JOIN USSrikkanth lays Windies low
Krishnamachari Srikkanth was like a fresh breath of air in an Indian batting line-up dominated by batsmen with a dour approach. Of course, there was a Kapil Dev and a Sandeep Patil, but Srikkanth, opening the innings, provided new meaning to attacking batsmanship.
Much like the way he talks, his batting too had a touch of certain spontaneity to it. It was as impulsive as calculative, and hence every bit entertaining. Not in the greatest form -- with just 119 runs from seven previous matches -- Srikkanth wasn’t the universal choice to emerge the top-scorer from either side in the 1983 final, but the right-hander chose the most opportune day to bring up his second highest knock of the tournament.
Opening the innings, Srikkanth lost his partner Sunil Gavaskar with just two runs on the board. Mohinder Amarnath, however, steadied the innings with a doughty 26 even as Srikkanth went hammer and tongs at the other end. In an association of 57 runs for the second wicket, Srikkanth scored 38 of them. Even more compelling was the number of boundaries he notched up in the 57-ball cameo. Seven fours and a six meant that Srikkanth had to run between wickets for just four runs as he fearlessly hit the famed West Indian pace attack over the top with carefree abandon.
His on-one-knee square-drive off Andy Roberts was by a distance the shot of the final, and while it was Amarnath who was the man of the final for his all-round heroics that took India to an unexpected title triumph, Srikkanth was indisputably the man of the moment!