Gundappa Viswanath with his wife watching his son playing in the Karnataka Premier League (KPL). Unlike his more illustrious uncles Rohan Kanhai and Alvin Kallicharan, he played predominantly as a bowler. He learnt his first important lesson - nothing succeeds like . He played 155 innings out of 91 test matches and scored 6080 runs with a career average of 41.93. This match ended in a draw where Vishy contributed with 222 runs. Many cricket experts came up with their opinion as to who is the better batter: Gavaskar or Viswanath. The book titled Wrist Assured was launched during the opening day of the second Test between India . He scored 97 not out in the first inning and took the teams total to 190 runs while batting at number four position against the bowling of Andy Roberts and Lance Gibbs. Even a Karnataka state junior team selector termed him as too short to play cricket. His prime focus was more on timing than power and is regarded as one of the brave batters against fast bowling. On a famous cricket website, it was written, That day Viswanath played every stroke as if painting a precious masterpiece on a green canvas. He is the new star that has arrived to brighten our cricket horizon.. Probably Kapil think they wont select you, is it ok? How do you expect me to say no I am not ok?. When Darren Bravo burst on to the international arena during an ODI against India at Kingston in 2009, he made the onlookers sit up and take notice. Initially, I found it a strain. He played some brilliant strokes.. . He played 91 Tests and scored 6080 runs at an average of 41.93. However, White can draw some comfort from the fact that he dismissed his brother-in-law thrice. It will be India bowlers vs the New Zealand batsmen in the WTC final. Dont you know that our opponents of today possess a couple of good fast bowlers?. His third test hundred came against West Indies on 27 December 1974 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Daivik Viswanath is also the great-nephew of Madhav Mantri. He is also one of the most loved Indian cricketers known for his true sportsmanship and integrity. The little master of Indian cricket, Gundappa Vishwanath made a remarkable comeback last month after almost slipping from the pinnacle of fame into a has been. And I think I wouldve done well in this format. After that inning, Englands captain Tony Craig was so impressed with the elegant stroke play that he lifted him up and cradled him as a token of appreciation. It was while essaying the square-cut that every ounce of his little frame went into the wallop, sending the ball screaming through the crowded point area.. [8], In March 1978, Gundappa Viswanath married Kavita, the sister of teammate Sunil Gavaskar. He has one brother named Jagannath Viswanath. He went to Gavaskars house on a regular basis and there he fell in love with his younger sister Kavita. His other major contributions include a record partnership with Yashpal Sharma of 316 runs for the third wicket that saved the test match at Chepauk Stadium in Chennai (now M.A. If he had been born outside India, he would have been regarded as [highly as] Bradman. Gavaskars concentration was very good; he just accumulated runs. A round of golf followed by some quality time spent with his wife Kavita and son Daivik and some . In ODIs also, he is most successful at the number four slot where he scored 402 runs. In all, he scored 137 runs including 100 runs off the boundaries, and took his side to an emphatic win. Written by NDTVSports | Friday January 1, 2016. Dilip Vengsarkar was hit by a Bob Willis bouncer and retired hurt.. The captain then apologized to Chandrasekhar for undervaluingthe Pocket-sized genius. The batter scored twin fifties in the third Test in Cape Town and was adjudged the Player of the Match as . He took 66 catches in his entire international career that started from 1969 to 1983. At his prime, he was a supreme artist in action with the willow. Not everyone needs to be an (Andre) Russell or a Lynn. Gavaskars concentration was very good; he just accumulated runs. One against West Indies and another against New Zealand. Talking about his One-day International career, he played 25 matches and scored 439 runs with an average of 19.95. info) (born 12 February 1949) is a former Indian cricketer. Former fast bowling greats like Dennis Lilee and Andy Roberts rates Vishy better than Gavaskar and. He played in 91 Test matches and scored over 6,000 runs at a decent average of over 41. Follow Sportskeeda for latest updates & news, Be the first one to comment on this story. This kind of bias towards the home team finally lead to the introduction of neutral umpires in the year 1994 with one neutral umpire in test match and from 2002 both umpires have been the neutral in test match. He is the joint shortest Indian cricketer till date with a height of 5.2 feet along with. But there are times when its your inner call that tells you what is right. [10][11], Viswanath retired from Tests in 1983, and later served as a match referee for the ICC from 1999 to 2004. During his cricketing days, he faced the fast bowling attacks of the West Indies and England with great courage. Interestingly, it was the match that gave birth to the technique of lofting at spinners by batters [4]CricketCountry About his inning, Tony Cozier, a famous Barbadian journalist wrote on Sportsweek magazine [5]Scroll.in, Vishwanath looked a complete batsman with an exciting array of shots which he was never afraid to unleash. I am sure he will do the job for Virat in the WTC final too., Well, my hero was Harvey. I see no need to be drawn into discussing it now or to have my performance compared to anyone elses. In his first match, he scored 30 runs and made his Ranji debut in 1967 against Andhra. Caribbeans