The duo of Ganguly-Dravid made their Test debut at Lord’s, the Mecca of cricket. It was the second Test of the 1996 series, and the debutants made their mark with scintillating knocks; Ganguly with a superb 131 and Dravid missing out on a maiden hundred by 5 runs.
The Test gave rise to two modern legends of the game with more than 40,000 international runs and many records between them.
Let’s take a look in to the team that played in that game and where they are now:
#1 Vikram Rathour
The opener had also made his debut earlier on in the series and could only add 15 runs to the Indian total. He got into the team through some prolific domestic cricket performances but was found wanting at the international level.
His stats say it all; over 11,000 runs at an average of nearly 50 in first class cricket, but a mere 131 runs in 6 test matches. His career was a short one, playing only 6 Tests and 7 ODIs between 1996-’97. He failed to make most of his opportunities and retired from the game in 2003.
On September 27, 2012 he was appointed as the national selector from the North Zone. Some controversy followed Rathour as it was revealed that he has a British passport as well as an Overseas Citizen of India card, and this led to questioning of his loyalty to India and Indian cricket. He has been the assistant coach for Kings XI Punjab and coached the Punjab Ranji Trophy team as well.
#2 Nayan Mongia
Mongia, who was the wicketkeeper, opened the innings along with Rathour and made 24 runs. He is infamous for his bizarre performance in an ODI against West Indies in Kanpur 1994; Mongia along with Manoj Prabhakar, left with 63 to get in 54 balls with 5 wickets in hand, simply refused to chase it down and lost the game by 46 runs.
Mongia finished with 4 off 21 deliveries and was suspended from the rest of the series. He also missed an easy run out in the same match, and has always been marred with match fixing allegations for the rest of his playing career. He, however, still lays claim to the prestigious record for most catches in a Test match for India - 8 catches on two occasions.
The former wicketkeeper, who turned 47 on December 19th retired from first class cricket in 2004. Following that, he was appointed as the coach of the Thailand National team as well as their U-19 team. He has also worked as a cricket expert for several television channels including Star News, NDTV and quite a few more. He applied for the post of selector most recently, but wasn’t picked for the position.
#3 Sourav Ganguly
One of India’s greatest ever captains, he first struck with the ball in his debut match, bagging 2 wickets for 49 runs in his 15 overs (1/5 in 3 overs in the second innings as well). Add that to his brilliant 131 batting at one down, you would be hard pressed to have asked for a better debut. The southpaw eventually batted lower down the order, and Dravid took over the coveted number 3 position for most of their test playing career.
Currently, he is the honourable President of the CAB and President of the Editorial Board with Wisden India. Ganguly is also the co-owner of the Indian Super League franchise Atlético de Kolkata. He is currently a part of the Supreme Court of India appointed Justice Mudgal Committee probe panel for the IPL Spot fixing and betting scandal's investigations. He also holds the post of being a member of the Indian Premier League governing council as well.
#4 Sachin Tendulkar
When asked to describe Tendulkar, a plethora of superlatives immediately jump into mind - phenomenal, masterful, ageless and many more. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, probably one of the greatest ever to wield the bat, scored 31 in this particular match.
There could easily have been books written with just Sachin’s innumerable records, and he has gone to played longest in anyone in this lineup, retiring in 2013 with a possibly insurmountable 100 international centuries.
He is the youngest and only sportsperson to be awarded the Bharath Ratna, shortly after his last match; his 200th. We could go on and on about the ‘God of Cricket’, but that wouldn’t fair to the rest of the gentlemen in this list.
#5 Mohammad Azharuddin
India’s ‘Captain Controversy’ added 16 runs to the tally in this match and before Ganguly took over the reins, he was India’s most successful captain. The flamboyant wristy player’s career was marred with controversies; he was allegedly found guilty of match-fixing and was handed out a life ban in 2000.
On 8 November 2012, the Andhra Pradesh High Court lifted the ban describing it as ‘unsustainable’. He also holds the unique record of being the only player to hit centuries in each of his first three tests.
He was elected as a Member of Parliament from Moradabad constituency on an Indian National Congress party ticket. A supremely talented player who used to bat with his collar up and hit boundaries at will on the legside, unfortunately always managed to court trouble; be it his marriages or the match-fixing allegations. He lost his son in a tragic accident in 2011. Most recently Bollywood attempted a fictionalised biopic, ‘Azhar’ based on his controversial life.
