Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Sunil Gavaskar may have built his legendary career around batting, but there was a time when he fancied himself as a bowler and dreamt of dismissing two of the greatest West Indies cricketers of his era. The former India captain recently recalled how he imagined getting Rohan Kanhai caught behind before trapping Garfield Sobers leg-before wicket with the very next delivery.
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The fantasy belonged to a young Gavaskar, who would eventually become one of the greatest opening batters in cricket history. His actual bowling career, however, was considerably less eventful. Gavaskar bowled just one over on his Test debut against the West Indies at Port of Spain, where Sobers was playing, and finished his Test career with only one wicket — that of Pakistan’s Zaheer Abbas.
“I feel a little silly saying this, but in those days, they used to give you the new ball to bowl with in the nets. Nobody saw whether you were bowling from 22 yards or from a little further up. At the Brabourne Stadium, the nets used to be pretty lively. The ball used to move around a little,” Gavaskar told PTI during a conversation at the Bombay Gymkhana.
Also Read: Sir Garfield Sobers, one of cricket’s greatest all-rounders, dies at 89
“So I fancied myself as a bowler at that time. And my one dream was – again, that’s why I say I feel silly – that I would get Rohan Kanhai because I used to bowl a decent outswinger. I wanted to get Rohan Kanhai caught behind and then, off the very next ball, get Garfield Sobers lbw. That was my dream,” Gavaskar said.
GAVASKAR GOES DOWN THE MEMORY LANE
Gavaskar’s admiration for Sobers went back to his childhood, when he watched the West Indies great play in India. One of his earliest memories was from the 1958 tour, when the young Gavaskar watched from the North Stand as Sobers took on the Indian bowlers.
“I had seen him get out caught and bowled off Ghulam Guard. He was a left-arm fast bowler. He bowled a bouncer, Sobers went for a hook shot and the bat flew out of his hand. The ball went up in the air, and Ghulam Guard, the fast bowler, took the catch himself,” he recalled.
“We were all disappointed that he got only 25. Despite being Indians, we wanted to see Garry Sobers and Rohan Kanhai score runs. That didn’t happen.”
Sobers, however, made up for that disappointment in the second innings, producing a memorable response against Guard.
“But in the second innings, when Ghulam Guard bowled another bouncer, Garry Sobers hit him over to the tennis court. I think he made 142 not out,” Gavaskar said.
A LASTING IMPRESSION AT BRABOURNE
Gavaskar also recalled watching Sobers at the Brabourne Stadium in December 1966, when the West Indies great continued to showcase his extraordinary talent. Although Gavaskar was under 18 and technically not allowed inside the pavilion, he remembered being able to watch the action from a designated area.
“At the Brabourne Stadium in 1966, I was actually in the pavilion. Although I was under 18 and shouldn’t have been there, the CCI had a rule that those under 18 were not allowed in the pavilion,” Gavaskar recalled.
“I think they allowed us to be near the children’s enclosure that used to be there, and that’s when we saw the game in which Sir Garfield scored those runs.”
Sobers, who represented the West Indies between 1954 and 1974, played 93 Tests, scoring 8,032 runs at an average of 57.78 and taking 235 wickets.
Widely regarded as one of cricket’s finest all-rounders, he combined elegant batting with versatility as a bowler and exceptional fielding ability. He was knighted in 1975 for his services to cricket. Sobers passed away on July 17, 2026, at the age of 89, leaving behind an extraordinary legacy.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
