BHOPAL, 26 December 2003 — Former Indian Test cricketer Chandu Sarvate, who holds an all time record for the 10th wicket batting partnership stand, died on Tuesday at the Apollo hospital in Indore following a protracted illness, his family said.
Sarvate, a former national selector was 83. He is survived by his wife and a daughter. Born on July 22, 1920 in Sagar town of Madhya Pradesh, Chandrashekhar Trimbak (Chandu) Sarvate played nine Tests from 1946 to 1952 and made 208 runs for an average of 13.00 and took three wickets.
He, however, had a lengthy first-class career from 1936 to 1949 when he played for the Central Provinces and Berar, Maharashtra Hindu, Mumbai, Holkar, Madhya Bharat, Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha. He was an all-rounder who could bowl both off and leg spin. He scored 7,430 runs at an average of 32.73 and took 494 wickets at 23.54 in 171 matches.
In the year 1946, while playing for India against Surrey, Sarvate added 249 runs with Shute Banerjee for the last wicket partnership, a record yet to be broken. He made an unbeaten 124 and Banerjee 121, the only instance in first-class cricket when the No. 10 and No. 11 batsmen scored centuries.
In the Melbourne Test against Australia in the year 1948, Sarvate along with Vinoo Mankad bravely faced the attack of Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller to score 124 runs.
A finger-print expert by profession, Sarvate was the chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association’s selection committee on number of occasions. He was also the selector of the India’s World Cup winning team in the year 1983 and also served as the secretary of the MPCA.
More than 57 years ago on May 13, 1946, Chandu Sarvate and Shute Banerjee immortalized themselves with one of those historical quirks that has never been witnessed before or since.
The scene was The Oval in London where the touring Indians were up against the might of Surrey. Batting first, India were quickly in trouble as Alec Bedser removed both Vijay Hazare and Rusi Modi for ducks. Bedser was still some six weeks away from making his Test debut and establishing an international reputation, which he did immediately with 11 wicket hauls in his first two Tests.
Surrey’s only bowler with Test experience, Alf Gover, did not bowl much but the Indians found Bedser more than a handful. Although Vijay Merchant (53) and Gul Mohammed (89) were involved in a retrieving stand, Bedser had picked up his fifth wicket when the last man, Banerjee, joined No. 10, Sarwate with the score at 205 for 9. As Sarvate recalls, the Surrey captain was already informing the groundsman what roller he would require at the end of the innings. He was destined to wait a great deal longer.
“It seemed as though we couldn’t do anything wrong. Whatever strokes we made were all along the ground and very well placed”, Sarvate had said after the match as he and Banerjee tamed the Surrey bowlers with a thrilling display of attacking batsmanship. When Parker bowled Banerjee to terminate the innings some three hours and ten minutes later, the two had pieced together 249 for the last wicket. It is still the only instance in first class cricket when Nos. 10 & 11 have scored centuries. Buoyed by the sight of the scoreboard reading a healthy 454, the Indians went out on the field and bowled out Surrey for a miserable 135.
Following on, the home team did slightly better in the second innings as they ran up a score of 338 and just avoided an innings defeat. The irrepressible Sarvate, who bowled a mixture of off and leg breaks, snapped up 5-54 in the second innings and India eventually won by the thumping margin of nine wickets. In the three Tests that followed, Banerjee failed to make an appearance while Sarvate played only in the second Test at Manchester, his Test debut, where he made 0 & 2 and bowled seven wicketless overs. But it hardly mattered for they had already done enough on that single day in May to command a place in cricketing folklore.
But of course Sarvate will be remembered for many other things. For putting on 124 runs for the first wicket with Vinoo Mankad at Melbourne in 1948 against Lindwall, Miller, Johnston and Johnson. For being part of the great Holkar team for several years. And for playing in the Ranji Trophy for well over three decades and running up a superb all round record — 4,923 runs (43.18) including 12 centuries and 281 wickets (27.42). He made his debut in the national competition at 16 and by the time he called it a day he was in his 50th year. His career highest was 246 for Holkar against Bengal in 1950-51. His best bowling in an innings was nine for 61 for Holkar against Mysore in 1945-46. He also played one Test each against the Australian Services team in 1945-46.
