Ahmedabad Test - what a fall - from Clive Lloyd 1983 to Roston Chase today !!

 

For the die-hard Indian Cricket fan, it was a big easy win over once mighty West Indies at Ahmedabad. West Indies lost 10 wickets in two sessions on the first day. They did it again on the third day. Only two players got into the 30s. Only two faced 50 or more balls – so the game did not extend to 4^th day !! but conclude before tea on 3^rd day – an innings and 140 runs margin !  Can you identify this Indian wicket keeper batsman ??

 

Experience is the comb that life gives you when you are bald; Age has been the perfect fire extinguisher for flaming youth – famous quote of a man who debuted at this ground !! 

For 12 years + between Feb 2013 – Oct 2024, Indians were unbeatable in home soil – did not lose a single Series but they lost badly, to unlikely opponent New Zealand. Perhaps back to winning ways now !!  

Poetry is the verbal form of transmitting the reflection of the poet. This reflection comes out from the penetration of the poet. This is obtained through his observation of the phenomenal and nominal world. The process of that transmission on its technique or the science may be considered as Alaṃkāraśāstras or Sāhityavidyā. Alaṃkāraśāstra or Sāhityavidyā is the name of the treatises on literary criticism. It is the judgment of poetry, artistic framework of remarkable thoughts and speculations on poetic compositions.  Rājaśekhara etymologically defines it as Sāhityavidyā.  After a digression Rājaśekhara incorporates a charm full fable relating to the origin of poetry (birth of Kāvya-puruṣa).     

The Sabarmati River is one of the major west-flowing rivers in India. It originates in the Aravalli Range of the Udaipur District of Rajasthan and meets the Gulf of Khambhat of the Arabian Sea after travelling 371 km (231 mi) in a south-westerly direction across Rajasthan and Gujarat. Rajashekhara's Kavya-mimamsa (10th century) calls the river Shvabhravati. The 11th century text Shringara-manjari-katha calls it "Sambhramavati" (literally, "full of fickleness"). Gandhi established the Sabarmati Ashram as his home on the banks of this river.  

Is Cricket a game between Bowlers and Batsmen or .. ..  there was a time in mid 1970s, India would struggle to score 250+ and centuries were rare to come ! West Indies were ruling the Cricket World – under Clive Lloyd and a battery of pace bowlers like Boyce, Julian, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Wayne Daniel, Colin Croft, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshal, Winston Davis, Courtney Walsh, Patrick Patterson, Curtly Ambrose, Ian Bishop, Anthony Gray, Winston Benjamin, Anderson Cummins, Kenny Benjamin, Cameron Cuffy to name a few who played later .. ..  that was the time when every Nation feared WI and after every tour to Windies, some would have ended their career in a sour note !  Gone are those days, the present team has nothing comparable to the past deeds !  Sorry, state of affairs as World of Cricket has changed.  

In test match no. 2600 at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, Roston Chase  won the toss, elected to bat and nothing went right. Built on the banks of the Sabarmati river on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, the Sardar Patel Stadium is an imposing structure which can accommodate about 54,000 spectators.  Also known as the Motera, after the place where it is located, the venue hosted its first Test in November 1983 and has been witness to some memorable Indian feats - Sunil Gavaskar got to his 10,000 Test runs here, against Pakistan in 1986-87, and seven years later, Kapil Dev nailed his 432nd victim to go past Richard Hadlee as Test cricket's leading wicket-taker.   

The scorecard reads :  India 448 for 5 (KL Rahul 100, Jurel 125, Jadeja 104*, Rahul Chase 2-90) beat West Indies 162 (Greaves 32, Siraj 4-40, Bumrah 3-42) and 146 (Athanaze 38, Jadeja 4-54, Siraj 3-31) by an innings and 140 runs.  

Another good match for Sir Ravindra Jadeja who is staking claims  to be one of the best allrounders in the game. A four-for to follow a hundred against West Indies to start the new home season was just the latest evidence he offered in favour of that argument. On the back of his 104 not out and 4 for 54, India completed an innings win with two-and-a-half days to spare.  

