Cricket at grass root
level - Kishan Roongta
Cricket in
Rajasthan prior to 1960 was being played mainly at three
centres viz : Jaipur, Ajmer and Udaipur. Cricket at
Udaipur had picked-up momentum from 1956 onwards, when
office of the President of Rajasthan Cricket Association
was shifted from Ajmer to Udaipur. In Jaipur, cricket was
kept alive mainly by Usted Azim khan at the Centurian
Ground of JCC. Azim khan, a demon matting bowler of his
time, kept cricket going on in his own way by charging a
nominal fee from youngsters at the JCC Ground. He used to
polish all old balls by boot polish at the night to give
youngsters a new ball next morning. In fact this
practices is followed till date by the JCC organisers.
The contribution of Ustad towards keeping cricket alive
was by no means ordinary. After the death of Azim Khan,
Rajasthan was lucky enough to have Mr. N.D. Marshall, who
settled down in Jaipur after tenure, placed at the Senior
NIS coach and who had coached in Jaipur in his tenure,
placed at the disposal of Rajasthan State Sports Council
and was appointed by the councial as a locak coach. Like
Usted Azim Khan, Mr. Marshall also coached till his last
moment, coaching mainly at St. Xavier School and S.M.S.
Stadium. The coaching presently rests in the able hands
of Mr. Arjun Naidu, who is also retired NIS Coach. The
credit for introducing organised coaching camps for the
youngsters must go to Mr. Ramji Kak, who in his capacity
as his capacity as the Vice-president of Rajasthan State
Sports Council was instrumental in the appointment and
posting of Mr. N.D. Marshall and Mr. Arjun Naidu in
Rajasthan almost throughout their tenure as NIS Coachs.
 For the spreading of cricket in
Rajasthan the formation of Jaipur District Cricket
Association in the year 1960 was a major contributing
factor and Mr. Ramesh Divecha an Ex-test player, then
posted in Jaipur, was the first Secretary of the JDCA.
Subsequently Mr. G.R. Sunderram, working with M/s Man
Industrial Corporation Limited, Bombay, also an Ex-test
player, was posted at Jaipur for the encouragement of
cricket and who very ably organised local cricket in
Jaipur with his very soft and mild way of persuation and
has contributed tremendously towards the growth of
cricket in Jaipur. This obviously led to the formatiom of
many other District Cricket Association and finally
resulting in the formation of as many as 23 District
Cricket Associations to date. This is a record for any
State federation and it was a pleasant surprise to all
including the Rajasthan State Sports council, when as
many as 21 Districts participated in the Senior State
championship for Colvin shield at Jaipur in the year 1982.
Similarly as many as 18 Districts participated in the
State Junior championship for Dungerpur Shield at
Fatehpur (Sikar) in 1981.
In fact the concept of an organised Junior Championship
was possibly first adopted in Rajasthan of all the States.
When the Dungerpur Shield was introduced even prior to
independence during the State time and the Shield was
presented by the present Maharwal Laxman Singhji of
Dungerpur. It is indeed unfortunate that this Shield
stands as misplaced and lost from 1965-66 onwards.
Rajasthan entered the final of the Ranji Trophy for the
first time in the year 1961, When they beat Madras in the
Semi-finals and played Bombay in the final at Udaipur on
8th 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th March 1961. This was the
start of the pinnacle of Rajasthan entering the finals of
the National championship for as many as 8 times to date.
It is indeed strange to note that inspite of so many
entries in the final, Rajasthan could not win the coveted
Ranji Trophy the glamour of Indian Cricket, but it will
be perfectly justified to say that in each of the final
none of the opponents put their chances of winning at
more than 50% at any time, at times even less.
While the progress of Rajasthan Cricket is started from
1956 onwards, however, the spread of cricket at the grass
root level is started with spreading from 1960 onwards,
which was due to the devotion and time given by leading
Rajasthan players, Salim Durrani, G.R. Sunderram and C.G.
Joshi, and the well established players but young lads
like Raj Singh, Hanumant Singh and Suryaveer Singh, who
played Club level Cricket and spent as many as six to
eight weeks in season by playing and staying at Udaipur
and Jaipur. It was this contribution that brought in
fresh crop of youngsters like Parathasarathy Sharma,
Laxman Singh, Hemendra Surana, Sunil Benjamin and
Jitendra Bhatnagar and also the then teenage players like
Vinod Mathur and Sharad Joshi. All these players
subsequently served Rajasthan most admirably and have
brought credit not only for themselves but for their
State and the Promoters of the game also.
