Where gentleman cricketers are made
Look no further than Bengaluru and Chinnaswamy, home to Dravid, Kumble, Viswanath and Chandrasekhar
06-Nov-2010
Bengaluru's finest: Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble • Getty Images
Bengaluru can be a contradiction. The people can come across as laid-back and quiet and yet ambitious. Its cricketers have all have been quiet, cultured men who played the game with great success. The city and the state have produced some of the best Indian players. At one point, in the late '90s, nearly three quarters of the Indian team came from Karnataka.
Bengaluru didn't enjoy the British patronage of cricket that benefited the port cities of Mumbai, Kolkata or Chennai. It was only in the late '50s and '60s that Bengaluru began to emerge as a serious contender in the cricket stakes. Over the next couple of decades cricket won institutional support from banks and public sector units, and private corporate sponsorship came in the '90s.
Cricket history has reflected the realities of society. Karnataka has had a long-standing dispute over river water with neighbouring Tamil Nadu, and the frisson reflects in their cricketing rivalry as well. There have been numerous cases of crowd trouble during encounters between the two teams in the past.
The venue
Originally named the Karnataka State Cricket Association Stadium, the ground was renamed after M Chinnaswamy, who was the president of the Indian board in the late '70s. It also houses the National Cricket Academy. The stadium was given Test status in 1974-75; it hosted West Indies in the opening match of their series that season. The first ODI played on the ground was in 1982.
Originally named the Karnataka State Cricket Association Stadium, the ground was renamed after M Chinnaswamy, who was the president of the Indian board in the late '70s. It also houses the National Cricket Academy. The stadium was given Test status in 1974-75; it hosted West Indies in the opening match of their series that season. The first ODI played on the ground was in 1982.
Great matches
India v Pakistan, fifth Test, 1987
An all-time classic, thanks to a pitch that was a minefield - to put it kindly. The match is remembered for Sunil Gavaskar producing a masterful 96 over five hours and 23 minutes in the final innings, battling the wiles of Pakistan's spinners, Iqbal Qasim and Tauseef Ahmed, and the spite of the pitch. No one else in the India side made over 26, and they were all out for 204 chasing 221 for a win that would have given them the series.
India v Pakistan, fifth Test, 1987
An all-time classic, thanks to a pitch that was a minefield - to put it kindly. The match is remembered for Sunil Gavaskar producing a masterful 96 over five hours and 23 minutes in the final innings, battling the wiles of Pakistan's spinners, Iqbal Qasim and Tauseef Ahmed, and the spite of the pitch. No one else in the India side made over 26, and they were all out for 204 chasing 221 for a win that would have given them the series.
India v Australia, second Test, 2010
An outstanding 72 by Cheteshwar Pujara on debut set up a seven-wicket win for India. Not the result Australia might have expected after they got to 478 on the back of 128 from Marcus North in the first innings. Honours were more or less even after India batted (Sachin Tendulkar made 214 and M Vijay 139), but Australia fell for 223 in their second dig, and India blazed to the target of 207 on day five - Tendulkar unbeaten with a fifty alongside Pujara.
An outstanding 72 by Cheteshwar Pujara on debut set up a seven-wicket win for India. Not the result Australia might have expected after they got to 478 on the back of 128 from Marcus North in the first innings. Honours were more or less even after India batted (Sachin Tendulkar made 214 and M Vijay 139), but Australia fell for 223 in their second dig, and India blazed to the target of 207 on day five - Tendulkar unbeaten with a fifty alongside Pujara.
Top performers in Tests
Most runs Sachin Tendulkar, 869 at 62.07 | Top score Younis Khan, 267 v India
Most wickets Anil Kumble, 41 wickets at 34.53 | Best bowling Maninder Singh, 7 for 27 v Pakistan
Most runs Sachin Tendulkar, 869 at 62.07 | Top score Younis Khan, 267 v India
Most wickets Anil Kumble, 41 wickets at 34.53 | Best bowling Maninder Singh, 7 for 27 v Pakistan
Major players
Rahul Dravid | Anil Kumble | Bhagwath Chandrasekhar | Gundappa Vishwanath | Javagal Srinath | Venkatesh Prasad | Roger Binny | Erapalli Prasanna
Rahul Dravid | Anil Kumble | Bhagwath Chandrasekhar | Gundappa Vishwanath | Javagal Srinath | Venkatesh Prasad | Roger Binny | Erapalli Prasanna
Home team
Karnataka have won the Ranji Trophy eight times and have been runners up four times. The Karnataka-Tamil Nadu rivalry matched the Mumbai-Delhi contests in intensity and in the following for it. Karnataka's most recent wins were back to back, in 2013-14 and 2014-15 - that last win coming against Tamil Nadu, whom they also beat for the title in 1995-96. In 2009-10, they lost to Mumbai in a thriller.
Karnataka have won the Ranji Trophy eight times and have been runners up four times. The Karnataka-Tamil Nadu rivalry matched the Mumbai-Delhi contests in intensity and in the following for it. Karnataka's most recent wins were back to back, in 2013-14 and 2014-15 - that last win coming against Tamil Nadu, whom they also beat for the title in 1995-96. In 2009-10, they lost to Mumbai in a thriller.