Wales Glamorgan County Cricket Club (Criced Morgannwg is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national Cricket structure He was forced to retire aged 31 due to a recurring knee injury. He is now a noted TV cricket commentator. He also temporarily coached the Indian cricket team for their 2007 Bangladesh tour. The Indian cricket team is an international Cricket team representing India. Ravi Shastri was named the Celebrity Torchbearer for the Oman Leg of the 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay. Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman ( Arabic: سلطنة عُمان) is an Arab Country in Southwest Asia on the southeast The 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay was run from March 24 until August 8, 2008, prior to the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Contents

Early days

Ravi Shastri's career performance graph.
Ravi Shastri's career performance graph.

Shastri's family originally came from Mangalore in Karnataka but he was born and brought up in Mumbai[4], then called Bombay. Mangalore ( Kannada:, Mangalūru; Tulu: Kudla, ಕುಡ್ಲ Konkani: Kodial, ಕೊಡಿಯಾಲ್ Karnataka (ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ pronounced) is a state in the southern part of India Mumbai ( Marathi:,, IPA: formerly Bombay, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the financial His father, Jayadratha Shastri, was a doctor and the family had a strong academic tradition. It was only as a teenager that he took cricket up seriously. Shastri reached the final of the 1974 inter–school Giles Shield with the Don Bosco school in Matunga, Mumbai, losing to St Mary's, whose lineup included two future Ranji players, Shishir Hattangadi and Jignesh Sanghani. Matunga is the name of a railway station on the Mumbai Suburban Railway network The Ranji Trophy is a domestic First-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides equivalent to the County Championship The next year, under Shastri's captaincy, Don Bosco won the Giles Shield. Shastri set a record for the highest score in the final, which stood for 27 years. [5]

At school, his coach was BD Desai, once a Tatas and Dadar Union player. While Don Bosco was not traditionally a major force in schools cricket, the R.A. Podar College, where Shastri later studied commerce, produced many good cricketers. Rāmniranjan Ānandilāl Podār College of Commerce and Economics, popularly known simply as Podar College, is affiliated with the University of Mumbai, Mumbai Commerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer Vasant Amladi and, in particular, VS "Marshall" Patil, were integral figures in Shastri's development as a cricketer. In his last year at the junior college, he was selected to represent Bombay in the Ranji trophy[6]. The Mumbai cricket team is a Cricket team representing the city of Mumbai in Indian domestic cricket At 17 years and 292 days, he was then the youngest cricketer to play for Bombay.

An Indian under–19 team was scheduled to tour Pakistan in 1980–81. Shastri was included in the coaching camp at the last minute by the National Coach Hemu Adhikari. Colonel Hemchandra (Hemu Ramachandra Adhikari (born 31 July 1919 in Pune, Maharashtra &mdash died 25 October 2003 in Mumbai, Maharashtra was an Shastri captained one of the two teams in a trial game and was then asked to lead the Indian Under-19 team. The tour, however, was cancelled. The team later went to Sri Lanka, but the games were frequently interrupted by rain. [7]

His only notable achievement in his first two Ranji seasons were bowling figures of 6-61, which he took against Delhi in the 1979–80 Ranji final that Bombay lost. While he was playing against Uttar Pradesh at Kanpur in the next season, he was called up to the squad touring New Zealand to stand in for the injured left arm spinner Dilip Doshi. Green Park Stadium is a 45000 capacity floodlit multi-use stadium located in Kanpur, India, and the home of the Uttar Pradesh cricket team. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Dilip Rasiklal Doshi (born December 22, 1947, Rajkot, Gujarat) is a former Indian Cricketer who played in 33 Tests Shastri arrived in Wellington the night before the first Test. Wellington (ˈwælɪŋtən is the Capital of New Zealand, the country's second largest urban area, the His first over in Test cricket was a maiden to the New Zealand captain Geoff Howarth. Geoffrey (Geoff Philip Howarth (born 29 March 1951, Auckland) was a New Zealand Cricketer who remains the only New Zealand captain In the second innings, he took 3 wickets in four balls, all to catches by Dilip Vengsarkar, to bring a quick close to the New Zealand innings. Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar (born 6 April 1956 in Rajapur Maharashtra) is an Indian Cricketer and cricket administrator The New Zealand cricket team, also known as the Black Caps or BLACKCAPS, played their first Test in 1929-30 against England in Christchurch In the third Test, his seven wickets won him the man of the match award, while his 15 wickets in the series were the highest for either side. In the sport of Cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings Meanings of wicket Set of stumps Primarily the wicket


