Page 8 - Seniorstoday December 2023 Issue

Polly Umrigar: Big made Polly had strong performances in limited overs tournaments.
arms and shoulders to facilitate power
hitting. He also had long, strong fingers
to bowl medium pace swing, cutters and
off-breaks with a high degree of expertise.
Brilliant fielder too, with hands like
buckets that rarely dropped a catch. All
fantastic attributes in limited overs cricket.
Image courtesy: enewsroom.in
Mansur Ali Khan Tiger Pataudi: Man of
infinite charisma and exceptional talent.
Notwithstanding the loss of one eye before
he had even started his international
career, made a tremendous impact with his
aggressive batting, brilliant fielding, and
astute understanding of match situations.
The stats may seem unflattering, but his
career spells a saga of heroism in how he
overcame such a massive handicap to play
at the highest level for so long.
Image courtesy: Crictracker Kapil Dev: Unquestionably India’s greatest
Farokh Engineer: Dashing wicket-keeper-
batsman who could play at the top or in the
middle order. Earned great renown on the
English county circuit for his high energy
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Among the first Indian player to endorse
products (most notably Brylcreem).
Image courtesy: m.rediff.com
Salim Durani: Man of genius, with bat
and ball. Crafty left-arm spinner, dazzling
left-hand batsman who could hit sixes on
demand. His matinee idol looks made him
Image courtesy: thesportslegends.com
among the biggest stars in Indian cricket in
the 1960s and 70s.
all-rounder. Brilliant at everything he
did, fast bowling, aggressive batting,
ground fielding and catching. His 175 not
out against Zimbabwe in the 1983 World
century., along with Aussie Glen Maxwell’s
201 not out against Afghanistan in the
Cup arguably remains the greatest ODI
2023 World Cup. Chief architect and
captain of India’s 1983 World Cup win.
Would lead this team too.