. SWARAIYA, December 2, 1972 SPORTS COMMENTARY: . an aggressive Tight-hand ,opening . bat, excellent fielder and 'useful WHAT IN· M .. C.;YC~, .TEAM medillmpacebowler; '.made his WHO'S <,'--- .. ,'.1.' _ '. _ •• > • - Test debut this year; against Aus- SIDELINER tralia. " '," ", ,,' , WITH THE ARRIVAL of the MeC knocksb6th at Chel~allk and Bom- ' ' .. D. L. (DENIS)' AKuss.(Warwick­ team in India for a full. tOlir of' bay,.~here his team, West Zone, shire), 29; a' dependable right­ the country, Test cricket is already .wrested'chack the Dlileep Trophy hand opening, bat,brilliant Helder in the air. Ajit yv'adekar has', from last year's surprise winners, both aLslip and outfield; made his been selected captain and the team"" Ceritral Zone. That was not the Test debut in··1967 against the he will lead in the first Test agairlsf':only encouraging sign. Dilip Sar- West Indies. the visitors to be played in Delhi, .... desai, who set India on the road • A.W. GU~EIG. (SlIssex),2G; an a11- will be picked at the 'end of the to· victory in the 'Vest Indies but rounder-fast-mediumbowler and tourists' ' match.' against' the, was not so successful in England, 7f~:~-scorjng15atsman;stands 6 ft. Cricket BoardPresidenes XI;"signalled his' return to fom1 with 12 111. ",tJ ' .', .. starting on D6cember5.. ", a' brilliant tlu:ee-figure -knock in a G. G. (GEm:F) ARNOLD (Surrey), Indian cricket ,has had. itssek:recorcl partnership ,with 'Vadekar; 28; fast-mediuil1"ibo\vler; made his backs and t~illmphs and has ,so too has the Mysore off-spinner, Test debllt.in,,.1967;·on his first bitten the dust of utter defeat' . E., A. S .. ,Prasanna. With rare per- tour~ but cOllld\l2,ea'real threat to more often thaI) tasted vi<;tOl'y, and .' sevenince"Prasanna has estab- Indian batsmeri!£ ,',.'.. ' yet it never lost its bearings .. On ,'lished his~claim to. recognition. .'. R. M. H. (Bo~)CO'FrAM (North­ the other hand, it has prospered,;: . '- As' Farokh Engmeer, who has amptonshire), .28; a' fast··medium and its never~say-die' spirit' was, "returned to India on. an invitation bowl~r, c~n' alsQi,>.po.wL cutter~; eventually re~arded in the last·· ~£roT? the Board to. ma~e himself born lllLmcohlslllre, he began hIS tours of the West Indies and Eilg- "avaIlable for the senes, hImself has career ~ith cG~ainp Hampshire, land, which P4t India right on top~ ·,.~aid, it wOlll~ be. suicidal to under- and . last season .joined, Northants; of the cricket ,world .. , .' - . .'. rate the tounsts lust because of the made his' TesC:-HebuL in 1968-69 In all its ch~quered Test cricket<.absence of. GeofF Boycott and againstPakis!aIi:~".,' , history, India has never been up Jol~n . Snow. T!ley are. a ,well- ,JACKIE BIRK~~~i-IAW (Leicester­ against a more challenging series';:' t.rall~ed, well-kmt team WIth ~ pro~ slure), 32;· off-spmner;, played for Unfortunately, the portents._ are )~sslOnal app~oachthat, could his native Yorkslh~ein.1958, joined not quite stimulating. Over half make all the dIfference, and a fine Leicestershire1two·1 years later; a dozen Test stars of South Zone, ,blend of youth and' experience, most sllccessful;:;pinner of the 1972 for instance, Hopped in their' well-equipped in