Indian spin quartet: Difference between revisions

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2013}}

The '''Indian spin quartet''' is the collective name given to the [[India national cricket team|Indian]] [[spin bowler]]s of the 1960s and 1970s: [[E. A. S. Prasanna|Erapalli Prasanna]] and [[Srinivas Venkataraghavan]] (both [[off spin]]ners), [[Bhagwat Chandrasekhar]] (a [[leg spin]]ner), and [[Bishen Singh Bedi]] (a [[left-arm orthodox spin|left-arm spinner]]). Between them, they played 231 [[Test cricket|Test matches]], taking 853 wickets. They were one of the most deadly combinations in world cricket, especially on the dusty subcontinental pitches.

The spin quartet was instrumental in producing many Indian [[Test cricket|Test]] victories. There was only one match in which all four of them were in the starting XI: usually one of the off spinners, Prasanna or Venkataraghavan, was left out. However, these four men made important contributions to some of India's greatest triumphs, including Test series victories in the West Indies and [[England cricket team|England]], as well as Test victories in [[Australian cricket team|Australia]] and [[New Zealand cricket team|New Zealand]].

By the 1966-67 season, the interest in cricket in India had risen to unprecedented levels. Despite being beaten by the West Indies at home, the Indian team's spirits were not dampened. The captain [[Nawab of Pataudi, jun|Nawab of Pataudi]] thought that it would be a good idea to introduce more quality spinners into the team in order to compensate for the absence of good new-ball bowlers in the country.<ref>The birth of a spin quartet, ESPNCricinfo: http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/story/122156.html</ref> Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, the leg spinner, had already established his place in the team with solid performances against Australia and the West Indies. Erapalli Prasanna was making his comeback having been out of the team for five years, while both Venkatarghavan and Bedi played in the series against West Indies. All four of them played their first (and only) game together against England at Birmingham in the summer of 1967.<ref>Scorecard, 3rd Test, India vs England, Birmingham, 1967: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/63006.html</ref> Prasanna and Chandrasekhar impressed in that game, claiming 7 and 6 wickets respectively, and all four bowlers bowled a tight line. Even though these four bowlers continued to play for 11 more years, this remained the only Test where all of them featured in the Indian test XI.

Over the years, the spin quartet played vital roles in several memorable victories for the Indian team, starting with an overseas series win against New Zealand in 1967-68. Below are some major Test successes the quartet were a part of:

* [[Indian cricket team in New Zealand in 1967–68|Away series victory against New Zealand, 1967-68]]

* [[Indian cricket team in West Indies in 1970–71|Away series victory against West Indies, 1970-71]]

* [[English cricket team in India in 1972–73|Home series victory against England, 1972-73]]

* [[New Zealand cricket team in India in 1976–77|Home series victory against New Zealand, 1976-77]]