The wizardry of Hirwani

From 24A

In Indore, Hirwani headed to the Cricket Club of India (CCI) ground, where his eventual guru, Sanjay Jagdale, a Ranji Trophy player was ready to dismiss him on sight when he observed his excessive weight. He pleaded his case and Jagdale relented.

Hirwani was dogged in pursuit of his dream. He lost 25 kilos over three and half months, and trained all the time. There was no structured programme per se, but Hirwani ran ten to fifteen kilometres daily at 4.00 am, and then headed for the gym to execute Jagdale’s weight-lifting exercises. After the gym he bowled at a single stump for two hours. When club practice began at 2:00 pm, he bowled from the start until dark, aiming to fulfil his goal of bowling one hundred overs a day.

It was a lonely pursuit for Hirwani, to master the art of leg spin bowling, the most complicated aspect of cricket’s varied crafts. Hirwani had unconsciously been turning it ‘the wrong way’ ever since he was eight or nine years old, bowling the old cork ball which always seemed to be in his possession. Alongside his guru, Jagdale, he studied the how and the why, deciphering the physical and psychological intricacies of the leg spinner’s repertoire: the leg spin, the top spin, the googly or the wrong’un, and the flipper. The key to each delivery lies in the angle of the wrist at the moment the ball is released, an exercise in perfection that can only be met with hundreds and hundreds of hours of practice. There are so many parts to a bowler’s action, that the moment something goes awry, it can fall to pieces. None more so than that of a leg spinner, who, once he loses the ability to flight the ball, or pitch it in the right spot, or spin it hard, he then becomes fodder for any good batsman. Mastering the art of leg spin bowling requires the discipline and perseverance of a monk. Hirwani, the dream chaser was the perfect candidate.

At the age of 16, Hirwani represented Madhya Pradesh in the Under-22 Final, where his 12 wickets propelled his adopted state to their first lien on the trophy. His performance encouraged former India Test cricketer Ashok Mankad, then the Ranji Trophy coach to select him, despite much protestations from several quarters. Hirwani’s fivewicket haul on debut versus Rajasthan, quietly ended the furore. The next year, he was selected to represent Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy competition. A month past his 19th birthday, he calmly received the news that he was selected for India’s Test squad for the series versus the mighty West Indies.

At Delhi, November 25, 26, 27, 29. First Test. Hirwani later recalled, “Suddenly I was sharing a dressing-room with players who had been my childhood heroes, whose posters I had posted on the walls of my room. Here I was, in the same team as them. Just imagine – Kapil Dev, Srikkanth, Ravi Shastri, Mohinder Amarnath. People may not be able to comprehend how much in awe I was.” Mandrekar, his Under-25 team mate made his debut, as Hirwani watched the West Indies win by five wickets. Following low scoring first innings totals by both sides, Richards played a masterful unbeaten knock of 109 not out, as the West Indies recovered from 111 for four to get the required 276.

In December, the West Indies continued their punishing itinerary. At Pune, the match versus North Zone, the Duleep Trophy Champions was a drawn high-scoring affair. The First ODI at Nagpur resulted in a WI victory by 10 runs. The Second Test at Bombay was a rain-affected draw with the visitors enjoying the upper hand. At Visakhapatnam, the President’s XI were defeated by an innings. At Gauhati, India fell 52 runs short in the Second ODI. At Calcutta, the Third Test was drawn, as both sides posted over 500 in their first innings. Hirwani recalled the moment his dream was realised. “We were going to Chennai from Mumbai for the final Test [January 1988], by which time Ravi Shastri had been named captain because Dilip Vengsarkar was injured. We were climbing the steps to board the aircraft when Ravi bhai tapped me on my shoulder and said ‘you are playing.’ The timing was great because I had enough notice that I would be playing. It helped calm my nerves and prepare better.”

At Madras (now Chennai), January 11, 12, 14, 15. Fourth Test. India’s first victory over the West Indies in 15 Tests was marked by one of the most astonishing debut performances in the history of Test cricket. Hirwani, one of three Indian players getting their Test cap, equalled Australian Bob Massie’s feat of taking 16 wickets in his first Test match, as the West Indies lost by 255 runs with a day and a session to spare. Hirwani’s match figures read; 18.3 - 3 – 61 - 8, and 15.2 – 3 – 75 - 8, for a combined total of 16 for 136, one run better than Massie’s 16 for 137.

The pitch was dry and dusty, ideal conditions for sharp spin for those who could exploit it. West Indies Tour Manager, Jackie Hendriks addressed it as a ‘mockery’, described it as “the worst Test pitch I have seen” , and lodged an official complaint to the Indian Board about the state of the pitch. It has to be noted that West Indies spinner Clyde Butts failed to take a wicket in 45 overs. Only Patrick Patterson, nought not out in both innings escaped Hirwani’s talons. Five of the dismissals were stumpings by wicketkeeper Kiran More, whose counterpart, Dujon suffered the humiliation twice. In the West Indies second innings only Test debutant Phil Simmons (14), Logie (67), and Butts (38) got to double figures.

The pitch aside, Hirwani’s wizardry of guile and deception cannot be forgotten. Once again, the West Indies Achilles Heel had been exposed.

Aftermath

Hirwani played only 17 Tests in eight years, failing to reproduce the magic of his debut. However, he did add his name to the record books again, bowling 59 consecutive overs during a Test match versus England at the Oval in 1990. When he retired from first-class cricket in 2006, his tally read 732 wickets.

Summary of the five times the West Indies succumbed to the wily foxes of the legspin trade.

Fifth Test versus Australia, at Sydney, 1984/85 - (Second) Lost by an innings and 55 runs

Bowlers Bob Holland and Murray Bennett -15 wickets

First Test versus Pakistan , at Faisalabad, 1986/87 – (Third) Lost by 196 runs

Abdul Qadir 6 for 16, as WI dismissed for 53 in the second innings

Fourth Test versus India, at Madras, 1987/88 – (Fifth) Lost by 255 runs - Hirwani 16 for 136

Fourth Test versus Australia, at Sydney, 1988/89 - (Seventh) Australia won by seven wickets

Allan Border 11 for 96

Second Test versus Australia, Melbourne, 1992/93 – (Thirteenth) Australia won by 139 runs

Shane Warne 7 for 52 in the second innings