During this period all possible incentives were made
available to the youngsters in the form of free lodging
and boarding, a newly formed cement wicket at Man
Industrial Corporation Ltd, at Jaipur and the coaching by
Mr. N.D. Marshall, Salim Surrani was employed at Jaipur
whose tayed for a considerable time and was a great
morale booster to the youngsters.
It was commented as to where was the need to professional
players like Vinod Manaked, V.L. Manjerekar, S.P. Gupta
and others or to import other players who were staying
outside Rajasthan but playing cricket for Rajasthan. This
is a matter that needs an explanation or clarification. I
can say without hesitation that but for this decision to
bring in prominent players to play for Rajasthan, the
standard of Rajasthan Cricket in absence of the company
of good Cricketers would not have been anywhere near to
what it has been during the last 15 to 20 years. In fact
this point in well proved by the fact that with the
departing of these players, the performance of the
Rajasthan players at the senior level ahs diminished
considerably as compared to the standard of Cricket what
it was between 60s and 70s. This does not necessarily
mean that the standard of cricket in general has gone
down. But while the general standard of cricket has come
up in Rajasthan the same has remained sluggish at the
inter-state level for want of good cricketing company. In
fact to overcome this shortcoming we must engage either
more competent players playing in Rajasthan at local
level or regularly send our senior teams to good matches
outside the State. But for Manjerekar playing of the
State we would not have had this Hanumant Singh and Salim
would not have been this salim but for the availability
of Vinoo Manked playing for Rajasthan. In fact most of
the good players produced by Rajasthan are a result of
their playing in company with the best players. Who if we
prefer to call outsiders or imported then it is a matter
of shame..
The most appreciated and talked about match between
Rajasthan XI and MCC in 1961 was played at the Maharaja
College Ground. This match not only paved the way for
Durrani to play for India but also paved the way for more
International matches to be played in Rajasthan at Jaipur.
The shortage of an organised ground was solved when truly
the finest Sportsmen Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated the
Sawai Man Singh Stadium on 4th November, 1963. At this
function, my introduction with this great man and leader
was one of the most inspiring factors to whatever
contribution that has been made to the growth of Stadium
and to the game of cricket by me. This inaugurated the
Sawai Man Singh Stadium on 4th November, 1963. At this
function, my introduction with this great man and leader
was one of the most inspiring factors to wherever
contribution that has been made to the growth of Stadium
and to the game to cricket by me. This inauguration was
an incentive for the growth and construction of another
District Stadium at chaugan in Jaipur in 1966. Until
these two Grounds came up, Ranji Trophy matches and other
important matches had to be played at Maharaja College
Ground or the Railway Ground at Jaipur, Mayo College
Ground at Ajmer or at Maharana Bhopal Nobel College
Ground, Udaipur. With the gradual growth of S.M.S Stadium,
the birth of first Turf Wicket in Rajasthan in 1969 at
this Stadium, which was freshly Laid enabled RCA to
organise the match between Australia and Central Zone.
Unfortunately till date this Turf though relied a number
of times has held almost all the National and
International matches including the match between the
Board President's XI and the West Indies in 1974, a
fixture second only to a Test Match. The most important
match so far in Jaipur i.e the one day International
between India and Pakistan is being also played at the
newly relied same Turf Wicket at S.M.S Stadium. the
Wicket, However, does not seem to have received the good-will
of the press and that too inspite of the fact that this
Wicket has in all the matches always played as good
cricket Wicket should play. During Eills Trophy
tournament in the Year 1981, played on this Wicket, the
Wicket was truly a green top as compared to some of the
Test Wickets prepared by experts in Madras and Bombay,
which have been worse than road tracks.
One of the most notable performance of the RCA during the
last 15 to 20 Year has been the spread of cricket to the
interior of Rajasthan by holding National Championships
Viz:ranji Trophy Col. C.K. Naidu Trophy, Cooch Behar
Trophy and the vijay Merchant Trophy as well as the State
Championships viz: Colvin Shield and Dungerpur Shieid at
various Centers in Rajasthan Important matches have been
held at desert places like Bikaner, Sardar Shahar (Churu),
Ratehpur (Sikar), Khetrinagar (Jhunjhunu) and at deep
hinterland places like Bharatpur, Chittorgarh, and Tonk.
the introduction of cricket at various Centers helped the
selection of youngsters from all these places not only
for the Junior and Senior Tournaments of the State but
for Inter-State Matches also. Earlier cricket was limited
the Ajmer, Jaipur and Udaipur only but it has now really
spread throughout Rajasthan and it is here that the
maximum contributions of RCA lies. The die has been cast.
