Aussies were 'Lakered 'on 56 Tour to England

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961 the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily .

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered  ,  helmets became mandoatory  , TV umpires became important   many changes in no ball rule , DRS or the referral procedure introduced ,   match referees appointed   , day night test matches with  pink balls have started .  Many more are in the offing .

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out

­­­­­­­­­­­In 1956 Aussies were ‘Lakered’.

My earliest memory of International cricket goes back to 1956. At that point of time I was living in Bikaner where my father Shri Khemchand who was posted as Collector & District Magistrate upon transfer from Jhalawar.

We used to live in the huge earmarked bunglow for the Collector of the District. The same bunglow is being used by the Collector at present also.

The most significant part of the house was the kitchen which was 50 or so feet away .To reach the kitchen one had to traverse a long corridor with left side covered with green wooden trellis. And on the right were the pantry rooms, largely vacant.  It was the old fashioned coal fired ‘chuhla’ started with the help of wood. One had to sit down to cook curries and rotis.

Outside the trellis gallery and along the kitchen corridor we had prepared a concrete cement half pitch for enjoying ‘home’ cricket.  As cricket balls were expensive and we were always short on funds our hugely lovable Dadi Laxmi Devi  used to come to our rescue. Dadi helped us out by stitching cloth balls from ‘chindis’. She would sit in the verandah and enjoy watching us play with joy written all over her face.

These multi layered tightly knit balls picked up not only pace off the pitch but also gave plenty of bounce. That’s how we learnt to fend off bouncers, all our lives.

But naturally the cricket genes have passed on to next two generations as well. Whenever my grandchildren assemble in Jaipur to come we play cricket with gusto and pride.

 Summer of 56 was a ‘Game changing’ moment in my life.  I started reading English newspapers. That also meant that I started following international cricket matches.     

Those days’ English dailies covered sports in two full pages. One page was devoted to international sports and events.  Local sporting events were covered on page two. Photos of players in different poses were published liberally.

 In the summer of 56 Australians were touring England to wrest the Ashes from England. They came armed with a strong team.

 Big name players like classy Neil Harvey, openers Colin McDonald and Jim Burke all- rounders Keith Miller and Richie Benaud were in the side.   Pacers Ray Lindwall, Ron Archer and Alan Davidson formed the quartet along with Keith Miller. Maddocks was their keeper and Ken Mackay was their utility man.

The team was captained by not so popular Ian Johnson. Miller felt that he deserved to be the Captain.

  Cover drive specialist Peter May was the English captain.   The series featured batting specialists like Colin Cowdrey, Tom Graveny, Dennis Compton and The Priest Rev DS Sheppard, perhaps the only ordained priest to play international cricket.

The English pace bowling attack was spearheaded by fearsome Freddie Truman who was ably supported by ‘wicket to wicket’ specialist Statham. The nagging accuracy of Statham later on became McGrath hallmark outside the off stump territory.

In Evans, England had a more than capable wicket keeper batsman. He was a’ spotter’ and a valuable guide to Captain Peter May.

But the Trump card for England and their ‘wrecker in chief’ turned out to none of the above but Jim Laker, the magician.

By the end of the fifth Test the press had labeled the series as ‘Aussies Lakered’

Laker created a record which stands even today unmatched and untouched: 19 wickets in a Test match.

In the fourth Test at Manchester Laker picked up nine Aussie wickets including clean bowling Aussie mainstay Harvey for naught. Locke spoiled Laker’s party by picking up Jim Burke in the first innings.

But there’s no stopping Laker in the second innings. This time Laker ensured that all wickets were picked up by him alone. Laker   created a unique world record of picking up all Ten wickets in a Test innings, improving upon his first innings feat of nine wickets.

Laker again removed Harvey for a Golden duck.  Thus, Truman Statham Laker and Locke combo demolished an accomplished Australian side which had landed on the English shores with much hope and lots of aspirations.

Left hander Neil Harvey till date continues to be my all time favourite. And I rate Richie Benaud as the best all rounder Captain just behind Sir Gary.

Several decades later in 1999 Kumble matched Laker’s ten wicket haul.  They share this distinction jointly now.

Laker ended the five Test series with 46 wickets. An astonishing feat for a spinner. Yet Laker is a relatively unknown name in cricketing circles.

Of course England retained the Ashes 2-1 but my interest in cricketing world was fired up and it continues to enthrall me even now on an ongoing basis.

I was able to convert my passion for cricket in real terms as well.  I played for my school St. Xaviers, Jaipur as their opening bowler and later on for Rajasthan College.  I was privileged to be part of the College team  along with ‘Test player in the making ‘ Parathasarthy Sharma.     

Since then my cricket world revolved around the Ashes tours and exploits of the 3 Ws: Weeks Worrell and Walcott followed by Sobers, Kanhai and Hall and Griffith.  I also followed the exploits of the South African greats McGlew, McLean, Tayfield, Barlow, Proctor and Pollock.

Those days Indian team was a ‘rare' win side’ but players like Vinno Mankad and Vijay Merchant gladdened the hearts of the Indian fans with some outstanding performances ..  

From the first tied Test in 1961, the competition between Australia and West Indies also became intense and competitive. I became a keen follower of those matches as well.

Before I close out I must make a mention of a few super commentators of that era: the names of John Arlott, Jack Bannister, EW Swanton,  Vizzy,  and Dicky Rutnagur come to my mind readily.

And Umpire Dickie Bird.

 Over the decades playing conditions have changed much:  pitches began to be covered,  helmets became mandatory, TV umpires became important many changes in no-ball rule, DRS or the referral procedure were introduced,   match referees were appointed, day-night test matches with pink balls have started.  Many more are in the offing.

Have these changes made cricket more engrossing? More entertaining? More watchable?

 The jury is still out