#2 Dilip Vengsarkar (Jun 1986 - Nov 1988) – Tests- 17, Runs- 1706, Average- 100.35, Centuries- 8
Colonel, as he is known as, is one of India’s most under-rated batsmen. In matches that he and Gavaskar played together against the four-pronged pace attack of the mighty West Indies, Vengsarkar averaged 41.41 to Gavaskar’s 40.87 and quite often performed when Gavaskar did not (that a certain Mohinder Amarnath outperformed both on the tour of West Indies in 1983 is another matter), but Vengsarkar deserves more mention that he usually gets.
From 5 June 1986 to 12 Nov 1988, however, Vengsarkar had absolutely no equals in world cricket. He averaged 100.35 over the 17 tests he played in this period, almost 38 more than the second-placed Allan Border. His 8 centuries were also neared only by Allan Border (5).
Part of this dream run were two centuries on India’s victorious 1986 tour to England which remained India’s only overseas series victory until its 2006 win over the West Indies. To top it all, India won 5 and lost only 2 out of the 17 matches during this period. To say that Vengsarkar was the chief architect of most of them is a no-brainer.
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