Who are some of the greatest Indian batsmen of all time? - Quora Quora Who are some of the greatest Indian batsmen of all time? What makes them such legends? Thanks Aman Anand for asking me this. TL;DR: Read the names in bold I was born in 1990. But I've seen enough footage of matches and interviews from before that to be aware of some names. That goes back till about 70s. I know of names from before that like CK Nayudu (first captain of the Indian team), MAK Pataudi (first captain to win an overseas test), or his father Ifthikar Ali Khan Pataudi (who played for England before opting to play for India ), Lala Amarnath (first player to score a century for India) I've read but not really seen much to comment on their greatness. I'll start with The 70s This was the time West Indies was destroying all batsmen. I can think of 2 Indians who stood tall against the likes of Garner, Marshall, Holding and Roberts. For some reason, I was thinking about Sunil Gavaskar today at lunch. Before I was asked this question. His stats speak for themselves.

Though his records in tests have been surpassed in recent times, he showed the world what Indians can achieve. 10,000+ runs in tests - the first to achieve the tally. Broke Bradman's record of centuries One cannot talk about Gavaskar and forget Gundappa Vishwanath I used to hear about him from my uncle. He used to tell me how he used to listen to the radio commentary in the 70s when India and West Indies were fierce rivals. Especially that series in West Indies which India won: In 1975-76, Viswanath again produced some strong performances against the West Indies, the most notable of which was his 112 at Port of Spain which helped India to reach the victory target of 403. At the time, this was the highest successful run-chase in Test cricket Mind you this was during the period of Emergency in India! The 80s This was a period when one-day cricket became popular thanks to the World Series and all that it brought with it. India won the world cup in 1983 and that made heroes out of the whole team.

The team was known more for its bowlers - Bishan Singh Bedi, Balwinder Sandhu or all-rounders - Mohinder Amarnath, Roger Binny who were mainly bowlers and part-time batsmen. Of course Kapil Dev stood out in that list as a bowler turned batsman. The man who brought the big prize home for the first time! My English textbook had a chapter by him. A strange inclusion considering English wasn't his biggest asset. But nevertheless it told the story of how he transformed from a bowler to a batsman. And what a batsman he was! He might not have a lot of runs but his score of 175 against Zimbabwe when India were struggling in the 1983 World Cup is a stuff of legends The next name is a little controversial one but on pure cricketing merit, Mohammed Azharuddin makes the list. He was one of the best cards to have while playing trump cards as a child.

:D Former Indian captain and International umpire Venkataraghavan stated "Azharuddin had the best wrists in the game, but Tendulkar isn't too far behind" He has recently been sort of a tragic story with match-fixing ending his career at 99 matches and following him like a ghost denying him any cricketing position, his son dying in a car accident. Sad. A great batsman like him deserved a better legacy. The 90s This is child's play. Actually no. I was recently playing cricket with a 9-year old kid. He took a good catch to which I said, "Waah Jonty Rhodes!" The kid hadn't heard of his name. I hope the three - Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly aren't so easily forgotten. Do I really have to talk about these three? Oh well, Sachin Tendulkar is GOD. People in India actually believe in him. He has so many records that Alastair Cook will retire trying to catch up. Arguably the best batsman ever. I'd be surprised if any answer to this question did not mention his name.

On a personal note, I like him for the way he takes your breath away with amazing shots. The straight drive, the padlle sweep, the flick off the pads with the perfect timing. His career has spanned 4 decades now (80s, 90s, 2000s, 2010s) so I didn't know where to put him. I hope everyone will agree with my choice. Rahul Dravid to me has always been "in the shadows" In recent times, that has changed. He became the first Indian to score 100s in all test playing nations. The most "textbook" batsman if there was such a thing. He may not fit into today's flamboyant style of strokeplay but there is no match for him in the test team as he showed in West Indies and England. His concentration level on the crease is something I haven't seen in any other batsman. I wish he would have played a little longer but you have to respect his choice to retire. Dada aka Sourav Ganguly ko bhoole to nahi?

