The Lost Histories of Indian Cricket Battles of the Pitch (Sport in the Global Society)

157 Pages·2006·0.86 MB·English

by  Boria Majumdar

SPORT IN THE GLOBAL SOCIETY
General Editors: J.A.Mangan and Boria Majumdar
LOST HISTORIES OF INDIAN
CRICKET
SPORT IN THE GLOBAL SOCIETY
General Editors: J.A.Mangan and Boria Majumdar
The interest in sports studies around the world is growing and will continue to do so. This
unique series combines aspects of the expanding study of sport in the global society,
providing comprehensiveness and comparison under one editorial umbrella. It is
particularly timely, with studies in the cultural, economic, ethnographic, geographical,
political, social, anthropological, sociological and aesthetic elements of sport
proliferating in institutions of higher education.
Eric Hobsbawm once called sport one of the most significant practices of the late
nineteenth century. Its significance was even more marked in the late twentieth century
and will continue to grow in importance into the new millennium as the world develops
into a ‘global village’ sharing the English language, technology and sport.
Other Titles in the Series
BRITISH FOOTBALL AND SOCIAL EXCLUSION
Edited by Stephen Wagg
FOOTBALL, EUROPE AND THE PRESS
Liz Crolley and David Hand
THE FUTURE OF FOOTBALL
Challenges for the Twenty-First Century
Edited by Jon Garland, Dominic Malcolm and Michael Rowe
FOOTBALL CULTURE
Local Contests, Global Visions
Edited by Gerry P.T.Finn and Richard Giulianotti
FRANCE AND THE 1998 WORLD CUP
The National Impact of a World Sporting Event
Edited by Hugh Dauncey and Geoff Hare
THE FIRST BLACK FOOTBALLER
Arthur Wharton 1865–1930: An Absence of Memory
Phil Vasili
SCORING FOR BRITAIN
International Football and International Politics, 1900–39
Peter J.Beck
WOMEN, SPORT AND SOCIETY IN MODERN CHINA
Holding Up More than Half the Sky
Dong Jinxia
SPORT IN LATIN AMERICAN SOCIETY
Past and Present
Edited by J.A.Mangan and Lamartine P.DaCosta
SPORT IN AUSTRALASIAN SOCIETY
Past and Present
Edited by J.A.Mangan and John Nauright
SPORTING NATIONALISMS
Identity, Ethnicity, Immigration and Assimilation
Edited by Mike Cronin and David Mayall
THE COMMERCIALISATION OF SPORT
Edited by Trevor Slack
SHAPING THE SUPERMAN
Fascist Body as Political Icon—Aryan Fascism
Edited by J.A.Mangan
SUPERMAN SUPREME
Fascist Body as Political Icon—Global Fascism
Edited by J.A.Mangan
MAKING THE RUGBY WORLD
Race, Gender, Commerce
Edited by Timothy J.L.Chandler and John Nauright
RUGBY’S GREAT SPLIT
Class, Culture and the Origins of Rugby League Football
Tony Collins
THE RACE GAME
Sport and Politics in South Africa
Douglas Booth
CRICKET AND ENGLAND
A Cultural and Social History of the Inter-war Years
Jack Williams
THE GAMES ETHIC AND IMPERIALISM
Aspects of the Diffusion of an Ideal
J.A.Mangan
LOST HISTORIES OF INDIAN
CRICKET
Battles off the Pitch
by
Boria Majumdar

LONDON AND NEW YORK
This edition first published 2006 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon,
OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Taylor & Francis Inc 270 Madison Ave,
New York, NY 10016
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2006.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of
thousands of eBooks please go to http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/.”
© 2006 Boria Majumdar
South Asian edition published by YODA PRESS, G 93, Connaught Circus, New Delhi 110001,
India (http://www.yodapress.com/), 2004.
This edition is not for sale in South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal
and Sri Lanka).
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or
by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission
in writing from the publishers.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the advice and information in this book is true and
accurate at the time of going to press. However, neither the publisher nor the authors can accept
any legal responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions that may be made. In the case of
drug administration, any medical procedure or the use of technical equipment mentioned within
this book, you are strongly advised to consult the manufacturer’s guidelines.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from
the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record has been requested
ISBN 0-203-00685-2 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-35885-X (hbk)
ISBN 0-415-35886-8 (pbk)
For Sharmistha—who is often forced to live and breathe cricket with me.

Contents

Acknowledgements x
Series Editor’s Foreword xii
Prologue xiv

1 Empire vs. Parsee XI 1
2 The Cricketing Jam: Ranji’s Leg Glance to the Throne 8
3 Birthpangs: Naming the Ranji Trophy 16
4 The Amarnath Affair 24
5 Nayudu Scorned 33
6 Tour de Farce 39
7 The Pentangular Panned 45
8 The Pretender and the Prima Donna 55
9 Mankad’s Folly 68
10 Men in Black and White 76
11 Match Fixing: An Enemy of Yore 83
12 All the Skipper’s Men: The Ban of 1989 87

Epilogue 91
Notes 97
Index 121