Career record First-class List A
Matches 245 278
Runs scored 13,202 6,383
Batting average 44. First-class cricket refers to the class of Cricket matches of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players and officially adjudged first-class by NightMatchOldTraffordjpg|right|thumb|350px|A night match at Old Trafford. Batting average is a Statistic in both Cricket and Baseball measuring the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters, respectively 00 31. 13
100s/50s 34/66 6/38
Top score 217 138*
Balls bowled 41,653 11,966
Wickets 5,09 254
Bowling average 32. A cricket ball is a hard solid Ball used to play Cricket. Manufacture Cricket balls are made from a core of cork, which is layered In the sport of Cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings Meanings of wicket Set of stumps Primarily the wicket Bowling average is a Statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the Sport of Cricket. 89 32. 18
5 wickets in innings 18 5
10 wickets in match 3 n/a
Best Bowling 9/101 5/13
Catches/Stumpings 141 84
As of 24 June 2005
Source: Cricketarchive
Edit this template



International cricket

Within eighteen months of his Test debut, he had moved up from tenth position in the batting order to being an opening batsman. In the sport of Cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings Meanings of wicket Set of stumps Primarily the wicket An inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of Sports &ndash most notably Cricket and Baseball during In the sport of Cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings Meanings of wicket Set of stumps Primarily the wicket For other uses see Stump (disambiguation Stump is a term used in the Sport of Cricket where has three different meanings Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In Cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen go to the Crease to bat His calm, sensible batting lower in the order, wrote Wisden, commenting on his first series,[8] raised promise of his developing into a useful all–rounder, and his fielding too was an asset. The Wisden Group was a group of companies formed by John Wisden & Co Ltd publishers of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. Fielding in the Sport of Cricket is what fielders do to collect the ball when it is struck by the Batsman, in such a way as to either By the end of his career, he had batted in every position from one to ten. By his own admission[6], he ignored his bowling in favour of his batting. This was reflected in his performances. However, his figures of 9-101 in the season–opening 1981 Irani Trophy stood as a tournament record for nearly twenty years. The Irani Trophy tournament was conceived during the 1959-60 season to mark the completion of 25 years of the Ranji Trophy championship and was named after the late Z

It was the failure of the regular openers Pranab Roy and Ghulam Parkar that led to Shastri being made to open at the Oval against England in 1982. Pranab Roy (born February 10, 1957, Kolkata, Bengal) is a former Indian Cricketer who played in 2 Tests Ghulam Ahmed Hasan Mohammed Parkar (born October 25, 1955, Kaluste, Maharashtra) is a former Indian Cricketer who played The Oval PavilionJPG|250px|right|thumb|The Members Pavilion]] The Oval is an international Cricket ground in Kennington, London He distinguished himself by scoring 66 runs in that match. the Sport of Cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a Batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen (plus An injury in the webbing of his hand ruled him out of four of the Tests to be played in Pakistan. Webbing is a strong fabric woven as a flat strip or tube of varying width and Fibers often used in place of Rope. Forced again to open in the final Test at Karachi, against the fast bowling of Imran Khan (then at the peak of his career), he scored his first Test hundred. A national stadium is a Stadium that typically serves as the primary or exclusive home for one or more of a country's national representative sports teams Imran Khan Niazi ( عمران خان نیازی) (born November 25 1952) is a Pakistani Cricketer and politician He later made another hundred against the West Indies in Antigua. The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as The Windies or The West Indies, is a multi-national Cricket team representing Antigua Recreation Ground is the National stadium of Antigua and Barbuda. Indian Cricket 1983 was impressed enough to suggest that, given time, he could become the one of the best batsmen in the Indian team[9]. Indian Cricket was a cricket yearbook published by The Hindu.

Shastri was not selected to play in most of the important matches in the 1983 World Cup. The 1983 Cricket World Cup (aka Prudential Cup, 1983 was the third edition of the tournament In the series against the West Indies later that year, he again distinguished himself with his bold effort in batting against the domineering West Indian pace bowlers.

The glorious winter

In October 1984, India toured Pakistan for the third time in six years. Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) The Indian cricket team is an international Cricket team representing India. Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and The Lahore Test saw India collapse to 156 against Pakistan's 428, and follow on. Gaddafi Stadium is a Test cricket ground in Lahore, Pakistan. The Pakistan National Cricket Team is an international Cricket team representing Pakistan. Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven It is known for its rich terminology India went into the last day trailing by 92 with six wickets in hand but were saved by a fifth wicket partnership of 126 between Shastri and Mohinder Amarnath. Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven It is known for its rich terminology Mohinder Amarnath (born September 24, 1950, Patiala, India) is a former international cricketer (1969-1989 from India Shastri scored 71, while Amarnath made 101*. Shastri was even more successful in the next Test at Faisalabad, where he scored 139 and shared a stand of 200 with Sandip Patil. Iqbal Stadium is a Test cricket ground in Faisalabad, Pakistan. Sandeep Madhusudan Patil (born August 18, 1956, Bombay, now Mumbai is a former cricketer who played for India between 1980 and 1986 The last Test and the remainder of the tour were cancelled because of the assassination of Indira Gandhi. Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi ( Indirā Priyadarśinī Gāndhī) ( Née: Nehru (19 November 1917 - 31 October 1984 was the Prime Minister of the

