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HT This Day: January 16, 1988 -- Hirwani bowls India to victory in Madras Test
West Indies were set a victory target of 416 when skipper Ravi Shastri declared the Indian second innings at 217 for eight .
MADRAS: India enjoyed a crushing 255-run victory over West Indies in the final Test to share the Rubber at 1-1 here today.
With leg-spinner Narendra Hirwani once again proving to be West Indies’ nemesis, they were bowled out for 160 and India swept home with embarrassing ease having more than a day to spare in the match.
The paucity of West Indies’ resources against leg-spin was further demonstrated by the young wizard who took eight wickets for 75 runs in the second innings for a memorable match figures of 16 wickets for 136. In the process, he became the joint world record-holder with Australian Bob Massie for capturing the highest number of wickets on Test debut. Paceman Massie took 16 for 137 against England in 1972.
West Indies were set a victory target of 416 in 526 minutes and 20 mandatory overs when skipper Ravi Shastri declared the Indian second innings at 217 for eight after an hour’s play in the morning. But they were under siege once the bespectacled Hirwani came on the scene in the last over before lunch. They batted extremely badly and their weakness against leg-spin, which was exposed by Pakistan’s Abdul Qadir at Faislabad in 1986, was fully revealed by the 19-yearold Hirwani in the two hours before tea.
The Caribbeans seemingly went into the match rather over-confident after a victory at Delhi and a near-win at Bombay. But ever since they lost the toss, the prospect of having to bat last on the under-prepared Chepauk wicket had reduced them to a bunch of confused individuals. In bowling, their spinners certainly did not have the same ability or penetration as their Indian counterparts. If their bowling lacked steadiness, their batting in the second innings turned out to be atrocious. In other words, West Indies gave up the fight long before the match was over.
One by one, the main West Indies batsmen got themselves out to the delight of a record holiday crowd. Simmons, skipper Richards, Hooper and Dujon were out to strokes which were obviously spontaneous and irresponsible. The axiom that a captain is only as good as his team was in evidence when Richards went for a sweep against the break and ballooned an easy catch. He had clearly lost his head and was out to a stroke, which for the sake of the batsmen, is best forgotten.
Amidst the ruins of the West Indies second innings, only Logie withstood the Indian spinners for 71 minutes for a nonchalant 67 runs attained through fluent arrogance. He struck two huge sixes, off Ayub and Shastri, besides eight boundaries before becoming a stumping victim off Hirwani. Butts slammed three on-side sixes off Hirwani but his knock had a desperate urgency of a condemned man. The sixth-wicket stand of 61 between Logie and Butts was the only worthwhile partnership of the innings after West Indies had slumped to 79 for six.
Hirwani, who started the rout with his fifth ball when Simmons drove a full toss straight to Amarnath at mid-on, later terminated the innings eight minutes before tea when he lured Davis out of the crease to become Kiran More’s fifth stumping victim. More thus emulated the feat of another Indian wicket-keeper, P. Sen, against Pakistan here in 1952. Off spinner Ayub earned his reward at last when he had Richardson caught off bat and pad by Amarnath at backward short leg. Left-arm spinner Raman also claimed his first Test victim with his fourth ball.
With his rich haul, man-of-the-match Hirwani also became the third highest wicket-taker in a Test match, behind Jim Laker and Syd Barnes of England. Laker’s match tally was 19 wickets for 90 runs against Australia at Manchester in 1956, while Barnes bagged 17 for 159 against South Africa at Johannesburg in 1913-14.
Early in the morning, any hopes of left-hander Raman attaining a century on his Test debut vanished when Walsh induced him to touch an outgoing delivery. Raman could add only one run to his overnight score of 82. He had nine fours in a stay of 257 minutes He looked a mature and capable batsman but was fastidiously cautious against a tiring attack yesterday and which in all probability cost him the magical three-figure mark.
Paceman Walsh was the most successful bowler for West Indies and he had match figures of 7 for 140. However, it was in batting that West Indies failed to maintain a consistency that is in keeping with their talent. Responsibility is perhaps the greatest criteria of all batsmen and it was here they were found wanting.
For the first time, there was a definite plan about what India did on the field, and everyone seemed to know what he was doing and what was expected of him. The captaincy of Shastri was also much tighter and the performance was more efficient all round. And India’s credibility as a team has been restored because a band of young and inexperienced players, pitched into the cauldron of Test cricket, have decided to swim rather than sink.
Shastri’s decision in batting first after winning the toss turned out to be the difference between winning and losing the Test. It was after 16 Tests that India have registered a win against West Indies, it was a great victory to saviour and Madras seemed the best place to be in.
