M. A. KHAN OF PATAUDI



🏏🏏
MANSUR ALI KHAN OF PATAUDI
(5 Jan 1941 - 22 Sep 2011)


Mohammed Mansur Ali Khan Siddiqui, the erstwhile ninth Nawab of Pataudi, the youngest and the 14th Indian Test captain, began his first class career with Sussex in 1957 at the age of 16...

An injured right eye in early 1961 left him with only the left for his entire international career. Leading India in 40 out of the 46 Tests that he played, he scored 2793 runs with 6 centuries and 16 fifties, an unbeaten 203 being the highest. In 310 first class appearances, which included Oxford University, Sussex, Delhi and Hyderabad, he totaled 15425 runs with 33 hundreds and 75 fifties...

He made his debut against England in the Delhi Test, December 1961. His match winning ton at Madras in that series earned him the vice-captain's spot, which did not last long as he had to take over the reigns from the injured skipper Nari Contractor during the 1962 West Indies tour. His last Test was at Bombay, against Clive Lloyd's West Indies in 1975, the Test in which the late Eknath Solkar scored his only ton...

Bold and adventurous with the willow, he was unorthodox as well, revelling in lofting the ball to clear the infield with telling effect. In so far as his fielding was concerned, prominent commentator John Arlott and former England captain Ted Dexter had designated him as the "best fielder in the world"...

But above all, his presence infused fresh vigour and optimism, and consequently renewed the team's confidence as well. Under him, India achieved their first overseas Test victory, against New Zealand in 1967...

With his impressive personality, wit and repartee, general acumen, fitness and positivity decorated with Arjuna, Padma Shri, Indian and Wisden Cricketer awards, Mansur Ali Khan could be easily regarded of as the first superstar of Indian cricket, with few peers...

He was the editor of a sports magazine, Sportsworld, from 1978 to 1994. He also officiated as a referee for two Ashes Tests in 1993. He has an autobiography, "Tiger's Tale" which hit the stands in 1969...

Mansoor Ali Khan did try his hand at politics. His lone essay on a Congress ticket in the electoral battle of 1991 from Bhopal failed to bear fruit, and he gracefully walked away from that space for good...

Mansur Ali Khan had the ignominy of remaining an accused in the black buck poaching case in June 2005. Six of his associates were convicted in 2015...

The Tiger of Indian cricket lost his battle against interstitial lung disease, breathing his last in Sir Gangaram Hospital, Delhi, this day in 2011...

Being actively involved with a non-profit charitable eye institute serving the visually impaired, his wish to donate his eyes was duly fulfilled...

The BCCI instituted an annual memorial lecture in his memory from 2013. The Pataudi Trophy is the name given to the Test series between India and England, when played in England...

A respected voice during his time, Mansur Ali Khan always played his part in his inimitable royal manner. His contributions shall always remain etched in the annals of history, of cricket and of India...

The legend thus lives on...


🙏🙏🌹💐    🇮🇳

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