Sairaj Bahutule: 12 facts to know about the all-rounder

Sairaj Bahutule, born on January 6, 1973, was one of the domestic giants in India.

Sairaj Bahutule, born on January 6, 1973, was one of the domestic giants in India. Despite his great domestic record, he only played two Tests and eight One-Day Internationals (ODIs) for India. Bahutule retired in 2013 and is now a coach in domestic cricket, currently at the helm in Kerala.

Nishad Pai Vaidya picks 12 facts to know about Bahutule.

 

 

1. Cricketing family

 

 

Bahutule’s father, Vasant, was also a cricketer. As a batsman, he played two matches for Maharashtra in 1953. He had kept wickets for Maharashtra in both the matches and opened the batting with Madhu Rege.

 

 

2. The young Mumbai group

 

 

In the late 1980s, the Mumbai selectors had zeroes in on certain youngsters for the future. They played their age group cricket for Mumbai and were earmarked for success. Bahutule was a part of that crop that included Sachin Tendulkar, Vinod Kambli, Jatin Paranjape, Mayur Kadrekar and Abhijit Kale, to name a few.

 

 

3. The Tendulkar-Kambli partnership

 

 

Tendulkar and Kambli made history in February 1988, when they put up an unbeaten 664-run partnership for Sharadashram Vidyamandir against St. Xavier’s High School in Mumbai’s Harris Shield. Bahutule was a member of the unfortunate St. Xavier’s team and had bowled 27 overs during that game and had gone wicketless for 182 runs. When St. Xavier’s batted, he scored 69 not out as his team folded for 154. In a chat with CricketCountry, Bahutule said about that partnership, “Such was the carnage that some of our players did not want to come the next day and I had to convince them to play the game. Such hitting wasn’t seen before, so it was left to me to persuade the others to take the field again.”

 

 

4. Unfortunate accident

 

 

In July 1990, Bahutule and his two friends were involved in a car accident on Marine Drive, Mumbai. Vivek Singh, the son of noted singers Jagjit and Chitra, passed away in that unfortunate incident and the other friend was injured. Bahutule plunged into a coma. His right femur was fractured and the elbow was also severely injured.

 

 

5. Comeback pangs

 

 

Due to that accident, Bahutule had a tough time coming back to cricket. A rod was fitted in his leg, which stayed for well over a year. In a chat with Times of India, Bahutule said, “The steel rod inserted into the thigh would pain. It was upsetting, thoughts about rot setting in, being laid up in bed and walking on crutches. But there was no go. I was also thinking of playing again.” He had also joined the Frank Tyson camp organised by the Bombay Cricket Association and Mafatlal, but struggled to get through.

 

 

6. Comeback and Ranji debut

 

 

In his comeback match against Baroda under-19 in the Cooch Behar Trophy in October 1991, Bahutule roared into form with a century in the first innings followed by a seven-wicket haul. A couple of matches later, he took another seven-wicket haul against Maharashtra under-19s and was duly drafted into the Bombay team for the Ranji Trophy. He made his debut against Gujarat in December 1991 and took four scalps in the game.

 

 

7. Memorable Irani Trophy 1997-98

 

 

During the Irani Trophy match in 1997-98, Bahutule first scored 71 against Rest of India. He then accounted for 13 wickets in the match. In the second innings, his spell of eight for 71 helped Mumbai seal victory by 54 runs. Those are his best figures in First-Class cricket. Interestingly, Anil Kumble, the leggie who kept Bahutule out of the Indian side, also played that match and had taken a match-haul of 11 wickets for Rest of India.

 

 

8. Ranji success

 

 

Bahutule has an enviable trophy cabinet, having won six Ranji Trophies. He was captain when Mumbai won in 2003-04. In 2008-09, he had come back after moving to Maharashtra and had been a part of the champion side.

 

 

9. Ranji milestones

 

 

Bahutule was a brilliant all-rounder. In two Ranji seasons, i.e. in 1993-94 and in 2002-03, he hit over 300 runs and took over 30 wickets. In 1993-94, he had taken 35 wickets and scored 387 runs. In 2002-03, he took 40 wickets and scored 315 runs. On both occasions Mumbai won. In his career, he scored a total of 4000 runs and took over 400 wickets in the Ranji Trophy. Sunil Joshi is the only other bowler to do it.

 

 

10. Domestic traveller

 

 

Bahutule was a traveller in domestic cricket. He played for Maharashtra for two seasons from 2005 to 2007. He then played for Assam in 2009-10. He also played for Andhra in 2010-11 and then finally for Vidarbha from 2011 to 2012. He announced his retirement in January 2013. He has captained all the teams he has played for in the Ranji Trophy.

 

 

11. Coaching

 

 

Soon after retiring, Bahutule moved into coaching and was handed the responsibility for Vidarbha, his last team. In 2014, he moved to Kerala.

 

 

12. Unfulfilled international career

 

 

Bahutule made his One-Day International (ODI) debut against Sri Lanka in December 1997 and his Test debut against Australia in March 2001. However, he had an unsuccessful time. In two Tests, he took only three wickets and scored 39 runs. In eight ODIs, he managed two wickets 23 runs. Compare that to his First-Class record, where he had 6176 runs in 188 matches at 31.83, and 630 wickets at 26.00, one can say that he did not fulfil his promise in international cricket.

 
(Nishad Pai Vaidya is a Correspondent with CricketCountry and anchor for the site’s YouTube Channel. His Twitter handle is @nishad_45)

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