There were already signals that Shastri was being groomed as a future captain. Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was coming to the end of his career and Kapil Dev, who had led India in the previous season, was expected to succeed him. Sunil Manohar Gavaskar ( Marathi:सुनिल मनोहर गावसकर (born 10 July 1949 in Bombay, Maharashtra) nicknamed Sunny Kapil Dev Ramlal Nikhanj ( कपिल देव) ( (born 6 January 1959 Chandigarh) better known as Kapil Dev, is a former Indian cricketer Shastri appeared to be the next in line. He led the Young India side to Zimbabwe in early 1984. Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) Against the touring English side in November, he led the India Under–25 to an innings win - the first defeat of England in a tour match in India for fifty years. The England cricket team is the national cricket team which represents England and Wales.

Around this time, Shastri also began to open the innings regularly in one day games. NightMatchOldTraffordjpg|right|thumb|350px|A night match at Old Trafford. He scored 102 against Australia in October – India's second hundred in ODIs – and made the same score against England at Cuttack in December. The Indian cricket team is an international Cricket team representing India. The England cricket team is the national cricket team which represents England and Wales. Trivia Kapil Dev bagged his 300th test wicket when he bowled Rumesh Ratnayake in January 1987 The Stadium hosted matches in both the World Cups Shastri had stood in for Gavaskar and opened with Srikkanth in two matches of the 1983 World Cup. The 1983 Cricket World Cup (aka Prudential Cup, 1983 was the third edition of the tournament The third time that they opened, they set a world record of 188 for the first wicket. Later in the season, this partnership was to form the foundation for the Indian triumph in the WCC in Australia.

Shastri's success continued in Test matches against England. In the Bombay Test his 235 run stand with wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani led to victory for India (it is still the national record for the seventh wicket). Ground Facts and Figures Capacity 40000 Floodlights Yes End names Garware Pavilion End Tata End Curator Sudhir Cricket wicket keeperjpg|thumb|300px|A wicket-keeper in characteristic position ready to face a delivery Syed Mujtaba Hussain Kirmani (born December 29 1949 in Madras) played Cricket for the India and Karnataka as a His 142 improved upon the 139 at Faisalabad as his highest score.

In the third Test at Calcutta, Shastri made 111 in 357 balls and 455 minutes, though his innings was heavily interrupted by rain. Ground Facts and Figures Floodlights: Yes End names: High Court End Club House End Home team(s: Bengal India Kolkata Knight With Mohammad Azharuddin he added 214 for the fifth wicket, another Indian record. Mohammad Azharuddin (born 8 February 1963 Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh) is a former captain of the Indian cricket team. When India started the second innings late in the final day, he was sent in to open, thus becoming one of the few batsmen to bat on all five days of a Test.

Shastri set another record for Bombay against Baroda in a West Zone Ranji match. His first hundred came up in 72 minutes and 80 balls and included nine fours and four sixes. The second took just 41 minutes and 43 balls. His 123 ball, 113 minute 200* became the fastest double hundred in first class history, beating the previous record by 7 minutes, and included 13 fours and 13 sixes. Six of the sixes came off a single over of the left arm spinner Tilak Raj. Tilak Raj (born January 15 1960 in Delhi) is a former Indian Cricketer who played for Baroda and Delhi. In terms of the number of sixes, it bettered the 58 year old Indian record of CK Nayudu who had struck 11 sixes for Hindus against a touring MCC team at Bombay Gymkhana in 1926–7. Cottari Kanakaiya Nayudu (31 October 1895 in Nagpur, India – 14 November 1967 Indore, India was India's first Test captain Shastri's unfinished sixth wicket stand of 204* with Ghulam Parkar, who contributed only 33 to the partnership, took only 83 minutes. In Baroda's second innings, Shastri took two wickets in four overs. [10]

The 'Champion of Champions'

Except for a few series in Pakistan and the 1983 World Cup final, the World Championship of Cricket in Australia was the first time overseas cricket matches were shown live in India. The WCC saw India win every match convincingly. The WCC was conceived as a celebration of the 150th year of the formation of Victoria, but the finalists turned out to be India and Pakistan. [11] [10]

Shastri had a slow start to the tournament but finished with fifties in the last three matches. Srikkanth too scored three fifties and India posted century opening stands against Australia and in the final. The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. India went in with two spinners for every match. It helped that all the matches were played at Melbourne and Sydney which have turning tracks and long boundaries. The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG is a sports Stadium in Sydney. Sivaramakrishnan and Shastri claimed 18 wickets between them in five matches.