(I hope you haven't forgotten Dada aka Sourav Ganguly) The Prince of Kolkata as Geoffrey Boycott calls him may be remembered more as one of the best captains India had (The best according to some) but his batting was always entertaining. The sight of him stepping out of the crease and hitting sixes or his cover drives earning him the nickname "God of offside" will never be forgotten. (for those who don't understand, it's a reference to his Pepsi ad after being dropped by Greg Chappell) Bengalis consider him even better than Sachin! The 2000s The match-fixing scandal was almost a blessing in disguise for Indian cricket as the new team under Sourav Ganguly was much stronger and much more hungrier to win. That produced some truly great batsmen like: VVS Laxman Vangipurapu Venkata Sai Laxman also known as Very Very Sexy/Special Laxman. The day he retired, the cricketing world became a little uglier. Just like in the 70s, West Indies were dominating world cricket, 2000s belonged to Australia and this man stuck it to them and hurt them real hard.

They're not going to forget the man who stopped their winning run of 16 matches. Twice. And sure as hell no Indian is ever going to. Virender Sehwag This guy is really crazy. He has two triple hundreds. The only Indian to have even one. Not the best technician but very effective with his simple batting philosophy of "Watch ball, hit ball." And to use a Ravi Shastri style cliche, when he hits the ball it stays hit. (or should I have used the tracer bullet one?) Yuvraj Singh A product of the 2000 Under 19 world cup, in his first innings he knocked out Australia from the ICC Knockout Tournament. Throughout his career he has been inconsistent or injured but one can't doubt the talent he possesses and the effect he has had in whatever time he has been on the pitch. His test performance is quite unflattering though. "He scores when he wants" is a song sung for Robin van Persie because of his prolific scoring in football. Yuvraj Singh would be a good cricket equivalent considering he scores only when he wants.

Like the 6 sixes in the T20 World Cup or his man-of-the-series performance in the 2011 World Cup. A lot of people may not like him but Mahendra Singh Dhoni makes a lot of runs very quickly. The most successful captain India has produced, already has 6900 runs at an average of over 50 in ODIs. I can't fault him for not having many runs in tests because he comes to bat very late. What many people do not realize is that he does have a very sound technique and can change gears very quickly. He is very good at pacing his innings and a nightmare for a bowler to face in a last over situation even if that bowler is Lasith Malinga. Post 2010 It's not been much time but Virat Kohli really stands out. He is just 24 and has already scored 13 ODI hundreds. Sachin reckons he could break Sachin's ODI records. But his test performance will determine the progress of his career.

16.4k Views · View Upvotes · Answer requested by Written Jan 8, 2013 Here is my modest attempt at trying to summarize a list of some of the greatest Indian batsmen of all time starting from the very dawn of cricket in India dating back to 1845. I have mainly held test cricket as a yardstick to come up with these names as i feel test cricket is the real test a cricketer needs to pass and excel in, in order to make a mark in the annals of Cricket. Some of these names below have lived/played at times when the frequency of International Test cricket was less although they have helped shape Indian cricket (batting in particular) immensely. 1. C.K.Nayudu Although he played only 7 tests for India he is one person who put Indian batting on to the map of World Cricket. His one innings of 153 with 11 sixes against a touring English club side (or not sure if it was against an English side in the quadrangular series) consisting of all the front line English bowlers in a first class match was considered to be one of the best Indian knocks against a world class bowling attack for years to come.

Not much is known of this first Test Captain of India. His spectacular display of batting and consistent performances during the quadrangular and pent-angular cricket tournaments in the pre Independence era caused a stir back in England as the touring MCC sides took note of this fine batsman. His fine performances earned him the sobriquet of 'Hindu Bradman' in years to come (Hindu beacuse he played for the Hindus in the quadrangular tournaments). 2. Vijay Hazare Vijay Hazare played just 30 test matches for India although his first class record of 18740 runs is only behind that of Gavaskar, Tendulkar and Dravid. Vijay Hazare shot to fame on the international scene when he led India to it's first test win nearly 20 years after India started playing international cricket. His 7 test hundreds and his famous 2 centuries in the same test against the Aussies in Australia (although in a loosing cause) really showed the world that Indian's can bat consistently and for long durations. 3. Polly Umrigar Polly Umrigar was really not a good player of extreme fast bowling although he destroyed anything that was slower as his contemporaries say.

In the chronology of the evolution of Indian batting he epitomized Indian batting Version 2.0. Version 1.0 being the style of the Vijay Merchant-Vijay Hazare years. His batting style was more of an adventurous one than any of his predecessors whose first line of thought was to preserve one's wicket. Speaking of stats, at the time of his retirement, Polly Umrigar was the highest test run scorer with the highest number of test hundreds (12) amongst Indian test cricketers only to be broken couple of decades later by the great Sunil Gavaskar. 4. Gundappa Vishwanath Vishy as he is fondly called can be considered to be someone who wrote Indian Batting Version 3.0. His batting style was focused more on timing instead of brute force and he was probably one of the first Indian batsman to have embraced the power of wristy elegance in batting. Scoring over 6000 runs and helping India through its dream years throughout the 70s with historic wins over England and the West Indies, there cannot be a discussion of All time Indian cricket greats without a mention of Vishy. 5.

