One missing feather in Sridhar's cap

In a distinguished life and career, the late MV Sridhar wore many hats. He captained the Hyderabad cricket team, served the Hyderabad Cricket Association as secretary and graduated to become the general manager of the BCCI where he performed several roles with aplomb. A qualified medical doctor, Sridhar even worked as a general manager with Satyam Computers and was based in South Arica during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The one cap Sridhar couldn’t don was that of the Indian national team.

“That was the perhaps the biggest hole in an otherwise impressive resume of his,” former India player Noel David, Sridhar’s friend and Hyderabad team-mate, recalled. “We studied together at All Saints' High School and then itself he showed great promise. He wasn’t the most attractive batsman but he knew how to get runs. He seemed destined for bigger things. But his family wanted him to study medicine so we lost contact for a few years as he chose to devote time for studies.

“I met him again during a junior zonal meet and we instantly bonded. I yelled out ‘dahi vada’ — he loved that dish and we nicknamed him that — and MV instantly smiled. He spoke about how much he loved cricket and how really wanted to play for Hyderabad. I saw that hunger when after finishing medicine he smashed centuries after centuries in league cricket to make a strong case for himself. Right from the first season he just went on to show what a talent he was with some consistent performances.”

Sridhar, who was into singing, dancing, drumming and even scripting plays during his college days, made his Hyderabad Ranji Trophy debut in 1988-89 season. An opening or one-drop batsman, Sridhar was on top of his game in his first four seasons, averaging 64.60, 68.07, 53.11 and 58.11. He endured a low in the fifth year but made a smashing comeback in the 1993-94 season (Avg: 75.70) where he registered a career-best score of 366, that innings the cornerstone for Hyderabad’s record 944/6 declared against Andhra. Sridhar’s epochal knock is the third highest Ranji Trophy individual score and during his stay at the crease, Hyderabad amassed 850 runs (most runs scored by a team during one batsman’s time out in the middle), a record that still stands intact.

Despite being a dogged top-order batsman and superb captain whom the juniors adored, Sridhar just couldn’t break open the door for the Indian team. “If there was one thing that held MV back, it was his fielding. He wasn’t the most athletic at that time. He never laid much emphasis on fitness. This, in my opinion, could have curtailed his India chances,” felt David.

A much loved man in cricketing circles, Sridhar drew widespread praise for the way he handled the Monkeygate saga during India’s tour of Australia in 2008 along with then skipper Anil Kumble. Sridhar was the assistant manager of the team then. Kanwaljit Singh, Sridhar’s room-mate for the longest of time, said his friend was a born leader. “He was great at people management. He had this unique skill of the getting the best out of everyone. He knew exactly how to put his foot down and get things done but at the same time, he would never give the impression that he was assertive. He was a role model for several juniors. He was a great friend and none felt uncomfortable in his company.”

That was thought shared by even the great VVS Laxman when Sridhar passed away aged 51 in 2017.