For Indian fans, the image of Gordon Greenidge shouldering arms to Balwinder Sandhu is probably the most enduring image from World Cup 1983. Sandhu also got Faoud Bacchus in the final to finish the tour with 8 wickets at 37 and an impressive economy rate of 3.57.
In fact, his overall ODI economy rate of 4.12 makes up for his 16 wickets from 22 matches at an average of 48. In Test cricket the numbers were worse — 10 wickets from 8 Tests at 58. He made up for that with his batting, scoring 214 runs at 31, averaging more than some of his contemporary openers.
The bowling had taken off well. He took two quick wickets, but Mudassar Nazar and Javed Miandad ended up adding 451. Not distraught, he walked out at 72 for 7, top-scoring with 71, still the highest score by a debutant at no. 9. A month later he top-scored again, this time with 68 against a four-pronged West Indian attack at Sabina Park after he walked out at 127 for 7.
After the World Cup he picked up 3 for 27 against Hyderabad, but went downhill after that. His international career ended a year after that. In 1986-87 he got 15 wickets at 25 and scored a fifty, but Bombay dropped him the following season. He called it a day, refusing to play for any other side.
The son of renowned poet Harnam Singh Naz, Sandhu idolised Kapil Dev, with whom he would open bowling on numerous occasions. Originally an in-swing bowler, he later added the out-swinger to his arsenal in his Kanga League days.
Sandhu later took to coaching. Mentored by Frank Tyson, Sandhu was appointed coach of Bombay. He formed an excellent rapport with Sanjay Manjrekar, and Bombay steamrolled every opposition in 1993-94 and 1994-95.
He coached several other teams, including Baroda, during which he made subtle changes to Zaheer Khan’s run-up and release in 2006-07, thus improving the latter’s performances drastically.
Abhishek Mukherjee
Career | M | In | R | NO | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s | 4s | 6s | Ct | St |
Test | 8 | 11 | 214 | 4 | 71 | 30.57 | 182 | 117.5 | 0 | 2 | 11 | -- | 1 | 0 |
ODIs | 22 | 7 | 51 | 3 | 16* | 12.75 | 78 | 65.38 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
T20s | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
World Cup | 8 | 4 | 28 | 2 | 11* | 14.00 | 43 | 65.11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Career | M | B | R | W | Avg | EC | SR | 5WI | 10WM | BBI | BBM |
Test | 8 | 1020 | 557 | 10 | 55.70 | 3.276 | 102 | 0 | 0 | 3/27 | 3/27 |
ODIs | 22 | 1110 | 763 | 16 | 47.68 | 4.124 | 69.37 | 0 | 0 | 3/27 | 3/27 |
T20s | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
World Cup | 8 | 498 | 297 | 8 | 37.12 | 3.578 | 62.25 | 0 | -- | 2/32 | 3/27 |
Test Debut
Pakistan v India at Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad, January 14, 1983
Last Test
India v West Indies at Narendra Modi Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad, November 12, 1983
ODI Debut
Pakistan v India at Jinnah Stadium, Gujranwala, December 3, 1982
Last ODI
Pakistan v India at Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot, October 31, 1984
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