Sunil Gavaskar The Little Master was the missing fit in the jigsaw puzzle which the Indian cricket management was trying to finish to get together a world class team. Part of the glorious years of Indian cricket throughout the 70s, Sunny was one of the pillars on which India scripted some of the most memorable overseas victories throughout the 70s and the 80s and had many firsts. India had it's first overseas victory in England, then the epic successful 403 run chanse giving India its first test series win in the West Indies with Sunny scoring a double century then. Sunil Gavaskar was without doubt one of the most fearless batsmen of his generation against genuine fast bowling. He has one of the highest batting averages against the deadly Windies bowling attack of Roberts,Holding,Garner and Marshal. Sunny's contribution to Indian cricket cannot be limited to just his batting exploits because he was and has been a source of inspiration for some of Indian cricket's other greats in the years that followed.

If this is not enough then from a statistics stand point Sunny was the first ever cricketer to score more than 10,000 test runs and held the record for the highest number of test centuries (34) for many years to come. 6. Mohammad Azharuddin The wristy Hyderabadi brought a new angle to Indian cricket by showing how important fielding was in cricket and led from the front as one of the finest Indian fielders at that time. Azhar's contribution to Indian cricket cannot be overseen in spite of all the controversies that marred his career. Having a very graceful and stylish batting style, the wristy flick off his pads was a Azhar patent and was one of the most beautiful cricketing shots to watch back then. Azhar holds the distinction of being the only man in Cricket history to score 3 hundreds in his first 3 tests. (And that too he did against a strong english bowling attack in the mid 80s.) 7. Sachin Tendulkar Any praise heaved in favour of the little maestro is too less.

Sachin Tendulkar belting the legendary Pakistani leg spinner Abdul Qadir for over 25 runs in one over in an unofficial match during his debut tour of Pakistan shot him to instant fame on the international scene and people knew here was a legend in the making. Sachin is one player who has almost always adapted to his playing conditions best, be it in his batting, bowling or fielding. This probably has been his greatest strength and coupled with his undying hunger to play more and his love of the game are the main reasons for his longevity as a cricket player. The highest compliment that Sachin ever got was from the legend himself - Sir Donald Bradman when he told him that his playing style is very similar to his. Sunil Gavaskar once said - "it is hard to imagine any player in the history of the game who combines classical technique with raw aggression like the little champion does" Mentioning stats to justify his inclusion in this list would not do justice to the genuine great that Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is. 8.

Rahul Dravid Jammy as he is fondly called was the perfectly (probably the best) finished product out of a batsman producing factory where all the machines producing batsmen were run by the batting rule book. Harsha Bhogle once described Dravid's batting like the perfect piece of literature ever written where all the commas, the full stops and other punctuations would be perfectly in place, the flow of thought would be methodical and the piece would just be technicaly perfect. He has been in its truest sense 'The Wall' of Indian cricket for many years leading India to some of it's finest and most memorable wins. As the name of one of his biographies rightly suggests, he truly is one of the few nice guys who finished first (Biography - The Nice Guy Who Finished First written by Devendra Prabhudesai) 9. Sourav Ganguly As the famous Geoffrey Boycott put it, 'The Prince of Calcutta' is only the next best thing to GOD on the off side of a cricket field. Anything that was bowled even remotely towards his offside would be put away almost effortlessly by 'Dada'. Such was his comfort zone for the offside.

He along with Sachin Tendulkar formed a very formidable and perhaps one of the most successful opening partnerships in One Day Cricket. With over 7000 Test runs and 11000 ODI runs, Dada's contribution to Indian batting has been phenomenal. His agggresive leadership coupled with his batting exploits definitely put him in this elite group of India's cricketing greats who have contributed immensely to Indian batting. 10. VVS Laxman I don't think any Indian cricket fan will ever forget the epic 281 from VVS Laxman against the touring Aussies who were on a roll with 16 consecutive test wins and were nearing on setting a new world record of record consecutive test wins. Their march only to be halted by India. This epic innings having followed on at the Eden Gardens is the stuff of legends. Laxi epitomized patience and sound, wristy batting following in on his fellow Hyderabadi Azharuddin's batting style. Laxi's 17 odd test centuries have been significant in many a great test wins for India and most of them have been overseas against some of the most fearsome bowling attacks in the world.