For his 182 runs and 8 wickets, Shastri was chosen as the man of the series which in this particular tournament was called 'The Champion of Champions'. He won an Audi–100 car for his efforts[12]. By the special order of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Indian customs waived the heavy duty its import would have normally entailed. Rajiv Gandhi राजीव गांधी (raːdʒiːv gaːnd̪ʰiː born in Bombay, (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991 the elder son of Indira and Feroze

Two weeks later India won the Rothman's cup in Sharjah beating Pakistan and Australia. Location The Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium is in the emirate of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. The victory against Pakistan was particularly memorable because India defended a total of only 125. The Pakistan National Cricket Team is an international Cricket team representing Pakistan. Shastri and Siva continued their successful partnership with the ball. It was for this tournament that Shastri served as the Indian vice captain for the first time. Gavaskar had announced his decision to resign his captaincy at the end of the WCC, even before the tournament began. Before the final, former Australian captain Ian Chappell suggested that for the good of Indian cricket, Gavaskar should continue as the captain till Shastri could take over from him[13]. Ian Michael Chappell (born 26 September 1943 is a former Cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia.

The final of the Ranji trophy between Bombay and Delhi began two days after the end of the Sharjah tournament. Gavaskar and Shastri returned via Bahrain, only reaching India the morning of the match. The Kingdom of Bahrain (in مملكة البحرين,, literally Kingdom of the Two Seas) is an Island country in the Persian Gulf Dilip Vengsarkar, another Indian player who was a member of the Mumbai team, who had arrived a day earlier withdrew from the match with a groin injury, which made it imperative that both should play. Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar (born 6 April 1956 in Rajapur Maharashtra) is an Indian Cricketer and cricket administrator

The Ranji final

The Ranji final turned out to be one of the finest matches in Indian domestic cricket history. A sleepy Gavaskar won the toss and batted. He could hardly close his eyes before Bombay was 3 down for 42. Batting at No. 5, he scored his 20th and last hundred in Ranji trophy and took Bombay to 333. Shastri made 29 before he was bowled attempting to cut an arm–ball. An arm ball is a type of delivery in Cricket. It is a variation delivery bowled by an Off spin bowler or slow left-arm orthodox bowler Delhi was in early trouble before they were rescued by Chetan Chauhan, batting with a fractured finger in his last first class match. Chetan Pratap Singh Chauhan ( चेतन प्रताप सिंह चौहान) (born July 21, 1947, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh Ajay Sharma, in his first season, scored a hundred and took Delhi into the lead with nine wickets down. Ajay Kumar Sharma (born April 3, 1964 in Delhi) was a prolific run maker in First Class cricket, mainly for Delhi scoring over 10000 runs at

The rules of the competition specified that in the event of a draw, the team with the first innings lead would be declared the winners. With two days and 100 minutes left, Bombay went for quick runs. A crowd of about 46,000 turned up for match on the fourth day and the organizers ran out of tickets. Shastri top scored with 76 as Bombay set Delhi 300 to win in a day and ninety minutes.

Except for the odd delivery, the ball spun slowly and afforded enough time for the batsmen to play their strokes. Early on the final day, Delhi reached 95 for no loss and then collapsed. His first wicket was Chauhan who was declared out caught behind when a ball spun across the face of the bat without touching it. The match changed dramatically and the batsmen lost their head. Gursharan Singh was lbw playing no stroke, Kirti Azad played on, Surinder Khanna was stumped after a few slogs. Gursharan Singh (born March 8, 1963, Amritsar, Punjab) is a former Indian Cricketer who played in one Test Kirtivardhan Bhagwat Jha Azad (born January 2, 1959, Purnea, Bihar) is a former Indian Cricketer who played in seven Surinder Khanna (born 3 June 1956 in Delhi, India) is a former Indian Cricketer He played domestic cricket for Delhi and Shastri took 8 for 91; Bombay won by 90 runs. In the 50th year of Ranji trophy, it was their 30th title. [14]

The slow descent

Shastri continued as vice captain to Kapil Dev in the 1985–86 season. This season and the England tour of 1986 were ordinary ones for him. After the tour of Australia in 1985–86, he also began to decline as a bowler. Bombay lost to Haryana in the semifinal of the Ranji trophy but West Zone won the Duleep Trophy. The Duleep Trophy is a domestic First-class cricket competition played in India between teams representing geographical zones of India His major contribution was as a bowler in the semifinal against North Zone on a flat wicket at Trivandrum. Like in the Ranji final, North looked the likely winner going into the last day, before he took 8 for 145.

