Sunil Gavaskar, former captain of India, made a Test debut thronging against the West Indies in 1971. After the opening match was drawn, Gavaskar was called to make his debut for the Second Test that started on March 6 at Port of Spain.
He missed the first one due to a reported tooth infection. On this day, the OG Master Blaster, Gavaskar, announced his presence in international cricket with a fabulous double half-century. He scored 65 in the first innings and then played a very important knock of 67 runs during the chase. His incredible effort helped India clinch the match by seven wickets and take a 1-0 lead in the five-Test series.
West Indies skipper Garry Sobers won the toss and decided to bat first. Syed Abid Ali and Bishan Singh Bedi provided India with an excellent start by sending both the Caribbean openers back to the pavilion off the new ball. Clive Lloyd also did not last long, scoring just seven runs before succumbing to Ali.
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The West Indies had Charlie Davis as top scorer with 71 runs, while Rohan Kanhai chipped in with 37 runs. The captain, Garry Sobers, also made crucial contributions with 37 runs. Vanburn Holder and Grayson Shillingford also contributed 14 and 25-run cameos as the West Indies reached a total of 214 runs in their first innings.
Sunil Gavaskar opened the innings for India with Ashok Makad and put together a partnership of 68 runs. Gavaskar fell for 65 after putting India to 90 runs. Jack Noreiga was the chief wrecker with nine wickets in that innings. Dilip Sardesai scored a brilliant century, and Eknath Solkar contributed with 55 runs as India put up 352 runs.
The performance of West Indies batters in the second innings was simply miserable. Apart from Roy Fredericks and Charlie Davis, all the other players fell short of a fifty. The Caribbean side was finally bowled out for 261. Gavaskar bettered all other Indian batters in the second innings, assembling the foundation with a 67-run knock that helped India chase down 124 in 49.4 overs.
Gavaskar’s debut Test series was illuminated by 774 runs, including three centuries, one double hundred, and three half-centuries. During an interview with Hindustan Times last year, the 75-year-old recalled the cherished memories he had of the 1971 series.
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“My fondest memories of the series were about 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.
During his 15-year career, Gavaskar played in 125 Tests and 108 ODIs for India and scored 13,214 runs in these two formats before hanging his boots in 1987.
