ON THIS DAY
Follow UsOver the decades, the ardent Indian cricket team fans have faced disappointments aplenty onfield and have seemingly forgiven most of them. However, while it's less difficult to let go of something like poor performance - like the Men in Blue's elimination from the 2007 ICC ODI World Cup group stages or the team's disappointing run in the 2021 T20 World Cup and many more - it is the lack of intent that keeps pricking at the heart like a thorn for a long time.
This dagger, unfortunately, was stabbed by one of their most beloved - Sunil Gavaskar. Counted among the most celebrated Indian cricketers and inarguably the first cricketing superstar from the subcontinent, Gavaskar shocked the world on June 7, 1975, while playing an excruciatingly slow inning that resulted in a mammoth 202 runs victory for England in the first-ever Cricket World Cup.
Batting first, England had put up a nearly unachievable target off 335 runs in 60 overs at the back of a brilliant 137-run knock by Dennis Amiss. India’s Karsan Ghavri was the most expensive bowler of the day after conceding 83 runs in 11 overs.
In India's defence, limited-overs cricket wasn't their forte back then. The Indian team had played just two ODIs prior to the Prudential World Cup, both of which ended in heavy defeats against England. However, while their lack of experience in 60-over cricket justified their loss, nothing could explain Gavaskar's batting approach in the second innings.
Requiring a run rate of 5.58 per over, fans expected Gavaskar and company to go all gung-ho at the English bowlers at the Lord's, but the Indian team ended with a run rate of 2.20 as they could make with just 132 runs in 60 overs in response while losing only three wickets.
Though Gavaskar had scored just 48 runs prior to that game in ODIs, his mercurial form in Test cricket was a big reason for Indian fans to be hopeful. He tallied 1373 runs from 1971 to 1974 and was India’s best batsman by a mile. Hence, his knock of 36 runs after facing 174 balls stunned his fellow teammates and the English players. So frustrating was Gavaskar's batting that BBC commentator Ted Dexter said, "Nothing short of a vote of censure by the ICC would have satisfied me if I had paid good money through the turnstiles only to be short-changed by such a performance."
Sunil Gavaskar was heavily criticised post-game, but nothing could explain his batting that day. Even Gavaskar's comment in his book Sunny Days remained unclarified, where he stated, “There were occasions I felt like moving away from the stumps so I would be bowled. This was the only way to get away from the mental agony from which I was suffering. I couldn't force the pace, and I couldn't get out. Towards the end, I was playing mechanically."
Almost everyone labelled this inning a selfish one. While Gharvi had explained that Gavaskar knew the target was unattainable and decided to play his own way, manager Ramchand had blasted Gavaskar in front of the Daily Express, stating, “It was the most disgraceful and selfish performance I have ever seen… his excuse [to me] was, the wicket was too slow to play shots, but that was a stupid thing to say after England had scored 334. The entire party is upset about it. Our national pride is too important to be thrown away like this.”
While the main reason is still unknown to the world even after 48 years, Gavaskar maintains that he wasn't in the right frame of mind on that fateful day. Such was the agony that he wanted to return to the dressing room after an edge early on in the match, but the fielding team didn't appeal.
“It is something that, even now I really can't explain. If you looked back at it, you'd actually see in the first few overs some shots which I'd never want to see again - cross-batted slogs. I wasn't overjoyed at the prospect of playing non-cricketing shots, and I just got into a mental rut after that," Gavaskar had explained years later.
“There were occasions I felt like moving away from the stumps so I would be bowled. This was the only way to get away from the mental agony from which I was suffering. I couldn't force the pace, and I couldn't get out.
“I keep tossing and turning around about it now. I asked myself, 'Why the hell did I not walk the second ball? I was caught behind and would have been out for zero. But nobody appealed..."
The lack of explanation also led to many theories, with some stating Gavaskar wasn’t happy with the team selection where seamers replaced the spinners. There were also rumours that the selection of Srinivas Venkataraghavan as the team captain irked Gavaskar.
Whatever the reason, Gavaskar was never riled up for this particular innings, as he would later end his career with 3092 runs in 108 ODI matches, which had one century and as many as 27 half-centuries.
