Nothing should surprise anyone about decisions made by cricket administrators, yet this one is startling—the matter of retiring the Pataudi Trophy.
India and England have been playing for the Pataudi Trophy since 2007, the year that marked 75 years of India v England Test cricket.
Both teams traditionally played for the Anthony de Mello Trophy when the contest is held in India, but the trophy named after the BCCI’s first Secretary doesn’t get mentioned in BCCI promotions and press releases.
From all indications, the sponsors’ trophy is all that matters to the establishment. That said, the De Mello Trophy was up for grabs in the home series against New Zealand in 1976-77 and Pakistan in 1986-87, when Imran Khan clinched the fifth and final Test at Bangalore.
A recent report in Cricbuzz mentioned that the England and Wales Cricket Board are tight-lipped about the buzz. And a source said, “Apparently trophies are retired after some time.” Retired? Yes, we know England and West Indies no longer play for the Wisden Trophy (Botham-Richards silverware now), but Wisden is a firm, whereas the Pataudi Trophy was instituted to honour IAK Pataudi and his son MAK ‘Tiger’ Pataudi.
Talking about Wisden, trivia alert: IAK and MAK Pataudi were the first father and son to be Wisden Cricketers of the Year (1932 and 1968).
In fact, the latter presented the trophy to Rahul Dravid at the Oval in 2007. Cricket boards retire a trophy? Will the Ashes urn too be retired someday?
Even though this move could have the blessings of the BCCI (if not initiated by D Road headquarters), the ECB will be in the firing line from fans of history. The rulers of the game are not only throwing history into a dump yard, but also deciding to relieve themselves of their sense of history.
Have the people in Old Blighty forgotten that Pataudi Sr also played for England before he led India on the 1946 tour of that country? Probably. They also might be proving that they are suffering from amnesia when it comes to remembering that it was Pataudi Sr who said he would have no role to play in encouraging Douglas Jardine’s leg theory in the Bodyline series of 1932-33. Is this how they perpetuate the memory of a man who upheld the spirit of the game, a term so commonly used today? Pataudi made his England debut in the opening Test of the 1932-33 Ashes in Sydney, scored a hundred, reportedly objected to captain Jardine’s Bodyline attack and was dropped after scoring 15 and 5 in Melbourne. His last Test in an England cap was against Australia at Nottingham in 1934 before figuring in three Tests as captain on India’s 1946 tour of England.
The late India and Bombay batsman Rusi Modi provides another version about why Jardine dropped Pataudi Sr in Australia. In the book, Some Indian Cricketers, published by the National Book Trust, India, in 1972, Modi wrote: “Pataudi invariably referred to the following anecdote as the reason for his not being selected. During the Bodyline series, it seems that Jardine had instructed his players never to flinch or show any sign of fear whilst fielding close to the wicket, whenever a batsman hooked or played a forcing stroke. However, momentarily forgetting his own instructions, Jardine was seen to flinch quite visibly on one occasion. Pataudi, witty as he was, could not help gleefully remarking to his captain, ‘Skipper, you seem to have forgotten your own instructions,’ thereby incurring, according to Pataudi, the latter’s displeasure.”
Of course, Jardine is believed to have said when Pataudi didn’t agree with his Bodyline tactic, “I see his highness is a conscientious objector.”
Pataudi Jr led India in 40 Tests from 1962 to 1970, then an Indian captaincy record, losing the captaincy after the 1-3 series loss to the visiting Australians. He returned as captain in 1974-75 to lead against Clive Lloyd’s West Indies, in a series that was arguably the most exciting for Indian fans before the 2001 contest against Australia. Two Tests down, Pataudi’s team bounced back to win the next two before losing the decider in Mumbai.
Never should we lose sight of the fact that it was Pataudi Jr who led India to their first overseas series win—3-1 in New Zealand 1967-68.
Pataudi Jr was a fine batsman too. Who can forget his 75 and 85 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1967-68, as one Australian writer put it, “on one leg and eye.”
His 64 and 148 at Leeds in 1967 also went in vain. Journalist Dicky Rutnagur in the 1968 Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack described the 148 as “an epic innings which lifted India out of the dark pit of despair. India lost in spite of his courageous effort, but in defeat they took away as much honour as the winners.”
Never was Pataudi made a selector but he did serve on the governing council of the Indian Premier League.
He spoke his mind even if his was an anti-establishment view. He once said, “The ICC may well be the voice of cricket; the BCCI is an invoice. We would like to see a more proactive, more eloquent and a more constructive BCCI in world matters.”
If the retiring of the Pataudi Trophy eventuates, it will be tantamount to disrespecting the contribution of the Pataudis to Indian cricket. Our cricketing greats ought to speak out against the move and it won’t mean disrespecting the new cricketers who the trophy will be named after. There are so many Indian Test players who played under Tiger Pataudi and earned his support. Let’s hope we hear them in the coming days, taking exception to the trophy being retired.
Yes, the Pataudi Trophy was only for India v England Test battles in England but India stand to lose more because it involves two of their captains as against one England player.
Will the BCCI figure that out?
mid-day’s group sports editor Clayton Murzello is a purist with an open stance.
He tweets @ClaytonMurzello. Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com
The views expressed in this column are the individual’s and don’t represent those of the paper.