Our Past Pinch-hitting Greats In Cricket
Those of you who have watched Virender Shewag' s swashbuckling innings against Shri Lanka today must have been wondering he is the best ever pinch-hitter in Indian cricket if not in the world. He has already two triple centuries against his name and unfortunately could not complete his third. But that is the way he plays. This gives me the perfect opportunity to remember a few of the the past pinch-hitting greats that Indian cricket produced.
The name that first comes to mind is that of Syed Mushtaq Ali who is considered to be a pioneer in strokeplay and had the rare distinction of being the first Indian to score a ton outside India. And his brand of batting knew no defence he was out and out an aggressive batsman. His entertaining batting drew handsome praise from all his contemporaries especially late Vijay Merchant his opening partner. He just played in 11 tests and 200 hundred first class matches scoring more than 13,000 runs.
Salim Aziz Durani was another dashing pinch-hitter. He was well-known for his big sixes. His love for big shots led him into throwing all caution into the air. I wonder how nicely he would have walked into any T20 side.
The next in line is one of the greatest all-rounders that the game has produced Kapil Dev. Although the cricket world knows him to be a great bowler and an exciting batsman. His pinch-hitting abilities in batting saved many a situation for India. After all who can forget his magnificent 176 scored against Zimbabawe , a world record which was subsequently overhauled. This match is especially memorable because India were precariously placed at one point of the match and Kapil single-handedly won the match for India and helped India to emerge as world champions1
Sandeep Madhusudhan Patil was another batman who left his mark as a pinch-hitter. It is not necessary to go into his career statistics. But one particular match that would remain etched in the memory of all cricket lovers was the treatment he meted to English pacer Bob Willis. In the Manchester Test against England he exhibited his extraordinary pinch-hitting skills he belted Willis for 6 fours in an over consisting of 7 balls and in the over before he hit Ian Botham's last two balls for four and three!!He figured prominently in the world cup winning team
The one figuring last in the list is K. Srikkanth, the former captain. Srikkanth too was a dashing pinch-hitter and a terror to all kinds of bowlers. His aggressive batting style might have attracted many to the cricket field but an overdose of it didn't allow his career to flourish the way many of his admirers might have desire. He was an important member of the world cup winning team.
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