Specials – K.M. Mistry: The first great Indian all-rounder

In the second part of this series, we look at another famous Parsi cricketer who made his name in the days before India attained Test match status. Colonel Kekhashru Maneksha Mistry is widely regarded as the first great Indian all-rounder. Born in Bombay on November 7, 1874, he was remarkably skilled with both […]

Specials – H.D Kanga: A stalwart of Indian cricket

India played its first Test match only in 1932, but prior to that there were quite a few Parsi cricketers who might have fancied a spot in the national team and were unlucky not to play Test cricket. In this post, we will look at the life and career of Dr. Hormasji Dorabji Kanga. […]

SPECIALS – Top performances by Parsis for India

As mentioned in a previous post, a total of thirteen Parsis (eleven men and two women) played international cricket for India. A total of sixteen centuries and four five-wicket hauls in Tests and one ODI half-century (the golden age of Parsi cricket had passed when one-dayers were introduced) have been recorded. Let us look […]

SPECIALS – When four Parsis played together for India

The impact of Parsi cricket on the national team was most visible during India’s tour of the West Indies in 1961-62. Nari Contractor was the captain of the squad, and only months earlier he had lead India to a maiden home series win against England. This was his third series as captain and he […]

SPECIALS – The first Parsis to play Test cricket

In a two-part post last year, I had written about how the Parsi community in India took to the game of cricket in the later part of the 19th century and how a squad entirely consisting of Parsis became the first ever team from India to tour England. Their efforts led to a […]

SPECIALS – Asia Cup finals over the years

The final of the twelfth edition of the Asia Cup is slated to be played on 8th March between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at Dhaka. Let us look back on the previous finals of the continental ODI tournament. 1983-84 – No final was played. India won the inaugural tournament on account of beating both […]

SPECIALS – Tribute to Dicky Rutnagur

The veteran Indian sports journalist Dicky Rutnagur passed away at the age of 82 in London on Thursday night. He was ailing for a long time, having bravely battled cancer for many years. Rutnagur was a highly respected and admired personality in cricket journalism, who made his name through newspaper reporting in India […]

SPECIALS – Parsis, pioneers of cricket in India, Part 2

In Part 1 of this Specials post we looked at how one-sided the Parsis’ first tour of England was, and understandably so. The world’s first great cricketing icon W.G Grace, who played against them while representing the MCC at Lord’s, later said in his autobiography – ‘During this season, a team of Parsi cricketers paid us […]

SPECIALS – Parsis, pioneers of cricket in India, Part 1

A few days ago, the former Indian wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer celebrated his 75th birthday. Engineer incidentally was the last Parsi cricketer to play for India, his 14-year old international career having ended in 1975. Since then, almost four decades have gone without a single Parsi playing international cricket for India, and looking at the […]

SPECIALS – Best of Australia v India Test matches

The rivalry between Australia and India has been the most keenly-contested in Test cricket over the last two decades or so, and has produced some of the most memorable matches ever seen. As yet another Test series between the two teams gets underway today, let us go down memory lane to pick the […]