BOMBAY, 24 June 2005 — World cricket teems with players who are rivals not only on the field but the popularity charts as well. It must, however, be said to the eternal credit of Syed Mushtaq Ali that in his time, he was a lone cavalier in the midst of legendary classicists. His volatile approach made Test cricket so interesting that even the purists who commented on the game acknowledged him as a trendsetter.
Mushtaq Ali died last Saturday at the ripe age of 91, not quite remembered by many. However, an archived photograph of him going down almost half the length of the pitch, with the spectators in the background on their feet, will, perhaps keep his memory alive. The framed picture at Old Trafford, says all about the man and his cricket.
It was taken in 1936. The unusual act of defiance depicted therein, however, had not amused England captain “Gubby” Allen. Rated as fast as Harold Larwood, of the infamous body-line series, Allen had suffered the ignominy, along with his bowling partner, Alf Gover, of being taken apart by an untried opener. Walking down the pitch to a fast bowler was an indescribable affront.
It was, however, Allen who had fondly conferred the title of “Prince Charming,” a sobriquet with which the followers of the game identified the man who had had the distinction of scoring India’s first Test century abroad, and how.
Untutored and just natural, Mushtaq had evolved his own batting technique and had lived by it. With Vijay Merchant, he formed India’s most successful opening pair for a long time. They were indeed an odd duo.
While Mushtaq was belligerent to a fault, Merchant, considered any breach in technique an unpardonable trespass.
Far from his cavalier image at the batting crease, Mushtaq was a strict disciplinarian off the field. He observed fast during the month of Ramadan, match or no match. Even otherwise, during playing days he had a light diet of just fruits or fruit juice. His frugality ended there, for he liked to dress well and welcomed the slightest excuse to put on his favorite pin-striped suits.
For one so dashing in his playing days, Mushtaq, as a person was very modest and did not like to talk about himself. One had to coax him to make him speak of his time and of his colleagues.
It was with great reluctance that he touched upon the subject of the first great controversy to hit Indian cricket.
That was during the 1936 tour of England and the sacking of Lala Amarnath from the tour. Maharajkumar of Vizianagram “Vizzy” had been one of the most undeserving captains ever for India. His sense of insecurity made him turn against the leading players of the side. He used some of the younger players to help him humiliate men like C.K. Nayudu and Vijay Merchant.
Not many know that Mushtaq first came into the Indian team as a slow left-arm bowler and had batted at No. 8, 9 and 10. It was “Vizzy”, who in order to fix Merchant, had asked Mushtaq to open the innings in the second Test at Old Trafford. The instruction to Mushtaq from the skipper was to try and make Merchant run out.
What followed, however, was a memorable opening stands for India and one of the most attacking knocks ever played by an opener in England for a long time.
Praise for Mushtaq came from several leading England players, Pelham Warner, Jack Hobbs, Douglas Jardine and Dennis Compton. But what really overwhelmed the great Indian opener was the present of sixpence by the gateman of Old Trafford.
“I have preserved that six-penny piece like a valuable treasure because the gateman had said that he had made similar gifts to Duleep Singh and Don Bradman when they had scored triple centuries. He said that my knock was good as those.”
Followers of the game in England had marveled at the artistry of the Indian batsmen. In Mushtaq, they had seen the demonstration of scientific hitting. He was the first to bring the charm of unpredictability to Test cricket.