5.2k Views · View Upvotes · Answer requested by Written Dec 13, 2012 Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar When Sachin Tendulkar travelled to Pakistan to face one of the finest bowling attacks ever assembled in cricket, Michael Schumacher was yet to race a F1 car, Lance Armstrong had never been to the Tour de France, Diego Maradona was still the captain of a world champion Argentina team, Pete Sampras had never won a Grand Slam.When Tendulkar embarked on a glorious career taming Imran and company, Roger Federer was a name unheard of; Lionel Messi was in his nappies, Usain Bolt was an unknown kid in the Jamaican backwaters. The Berlin Wall was still intact, USSR was one big, big country, Dr Manmohan Singh was yet to “open” the Nehruvian economy. It seems while Time was having his toll on every individual on the face of this planet, he excused one man. Time stands frozen in front of Sachin Tendulkar. We have had champions, we have had legends, but we have never had another Sachin Tendulkar and we never will.

Source: TIME Written Dec 13, 2012 Firstly, the answer is in no particular order, and since I started watching Cricket only from 1996 (forgive me, I was only four then), I might have missed out on some of the better batsman, forgive me for that. Since the question asks of batsmen of all time, I am going to restrict my answer to test matches only, and hence, i have not included Saurav Ganguly. The answer, I repeat, is not in any order. 1) Virender Sehwag: The man who changed the way test cricket will be played. Made to open the innings in India's tour to England, 2002, He has not looked back. Two Triple Centuries, 5 of the 10 fastest doubles, an average of 50 at a strike rate of 80. Centuries in all countries. Has carried the bat, scoring 201 out of 320, whilst facing murali and a mysterious mendis. If he isn't in the list, there is no list.

2) Gavaskar: First man to reach 10,000 test runs, in pre helmet days, when fast bowling was more about knocking out the batsman than getting him out! 3) Dravid: The best no. 3 Indian cricket will ever have. One of the important reason (maybe THE important reason) that India started to win matches away from home. A true fighter, and a gentleman. For me, he is the best Indian Cricketer ever. 4) Tendulkar : The second best batsman ever in the game of cricket. Benchmark for any sort of record associated with batting. 5) Vishwanath: Style, Elegance, Class. I think these words define Vishwanath! 6) Vengsarkar: to quote Cricinfo Article( All time XI) The link between the Gavaskar and Tendulkar generations, he held the middle order together, once making 166 against Sri Lanka on a dodgy track when no one else made more than 60. His three centuries at Lord's and six against West Indies' pace made him the most valuable player in the middle order in his time.

7) Laxman : The man who played the most important innings in Indian Cricket history at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, when we were following on, against a world beating Aussies. This signalled the birth of the Never Say Die Spirit of the Indian Cricket team. Very Very Special player, who has saved India from defeat, and taken us to victory, time and time again. Plus, his fourth innings batting makes him a valuable asset as well. 8) Pataudi: Batted with only one eye and a leg against Australia (methinks) , and top scored in that innings as well. 5.4k Views · View Upvotes · Answer requested by VVS Laxman's special shirt and Team India's love for it! - India.com Comments Rain did play the spoilsport, and the third, and final T20I between India and South Africa was washed out at Eden Gardens. Players, like millions glued to TV sets, were waiting for the official word. In-between team India members managed to lighten up the mood, thanks to their ‘very very special’ message to ‘very very special’ batsman- VVS Laxman.

Also Check- Full coverage of India vs South Africa 2015 The camera caught hold of off-spinner Harbhajan Singh holding a placard along with other members including skipper MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli. The poster had written, “Laxman we love your shirt,” over it. Once the screenshot of the message was posted on Twitter, it started to trend and Twitterati began tweeting about it. Soon images of Laxman’s ‘very very special’ shirt was being shared. The former India batsman wore a blue shirt with bird design over it that caught the eyeballs. Well, with no match around team India members surely had fun. This happened last night, team India’s message to @VVSLaxman281 at Eden Gardens. pic.twitter.com/Z42pwf2foS Indian Cricket Legends, Indian Former Players, Cricket Legends, Profile, Indian Cricket INDIAN CRICKET LEGENDS INDIAN CRICKET LEGENDS The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), it is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test and One Day International (ODI) status.

