Happy Birthday Sunil Gavaskar: BCCI pays tribute to the original Little Master as Indian cricket legend turns 72 | Cricket - Hindustan Times
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Happy Birthday Sunil Gavaskar: BCCI pays tribute to the original Little Master as Indian cricket legend turns 72

By, New Delhi
Jul 10, 2021 10:16 AM IST

July 10, 2021, marks Sunil Gavaskar's 72nd birthday and as tributes begin flowing in from all corners, the BCCI was one of the first to convey it's wishes to the legendary former India captain.

The month of July marks the birthdays of three of Indian cricket's biggest icons. After MS Dhoni's birthday on July 7, followed by Sourav Ganguly's a day later, July 10 is the day when Indian cricket's original Little Master, Sunil Gavaskar was born. Today is Gavaskar's 72nd birthday and as tributes begin flowing in from all corners, the BCCI was one of the first to convey it's wishes to the legendary former India captain.

Sunil Gavaskar is widely considered India's best Test batsman of all time. (Getty Images)
Sunil Gavaskar is widely considered India's best Test batsman of all time. (Getty Images)

"1983 World Cup-winner. 233 international games. 13,214 international runs. First batsman to register 10,000 runs in Tests. Here's wishing Sunil Gavaskar - former #TeamIndia captain & one of the finest batsmen to have ever graced the game - a very happy birthday," the BCCI tweeted.

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Gavaskar is considered one of the finest Test batsmen of all time, right up there with the likes of Sir Don Bradman, Allan Border, Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar. The first man to score 10,000 runs on Test cricket, Gavaskar scored 10,122 runs from 125 Tests at an average of 51.12. His tally of 34 centuries was the most, a record that stood tall for almost two decades before being broken by Tendulkar.

Gavaskar's 774 runs against West Indies still stands as the highest runs by a batsman in a debut series. Earning his India cap in 1971, against the mighty West Indies, Gavaskar hit four centuries and three fifties with a best of 220 and average of 154.80. Gavaskar was the first batsman to score centuries in both innings of a Test match thrice. Widely regarded as the best opening batsman of all time, Gavaskar made a career out of scoring runs against tough oppositions, especially against West Indies against whom he averaged 65.45, having scored 13 centuries.

In 1983, Gavaskar was part of India's World Cup win, although his ODI record could never touch the high of his Test career, also because the 50-over format wasn't as played much during his time. And yet, Gavaskar scored 3092 runs from 120 ODIs for India between 1974 and 1987. Till the year 2000, Gavaskar was only one of the six Test opening batsmen to have scored more than 3000 runs at an average in excess of 50. Gavaskar's average of 58.25 is the second best of all time for a player with minimum 1000 runs.

A recipient of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan, Gavaskar was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2009 and three years later, was awarded the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award for Cricket in India.

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