The coming events will bear the fruits. The performance
of RCA and the work it has done during this period should
not be judged from what we see right in front but will be
see in the Year to come.
Cricket in Rajasthan had to undergo frequent changes of
playing conditions as compared to other States, who have
their own turf wickets. Cricket in Rajasthan which was
originally played on the Jute matting has to be played on
coir matting as a result of change in Ranji Trophy rules
made by the Board. Then again the coir mattting as a
result of change in Ranji Trophy rules made by the Bord.
Then again the coir matting had to be replaced by Turf
for knock-out rounds.
The Complicity of these changes and the problems
connected with this can be understood only by the people
who play this game. This in fact is one of the reasons
why Rajasthan has always found if difficult to perform
better on turf wicket. The availability of just turf
wicket in Rajasthan is indeed a most disappointing factor
and a subject which RCA proposes to tackle by having a
Stadium of its own. For this purpose the State Government
Vis-…-vis Rajasthan State Sports Council should come
forward to have more turf wickets at various Centers.
Rajasthan during these years have played a very prominent
role even in the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
Mr. P.M. Rungta was first appointed as Vice-President of
the Board in 1962, who ultimately rose to the highest
position of the President of the Board and enjoyed his
full term of three years as President. His active
participation in the Board matches made Jaipur a venue to
hold not only the meetings of the various sub-committees
but to hold more than one Annual General Meeting of the
Board. Representatives of Rajasthan have held number of
other important positions in the various sub-committees
of the Board including important Committees like the All
India Selection Committee. All India Coaching Committee
and the Unpires Sub-Committee.
Raj Singh was the first man from Rajasthan to become a
Member of the Selection Committee and followed him on
this Committee. Incidentally, Raj Singh who has made
cricket his life, is a person for whom Rajasthan is
really proud of. He has contributed to this game not only
as a gentleman sportsman but also as a fine commentator
and an organiser, who has shouldered the responsibility
of Manager of the Indian Team to England in 1982.
Hanumant Singh is another Rajasthan's product. who has
not only played for India but was the Manager of the
Indian Team to West Indies in 1983.
Rajasthan has in Mt. Abu an ideal coaching center for the
summer period and its location gives us the added
advantage of easy accessibility and should be considered
as a permanent coaching center of the Board for the
summer Camps. the all India Coaching Camp for youngsters
has been successfully held at Mt. Abu in 1982 and also
the Central Zone Coaching Camp in 1981.
Rajasthan was the pioneer in staging Col. C.K. Naidu
Trophy tournament and also the Vijay Merchant Trophy
Tournament for the first time at Jaipur in the year 1976
and 1982 respectively. Since the start of these
tournaments Rajasthan had won the Central Zone
Championship in Col. C.K. Naidu Trophy held at Jaipur in
1978 and also the Cooch Behar Trophy held in 1981 at
Indore. The winning in the above Championships speaks
well about the upliftment of cricket at the junior level
in the State,.
State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur in the year 1978 has
staretd an All India Tournament to be played at Jaipur
every year. This is a tournament recognised by the Board
and it gives an ideal opportunity to the youngsters to
watch top players in action. This tournament will benefit
the youngsters in the long run.
With the gradual spread of cricket. The local Press
started taking keen interest. In fact Cricket was the
first game which drew attention of the local Press and
only during this period that separate columns on sports
started appearing and ultimately like the National Papers
a full page of the Press is now devoted to Sports.
It was the game of cricket and its spread in Rajasthan
from 1960 on wards, which was instrumental in developing
the interest of the press as mentioned above. Mr.
Sidhnath Tiwari, to the best of my recollection, was the
first man of the Press who took keen interest to give
publicity to Cricket in Rajasthan Press. Subsequently Mr.
Prakash Bhandari has brought dignity to the standard of
Sports reporting.
