Lara’s captaincy made the difference, says Gavaskar

“I think the credit for the West Indies turnaround has to be given to Brian Lara,” said Gavaskar on Wednesday night. “He had gone on record saying that there was a remark made by (India’s coach) Greg Chappell that motivated him and the team that played the way that they did.

“But I think that’s easier said than done,” he continued. “At the end of the day, having lost the first match, I think you’ve got to try to make the team believe in itself.

Gavaskar added, “I think that’s what Brian has done. More importantly, the way he has made some moves have been brilliant.”

The 56-year-old Gavaskar was the feature speaker at the third annual Sonny Ramadhin Distinguished Cricket Lecture, which took place at the Learning Resource Centre, University of the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine campus.

Concerning the four-Test series, which bowls off in Antigua today, Gavaskar noted, “if the West Indies can win a one-day series without a century from Brian Lara, then if he gets a hundred, and remember (they) are playing the first Test in Antigua, then India could be in trouble.”

The former India captain and opening batsman spoke on a variety of topics, including slow over-rates, pitches, one-day cricket (and the recent rules implemented in the shortened version), technology, Duckworth/Lewis system, time-wasting and 20/20 cricket.

On the issue of one-day cricket, Gavaskar opined, “ironically, what was supposed to be Test cricket’s nemesis, one-day cricket, is the one that has saved Test cricket, because of one-day cricket, you now see more shots being played, less ‘dot’ balls, more sixes and look at the improvement in the fielding standards and the running between the wickets.

He added, “unless, and until, you have a pitch that gives the batsman the chance to play their shots (and) the bowlers the opportunity to try something different, you are going to have one-sided matches.”

The chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) cricket committee noted, “we’ve tried the power-play, we’ve tried the super-sub (but) it suffered from the fact a lot of captains decided, even before trying it out, that it wasn’t a great idea.”

In his view, Gavaskar pondered about the scrapping of leg-byes (“it’s penalising the fielding side for no fault of theirs. The run should be scored only off the bat.”) and extra runs if the ball is deflected off the stumps after a direct hit by a fielder. “These are things that would take a while to happen. But hopefully they would happen soon,” he stated.

While he is encouraged by the growth of 20/20 cricket, Gavaskar pointed out that it should be implemented in the ICC associate nations (China, Malaysia, Netherlands, Scotland) to increase the public support within those territories.

He also touched on the 1983 World Cup final at Lord’s, London, where India, defending a total of 183 in 60 overs, dismissed the Windies (who were chasing a hat-trick of titles) for 140.

“In the dressing room, all we said (were) ‘we’re in the World Cup finals for the first time, let’s go out and enjoy ourselves out there and let’s make it hard for the West Indies to win.’

“(Viv) Richards’ wicket was a crucial wicket, that catch by Kapil Dev (at midwicket off Madan Lal) was outstanding and the match turned completely over its head,” Gavaskar continued.

Ramadhin, who was born at St Charles Village, South Trinidad in 1929, was an off-spinner who, alongside Jamaican left-arm spinner Alfred Valentine, demolished the English batsmen during their debut series in 1950.

Virtual unknowns before they were selected on the West Indies touring party, Ramadhin took 26 wickets at an average of 23.23 while Valentine had 33 at 20.42 in four Tests as the visitors prevailed 3-1.

The first person of East Indian descent to represent the Windies, Ramadhin was known for his dapper appearance, with his shirt-sleeves always buttoned at the wrist while he bowled wearing a cap, which he used to touch to indicate which delivery was imminent.

In 43 Tests - he bowed out after the memorable 1960/61 tour of Australia - Ramadhin captured 158 wickets at an average of 28.98 while, throughout his first-class career (1950-1965), he snared 758 wickets in 184 matches at 20.24.

Ramadhin, who played for a number of years in Lancashire, England, now resides in the district but is currently suffering from both arthritis and diabetes.

“Having seen some clips of Ramadhin, it’s clear to me now he was the first bowler to bowl the ‘doosra’,” Gavaskar noted. “I don’t think too many batsmen in those days picked him.

“One of the reasons for his great success against England was the fact that not many batsmen could read him and they were just playing down the line, making some educated guess as to which way the ball would turn,” Gavaskar added.

Gavaskar, a compact right-handed opener, made his Test debut during India’s 1971 tour to the Caribbean — the last time they won a Test series on these shores — and became the first batsman to cross the 10,000-Test run barrier.

In 125 Tests, he tallied 10,122 runs at an average of 51.12 with 34 centuries, 45 half-centuries and a top-score of 236 not out. His 34 hundreds was also a world record until it was eclipsed by his countryman Sachin Tendulkar last year.

The function also featured a performance by calypsonian Lord Relator (Willard Harris), who sang Lord Beginner’s “Those Little Pals of Mine” (dedicated to Ramadhin and Valentine), “ICC Champions 2004” and “Gavaskar, the Real Master”.