every depart- slimmer; usefu)i'left~harid batsman. recent Duleep Tl'ophy semi-finalat ment, as the thumb-nail sketches NORMAN' , G~FORD(\Vorcester­ Chepauk, which 'had the status ,of;. of:_~~~-p~,<~ye~s given. below, would shire), 32;' left~arm', spinner; made a Test trial and which West Zone.' ,sl~0w ';/",':, ,." , . '. his Test debuE-'in 1964; had a good won so handsomely. These in-" - -A .. ' R. (TONY)' LEWIS (Glamor- match againsfIndia at Lord's last eluded· B. S. Chandrasekhar, the\. gan), ·captain; 34; right-hand bats:' year with, four WIckets iIi each Mysorespinner and the hero ofjnaJ~; 'first Welshman ·to ·lead Erig- innings.. ./ '. India's, OVill vIctory lasf- :year;.).,:1'Vld,:aIld .. firs~ to skipper England p, 1. POCOCK (Surrey), 26; oH­ whose bowling was easy n1e~tJor'.:i'vith?u~,p1~ying, for England; w.as. spinner ana a:,usefulibat·, made.his the'punishing West ZOlie batsmen;;' . 12th. man m .~he __ ?naLTest against Test d~Dutjn .1967ag~inst the and Manstir Ali Khan Pataudi the West IndIes 111 1966. 'Vest Indies. ' ,,' who, in his come-back campaign, ;, .. :]\1. H. (MIKE) DENNESS (Kent), C. M. (CHHIS) OLD (Yorkshire), would seem to have batted himself ,.vice-captain, 32;' 'stylish right-hand ?4; once considered' successor to out of the reckoning, If the South. "batsman; when in foIl flow, can be . Freddie Trueman; .'.' Old is a Zone .!est aspirants' S~10W ~vas" ~ sh~erioy to watch; has played genuine, if somewhat unlucky, depresslllg, even more dlsappomt- ,)11 but· one Test aCYainst New speed merchant. - " ,;',;'<f;;, . ing 'was the failure of West's Ram- Zealand iri 1969~ '. b . ,.D.L., ,,(BEREK).i;i'~U;NDERWOOD nath Parkar, hailed as tbe fiI?-d of K. W,. R. (KEInI) FLETCHliu' , (Kerit),.27;::ari~'. Ul~'&:SlHiL .. typ{;- . of the season to fill the' void left by (Essex), 28, a seasoned Test bats7 left-hrm. ::ispinrreri~;rrbte'd :,sfor:t'his the virtual dismissal of Ashok rpan; .m~de his Test debut in 1968 remarkableco·ri:';isten;::y;~ade his Mankad as Sunil Gavaskar's open- ~lgainst Aus,h:alia; has toured Pakis7 , Testd.eb.llti·iJ~t~~f3?;~Jl.~}d4ha~,s~ f.ar ~ng partnel'. As though these tan an.q Australia and New t;1k.en)20:~wICl<~tS:"1ll~:;27,:.::;:r:ests. were not enough to cast a gloom Zealand. ' , " G. R,:.b (GRA,HAM)"!Roope, (Sur­ over India's Test outlook, Gavas-,. A. P. E. (ALAN) KNUrl- '(Kent); rey), 26;right-h''alld\lJatsmar{''und , kar himself continues ,to grope ~~li. 26;. a veteran Test wicket-keeper t t d' ' r fi Id' I Id 59 the, dark. ." '. '. ~,. ' with 36 Tests to his credit,. in the ou s an I,ng ~.Ip' e. ~r;?~ .. ' catches 111 the '·1971 season; can Bllt the pre-Tes\ seajon has~ot " dune' mould as his illustrious pre- also_bowl' seamers.' .. ,.,._ ,'. '.'-" been without its s.i v,er. i.ni11g .. ·, Jit ,:' :ecessors Les Ames and Godfrey ~ R. ~OLCHA~D) (Le!cester)ir2~;, has Wa?ekaJ':, who was> ,~n ,aut9.rytflt,H:: . Evans; has played many a match- c9me1n pl:;tce,o£ the. )!ldisposed chOIce for the cap~aJpcy,~ hfl.s~~;~u,-r'l_: .' sa\ling'innings as well. Bob Taylor; -smart :I<eel,Ji:Nlls \vell into top fomi with·t1iree!f!gure, 'BAulw WOOD (Lancashire), 30,' as at' ··1~- t~ ,'.,,_. - ,. < ... 1 enaciousua ."" 'Ho,' ,,"''''_ .