The Indian cricket team is currently ranked third by the ICC in Tests and fifth in ODIs.[3] On 2 April 2011, the team won the 2011 Cricket World Cup, its second after 1983. It thus became only the third team after West Indies and Australia to have won the World Cup more than once. Anil Kumble Anil Kumble was born on 17 October 1970 in Bangalore; Karnataka is a ex- Indian cricketer and skipper of the Indian Test cricket side. He is a right-arm leg spin Leg Break googly bowler and a right-hand batsman. He is at present the foremost wicket-taker for India in both Test and One Day International contests. At present he is the third maximum wicket-taker in Test cricket and one of only three bowlers to have taken further than 600 Test wickets. Azharuddin Mohammad Azharuddin was born on 8 February 1963, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh also acknowledged as Azhar, is an Indian politician and former cricketer.

He was an accomplished batsman and captained the Indian cricket side for greatly of the 1990s, in anticipation of his involvement in a match-fixing scandal strained him into retirement. A component of the Indian National Congress, Azharuddin won election from the Moradabad electorate of Uttar Pradesh to the Lok Sabha, the minor house of the Parliament of India. Bhagwat Chandrasekhar Bhagwat Subramanya Chandrasekhar also known as Chandra was born on May 17, 1945 in Mysore is an ex- Indian cricketer who is expert in leg spin. Well thought-out in the midst of the top stratum of leg-spinners, Chandrasekhar beside with E.A.S. Prasanna, Bishen Singh Bedi and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan represented the Indian twist quartet that subjugated twist bowling in the 1960s and 1970s. Bisan Bedi Bishan Singh Bedi was born on 25 September 1946 in Amritsar, is an Indian ex- cricketer who was first and foremost a slow left-arm mainstream bowler.

He played Test cricket for India from 1966 to 1979 and shaped part of the famous Indian spin quartet. He also leaded the national side in 22 Test matches. Bedi is also legendary for always wearing a colorful patka and his candid and plainspoken views on cricketing stuffs. C K Nayudu Cottari Kanakaiya Nayudu was born on 31 October 1895 also well-known as CK, was an Indian cricketer who served up as India's initial Test captain. He was born in Nagpur; Maharashtra .Nayudu was identified as being an outstanding hard batsman, and for his talent as a solid hitter of the ball. He was the initial cricketer to be honoured with the Padma Bhushan. Dilip Vengsarkar Dilip Balwant Vengsarkar was born on 6 April 1956 in Rajapur; Maharashtra is an Indian cricketer and cricket bureaucrat. He was one of the trendiest batsmen of his time, known as one of the chief exponents of the propel. He was also acknowledged by the epithet 'Colonel'.

He began playing the fixture of Cricket at an early age and created swirls as a teen Cricketer when playing for Bombay (currently Mumbai) he attained 110 runs in an Irani Trophy match at Nagpur in the year 1975. Gavaskar Sunil Manohar Gavaskar was born on 10 July 1949 in Bombay, Bombay State (now Mumbai, Maharashtra)), is an ex- cricketer who played during the 1970s and 1980s for Bombay and India. Widely considered as one of the best opening batsmen in test match history, Gavaskar set world records during his vocation for the most runs and most centuries achieved by any batsman. He holds the record of 34 Test centuries for almost two decades before it was wrecked by Sachin Tendulkar in December 2005. Gundappa Viswanath Gundappa Rangnath Viswanath was born on 12 February 1949 in Bhadravathi; Karnataka, India is an ex- Indian cricketer.

He was one of India's optimum batsmen all the way through the 1970s. He played Test cricket for India from 1969 to 1983 making 91 manifestations and scoring over 6000 runs. He also played in One Day Internationals from 1974 to 1982 as well as the World Cups of 1975 and 1979. At state level, he played for Karnataka (in earlier times Mysore) right through his career. Kapil Dev Kapil Dev Ramlal Nikhanj born on 6 January 1959, Chandigarh Punjab, India, well known as Kapil Dev, is a past Indian cricketer. Born in a Punjabi family to Ram Lal Nikhanj and Raj Kumari Lajwanti, Kapil Dev was the sixth of seven siblings. His parents had lived elsewhere from a Kahuta village next to Rawalpindi during separation, whereafter Ram Lal Nikhanj settled in Chandigarh and into a flourishing construction and wood business. Kapil Dev was a student at D.A.V.