Australia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan toured India in 1986–87. Shastri played a crucial role in the Tied Test at Madras against Australia, scoring 62 and 48*. Tied Test refers to two matches of Test cricket, the first in 1960 and the second in 1986 both of which ended as a tie: that is the aggregate scores of both teams The M A Chidambaram Stadium is a cricket stadium in Chennai (formerly Madras India, named after M The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. His second innings runs came in 36 balls. When Indian middle order collapsed and India fell behind the run rate, his two sixes in quick succession off off–spinner Greg Matthews came in handy. Off spin is a type of bowling in the Sport of Cricket which is bowled by an off spinner a right-handed spin bowler who Gregory Richard John Matthews (born 15 December 1959 in Newcastle New South Wales) is a former New South Wales and Australian Cricketer In the final Test at Bombay he scored 121*. As was becoming increasingly common, it was played in first and fourth gear. He hung around for around 30 minutes for the last run for his fifty and twice as long in the nineties. Yet he hit six sixes, three of which came after he completed his hundred. The huge six off left arm fast bowler Bruce Reid – a cross batted heave that went over longon – was particularly memorable. Bruce Anthony Reid (born 14 March 1963 Perth, Australia is an Australian Cricketer and bowling coach of the Indian national cricket team on their 2003-04 Six sixes in an innings was an Indian record at the time. But he was outshone by Dilip Vengsarkar who scored 164* in the same innings. Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar (born 6 April 1956 in Rajapur Maharashtra) is an Indian Cricketer and cricket administrator They added a record 298* for the sixth wicket.

He scored hundreds in the quarter final and semifinal of the Duleep trophy, but West Zone lost to South on first innings lead in the latter match. Shastri's only other score over fifty in the season was a particularly dull 125 against Pakistan in the Jaipur Test. The Sawai Mansingh Stadium is a Cricket stadium in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. He did well enough to be the man of the one day series. In the first one day match against Pakistan he captained India for the first time, scoring 50 and taking three wickets. He took four wickets at Calcutta and 69* at Hyderabad in two thrilling finishes. The Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium is a cricket stadium in Hyderabad India. Later at Nagpur with India facing a big target, he scored 52 in 40 balls. Records Test Highest team total: 609/6 dec by India against Zimbabwe in 2000/01

In early 1987, he presented a 15 minute coaching series which went by the name 'That's Cricket'. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) This was aired on the national channel Doordarshan on Sunday mornings. Doordarshan (दूरदर्शन literally Tele-Vision) is the public television broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati, a public There were even rumours of an involvement with actress Amrita Singh. Amrita Singh (born 9 February 1958) is an Indian Film actress. [15]

County cricket

In 1987, Glamorgan contracted Shastri to play for them. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Glamorgan County Cricket Club (Criced Morgannwg is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national Cricket structure He stayed with them until 1991, with a break in 1990 due to India's tour of England. Year 1991 ( MCMXCI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar. Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) Shastri's presence did little for the fortunes of the county which finished at the bottom of the first class table in two of those seasons. Shastri topped 1000 runs in 1989 and scored hundreds in both innings against Middlesex. Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic Cricket structure representing the historic county His best bowling performance of 7 for 49 (11 for 90) in the match came against Lancashire in 1988, where he got bounce and turn and was 'unplayable' according to Wisden. The almanack noticed that Shastri was already becoming reluctant to bowl.

1988 was by far the best of the seasons for Glamorgan in one day matches. They finished 5th in the Sunday League – up from 14 in 1987 – and reached the semifinal of the Benson & Hedges Cup. Shastri won the leading six hitter award for the Sunday league matches of 1988 with 14 sixes. He was part of the MCC team that played a Rest of the World team in the MCC bicentennial match at Lord's in 1987. Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC is a private members' club founded in 1787 Lord's Cricket Ground (generally known as Lord's) is a cricket

Always the bridesmaid

India lost the final Test at Bangalore to lose the 1986–87 series against Pakistan. Records Test Match Records Highest innings total India 626/all out - India vs Pakistan 3rd Test in Bangalore Highest individual score 267 Kapil Dev was widely cricticised in the media for his captaincy. The selectors retained him as captain in the Reliance World Cup at the beginning of the 1987–88 season. The 1987 Cricket World Cup (aka Reliance World Cup) was the fourth edition of the tournament Shastri failed with the bat in the Reliance Cup but formed a successful bowling partnership with Maninder Singh, another left arm spinner. Maninder Singh (b June 13, 1965, Pune, India) is a former international Cricket player who represented India in 35 Test matches India topped its group but went down to England in the semifinal. Kapil Dev received more cricticisms for skying a catch to deep midwicket when a win was still a possibility.