were at their peak during that time though this playing eleven was considered weak as many of the star players like Gordon Greenidge, Vivian Richards, and Gary Sobers opted to play in the World Series cricket. A right hander, he played in the middle order. ", The 26th anniversary of an immortal innings, "Neutral umpires and the declaration of independence in Test cricket | Mike Selvey", "6 interesting facts about Gundappa Vishwanath", "Lesser known facts about Gundappa Viswanath", "The square cut was not my only shot, writes Gundappa Vishwanath in his book", "Gundappa Viswanath: 15 facts about the stylish Indian batsman", "IND Vs SL: Gundappa Viswanath's Autobiography 'Wrist Assured' Launched In Bengaluru", "List of Indian cricketers winning Arjuna Award", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gundappa_Viswanath&oldid=1141857111, Cricketers who made a century on Test debut, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2010, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 05:08. When in touch he could destroy the best of bowling attacks. His team lost three wickets on the score of 28 runs when Viswanath added 99 runs with Chandu Borde and ended his inning with 68 runs. Sunil and Marshneil Gavaskar have one son named Rohan Gavaskar. This was the only domestic-level tournament that Vishy missed from the time he started playing professional cricket. Alyssa, who is the niece of veteran gloveman Ian Healy, keeps wickets for Australian women's team. One of his best innings came against West Indies at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Madras (now Chennai) on 11 January 1975. On 7 February 1981, Vishy played the inning that helped team India to draw the three-match series 1-1 against Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Vishwanath in action aganist the English attack: 'Cricket is a funny game'. Obviously, as captain, you play hard to win. Services. That time, his captain advised him to stay relaxed and focused. He took 66 catches in his entire international career. His next major first-class performance came against the New Zealand team while playing for Indian Board Presidents XI in 1969. Maybe the astonishing similarity in the two left-handers' style of batting arose from their familial ties. Siraj did a wonderful job in Australia. He was an elegant batsman who had a full range of shots like the square cut and the flick and was very good to watch. Gundappa Viswanath is a former Indian batter known for his elegant wrist work and batting style. Nutan is elder to Kavita. There cannot be any comparison between the two. 1. Nagamootoo's leg-spin fetched him 12 wickets from 5 Tests, and 18 scalps from 24 ODIs. He has many unique achievements to his name. First Indian batter to score consecutive six fifties in test cricket and only three Indian cricketers to do so. Overall, he is the fifth shortest in terms of international cricketers after Kruger Van Wyk from New Zealand (4.9 feet), Tich Cornford (5.0 feet) from England, Tich Freeman (5.2 feet) also from England, and Mushfiqur Rahim from Bangladesh (5.3 feet). One of his best innings came against West Indies at M.A. Viswanath was also among the rare players to score a hundred in both his maiden first-class innings and his first Test innings. It was while essaying the square-cut that every ounce of his little frame went into the wallop, sending the ball screaming through the crowded point area.. He has the most successful career against England with 1880 runs out of 54 innings. He also led India in two Tests and was a good fielder with a safe pair of hands. As Bob was walking to the pavilion, Viswanath decided to call him back to the field when their score was 22 for 5. Later, he was dropped from the series against the Caribbeans and never got back into the Indian side again. Gundappa Viswanath belongs to a Kannada family. Gundappa Ranganath Viswanath Profile With a century on debut in the Ranji Trophy in 1967-68, and a similar feat on Test debut in 1969-70, GR Viswanath, dearly known as 'Vishy' soon became one of . And in walks Viswanath who held a match-winning partnership of 159 runs with. He is the joint shortest Indian cricketer with a height of 5.3 feet along with Parthiv Patel. He was also the chairman of the national selection committee, and also served as the manager of the Indian cricket team. He also played in One Day Internationals from 1974 to 1982, including the World Cups of 1975 and 1979. Viswanath is 73 years old as of 2022. Out of these two, one was lost and another ended in a draw. Sometimes you choose your heroes; at other times, proximity . His next best performance came against the mighty Caribbeans on 7 April 1976 at Queens Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. In what was one of the most sordid and much-publicised tales in English cricket, Mark Butcher's personal life was quite eventful. Former India batsman Gundappa Viswanath praised Virat Kohli's captaincy skills but feels the Test captain needs to improve as a batsman ahead of the . The Indian cricket team legend, who is Sunil Gavaskar's brother-in-law, talks about the highs and lows of his career. On the second day, he went on to score the highest individual first-class score (230 runs) that time going past V Subramayas 213 and George Abels 210 for Northern India against the Army in 1933-34 which include 33 fours and five sixes. He was an artist. Bengaluru. He told me, that when he [Harvey] first came to India, he moved halfway across the pitch to hit Subhash Gupte through the covers., Viswanath during a launch of book spinner best friend along with Sunil Gavaskar, Ajit Wadekar, and B. S. Chandrasekhar (extreme right). In 1975, he earned the name for slowest run scorer when in a world cup match against England, he