School and adhered Desh Prem Azad in 1971. Kiran More Kiran Shankar Murat More was born on September 4, 1962 in Baroda; Gujarat, India was the wicket-keeper for the Indian cricket squad from 1984 to 1993. He was the Chairman of the Selection Committee of the BCCI till Dilip Vengsarkar took over the work in 2006. He is at the moment working with Indian Cricket League. Krishnamachari Srikkanth Krishnamachari Srikkanth was born on December 21, 1959 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, and India is an ex- skipper of the Indian Cricket squad and the up to date chairman of the selection committee. He did his schooling At SBOA in Chennai and Hyderabad and College in HIET, BSc Computer Science. He was awarded Mr. Madras 98 (at MMC); Mr.Pecofes 98 (Pondicherry) His ambition was to become a cricketer which is out of licenses.

Lala Amarnath Nanik Amarnath Bhardwaj generally acknowledged as Lala Amarnath; was born on 11 September 1911 was an Indian Test cricketer. Lala Amarnath attained India's initial Test century and went on to suit Indian cricket's patriarchal stature: as selector, administrator, trainer and anchor, in addition to in a factual intellect - his three sons became first-class cricketers and two played in Tests. Amarnath, a Punjabi, was also the first to put the boot in alongside the stifling supremacy of Indian cricket by the confined princes and their majestic benefactor. Laxman Vangipurapu Venkata Sai Laxman was born on 1 November 1974, in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India, at times condensed to Venkatsai Laxman but normally recognized as V.V.S. Laxman (epithet Very Very Special Laxman), is an Indian cricketer. Laxman characterized Hyderabad in home cricket and has played for Lancashire in English county cricket. Laxman is said to be the immense grand nephew of Dr.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, ex- President of India. Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi was born on January 5, 1941in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, dotingly called Tiger has been an Indian Cricket player and the Captain of the Indian Cricket squad. He has to acknowledge the nobility of having been the 9th and last Nawab of Pataudi, until 1971, when India abolished royal entitlements through the 26th Amendment to the Constitution of India a small Princely State which at present is a part of the Haryana state of India. Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu is ex- Indian cricket batsman. Subsequent to leaving from cricket Navjot Singh Sidhu took up television commentary and politics. He was born in Patiala, in the malwa area of Punjab. Sidhu was nominated to the Lok Sabha as the element from Amritsar in 2004 on a Bharatiya Janata Party tag; he later on reconciled, subsequent his fervor for liable slaughter.

Polly Umrigar Pahlan Ratanji "Polly" Umrigar was born on 28 March 1926 was an Indian cricketer. He participated in first-class cricket for Bombay and Test cricket in the Indian cricket side, mostly as a middle-order batsman but also bowling sporadic medium speed and off spin. He leaded the Indian side in eight Test matches from 1955 to 1958. When he retired in 1962, he had played in more Tests (59), attained more Test runs (3,631), and recorded more Test centuries Prasana Erapalli Anantharao Srinivas Prasanna was born on May 22, 1940 is a prominent ex-cricket player from Bangalore, India. He was a spin bowler, focusing in off spin and an associate of the Indian twist quartet. He is a former student of National Institute of Engineering, Mysore. Syed Kirmani Padma Sri Syed Mujtaba Hussain Kirmani was born on December 29, 1949 in Madras participated in cricket for India and Karnataka as a wicket-keeper.

Universally acknowledged as 'Kiri', Syed Kirmani is normally watched as the supreme wicket keeper to amuse for India. Vijay Hazare Vijay Samuel Hazare was born on 11 March 1915 December 2004 was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He leaded the Indian cricket squad in 14 matches amid 1951 and 1953. In India's 25th Test game, almost 20 years after India realized Test status, he led India to her first ever Test win and the only triumph under his captaincy in 1951-52 in opposition to England at Madras, winning by an innings and eight runs in a game that began on the day that King George VI died. CRICKET PLAYERS & NICKNAMES ... endless!