About this time, Vengsarkar emerged as the strongest candidate to take over from Kapil. He had had a dream run with the bat, starting from the series in England in 1986. In 1987, the newly established Deloitte ratings (the forerunner of the current LG ratings) ranked him the best batsman in the world. The Indian selectors have conventionally leaned towards making the best player of the team the captain. So before the home series against West Indies, Kapil was sacked and Vengsarkar was made the Indian captain. The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as The Windies or The West Indies, is a multi-national Cricket team representing

Vengsarkar had his left arm fractured in the third Test and Shastri captained India for the only time in his Test career. On a turning track in Madras, India won the toss and elected to bat first. Debutant Narendra Hirwani took 16 for 136 as India won by 255 runs to draw the series 1–1. Narendra Deepchand Hirwani (born October 18, 1968 in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh) is a Leg spin bowler who played for Apart from this, Shastri did little with bat or ball. West Indies won 7 of the eight one day matches, he was the captain in six of them. Vengsarkar meanwhile picked up a six month ban from BCCI for writing newspaper columns. World Cup 2011 India Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will be jointly hosting the 2011 Cricket World Cup. So Shastri continued as the captain for a three nations tournament in Sharjah in April. Sri Lanka and New Zealand were the other teams and India won easily.

India travelled to West Indies in early 1989. Though a failure overall, Shastri played the best innings by either side in the series. It came at Bridgetown in the second Test. The Kensington Oval is located to the west of the capital-city Bridgetown on the island of Barbados. India trailed by 56 in the first innings and lost the six second innings wickets for 63. Batting at No. 3, Shastri was last out for a courageous 107 out of 251 allout. Looking back at the end of the his career, he was to consider this his finest innings. [16] The bowlers were Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh and Ian Bishop and the pitch, difficult. Malcolm Denzil Marshall ( April 18, 1958 - November 4, 1999) was a West Indian Cricketer Primarily a Fast bowler Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose (born September 21, 1963) nicknamed the 'Little Bird' following on from Joel Garner who was nicknamed "Big Bird" Courtney Andrew Walsh (born October 30, 1962 in Kingston, Jamaica) is a former international Cricketer ( fast bowler Ian Raphael Bishop (born October 24, 1967 in Belmont Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) is a former West Indian Cricketer

On the way back many of the Indian players took part in an exhibition match in USA. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the BCCI suspended the players. Though the suspension was later revoked, Vengsarkar was sacked. Srikkanth became the new captain and Shastri, yet again, the deputy. After an indifferent series in Pakistan, both were excluded from the tour of New Zealand in 1990. Azharuddin led an experimental team which a selector called the 'team of the nineties'. Within a few weeks, the phrase got the status of a joke. Shastri was recalled for the tour to England that summer as the vice-captain.

The Indian Summer

Since 1985, Shastri's career had been in steady decline but he was able to turn it around in 1990. The pitches in England were good for batting and he scored two hundreds in the three Tests. He was now back as an opener. While India faced a huge England score at Lord's, he scored an exact hundred. It wasn't a faultless innings – too often he played and missed and most of the runs came with his usual flicks and nudges. He went to his hundred hitting the English spinner Eddie Hemmings for two fours and a six in an over, and departed immediately attempting another big hit. Edward Ernest Hemmings (known as Eddie) (born February 20, 1949, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire) is a former English

He topped this with 187 at the Oval. Journalist and commentator Harsha Bhogle's description of this innings holds true for many of Shastri's major efforts [17]:

Watching Shastri bat is like admiring the Qutub Minar; tall, timeless, solid. Harsha Bhogle is an Indian Cricket Commentator and Journalist. You admire it for the virtues, not for its style. For nine hours and 21 minutes, he chiselled away the England attack and the sculpture that he left behind represented perseverance and craft. There was the usual stoic, expressionless face under the helmet, but you could see the determination in his eyes as he planted himself at the wicket, struck root and bore fruit.
Only occasionally, the bat wavered in its resolve but the mind put it on the right path again, almost in admonishment, and the bat grew broader and straighter . . . He may never be a Gavaskar, but he at least represents the great man's virtues, even if by proxy. It would be a relief too, to know that he will never throw away his wicket for nobody guards his crease more fiercely.

