The first time I met Tiger Pataudi was in October 1961. We met in his rooms at Balliol College in Oxford. He had invited some friends to listen to some Indian classical music. He provided the accompaniment on the tabla. Tiger, by then, was already the most famous student at Oxford. The Nawab of Pataudi was rated as the best batsman to have ever played for Oxford. He was without doubt something of a legend at Oxford. He cut a dashing figure, with his aristocratic features. But what made him special was the kind of cricket he played. Cavalier, swashbuckling, flamboyant—these are some of the words that come to mind.
A close friend and contemporary of ours at Oxford, Mueen Afzal, had this to say about Tiger, whom we affectionately referred to as the ‘Noob’: “Sad to hear of the death of the original Noob. The year 1961 was when he was at his best. I was fortunate to see him bat against the leading bowlers in English cricket: Statham, Trueman, Titmus, Illingworth, Tattersall, Wilson et al. That summer the Aussies came to Oxford and played the varsity on the Christ Church grounds on Iffley Road. Benaud, Mackenzie and some others played, although Davidson was rested. The Noob found the bowling no trouble at all. When the bowlers brought midwicket or mid-on in, he would go down the wicket and place the ball over their heads to the boundary. His fielding was outstanding in the covers and his throw would come in like a bullet.”
While still at Oxford, Tiger was selected to play for India at the ripe old age of 20. He was then involved in a terrible car accident and lost the sight of his right eye. The entire cricketing world thought that Tiger’s cricket-playing days were over. Well, Tiger had other plans. He was back at the nets. Not only did he play for India within months of the accident but was selected for the tour of the West Indies in 1962—where he eventually was to become, at the age of 21, the youngest person to captain a Test side in history.
During my stay in Delhi as high commissioner from 1992-1995, I had the pleasure of meeting Tiger on a number of occasions but perhaps my most memorable recollection of him was a cricket match in Lahore in December 1992. I had gone to Lahore to attend the wedding of the daughter of a close Oxford friend of mine, Farid Riaz, who was married to Tiger’s sister. Farid’s son-in-law was none other than the son of Shahryar Khan, ex-foreign secretary of Pakistan, later president of the Pakistan cricket board (and Pataudi’s cousin). The day after the wedding, a cricket match was held on the grounds of Aitchison College. The match was to be between the Bhopal XI, captained by Shahryar Khan, versus the Pataudi XI, captained by Tiger. I was the umpire.
When Tiger came out to bat, there was clearly a great sense of excitement. Then a month short of his 52nd birthday, Tiger had not played cricket for some 15 years. Imagine the disappointment when Tiger was plumb lbw to the third ball he faced. Well, as umpire I emphatically rejected the appeal! The next ball there was a clear snick, but I said ‘no ball’. This surprised the bowler, since he was well within the bowling crease. I was then obliged to inform the bowler that the large crowd present had come to see Tiger bat and not to see him get out. We were then treated to some vintage strokes before Tiger was out for the third time. This time I very reluctantly raised my finger. As he returned to the pavilion, the thought did cross my mind that this was the last time we had seen Tiger bat.
Perhaps the only time Tiger visited Bangladesh was in June 1996. I arranged for him to be invited to join the team of election observers from the Commonwealth. When I rang Tiger in Delhi to ask him whether he would be interested in coming, he said ‘most certainly’. He enjoyed his short trip to Dhaka very much and expressed the hope of getting an opportunity to revisit the city.
Tiger Pataudi and his beautiful, talented and charming wife Sharmila have a multitude of fans in Bangladesh. Newspapers and TV channels in Dhaka were full of reports on Tiger’s death. I am sure I speak for his millions of fans and admirers in Bangladesh when I say Nawab Sahib, you will be sadly missed here in Bangladesh. Our deepest condolences to the family.
(The author was Bangladesh’s High Commissioner to India, 1992-1995)