by Chinaroad Australia's 1948 tour of England ï¿½ The Invincibles Australian national cricket team ï¿½ Baggy Greens Bangladeshi national cricket team ï¿½ The Tigers Canadian national cricket team ï¿½ One Man Band New Zealand national cricket team ï¿½ The Black Caps, The Kiwis South African national cricket team ï¿½ The Proteas West Indian national cricket team ï¿½ The Windies, The Calypsos Indian national cricket team ï¿½ The Men in Blue Pakistani national cricket teamï¿½ The Stars Officials, umpires and commentators Harold Bird ï¿½ Dickie Bird Henry Blofeld ï¿½ Blowers Brent Bowden ï¿½ Billy Steve Bucknor ï¿½ Slow Death Bill Ferguson ï¿½ Fergie Bill Frindall ï¿½ The Bearded Wonder Brian Johnston ï¿½ Johnners Christopher Martin-Jenkins ï¿½ CMJ Don Mosey ï¿½ The Alderman David Shepherd ï¿½ Shep Bryan Waddle ï¿½ Wads Players Bobby Abel ï¿½ The Guv'nor Jimmy Adams ï¿½ Padams Paul Adams ï¿

½ Gogga ("insect" in Afrikaans), A frog in a blender (for his unusual bowling action) Ajit Agarkar ï¿½ Bombay Duck (for his horror streak of ducks against Australia) Jonathan Agnew ï¿½ Aggers Shoaib Akhtar ï¿½ Rawalpindi Express Wasim Akram ï¿½ Prince of Pakistan, Was, Sultan of Swing Terry Alderman ï¿½ Clem (after Clem Jones, mayor of Brisbane, curator of Gabba and an alderman) Mark Alleyne ï¿½ BooBoo Mohinder Amarnath ï¿½ Jimmy, Amarnought Surinder Amarnath ï¿½ Tommy Warwick Armstrong ï¿½ the Big Ship Jason Arnberger ï¿½ Cheesy Geoff Arnold ï¿½ Horse Shahid Afridi ï¿½ The Boom Michael Atherton ï¿½ Athers B Trevor Bailey ï¿½ The Boil, Barnacle Omari Banks ï¿½ Bankie, Cowheb Richie Benaud ï¿½ Diamonds Tino Best ï¿½ The Best, Ntini Michael Bevan ï¿½ Bevvo Andrew Bichel ï¿½

 Bic Jack Blackham ï¿½ Black Jack David Boon ï¿½ Boonie, Keg on Legs, Stumpy Allan Border ï¿½ A.B., Captain Grumpy Ian Botham ï¿½ Beefy,The Both,Guy Mark Boucher ï¿½ Guinness, Billy Nicky Boje ï¿½ Bodge Nathan Bracken ï¿½ Bracks Don Bradman ï¿½ The Don Ian Bell ï¿½ Belly, the team baby C Andy Caddick ï¿½ Caddyshack Chris Cairns ï¿½ B.A.

(Bad Attitude) Shivnarine Chanderpaul ï¿½ Tiger Ian Chappell ï¿½ Chapelli Ewen Chatfield ï¿½ Chats, Farmer (Mer) or The Naenae Express Stuart Clark ï¿½ Sarfraz, Stu Michael Clarke ï¿½ Pup Paul Collingwood ï¿½ Nice Ginger, Colly Herbie Collins ï¿½ Horseshoe Corey Collymore ï¿½ Screw Jeremy Coney ï¿½ Mantis Colin Cowdrey ï¿½ Kipper Jeff Crowe ï¿½ Chopper Martin Crowe ï¿½ Hogan D Adam Dale ï¿½ Chipper Joe Darling ï¿½ Paddy Phillip DeFreitas ï¿½ Half-Chocolate, Daffy Aravinda de Silva ï¿½ Mad Max Fanie de Villiers ï¿½ Vinnige Fanie ("Fast Fanie" in Afrikaans) Kapil Dev ï¿½ The Haryana Express Mahendra Singh Dhoni ï¿½ Mahi Graham Dilley ï¿½ Pica Boeta Dippenaar ï¿½ Dipps Allan Donald ï¿½ White Lightning Brett

 Dorey ï¿½ Hunky, John J.W.H.T.