Following the innings at Oval, Shastri scored his career best score of 217 in the Irani trophy in the opening match of the Indian season and a top score of 88 on a very bad wicket in the Chandigarh Test against Sri Lanka. The Sector 16 Stadium is a Cricket stadium in Chandigarh, India. He carried his bat for 101* against the same opponents in a one day match a week later, reaching the hundred with a two off the last ball. Next year in South Africa's first–ever ODI series on their return to international cricket, he scored 109 at Delhi, his fourth and last one day hundred. A series of abandoned tours meant India played few matches at home at this time.

At the end of 1991, India travelled to Australia for a five Test series, to be followed by the World Cup. Channel 9 dubbed it the Indian Summer. The Nine Network, or Channel Nine, is an Australian television network based in Willoughby, a suburb on the North Shore of Sydney The series was a disaster for India – they lost four of the Tests – and was rife with umpiring controversies. But it also saw the final flourishes in the careers of Shastri and Kapil Dev.

Shastri took 5 wickets for 15 runs against Australia in an early match in the World Series Cup. It was then the best bowling figures by an Indian in ODIs. Note Most of the information here pertains to men's cricket ODI matches are also played in Women's cricket. Most of the wickets were gratuitously earned, though – three batsmen were caught on the legside boundary and another stumped. The leg side, or on side, is defined to be a particular half of the field used to play the Sport of Cricket. Boundary has two distinct meanings in the Sport of Cricket; (i the edge or boundary of the playing field and (ii a manner of scoring In the third Test at Sydney, he scored his only double hundred in Test cricket, the first by an Indian against Australia. He was dropped in the sixties by the Australian leg–spinner Shane Warne, who was making his debut, off his own bowling. Shane Keith Warne (born 13 September 1969 is a former Australian international Cricketer who is widely regarded as one of the Amidst frequent interruptions by rain, he completed his hundred early on the fourth day and a six off Warne brought up the 150. He finally fell to a tired shot at Warne after nine and a half hours, scoring 206 with 17 fours and the two sixes, thus becoming Warne's first Test wicket.

It was also during this innings that the knee injury that would soon end his career appeared for the first time. India had gone into the match with four pace bowlers and no regular spinners. Shastri was little more than a part–time bowler by this time. By the final day, pitch started taking spin. Shastri took four wickets in the second innings and Australia just about beat the clock to draw the match. India could well have won the match with another spinner. [18] [19]

Last days in cricket

The remaining WSC matches followed the Sydney Test. The World Series Cup was the name of the One Day International Cricket tournament that took place in Australia every season between Australia In the second final against Australia Shastri worsened the knee injury. At the later stages of the innings he was forced to stand and slog. After a few quick runs, it ended in an inevitable mishit to cover. He missed the remaining two Test matches, both of which India lost. For a while it seemed doubtful that he would be able to play the World Cup which was being hosted by Australia and New Zealand, but was included at the last moment. The 1992 Cricket World Cup (aka Benson & Hedges World Cup) was the fifth edition of the tournament and was won by Pakistan

In their second match, India chased 238 to win in 50 overs against Australia. A rain interruption meant that the target was revised to 236 in 47 overs. Shastri took 67 balls for his 25; India went on to lose by one run. He was blamed for the defeat and dropped from the remaining matches of the tournament.

In the next season, South Africa hosted India for their first ever tour. Shastri opened in all four Tests and struggled to score runs. The only bright spot was a 16 ball 27* in India's one day win at Centurion park. He had batted down the order in the one day matches of this series. In reference to the World Cup innings against Australia, he commented later that for once he knew what his exact role was.

India hosted England immediately after the South Africa series. The knee injury returned before the series and put Shastri out of cricket for eight months. He never again represented India in international cricket.

Bombay breezed through the West Zone league of the 1993–94 Ranji trophy winning all four matches – a very rare feat [20] – by big margins. With the Test players away, Shastri captained the young team in the knockout matches. Bombay defeated Haryana by an innings and 202 runs in the pre quarter final but ran into trouble against Karnataka in the next round. Against 406, Bombay lost their first six for 174, before Shastri and Sairaj Bahutule added 259 in six hours. Sairaj Bahutule (born January 6, 1973 in Bombay - now Mumbai) is an Indian Cricketer He is an allrounder who specializes in leg Shastri's individual score was 151. Bombay survived the best part of the last day to win on first innings lead. Shastri scored 612 runs in the season and took 17 wickets at 15. Bombay went on to beat Bengal in a low scoring final to lift the Ranji trophy. It was their first championship since the famous win against Delhi nine years ago.

