Coup De Theatre

DON'T MESS WITH LAWYERS

THE allocation of the '87 Cup to India and Pakistan was a triumph of anti-colonialism. BCCI president N.K.P. Salve had been given a ticket for the '83 final, to be played at Lord's. When his team unexpectedly qual-ified, Salve asked the MCC for an extra ticket as his wife had flown out to join him. It refused, whereupon he set about organising ICC's associate members in a revolt that led eventually to the Cup being shifted out of England.

This is the version given out in The Story of the Reliance Cup, a book released by Salve just before that Cup began. The parallels with another rebuff aren't hard to establish. Back in 1896, and in the South African town of Pieter-maritzburg, one M.K. Gandhi had been thrown out by an Englishman from a train compartment for which he had (or so he thought) bought a legitimate ticket. His rebellion was slower in coming, for it was a full 51 years before he was to successfully throw his persecutors out of India.

The moral for the white man—never mess around with an Indian lawyer.

TIGERS ON THE PROWL

I spent the two years prior to the Reliance Cup in New Haven, Connecticut, playing tennis and watching baseball. While I was away, India beat England in a Test series in England and were beaten by Pakistan at home, momentous events I only learnt of when the desi papers came, two weeks late, to my university library. When I returned home, I was hungry for cricket, any kind of cricket. Living in Bangalore, and with relatives in nearby Madras, I was lucky enough to watch two of the World Cup matches live.

The others I watched on the box. This was for me, as it must have been for millions of Indians, the first sustained exposure to the limited-overs game. What struck me was the quality of the fielding. I remember Azhar at point and Maninder at square leg, stopping and throwing as one didn't believe Indians ever could. The best slow bowler of the tourney, John Traicos, impressed as much with his brilliant fielding off his own bowling as with the control of his offspin. The innings of the Cup was played by another Zimbabwean, David Houghton. This chain smoker and ex-hockey international scored 141 in 137 balls against the Kiwis, taking his side to within four runs of victory. His knock, and his side's chances, were ended by a stupendous catch by Martin Crowe, running back 20 yards from mid-on to catch a high-swirling skier.

MEN FROM DOWN UNDER

BOTH matches I watched were fiercely contested. In Madras (not renamed then), a ton by Geoff Marsh took Australia to 270. Sidhu and Gavaskar counter-attacked brilliantly, but the middle order (as ever) didn't deliver. My fellow townsman Roger Binny came in with about 10 to get in two overs, three wickets still standing. 'Come on Roger', I yelled, attracting cold looks from the Tamils (their Srikkanth was long out). Roger drove his first ball to mid-on, and set off for a comfortable single. Except that the midwicket fielder, Allan Border, intercepted the ball, took aim as if he was playing marbles in Daryaganj, and set two stumps flying at the bowler's end. 'Cumm ohn Rogers', drawled a Tamil behind me, slowly, in my ear. India lost by one run.

In Bangalore, India batted first to post 252. The Kiwi chase depended on Crowe. He came in at No.4, played his first ball down at his feet, called 'one' and set off for the other end (Bradman too liked to get off the mark at once).Then came the fours, cuts behind point and drives wide of midwicket. Kapil brought on Maninder, who did Crowe in with flight, and had him stumped. Replays showed More hadn't properly gathered the ball, which was out of his gloves when he broke the wicket. Had the institution of the third umpire been in place then, Crowe would still be batting at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

GUJARATI GLOBALISM

THE '87 edition was sponsored by Dhirubhai Ambani, whom we might, without fear of offence, refer to as the most influential Gujarati since the death of Vallabhbhai Patel. India had within its ranks one resident of Gujarat, the keeper. Except that, being from the Gaekwads' Bar-oda, he spoke Marathi. But Ambani needn't have worried. His language was spoken on the field when the Kiwis played Zimbabwe, and Babu Memon bowled to Dipak Patel.