EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE THE HINDU DELHI FRIDAY, JUNE 21, 2019 SPORT 17 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Kapil’s masterpiece — a tipping point in India’s sporting history The legendary cricketer’s unbeaten 175 against Zimbabwe in the 1983 World Cup has a touch of mythical allure to it K.C. Vijaya Kumar Tunbridge Wells A bright Thursday morning, with clear skies and the chirping of birds, was the perfect setting for embarking on a cricketing pilgrimage. Tunbridge Wells is a familiar name to cricket lovers and it was time to head there. Be­ fore V.V.S. Laxman and Rahul Dravid engineered that en­ grossing turnaround against Steve Waugh’s Aussies at Kol­ kata’s Eden Gardens in 2001, the Indian version of rising from the ashes harked back to a glorious June 18 in 1983 at Tunbridge Wells. Kapil Dev’s unbeaten 175 (138b, 16x4, 6x6), miraculous in its conception, resuscitat­ ed India from a precarious 17 for five in a World Cup match against Zimbabwe. The skip­ Commanding show: Kapil Dev hits a trademark shot during the epic knock. Right: The great allrounder is lauded by teammates Epochal venue: A view of the scoreboard above the pavilion. Bottom: Bruce Standring, a cricket per’s dare­devilry and part­ after the scintillating effort. * THE HINDU ARCHIVES fan, and Carl Openshaw, president, Tunbridge Wells CC, snapped on Thursday. * K.C. VIJAYA KUMAR nerships with Roger Binny and Syed Kirmani ensured crew had a strike and there is had to be switched: South­ woods laced with flowering director of Kent County when asked about that dis­ has limited facilities and it is were all just catching a game that his men scored 266 for no footage of an innings for ampton Central to London’s shrubs. The guard whispers: Cricket Club extends a firm tant magical day. Carl Open­ difficult to accommodate so of cricket but it was special.” eight and subsequently the the ages. A member of the Waterloo; and Waterloo East “Kapil Dev, 175!” In the mid­ handshake. “I missed that shaw, president of the Tun­ many modern­day television But is there anything relat­ opposition was bowled out 1983 Indian squad once told to Tunbridge Wells. And as dle, a county skirmish was in match but it changed Indian bridge Wells Cricket Club, cameras. We have the stands ed to the fortune­flipping for 235. It was a tipping point this correspondent: “I think the rail­lines snaked past progress involving Kent and cricket, didn’t it? Till then In­ remembers: “India was in here and the woods there joust? A scorecard, may be an in India’s sporting history the strike was an excuse, the London’s high­rises, rolling Nottinghamshire. A wicket dia only cared for Tests and trouble, losing wickets, first and you are in time for our old picture, any remem­ and Kapil’s Devils eventually BBC perhaps presumed that greens, slumbering sheep, falls, Samit Patel departs, then this match and the two and then another three annual Kent game too. We brance of things past? Down­ won the World Cup in a Da­ there was no value in report­ and through tunnels burrow­ there is measured applause World Cup win shifted atten­ and it looked like the match prefer it this way.” ton does the rounds in the pa­ vid­quelling­Goliath moment ing a game involving India ing into hills, a slice of history from an audience munching tion to ODIs,” he says before would be over by lunch. It Carl’s friend and fellow vilion, the members’ bar and against the West Indies at and Zimbabwe.” The only lin­ was to be relived. cucumber sandwiches, pork seeking out the regulars, who wasn’t meant to be that way, old­timer Bruce Standring the club’s office but there are Lord’s. gering references are photo­ pies and imbibing ale or were present when Kapil imagine India was playing was at the arena with his then no physical clues to Kapil’s The 36th anniversary of graphs of Kapil launching his Quaint town wine. The thud of the red made a mockery of the odds against little Zimbabwe and little daughter and he recalls: incandescent moment under Kapil’s supreme effort passed sixes and shards of memory Tunbridge Wells is a quaint cherry in a pastoral setting, with his rousing big­hits and then Kapil Dev steps in and “It was jaw­dropping, first the sun. All that remain are by just recently and it was fixated to a few anecdotes town and the venue — Nevill surely picture­postcards are toothy grin. soon he is hitting sixes and there were the wickets and the ‘I­was­there’ tales passed time to snuggle into nostal­ and R. Mohan’s despatches in Ground — that witnessed Ka­ made of these moments. Two gentlemen, nursing fours all over. It was incredi­ then Kapil Dev strikes those across generations, adding a gia’s warmth. Strangely, on The Hindu. pil’s masterpiece is fringed by Paul Downton, former En­ their beers on the grass­ ble to be here. It has been our sixes. There were not many mythical allure to a stupen­ that epochal day, the BBC Cut to the present, trains country homes and the gland wicketkeeper and the banks, raise their hands only ODI so far. This ground Indian fans back then and we dous knock. Another injury scare! The pitches in England are the flattest in the world: Bumrah Press Trust of India Though there is cloud cover, there is neither seam movement nor swing, says the India speedster Southampton All­rounder Vijay Shankar Press Trust of India justment becomes easy.” match,” the Indian captain you want to try that in the is the latest to suffer an Southampton Normally fast bowlers had said earlier. nets as well. You want to exe­ injury scare in the Indian World’s premier fast bowler don’t go full tilt at the nets es­ Ask Bumrah about that cute everything in the nets. camp after being hit on Jasprit Bumrah on Thursday pecially when they are play­ and he echoes his captain’s In the match, it’s just repeti­ the toe during a rain­hit said the pitches in England ing matches regularly, but observation. “Sometimes tions. Be it a death­bowling training session on used for white ball cricket it’s different for Bumrah who you want to try something session or with new ball, I do Wednesday. are the “flattest tracks” he had K.L. Rahul and Virat different in the match and it in the nets.” During training, a has ever bowled on as there Kohli in all sorts of trouble Jasprit Bumrah yorker hit is rarely any movement in during Thursday’s net Shankar flush on his toes the air or off the pitch. session. and he was apparently in Bumrah busted the myth pain. Vijay Shankar. * AP about English conditions and Rattling Rahul, Kohli However a team source tracks during an interaction A perfect yorker found Ra­ informed that there’s as a floater. He is also a with the media here. hul’s off­stump pegged back. nothing to worry as of handy medium­pacer. “Whatever white ball When Kohli batted, Bumrah now. “Yes, Vijay (Shankar) With Shikhar Dhawan cricket I have played so far, I Matter of fact: Bumrah says it is a bonus if the surfaces for the got one to shoot up from was in pain but it subsided already ruled out of the felt the flattest wickets are World Cup games offer some help to the speedsters. * AP short of good length, leaving by the evening. Hopefully, tournament due to thumb those in England. There’s no the skipper ducking for cov­ there’s nothing scary,” the fracture and Bhuvneshwar help for the bowlers on these Bumrah said when play­ your accuracy and clarity. So er. The ball hit the top of the source said. Kumar out for two games tracks,” he said. ing in England the Indian that’s what we try to do. We bat and flew! Shankar is one of the due to hamstring strain, “You see cloud cover and bowling unit is always ready know that the wickets are flat Then there was a delivery designated No. 4 batsmen Shankar’s injury will only feel that the ball will swing for the worst­case scenario in England and we take that that pitched on length and in this Indian line­up increase tension for the but there is neither seam and if some help is available, into consideration as the beat Kohli’s bat. “With Bum­ although he is being used team management. movement nor swing,” said it treats it as bonus. worst possible scenario. So if rah, he exactly bowls in the Bumrah. “You have to rely a lot on there is a bit of help, then ad­ nets as he bowls in the Warner’s big hundred highlights Australia’s consummate win Mushfiqur Rahim’s determined century to no avail as a combative Bangladesh comes up 48 runs short Press Trust of India hundred against Pakistan, er back sensing a risk, and NOTTINGHAM added 121 with his skipper the latter was caught behind Australia moved closer to the Aaron Finch (53) in a risk­ 11 short of a hundred. semifinals after David War­ free opening partnership Faced with a daunting task ner, with his second century and then raised a 192­run of chasing down a massive of the tournament, inspired stand with Usman Khawaja target, the ‘Tigers’, as ex­ the defending champion to a (89).