#6 Ajay Jadeja
The now popular commentator and cricket analyst was known for his finishing and fielding capabilities during his playing days, especially in the 50 over format. He could add only 10 runs to the Indian total, batting at number 6 in this match.
Like Azharuddin, match fixing allegations overshadowed his achievements on the field and was he was handed a 5-year ban. The ban was later quashed by the Delhi High court in 2003.
He comes from a cricketing family and his relatives include K. S. Ranjitsinhji, after whom the Ranji Trophy is named, and K. S. Duleepsinhji, after whom the Duleep Trophy is named. He has acted in few films, has taken part in the celebrity dance show ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ in its first season, and was also involved with the TV show ‘Comedy Circus’.
#7 Rahul Dravid
A man who has been popularly nicknamed ‘The Wall’ hit a solid 95 in his debut test innings, 5 runs short of a maiden test hundred batting at number 7. Dravid made the number 3 position his own over the course of his career, and made it the coveted position it is now.
In the era of Tendulkar at his prime, he managed to hold his own and that speaks volumes of the character of the man. He retired from the game in 2012, after 16 years on the international circuit, having faced the most number of balls (31,258) and taken the most number of catches (210) in test cricket history. He has captained India on many occasions and donned the wicketkeeper’s gloves quite a few times as well.
He is currently the coach of the junior cricket team, with successful stints as coach of the A team and U-10 team. The U-19 team he coached went on the reach the finals of the World Cup. He was apparently offered the position of Head coach of the national team, which he declined in favour of coaching the upcoming generation of Indian cricketers. He has also worn the commentator’s cap and is also currently chief mentor of the Delhi Daredevils outfit.
#8 Anil Kumble
The current head coach of Indian team managed three scalps in this particular test. Anil ‘Jumbo’ Kumble took a staggering 619 wickets in Test cricket and remains the third-highest wicket taker – only behind Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. He also captained India in 14 tests, before retiring in 2008.
The first thing that pops into people’s mind when one hears the name Kumble will probably be his 10/74 against Pakistan in 1999, becoming only the second player after Jim Laker to dismiss all 10 batsmen in an innings.
Post retirement, he has served in the role of chief mentor for Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians in the IPL. Kumble was appointed the chairman of International Cricket Council (ICC)'s cricket committee in 2012. In 2015 he became the only Indian from this lineup to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame (fourth overall). The legendary leg spinner will look to mould the new generation of Indian cricketers in his current role, in the days to come.
#9 Javagal Srinath
One of India’s finest fast bowlers, Srinath spearheading the bowling attack, took five wickets in the Test. He is the only Indian fast bowler to take over 300 wickets in ODIs. Srinath was apparently recorded at 157 km/hr on 27 January 1997 in the game at Paarl between India and Zimbabwe.
He was a genuine express pace bowler before a rotator-cuff injury in 1997 nearly killed his career. He pretty much shouldered the responsibility of the Indian pace attack, post Kapil Dev’s retirement.
In April 2006, he was selected as a match referee by the International Cricket Council. So far, he has officiated as ICC match referee in 24 Test matches, 122 ODIs and 25 T20Is. One can’t help but wonder what Javagal Srinath could have achieved had it not been for injuries and the dry Indian pitches.
#10 Paras Mhambrey
Mhambrey also made his debut in the same series, and could only take the one wicket of Ronald Irani in the second innings. This was also the second and last test match he ever played for India.
He played two ODIs in that tour and a sole ODI against Bangladesh in 1998. He didn’t make the sort of impact the other debutants made, and his career died an early death. He has been appointed as bowling coach for India A and India U-19, working along with Rahul Dravid during the stint.
His coaching credentials also include Maharashtra, Bengal, Baroda and Vidarbha (current head coach). He was also a part of the Mumbai Indians coaching staff for four years.
#11 Venkatesh Prasad
The Indian pacer also made his debut in this match and made his mark immediately with a 5-wicket haul in the first innings. The Karnataka duo of Prasad and Srinath bowled in tandem in much of the late 90s and successfully hunted in pairs. He was a renowned proponent of the slower balls. Following a dip in form and injuries, he eventually retired in 2005.
Post retirement, he coached the India U-19 team in 2006, and they finished runners-up in the World Cup. He was roped in as India’s bowling coach post the 2007 World Cup and served in that position till 2009. He also worked as bowling coach for the now suspended Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Prasad has also coached Karnataka and currently serves as the chairman of the BCCI junior selecting committee. He applied for the post of India’s Head coach, but Kumble was eventually picked for the position.
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