It’s human to romanticise the past. While this isn’t inherently unhealthy, at times we tend to romanticise merely for the sake of it—whether it’s about movies, music, society or sports. Change is inevitable, yet we often find ourselves stuck in a time warp. Sometimes, though, we do so for a good reason. Like reminiscing GR Vishwanath’s finest innings. Interestingly, it’s not one of his 14 centuries during which India never lost a Test! It’s his 97 on a treacherous Chepauk pitch in Chennai (then Madras) that’s close to his heart.The knock is special for several reasons and not least for the kind of impact it had on a low-scoring match. The innings, along with his 46 in the second innings, not only helped India win the match but level the series 2-2 as well against the mighty West Indies after losing the first two Tests. On a difficult pitch where a 23-year-old Andy Roberts ran amok, Vishwanath’s courage and technical superiority stood out. The pocket dynamo carved out a classic that still remains etched frame by frame in the memories of those who were fortunate enough to witness the innings which further elevated his status as a batting virtuoso.“When Karsan Ghavri came, I saw the score, it was about 70 (76) on the board,” Vishwanath said while recalling the knock at an event at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium to mark the 50th year of that innings on Tuesday. The Test was held from January 11-15, 1975.Several former Karnataka players graced the occasion while paying their heart-felt tributes to the original Little Master. EAS Prasanna, BS Chandrasekhar, Anil Kumble, Brijesh Patel, Roger Binny, Sudhakar Rao, Raghuram Bhat, Vijay Bharadwaj, Sujith Somasundar among others attended the event and shared their views.“So I thought, ‘okay this is the time I play my shots.’ I had already played some shots, it was coming good. So, I thought, ‘okay let me go through that’.“It so happened that whatever I wanted to play (I could), so I said, ‘this looks like my day. So I don’t want to stop now.’ That’s why I just went on to play my shots, and in between two wickets were gone, and Bishan (Singh) came, we had, for a change, about at least 50-run (52) partnership. It was very, very vital.“I could see the ball was really flying... Because of my height it was going over (my head).”Before the team arrived in Chennai for the decider, Vishwanath had played an equally crucial role in winning the Kolkata Test to keep the series alive. There was not much to separate the two teams in their respective first innings as West Indies responded with 240 all out in reply to India’s 233 in which Vishwanath was the top-scorer with 52. Despite Roy Frederick’s 100 at the top of the order, India did well to restrict the visitors’ lead to seven runs thanks to Madan Lal (4/22) and Bishan Singh Bedi (2/68).In the second innings, Vishwanath produced a stroke-filled 139 that, along with Farooq Engineer’s 61, powered India to 316 all out, setting West Indies a target of 310 on a wearing pitch. Vishwanath’s century contained a whopping 23 fours (92 runs). Bedi (4/52) and BS Chandrasekhar (3/66) completed the demolition job as West Indies were rolled over for 224, handing India a comprehensive 85-run win.“We had a terrific match in Calcutta (now Kolkata) and well, I scored a hundred there. But nobody talked about that hundred, not many people, so (I told myself) better not to score a hundred. So when I came to Chepauk, I decided not to (score hundred). When I told Chandra, he said ‘okay don’t worry.’ So I went back 97 not out,” Vishwanath recalled jokingly.Chandrasekhar was out surviving 38 minutes, leaving Vishwanath stranded at 97..How Vishwanath was stranded on 97BS Chandrasekhar joined GR Vishwanath at the crease with India’s score at 169/9. Despite his limited batting ability, Chandrasekhar managed to survive 38 minutes, scoring just one run, as Vishwanath edged closer to a well-deserved century. Vishwanath worked meticulously to shield Chandrasekhar from strike, often taking a single off the last ball of the over—sometimes with ease, but more often out of sheer desperation.“We could have gotten out some 20 times while trying for that single off the last ball,” recalled Vishwanath.“I will tell from what I remember,” began Chandrasekhar when prodded. “I somehow managed to survive three balls. The last ball, if I had played it, the next one he (Vishwanath) could have gotten his 100. But at that particular time, Vishy came and told me Andy Roberts was going to bowl a bouncer.“When Roberts was walking back to his bowling mark, he turned back and gave me a stare. I got a bit worried. When he delivered the ball, I moved toward forward short leg, expecting a bouncer, but he bowled on a middle-stump line. I somehow tapped it, and I think it was Lloyd who took the catch. That was the end of it.”
