ETV Bharat / sports

Kapil Dev: For the love of fast bowling!

With his pace, vicious swing and ability to analyze batsmen's body language and movement early Kapil Dev made himself India's best fast bowler of all-time and earned the sobriquet "Haryana Hurricane" for himself.

Kapil Dev
Design image
author img

By

Published : Oct 23, 2020, 6:59 PM IST

Updated : Dec 20, 2020, 7:51 PM IST

Hyderabad: Kapil Dev has turned 61 on January 6. He was the captain of India's 1983 World Cup-winning team and the best all-rounder from his motherland. Retired in 1994, Kapil Dev is the first Indian star who appeared in the Indian cricket scene to share the legendary status with his fellow Indian Sunil Gavaskar, who was lone internationally recognised Indian cricketer before Dev's arrival.

Though Gavaskar had a dogged capacity to bat for hours after hours, thanks to his impeccable technique, he never could bat like Viv Richards, modern-day cricket's first destructive batsman and Gavaskar's contemporary. Richards, with his regular display of brute batting, caught the imagination of cricket fans across the world. In India, Gavaskar is famous and respected, but his tenacity to bat for hours without scoring couldn't penetrate the minds of Indians looking for heroes who could lift their morale in the time of crisis.

In 1983, at the age of 25, Kapil Dev inspired minnows India to beat the giants West Indies to win their maiden ODI World Cup at the Mecca of Cricket, The Lord's, on June 25. This victory separated Kapil Dev from the rest and gave him iconic status.

Kapil Dev's Test career in a nutshell.
Kapil Dev's Test career in a nutshell.

Kapil Dev's timely arrival enabled him to become an idol of Indians. A bowler born in the land of spinners, Kapil Dev was the first paceman who bowled with genuine pace and gave back to foreigners as much as Indians got from them. As a batsman, he was no less gutsy. He was a very quick batter. There were plenty of instances when he singlehandedly changed the mood of the Indian dressing room by taking opposition bowlers to the cleaners.

Kapil Dev, at his peak, was a no nonsense batsman. He was brave, had the power and ability to smash the best pacer of his time in the stands. Having made his debut against Pakistan at the age of 19, he hit a 33-ball half-century in his very third Test. His unbeaten 126 off 124 balls against pacers like Sylvester Clarke, Norbert Phillip and Vanburn Holder in 1979 is a testament of his fierce batting.

His batting was pretty handy. He saved India from the follow-ons, won India from the jaws of defeat and silenced blabbering oppositions with towering sixes and cruising fours. But it was his fast bowling through which he made a major contribution to the Indian cricket. A country with no culture for rearing athletes, Kapil Dev once had to face the persistent issue that grappled Indian sportspersons.

In his teenage, after finishing training in Mumbai a hungry Kapil Dev demanded more rootis, but he was denied and laughed at. He was told that this country can't produce fast bowlers. Despite facing obstacles, he never let his spirit down and proved himself as the best all-rounder of his time. With eight Test hundreds, he achieved this honour in an era which was blessed with some of the best all-rounders of all time. Remember Ian Botham, Imran Khan and Richard Hadlee!

A brief look at Kapil Dev's ODI career.
A brief look at Kapil Dev's ODI career.

With his pace, vicious swing and ability to analyze batsmen's body language and movement early he made himself India's best fast bowler of all-time and earned the sobriquet "Haryana Hurricane" for himself. The record of leading wicket-taker of world cricket once belonged to him. Kapil Dev with 434 Test wickets held the record of highest wicket-taker from 1994 to 2000. He remains the highest fast bowling wicket-taker for India in test cricket. In the ODIs, he took 253 wickets from 225 matches at an average of 27.45, which is still the best by any Indian bowler in limited-overs cricket.

Though Sunil Gavaskar is now a much-revered man in Indian cricket and spends more time on live sports coverage as a commentator and an analyst, it was Kapil Dev who inspired a generation of India bowlers to rear the dream of fast bowling. Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agar, Ashish Nehra and Irfan Pathan, the only one who made some impact as an all-rounder after Kapil Dev, to name a few who idolised Kapil Dev and dreamt to bowl like him in the early 2000s.

Now the legendary all-rounder has been undergoing a critical phase of his life. Friday morning, Dev underwent a successful emergency coronary angioplasty at a Delhi hospital after he suffered a heart attack. Hope, he makes a quick recovery and returns to lead a normal life.