scored 36 runs out of 174 balls (just one four). His family moved to Bangalore (now Bengaluru) when he was five years old. On the next day, he went on to score the highest Ranji individual score (230 runs) at that time surpassing V Subramayas 213 and George Abels 210 for Northern India against the Army in 1933-34. First ODI captain of India Ajit Wadekar said, Viswanath was a person to look at. Zodiac sign: Aquarius. Gundappa Viswanath was a true artist with the willow - his strokeplay, particularly the late-cut executed with lumberjack-strong wrists, was nothing less than divine. He played his first cricket match for the Spartan Sports Club in the third division of the Mysore Cricket League (MCL) in early 1960s. The next morning, before the lunch break, he reached 96 runs without losing much tempo. Many Indian cricket fans would know Kavita is married to former Indian cricketer Gundappa Viswanath. Gundappa Viswanath (R) celebrated his 69th birthday on Monday. Viswanath played Test cricket for India from 1969 to 1983, making 91 appearances and scoring more than 6,000 runs. He also scored a century (139 runs) in the preceding test match of the series. But there are times when its your inner call that tells you what is right. He didnt wait much and soon made his international debut one month later against Bill Lawrys Australians. He was born on 12 February 1949. It would be unfair to draw a comparison between them. photos Siri Muvva / 35 MM / Color/! One wonders if cricket features prominently during dinner in the Healy-Starc household. There is a constant debate about who is the better batter: Gavaskar or Viswanath. He was a delight on the field., Anil to me is a very good choice. Former India captain Gundappa Viswanath's autobiography was launched in Bengaluru on Saturday. India was batting first. Against the West Indies at Madras in 197475 he scored 97 not out out of a total of 190 against a bowling attack containing Andy Roberts. At the end of the day, Viswanath ended his score on 69 runs taking his team score to 204 for the loss of five wickets. Chidambaram Stadium in Madras (now Chennai) on 11 January 1975. In the last inning, India required 125 runs to win on the last day which they won by losing seven wickets. His prime focus was more on timing than power and is regarded as one of the brave batters against fast bowling. His brother was a great fan of Australian cricket and use to wake Vishy up to listen to the cricket commentary when the Australian team was playing. He made his Ranji Debut in 1967 while playing for Mysore against Andhra Pradesh at the Municipal Stadium (now Indira Gandhi Stadium) in Vijaywada. Against the mighty West Indies, Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath played the starring roles as the Indian team created . At state level, he played for Karnataka (formerly Mysore) throughout his career. It was Vishwanath, who was unrelentingly severe on Holding and Julien.. Vishwanath was rated as one of India's finest batsmen throughout the 1970s. He has penned 4 books on Cricket - "Sunny Days" (autobiography), "Idols," "Runs n' Ruins," and "One Day Wonders." The two of us playing the whole day was memorable. He then played some fine innings in the P Ramachandra Rao Memorial Trophy. Even though he does not possess comparable wicket-keeping skills, the 22-year old holds an impressive batting average of 53.88 from 31 ODIs. After retirement, he served as a match . The first cricketer to score a century and duck in his debut test match and one of only four batters to do so. While Ranji is widely credited as the inventor of leg-glance, Duleep's late-cut has stood the test of time. GR Vishwanath is another Indian to feature in the list of shortest cricketers. Your login session has expired. During the time when he was the selector. [3]CricketCountry Following that knock, it took him several more innings to turn into a permanent member of the side at number four. Viswanath with his wife during his young days. It was Vishwanath, who was unrelentingly severe on Holding and Julien., Talking about that inning, Vishy told during an interview with a local newspaper in 2016 that, Sunil and Anshuman put on a useful 69. Rohan played 11 ODIs for the Indian cricket team, scoring 151 runs, with his highest score being 54. [2], On his Test match debut, Viswanath scored a century against Australia at Kanpur in 1969 in a drawn match. Adding bit further, he told, He played superbly and it was an attractive innings. My tour of Pakistan in 1982-83 was not good. Chandrasekhar; a cricket promoter while playing at the High School ground in Bangalore. With the Test match starting on Thursday, neither Bishan Singh Bedi nor Gundappa Viswanth . Viswanath is married to Gavaskar's sister Kavita. Vishy was a fine stroke player, he was very wristy. (Photo by Adrian Murrell/Getty Images) The southern part of India has always given the Indian team a touch . On paper, Gavaskar has scored more Test runs than Vishwanath. Vishy padding up for the practice session. [2]The News Minute But Vishy didnt give up and constantly worked in nurturing his batting skills and ultimately, he got selected in the national side and played his first international game on 15 November 1969 against Australia at the Green Park International Stadium in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) under the captaincy of Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi. He was a member of the side when India won their first test match in England under the captaincy of Ajit Wadekar in 1971. The same crowd that had hurled matkas on his way back in the first innings rose as one to celebrate his century. After reaching 100, he would try to get 150, and would just go on. 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