- While delivering the inaugural ML Jaisimha memorial lecture recently, the legendary Indian opener and the first man ever to score ten thousand Test runs, the iconic Sunil Gavaskar termed the present Indian team as the best in the history of Indian cricket. Going by the recent quality of cricket displayed by Team India both at home as well as overseas conditions, there will be very few who would be disputing what the legendary cricketer mentioned. Make no mistake, those cricket pundits keen to dissect the evolution of a potentially world-beating team will be nodding their heads in agreement.
PC: V.V. Subrahmanyam
- Make no mistake, coming from the man himself who was renowned for not only defying the dreaded quartet of fearsome West Indies pace battery during those ferocious 1970s & 80s but also scoring awe-inspiring 13 centuries against the team to beat in Test cricket back then. Having held the record for the most number of centuries, 34 in Test cricket, for several years, the Little Master knows a thing or two about what is he is saying. After he retired from international cricket, Sunil Gavaskar is a well-respected commentator, columnist, and critique having been associated with the game very closely for more than fifty years.
- In his long illustrious career, in and out of the cricketing field, the man would have closely observed and witnessed a humongous amount of glorious uncertainties inherently prevalent in the game, more so, with the Indian cricket teams endowed with some of the best players to have donned the cricketing flannels over the years. If the man says with such absolute conviction that the present Indian cricket team is the best, there must be valid reasons backing the claim. Let us attempt at exploring the same. The biggest asset of the present Indian cricket set-up is its bench strength and the assembly line of quality players perpetually emerging out of nowhere. How this bountiful surplus came into force?
PC: Wisden Staff
- There was never a question or doubts vis-à-vis revenue generation for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) mandarins since cricket is a religion here. The huge popularity of the game in the country needs no further elaboration. Also, the advent of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has had a cascading but welcome effect on the way the game has further gained popularity. With thousands of quality players representing their respective states in various age-group competitions as also IPL franchises always on the lookout to enroll precocious talents, the stage is ideally set for the wannabe cricketers to strike it rich.
- The consistency displayed by Team India in every format of the game, including the Test Cricket beating the formidable Australian team in their den, during the last few years has certainly not gone unnoticed in the cricket-playing nations. This Indian team has performed on challenging conditions emerging victorious and looks set to dominate the scene in the coming years too. Thus, Sunny Gavaskar’s proclamation deserves to be welcomed and seconded by all Indian cricket lovers with gusto.
