Gavaskar averages a whopping 99.12 at Port of Spain?
(26 April 2002)
There is no doubt that the Caribbean was one of Sunil Gavaskar's
preferred touring destinations. Ever since he hit 774 runs in his
debut series as a lad just over 20, he piled on the runs thickly
in the West Indies. Calypso melodies were composed in his honour,
and even on his recent trip there as a commentator, he was
"detained" at the Port of Spain airport so that he could sign
autographs for the security personnel.
And for good reason. If Gavaskar had to pick a favourite ground,
the Queen's Park Oval at Port of Spain would be it. In five Test
matches and nine innings there, the Little Master racked up a
mind-boggling 793 runs, at an average that gives the Don's career
stat a run for its money - 99.12.
The 793 runs came in the form of four hundreds and two fifties.
One of those centuries was his 220 in his debut series in
1970-71, and it was all the more remarkable because it came after
Gavaskar had hit 124 in the first innings. Two more centuries
flowed from his blade during the 1975-76 series, one of them
helping India chase down a record 403 in the fourth innings.
Gavaskar made only 33 runs in his last Test at Port of Spain,
touring there in 1982-83; that match was more Mohinder
Amarnath's. But when India beat the West Indies just months later
in the final of the 1983 World Cup, Sunny had taken part in
India's most famous Test and one-day triumphs over their
Caribbean rivals.
For more details on all the above facts check out [ StatsGuru ]
[Archive]