Alick Athanaze  has been a much highly rated player.   He offered resistance playing 74 balls.    Brian Lara once  called him "the most talented" of West Indies' current batters. Ian Bishop,  suggested Athanaze could be "a leading light in years to come" - this after he had played just one Test innings, and scored 47 against India on his home ground in Dominica.  He is elegant left hander but has not done anything to justify his reputation.   

Tagenarine Chanderpaul, a left-hand batter from Guyana with an unusual technique,   the son of the illustrious Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who amassed more than 10,000 Test runs  also has struggled in test arena and today he was out to a great diving catch by Nitish Kumar Reddy at square leg.   

Losing wickets in heaps, they did not lost full 3 days and are yet to a win a test match in 31 years as they travel to Delhi.  

 

Sunil Gavaskar was the first to cross that great barrier of 5 digit runs in Tests, considered Himalayan those days……. – the bowler was Paki Offie Ejah Fakih and non-striker Kiran More – and it happened at Motera.  In 1995, legendary Kapil Dev claimed his 432nd Test wicket, breaking Sir Richard Hadlee's   

Fresh after the euphoric Prudential World Cup win by Kapil Devils in June 1983, Clive Lloyd toured India and thrashed India.  After a humiliating defeat at Kanpur and a draw at Delhi, third test was here at Motera, Ahmedabad on a newly laid pitch which helped WI pacers more.  

Batting first WI made made 281 with Jeff Dujon’s 98 being the highest.  India after being 127 no loss, were bowled out for 241 with Sunil Gavaskar making 90; Anshuman Gaekwad 39 & Kapil Dev 31.  The Windies pace attack was : Malcolm Marshal, Michael Holding, Wayne Daniel & Winston Davis. 

In the 2^nd – West Indies made 201 thanks to a breezy 58 by tailender Holding.  Lion hearted Kapil Dev had magical figures of 30.3-6 maidens- 83- 9 wickets. The target of 242 was too big as India folded for 103.  No fewer than fifteen wickets fell on the third day. Twelve of them at the pavilion end where the batsmen had to contend with a very rough surface. There was resistance only from Gaekwad, who batted 112 minutes for 29, and from the last pair, Kirmani and Maninder Singh, who added 40 in 81 minutes. Maninder, the last man, was relatively undaunted by some short-pitched bowling. 

Clive Lloyd showed their dominance but the present team is a pale shadow of the older exploits. 

Side steps : Gursharan Singh substituted for Binny (torn back muscle) and became the first person to take four substitute catches in a Test.  Wayne Daniel displayed muscularity and bowled with fire as he had earlier terrorized England in 1976 and returned after WSC 

An year later, in Nov 1984 at Ahmedabad -  a full England team led by David Gower was rattled by Rajinder Singh Ghai, Gopal Sharma and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan in a 3 day match.  India U25 led by Ravi Shastri handed them an innings defeat.  Krish Srikkanth made 92, Mohd Azharuddin made 151 (that catapulted him to a debut at Calcutta); Rangachari Madhavan who could bowl left-arm spin too, remained unbeaten with a 100 but never played for India, though he got another chance to play against England representing South Zone ! 

The quotes are the start are from Navjot Singh Sidhu  who first played in Ahmedabad in 1983, then at Chennai, then had to wait 5 long years for his next of his total of 51 tests.   

In this test, Dhruv Jurel made a century joining the elite list of Indian Wicket-keepers who have scored a test century.  It dates back to Vijay Manjrekar, Budhi Kunderan, Farokh Engineer, Syed Kirmani, Nayan Mongia, Deep Das Gupta, Ajay Ratra (the man at the start), Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Wriddhiman Saha, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul

If you remember, Ajay Ratra made a gritty 115 n.o at Antigua in 2002 and became the youngest WK to score a Test Century and second Indian WK to hit a ton Overseas.  He was just 20 then and it was his 3^rd test .. .. but he eventually lost to Parthiv Patel and with Greg Chappel trying out Rahul Dravid for balance, he was lost, having played just 6 tests  - all in 2002 between 19^th Apr till 5^th Sept 2002.

Regards – S Sampathkumar
4.10.2025