-- Sudipta Biswas

Hyderabad: Kapil Dev has turned 61 on January 6. He was the captain of India's 1983 World Cup-winning team and the best all-rounder from his motherland. Retired in 1994, Kapil Dev is the first Indian star who appeared in the Indian cricket scene to share the legendary status with his fellow Indian Sunil Gavaskar, who was lone internationally recognised Indian cricketer before Dev's arrival.

Though Gavaskar had a dogged capacity to bat for hours after hours, thanks to his impeccable technique, he never could bat like Viv Richards, modern-day cricket's first destructive batsman and Gavaskar's contemporary. Richards, with his regular display of brute batting, caught the imagination of cricket fans across the world. In India, Gavaskar is famous and respected, but his tenacity to bat for hours without scoring couldn't penetrate the minds of Indians looking for heroes who could lift their morale in the time of crisis.

In 1983, at the age of 25, Kapil Dev inspired minnows India to beat the giants West Indies to win their maiden ODI World Cup at the Mecca of Cricket, The Lord's, on June 25. This victory separated Kapil Dev from the rest and gave him iconic status.

Kapil Dev's Test career in a nutshell.
Kapil Dev's Test career in a nutshell.

Kapil Dev's timely arrival enabled him to become an idol of Indians. A bowler born in the land of spinners, Kapil Dev was the first paceman who bowled with genuine pace and gave back to foreigners as much as Indians got from them. As a batsman, he was no less gutsy. He was a very quick batter. There were plenty of instances when he singlehandedly changed the mood of the Indian dressing room by taking opposition bowlers to the cleaners.

Kapil Dev, at his peak, was a no nonsense batsman. He was brave, had the power and ability to smash the best pacer of his time in the stands. Having made his debut against Pakistan at the age of 19, he hit a 33-ball half-century in his very third Test. His unbeaten 126 off 124 balls against pacers like Sylvester Clarke, Norbert Phillip and Vanburn Holder in 1979 is a testament of his fierce batting.

His batting was pretty handy. He saved India from the follow-ons, won India from the jaws of defeat and silenced blabbering oppositions with towering sixes and cruising fours. But it was his fast bowling through which he made a major contribution to the Indian cricket. A country with no culture for rearing athletes, Kapil Dev once had to face the persistent issue that grappled Indian sportspersons.

In his teenage, after finishing training in Mumbai a hungry Kapil Dev demanded more rootis, but he was denied and laughed at. He was told that this country can't produce fast bowlers. Despite facing obstacles, he never let his spirit down and proved himself as the best all-rounder of his time. With eight Test hundreds, he achieved this honour in an era which was blessed with some of the best all-rounders of all time. Remember Ian Botham, Imran Khan and Richard Hadlee!

A brief look at Kapil Dev's ODI career.
A brief look at Kapil Dev's ODI career.

With his pace, vicious swing and ability to analyze batsmen's body language and movement early he made himself India's best fast bowler of all-time and earned the sobriquet "Haryana Hurricane" for himself. The record of leading wicket-taker of world cricket once belonged to him. Kapil Dev with 434 Test wickets held the record of highest wicket-taker from 1994 to 2000. He remains the highest fast bowling wicket-taker for India in test cricket. In the ODIs, he took 253 wickets from 225 matches at an average of 27.45, which is still the best by any Indian bowler in limited-overs cricket.

Though Sunil Gavaskar is now a much-revered man in Indian cricket and spends more time on live sports coverage as a commentator and an analyst, it was Kapil Dev who inspired a generation of India bowlers to rear the dream of fast bowling. Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agar, Ashish Nehra and Irfan Pathan, the only one who made some impact as an all-rounder after Kapil Dev, to name a few who idolised Kapil Dev and dreamt to bowl like him in the early 2000s.

Now the legendary all-rounder has been undergoing a critical phase of his life. Friday morning, Dev underwent a successful emergency coronary angioplasty at a Delhi hospital after he suffered a heart attack. Hope, he makes a quick recovery and returns to lead a normal life.

-- Sudipta Biswas

Last Updated : Dec 20, 2020, 7:51 PM IST
ETV Bharat Logo

Copyright © 2025 Ushodaya Enterprises Pvt. Ltd., All Rights Reserved.