1952
India got their first Test victory, on their 25th attempt. T came against England in Madras. The Test is marked by Vinoo Mankad’s 12 wickets. Wicket keeper Khokhan Sen made four stumpings in the innings, and five in the match. Both were records until Kiran More stumped West Indies in 1987-88. Pankaj Roy and Polly Umrigar made hundreds in the match.
1963
Mohammad Azharuddin, the hero and villain of Indian cricket, was born on this day. Azhar announced his arrival in Test cricket with three back to back centuries. A master of wristy shots, Azharuddin transformed his bat into a want in his leg side shots. As a fielder, he set an example for the team and remained perfect in that job till his later days. Azharuddin, as a captain, will be remembered for his enormous success in home giving India many series victories. But as things stand, Azhar will now be remembered for his involvement in match-fixing rather than his brilliance with the willow.
1994
Kapil Dev became the highest wicket taker of that time, surpassing Richard Hadlee’s world record of 431 wickets. Kapil took the wicket of Hashan Tillakaratne taken at short leg by Sanjay Manjrekar in Ahmedabad.
