5 fascinating contributions by players in series losses

#3 Mohinder Amarnath – 584 runs at 73 versus Pakistan & 598 runs at 66.44 versus West Indies (1982-83)

Amarnath held off the fearsome West Indies bowling attack with a gutsy display

When you picture India’s astonishing World Cup win in 1983, the replay of Mohinder Amarnath’s innocuous ball trapping Michael Holding plumb in front pops up. In many ways, Amarnath’s performance in the World Cup was no surprise given his extraordinary form in the months leading to the tournament.

India’s itinerary in 1982-83 was extremely challenging. Facing Imran Khan’s supreme Pakistan team in Pakistan was the first big test. India were found wanting on this tour with Imran in particular bowling some of the finest spells in Test history.

Amarnath, however, stood tall despite all his teammates succumbing to the high-quality pace and swing bowling on display. He scored three centuries and was by far India’s most consistent batsman, surpassing the likes of Sunil Gavaskar. Imran, who picked up 40 wickets in the six-match series, was all praise for Amarnath’s stunning display. This was only the beginning for Amarnath as India embarked on a tour of the Caribbean – perhaps the toughest test for any international team.

India had managed to win a series in the Caribbean in 1971 with Gavaskar scoring a record 774 in his debut series. But everyone following the game knew that this tour was something else.

The West Indies had rebuilt and reorganised their team in the 1970s and had emerged supremely powerful after World Series Cricket. They had the young Malcolm Marshall in the attack now and the four-pronged pace attack of Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Marshall and Joel Garner was sure to unnerve even the finest batsman.

The series went as expected. India were never in a position to win any Test but managed to save some face by drawing three Tests and losing 2-0. Much credit for this had to go to Amarnath who seemed to relish playing pace.

Despite being hit by Marshall in the face, he carried on gamely and top scored for India with close to 600 runs. India would go on to win the World Cup a few months later but were humbled by the West Indies later that year at home.

The Caribbean giants, seeking revenge for the shock World Cup loss, demolished India 3-0 in the six-Test series and were particularly severe on Amarnath, who scored just 1 run in six innings. However, his fantastic display in the two series in Pakistan and West Indies confirmed his place among the finest and bravest players of fast bowling.

Series Performance (versus Pak)	Innings	Runs scored	Average	Balls per dismissal	100/50	% of team runs *
Mohinder Amarnath	10	584	73.00	163	3/3	23.22
Top 5 batsmen (India)	37	1178	34.64	67.55	2/9	46.85
Top 5 batsmen (opposition)	33	2593	99.73	163	11/4	87.36

Series Performance (versus WI)	Innings	Runs scored	Average	Balls per dismissal	100/50	% of team runs *
Mohinder Amarnath	9	598	66.44	-	2/4	25.90
Top 5 batsmen (India)	43	1251	34.75	-	3/5	54.20
Top 5 batsmen (opposition)	32	1674	59.78	-	6/8	74.66

Form analysis	Matches	Innings	Runs	Average	100/50
Overall Career	69	113	4378	42.50	11/24
Before the two series	26	45	1466	34.90	2/9
After the two series	32	49	1730	39.31	4/8