In September 1994, while in Sri Lanka covering the Singer World Series, Shastri announced his retirement from first class cricket. Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island

In late 1990, Shastri married Ritu Singh. He made his debut as a TV commentator with the World Masters Tournament in Mumbai in March 1995[3]. He soon became one of the prominent commentators of the ESPN–Star sports channel ( listen (help·info) ). ESPN, originally an acronym for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, is an American Cable television network dedicated to STAR Sports is a cable sports network owned by STAR TV. It shows sports programs Shaz and Waz, his talk show with Wasim Akram, was a very popular program. Wasim Akram ( Urdu: وسیم اکرم) (born June 3, 1966 in Lahore, Punjab) is a former Pakistani Cricketer In 2003, he collaborated in starting up Showdiff Worldwide, a celebrity management company. Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. He has since served ICC and BCCI in temporary official capacities and as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Some of his temporary shows, such as Super Spells, still run Star Sports and related channels. He and fellow commentator Sunil Gavaskar ended their long-term associations with ESPN-STAR Sports in April 2008 as they were contracted by the BCCI as commentators for the lucrative Indian Premier League which is being broadcast by rival network SONY Max. Sunil Manohar Gavaskar ( Marathi:सुनिल मनोहर गावसकर (born 10 July 1949 in Bombay, Maharashtra) nicknamed Sunny The Indian Premier League (also known as the " DLF Indian Premier League" and often abbreviated as IPL) is a Twenty20 Cricket competition [2]

Facts and Figures

Major teams

Official Tours

Other tours

Miscellaneous

See also

Notes

References

  1. ^ Some interesting trademark shots. The Hindu. The Hindu is a single-edition English-language Indian newspaper Retrieved on 2007-05-02. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1194 - King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.
  2. ^ Restraint is the essence. The Hindu. The Hindu is a single-edition English-language Indian newspaper Retrieved on 2007-05-02. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1194 - King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.
  3. ^ a b c Raju Bharatan, "Ravi Shastri : Always 'on the ball'", Special Portrait, Indian Cricket 2002.
  4. ^ Sandeep Bamzai, Guts & Glory: The Bombay Cricket Story
  5. ^ Report of Sanket Chavan improving Shastri's Giles shield record
  6. ^ a b Javed Akhtar, The Young Veteran, Interview with Ravi Shastri, World of Cricket, April 1986
  7. ^ Pradeep Vijayakar, Cricketer of the Year article, Indian Cricket 1981
  8. ^ Wisden review of India in New Zealand 1980–81
  9. ^ Indian Cricket 1983, p. 3, in the review of the tour of West Indies
  10. ^ a b c Indian Cricket 1985
  11. ^ Sunil Gavaskar, One day wonders
  12. ^ An article about the car that Shastri won as the Champion of Champions
  13. ^ David McMahon, Interview with Shastri, Sportsworld 24–30 April, 1985
  14. ^ a b Ayaz Memon, "Bombay pull off a remarkable win", Sportsweek, April 17–23, 1985
  15. ^ BBC/Indiatimes interview
  16. ^ Interview with Cricinfo in 1994
  17. ^ Harsha Bhogle, The Joy of a Lifetime : India's tour of England 1990
  18. ^ Wisden 1992 (accessed June 25, 2005)
  19. ^ Cricinfo match reports of India in Australia 1991/2 (accessed June 25, 2005)
  20. ^ Indian Cricket 1994. Indian Cricket goes on to say that 1993–4 was the first time that a team won all its matches in the West Zone league but it certainly is not true. Gujarat in 1977-78 is an earlier instance of a team winning all four of its West Zone matches.
  21. ^ Mohandas Menon, Facts and Figures (Ravi Shastri – Special Portrait), Indian Cricket 2002.
  22. ^ ACSSI Cricket Yearbook, 1990–91
  23. ^ Cricketnext article which refers to Shastri's debut as a commentator

External links

Preceded by
Dilip Vengsarkar		 Indian National Test Cricket Captain
1987/88 (1 Test Match)		 Succeeded by
Dilip Vengsarkar
Preceded by
Greg Chappell		 Indian Cricket Team Coach/Manager
2007- 2007		 Succeeded by
Chandu Borde
Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar (born 6 April 1956 in Rajapur Maharashtra) is an Indian Cricketer and cricket administrator This is a list of all cricketers who have captained Indian national cricket team at the international level Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar (born 6 April 1956 in Rajapur Maharashtra) is an Indian Cricketer and cricket administrator Gregory Stephen Chappell, MBE (born 7 August 1948 in Unley South Australia) is a former cricketer who captained Australia between 1975 and 1977 and then joined the Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Chandrakant Gulabrao "Chandu" Borde (born July 21 1934 in Poona, now Pune is a Cricketer who was a member of the Indian team between 1958 and
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