As I try to recollect the events from 1960 onwards,
certain incidents and performances bring
back cherished memories. The entry of Rajasthan in the
finals of Ranji Trophy for the first time in 1961 Was one
of the greatest time for Rajasthan cricket. Rajasthan
wining the Mewar Trophy, presented by His Highness of
Mewar, was another glorious moment for Rajasthan. Winning
of the Duleep Trophy by the Central Zone was another
memorable moment, particularly because the Central Zone
Team mainly consisted of Rajasthan players. Some of the
scintillating performances by Hanumant Singh i.e a
century and a double century in the same match in the
finals of Ranji Trophyplayed against Bombay at Brabourne
Stadium, Bombay in the year 1967, this performance will
need a lot of time to equal. It is not ont only century
that mattered but the way it was scored with Hanumant in
complete command from the first ball. Parathsarathy
Sharma, a local product, who learnt his cricket in
Rajasthan from his first ball reached the goal of playing
Test match was another satisfying moment.
On the other hand there are equal number of depressing
events that come to my memory. Hanumant not being
selected for All India Team that toured Australia in 1967-68.
The unfortunate part of the whole thing was he was
considered as physically unfit on ground that never
existed. It was a fact which was most bitterly realized
later when the whole truth came out. There was some irony
of fate which has struck maximum to the Rajasthan Players.
It is well known that good Right Arm Leg spinner perform
best in Australia and simailarly a left Arm Spinner can
perform best in England. rajasthan Players like S.P.
Gupta and Salim durrani, who were the greatest bowlers of
their time and of their type and it is really most
unfortunate that S.P. Gupta was never picked up foe India
to play in Australia and similarly Salim Durrani was
never picked up for India for the tour of England. Had
this happened the performances of Indian Teams abroad
would have been much different than what they stand. Some
of the youngsters promise a lot but fade out. Laxman
Singh being a classical example. Suryaveer Singh, a
wicket keeper opening batsman, elder brother of Hanumant
Singh, often discussed among the Rajasthan Team has a
better prospect than Hanumant. Against all advice
Suryaveer Singh gave up wicket keeping and with this
vanished a prospect which was a near certain to play as a
wicket keeper Batsman for India. Kailash Gattani, a lion
hearted bowler was not picked for India, particularly
when we see many others with much performance being
picked up opening Bowlers.
Lastly to make the reading little more interesting. I
have attempted to pick up the best Rajasthan XI from 1960
onwards till data. I have chosen the year 1960 for the
reason that it was in this year that Rajasthan entered
the Ranji Trophy finals. Furthermore some of top players
of the country like G.S. Ramachand and Rusi Surti have
played for Rajasthan as professionals but have just
played for a year or two. I have though it best not to
consider them on this ground and not merit as players.
The Players who deserve consideration for selection of
this team are :-
1. Suryaveer Singh
2. P.C. Podar
3. Laxman Singh
4. Salim Durrani
5. Hanumant Singh
6. B.B. Nimbalkar
7. Kishan Rungta
8. Parathsarathy Sharma
9. C.G. Joshi
10. Raj Singh
11. Kailash Gattani
12. G.R. Suderram
13. S.P. Gupte
14. Vijay Manjerekar
15. Vinod Mankad
16. Arjun Naidu
The Selection of XI player from this galaxy of Rajasthan
players is by no means an easy job, particularly because
the contribution of some of the players is much more to
the team as compared to some other players who may get
into the team on individual merit. However, selection of
the cricket team is a very ruthless decision. My team in
the batting order will be as follows :-
The selection of this team leaves the unpleasant task of
dropping players like Laxman Singh and P.C. Podar for the
place of opening batsman. It leaves out a big name like B.B.
Nimbalkar, but as he played for Rajasthan when his best
pace was over, he not found the place. It also leaves out
a great performer, Chandu Joshi, Who even when playing
along with S.P. Gupte performed no less but all the same
he has to be left out. With his leaving out the position
in the gully fielding leaves a gap. Which cannot be
filled up. This leaves out Arvin Apte also, a fien player,
but he has also played for Rajasthan at a time when he
was past his best.
Leaving behind Rajun Naidu is indeed a very close
decision but his performances for Rajasthan during his
long duration unfortunately do not match with the
performances of those who have been picked up.
This article is written in a hurry, which might have
resulted in omitting other memorable event, for which I
may be excused.
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At the invitation of His Highness
the Maharana of Udaipur, the Mayo College team played a
cricket match at Udaipur against an Udaipur XI in October,
1891. The home team scored 31 and 39 runs in the two
innings to which the visitors replied with 92 runs. For
Mayo college, H .H. The Maharao of Koto had the
distinction of capturing all ten wickets of Udaipur in
the first innings. This is the first instance of a bowler
to have captured all the ten wickets in an innings on the
soil of Rauputana.