In the previous podcast, we had covered cricket since its beginning to the period immediately preceding World War 1. The last Test before the War was played between England and South Africa in February 1914. With the onset of the war, there wasn’t any Test cricket played between the 3 countries as priorities changed. Ironically cricket was played in India, whereas in England, South Africa and West Indies, First Class cricket was abandoned for the entire duration of the war. In Australia and New Zealand, cricket was played in the 1914-15 season but afterwards, First-Class matches were completely abandoned. At least 210 cricketers were known to have joined the armed forces of which 34 were killed.

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In the last podcast, we had traced the evolution of cricket until the early 1980s. The first two ODI World Cups had been held in England, and West Indies had triumphed on both occasions. In the 3rd ODI World Cup, India pulled off a stunning upset over the mighty West Indies in the final winning by 43 runs, ending the hegemony of the West Indians in ODIs. Just to prove that win was no fluke, India repeated their triumph in the World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985. They annihilated Pakistan in the final by 8 wickets and served notice to the rest of the world that they were a force to be reckoned with in international cricket. Their cricket team was beginning to be noticed for the quality of their cricket and the huge population in the sub-continent meant that it became the financial powerhouse of the cricketing world.

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West Indies were once the powerhouse of the game. The all-dominating team that conquered all the teams pitted against them. What was also awe-inspiring about them was the imposing manner in which they demolished teams. Between 1976 and 1995, they played 137 tests, losing only 18 and winning 71. In the 1980s they went through a period when they did not lose a single test for 27 consecutive test matches (still a record). They went from 1980 – 1995 without losing a series!. The current no. 1 side in the world has lost two series in this very calendar year, this gives us a sense of the West Indies domination.

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Cricket like any sport has its fair share of controversies. Ball tampering, Match fixing, spot fixing, sledging, pitches favouring the home team excessively, bad umpiring decisions affecting the outcome of games etc etc. Every now and then a couple of cricketers have a go at each other, sometimes its harmless or just to get a psychological edge but sometimes it can get quite ugly (Miandad v Lillee and Ian Chappel v Ian Botham). There have been however certain unique issues that have cropped up from time to time. We recently explored the Ganguly-Chappell saga, today we take a closer look at the Muralitharan – Darrel Hair no bowling controversy and why there was more to it than it seems.

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India has never been an easy place to tour for test playing countries. In the past, when the Indian team was not a very good side, the facilities and general infrastructure of the country was such that teams did not relish coming here. Over the decades, as the facilities improved, from the ground conditions to the hotel accommodation and everything else in between, the Indian team started playing very well in their home conditions. Foreign teams did not relish coming here for that reason.

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Sachin Tendulkar can lay claim to being the most talked about, and the most written about cricketer in history. He is still referred to as God by his most ardent fans. They say millions of households just switched their television sets off the moment he got out in a match. He was the man who could do no wrong. He is the first, and only, sportsperson to have received the prestigious Bharat Ratna (and is also its youngest recipient).

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Hi this is Malvika and in this series called Dressing Room, we take a look at MS Dhoni’s career.

It will be interesting to see what M S Dhoni’s resting heart rate would be. The man never seems to lose his cool. His team mates have said that even when the Indian team was going through its miserable tours of England and Australia in 2011, Dhoni was a picture of cool and never lashed out as captain on any of them. But don’t be fooled, just because he is cool all the time, doesn’t mean he doesn’t care.

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In the earlier podcast, we had discussed how India was introduced to the game of cricket by the British and how the Indian cricket team had fared in the international arena until the late 1960s, briefly touching upon their twin overseas Test series wins in the West Indies and England in 1971. Since the climatic conditions in Asia and the natural build and physique of Indians were not conducive to producing fast bowlers, India relied on the guile and mystery of spinners to win Test matches. No matter how good the batsmen in a team are, unless the team has bowlers who are capable of taking 20 wickets at an economical rate, it will not be able to win regularly in Tests.

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The first definite reference to cricket being played anywhere in the sub-continent is a report of English sailors of the East India Company written in 1737. It refers to cricket being played at Cambay near Baroda in 1721. A match between Madras and Calcutta in 1864 was definitely the 1st First Class match in India. The British played the match to build relationships with the Indians, the reasoning being that if the Indian elite had more connections with the British, the British could have more control over India.

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Cricket is the second most watched sport in the world after football. It originated in South-East England in the late 16th century before becoming the national sport of England in the 18th century. However, it started developing globally only in the 19th and 20th centuries. Matches between countries have taken place since 1844 while the first Test match took place between Australia and England in 1877.

Let us attempt to trace the evolution and growth of cricket from its infancy through the years up to World War I.

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