India were 1-0 down in the series, Paksitan had a great opening stand and nothing was going right for India till Kumble spun his magic. We have seen bowlers rip through a batting line-up but rarely do we such domination by a single bowler. Paksitan plummeted from 101-0 to 207 allout and India won the match by 212 runs. The charm of this moment lies in the fact it was series levelling against arch-rivals Pakistan. The bowling figures of 10-74 against quality batsmen says a lot. Historic Moment to say the least.
Kumble had been dropped for the second and third test. He had missed the ch
ance to be part of the famous victory at Port of Spain. Enter the fourth test, while batting Kumble was hit on his face by a bouncer. The sight of Kumble spitting blood was not a pleasing one. But he knew the importance of staying on crease and didn't retire hurt. He couldn't make much difference but he showed his committment. Then when it was known that he had a broken jaw and would not be able to take further part in the series, he saw that India needed him and he took pain-killers and bowled to Brian Lara and Carl Hooper with a heavily strapped face. Between overs he would change his bandages. The fact that he bowled like that shows his committment and determination and the fact that he got Lara out shows his talent.Kumble had become India's second choice spinner. When Harbhajan got injured and Kumble had to replace him in the eleven many thought India had no chance against Australia because of Kumble's dismal performance away from home. But Kumble had other ideas. He started of things with a 5-wicket haul in Adelaide to prevent Australia from creating a winning total. He made sure to keep one end tied up and not give Aussies any free runs. He picked up regular wickets in both Adleaide and Melbourne but he saved his best for Sydney. The series decider was nicely setup by Sachin and Laxman's great batting and then Kumble set-up the ground for an exciting win by an 8 wicket haul. In the second Australian innings Kumble was running through the Oz batting line-up and would have wont he match and series for India if not for great batting display by Steve Waugh in his final test and some questionble umpiring. He had proved he was a force to reckon with not only at home but also abroad.
Kumble had been appointed captain in the previous series and this was his first overseas tour. What a way he chose to announce his arrival. A 5-wicket haul on the first day of the series. It showed the team what he expected of them. Though India lost the test in Melbour
ne made sure we atleast gave a fight. In Sydney, when we were being tortured by some horrendous umpiring decisions and unsporting behaviour of Aussies, he kept his cool throughout the match and made a valiant 45 to try and save the match. Though we could not save the match, he made sure the issue of cheating didn't go unnoticed. His statement in the post match conference about only one team playing in the correct spirit of game showed his temperament and statesmen qualities. Not many cricketers could have led a team in such tumultous times with such integrity and composure. His attack on Aussies pushed them on backfoot and India trounced them in Perth to stop their 16 match winning streak. He followed that up with a brilliant 87 in Adelaide. This series showed his talent in bowling, batting and captaincy. He was a true all-rounder but was never considered one.This was his first series as captain of India. India was leading the series 1-0 and the third test was going towards a draw after some great batting by Ganguly who scored his maiden double century. Light was quickly fading and Pakistan had to survive only a session or so. Pakistan had already survived 13 overs from faster bowlers and there seemed no chance of a win but Kumble bowled seam-up on a variable bounce pitch and picked up a 5 wicket haul and would have bowled India to victory if bad light had not stopped play. 5 wickets in 14 overs is simply extra-ordinary.
India were leading the 3-match series 1-0. We were in a comfortable position of 400+ runs when Kumble stepped in to bat, but it wasn't a match winning total. Together with Dhoni and the tail he took the total past 650 to ensure that there was no chance of losing the test. This was his first test hundred, which took 17 years and 118 tests. This was a new world record for most tests played before scoring a maiden hundred. This was special to him because he always took his batting seriously. This century showed his true all-round skills. This feat was not achieved by any one else in the 500 wicket club.
South Africa were in a great position having scored 400+ runs and had India tottering at 161/7 when Kumble joined an injured Azhar. Follow-on seemed imminent with only Prasad and Hirwani to follow. Both batted with immense grit and determination adding 161 more runs to not only avoid follow-on but also take India to a position of relative safety with a deficit of only 99 runs. Kumble was the last man out after scoring 88, his highest score and only the second half-century. It was an inning in trying conditions against quality bowling and ruthless opposition. Though India lost the match and that takes some sheen away because this is one of few moments when Kumble's best was also not enough to save the match. But surely it is the greatest batting performance by the wily leg-spinner.
Kumble and Srinath had won many matches for India with their bowling. The match was at Bangalore and the crowd included Srinath and Kumble's mother and grandmother. The stage was perfectly set when these two champion bowlers from Bnagalore got together when India still needed 50 more runs to win. The match was against Australia and bowling attack included McGrath, Fleming, Gillespie and Steve Waugh. But both played the innings of their lifetime and won the match for India. It was a special victory not only because we won a narrow match, but because of the way those two played in front of their home crowd and relatives. None of them was regarded as a decent batsmen but they took the opposition and pulled a great upset.
It was the final of the Titan Cup. India had scored a below par score of 220. South African batting consisting of Hudson, Kirsten, Cullinan, Rhodes, Klusener and Cronje was considered favourite to reach the target easily. But Prasad got early breakthrough and Kumble capitalised on it to dismantle their middle order with two quick wickets. He made sure the task for the africans was getting tougher by bowling a nagging line and not allowing them to score freely. He then finished off the tail with two wickets in successive balls to win the match and tournament for India. His final analysis of 8.2-0-25-4 were truly maginficent.
There was immense pressure on Kumble to perform. He had a bad series in Sri Lanka and had gone wicketless in Bangalore. The debutant Mishra and the stand-in captain Dhoni had performed exceedingly well in Mohali. But the match was at Kotla, the place where Jumbo had taken his ten wicket haul. Kumble had already celebrated his 38th birthday. Given the situation nobody would have said anything if Kumble had not dived full length to try and take a catch. He suffered deep cut on his small finger of left hand. This seemed the end of an illustrious career. But Kumble had other thoughts. Though he knew his career was in his final lap, he gave whatever he had to offer. He came back on the fourth morning to take up 3 wickets to ensure that India had a sizeable lead. The final wicket in some way summarized the career of Kumble. The previous ball had seen Mishra drop a catch, one of the many dropped by India in that innings. Kumble was furious and wanted more committment from his team. The next ball Kumble ran backwards 30 yards and took an amazing catch with heavily bandaged left hand having 9 stitches off his own bowling. The fact that he bowled again in second innings is just elementary. Because those were the only 4 overs in his entire career that he bowled for himself. All the other 40000 odd balls that he threw had only one intention: to make sure India won the match.
This was a small compilation of some of the greatest moments of Kumble. The biggest thing about Kumble was his committment and determination. He is one of the greatest cricketer to have ever played cricket. He may not turn the ball as much as Warne or may not have taken as much wickets as Murli, but he surely was as great a bowler as those two. He has won more matches for India then anyone (probably Sachin can claim to have won more but its a close one between them atleast in Tests). He has played his heart out, taken pills, fought injuries and his own body to give it all to India. He has been criticized throughout his career but he took all in his stride and continued to perform extra-ordinarily. He is the greatest soldier of Indian cricket. JUMBO CAREER OF A TRUE SPORTSPERSON!!!!
1 comment:
Jumbo was really a true sportsperson and a match winner. I still remember the match between India and South Africa at Vankhede Stadium where he took three wickets in two overs and that changed the match scenario and India won that match.(Actually wwe had a huge party after that).
According to me Kotla was the best ground for him to retire but the way or the circumstances in which he took retirement is not correct. BCCI or atleast selector should give the senior players their places, their position.
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