On This Day In 1971: Sunil Gavaskar Made His Test Debut Against West Indies
On This Day In 1971: The OG Master Blaster, Gavaskar, announced his arrival in international cricket with a twin half-century.
On This Day In 1971: Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar made a roaring Test debut against the West Indies in 1971. After the series opener ended in a draw, Gavaskar was called up for the second Test, which began at the Port of Spain on March 6. He reportedly missed the first game due to a tooth infection. On this day, the OG Master Blaster, Gavaskar, announced his arrival in international cricket with a twin half-century.
He struck 65 in the first innings before contributing with a match-winning 67-run knock during the chase. Powered by his efforts, India won the match by seven wickets to take a lead in the five-Test series.
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West Indies captain Garry Sobers won the toss and elected to bat first. Syed Abid Ali and Bishan Singh Bedi gave India a perfect start, dismissing both the Caribbeans openers with the new ball. Clive Lloyd also failed to survive long and managed only seven runs before falling victim to Ali.
Charlie Davis was the top scorer for the West Indies with 71 runs while Rohan Kanhai added 37 to the board. Garry Sobers also made a crucial contribution, scoring 37 runs.
Vanburn Holder and Grayson Shillingford chipped in with 14 and 25-run cameos as the West Indies wrapped up their first innings with 214 runs.
Sunil Gavaskar opened India’s innings with Ashok Makad and stitched a 68-run partnership. After Mankad departed for 44, Gavaskar took India to 90 before being dismissed by Jack Noreiga who picked nine wickets in that innings. Dilip Sardesai slammed a brilliant century and Eknath Solkar registered 55 as India produced 352 runs.
The West Indies batters failed miserably in the second innings as well. Roy Fredericks and Charlie Davis were the only players to log fifty-plus scores. The Caribbean side was ultimately bundled out for 261. Gavaskar was India’s top-performing batter in their second innings. He built the foundation with a 67-run knock as India chased down 124 in 49.4 overs.
Sunil Gavaskar’s Fondest Memory Of The Series
Sunil Gavaskar finished his debut Test series with 774 runs including three centuries, one double ton and three half-centuries. Last year during an interview with the Hindustan Times, the 75-year-old opened up about his favourite memories of the 1971 series.
“My fondest memories of the series were the batting of Dilip Sardesai in all the Tests and his partnership with Eknath Solkar in the first Test (which took India from 75/5 to 212/6). Then the two magic deliveries with which Salim Durani got Clive Lloyd and Garry Sobers out, off consecutive deliveries," Gavaskar said.
“Personally, the century partnership with GRV (Gundappa Viswanath) when we batted together for the first time in a Test match and also with my hero ML Jaisimha are memories that stand out," he added.
Gavaskar represented India in 125 Tests and 108 ODIs during his illustrious career spanning over 15 years. He aggregated 13,214 runs across the two formats before hanging up his gloves in 1987.
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