Douglas ï¿½ Johnny Won't Hit Today Rahul Dravid ï¿½ Jammy, The Wall E Bruce Edgar ï¿½ Bootsy F Damien Fleming ï¿½ Flemo Stephen Fleming ï¿½ Flange Duncan Fletcher ï¿½ Fletch Keith Fletcher ï¿½ The Gnome of Essex Andrew Flintoff ï¿½ Freddy, Twiggy, Fred, family man James Foster ï¿½ The Child Graeme Fowler ï¿½ Foxy C. B. Fry ï¿½ Lord Oxford, Charles III, Almighty G Saurav Ganguly ï¿½ Maharaj, Prince of Calcutta, Dada, Bengal Tiger Joel Garner ï¿½ Big Bird Sunil Gavaskar ï¿½ Sunny, The Little Master Chris Gayle ï¿½ Cramps, Crampy Herschelle Gibbs ï¿½ Scooter, The Sack Man Adam Gilchrist ï¿½ Churchy, Gilly, The Demolition Man Ashley Giles ï¿½ Ash, the King of Spain Jason Gillespie ï¿½ Dizzy Darren Gough ï¿½ Rhino, Goughy, the Dazzler, Dancing Darren E.

M. Grace ï¿½ The Coroner W.G.

Grace ï¿½ The Doctor Mark Greatbatch ï¿½ Paddy Clarrie Grimmett ï¿½ The Old Fox, Grum Subhash Gupte ï¿½ Fergie H Brad Haddin ï¿½ BJ, Harry, Guildo Richard Hadlee ï¿½ Paddles Andrew Hall ï¿½ Brosh, Merv, Hally Stephen Harmison ï¿½ Harmy (or Harmi), Tinker, GBH (Grievous Bodily Harmison) Chris Harris ï¿½ Harry, Lugs Ian Harvey ï¿½ Freak Nathan Hauritz ï¿½ Horry Matthew Hayden ï¿½ Haydos, Unit Nantie Hayward ï¿½ Wayward Hayward George Headley ï¿½ Black Bradman Ian Healy ï¿½ Heals Hunter Hendry ï¿½ Stork Paul Hitchcock ï¿½ Alfred Jack Hobbs ï¿½ The Master Brad Hoggï¿½ George, Hoggy, The Postman Matthew Hoggard ï¿½ Hoggy, Shrek Michael Holding ï¿½ Whispering Death Bob Holland ï¿½ Dutchy Albert Hornby ï¿½ Monkey James H

opes ï¿½ Hopesy, Jimbo, Catfish Merv Hughes ï¿½ Fruitfly, Swerve, Swerv'n Merv'n Simon Hughes ï¿½ Yozzer Nasser Hussain ï¿½ Nass (by the commentators) Michael Hussey ï¿½ The Huss, Mr Cricket I Inzamam ul Haq ï¿½ Aloo (potato), Inzy Bert Ironmonger ï¿½ Dainty J Ridley Jacobs ï¿½ Ras Bell, Riddler Sanath Jayasuriya ï¿½ The Matara Mauler Gilbert Jessop ï¿½ The Croucher Dean Jones ï¿½ Deano, Legend (nickname he gave to himself).

Sylvester Joseph ï¿½ Bouncing K Mohammed Kaif ï¿½ Kaifu Jacques Kallis ï¿½ Kalahari, Jackes Danish Kaneria ï¿½ Nani Dani Michael Kasprowicz ï¿½ Kasper Simon Katich ï¿½ Stiffler, Kat Justin Kemp ï¿½ Daryll (Shane Warne's sledging) Imran Khan ï¿½ The Lion of Lahore, The King of Swing Michael Klinger ï¿½ Maxy Lance Klusener ï¿½ Zulu Anil Kumble ï¿½ Jumbo L Justin Langer ï¿½ BNG, Brown Nose Gnome, Alf Charl Langeveldt ï¿½ Langes Brian Lara ï¿½ The Prince Gavin Larsen ï¿½ The Postman (apparently he always delivered!) Harold Larwood ï¿½ Lol Bill Lawry ï¿½ Phantom, Phanta, The corpse with pads on (he loved Phantom comics) Geoff Lawson ï¿½ Henry VVS Laxman ï¿½ Very Very Special Brett Lee ï¿½ Bing, Oswald Warren Lees ï¿½ Wally Darren Lehmann ï

¿½ Boof, Shrek Henry Leveson-Gower ï¿½ Shrimp Dennis Lillee ï¿½ D.K., F.O.T (F*****g Old Tart) Denis Lindsay ï¿½ Sporty Clive Lloyd ï¿½ Super Cat David Lloyd ï¿½ Bumble Martin Love ï¿½ Lovey, Pumper M Charles Macartney ï¿½ Governor-General Stuart MacGill ï¿½ Stuey, Magilla Ken Mackay ï¿½ Slasher Jimmy Maher ï¿½ Mahbo Ashley Mallett ï¿½ Rowdy Sanjay Manjrekar ï¿½ Sanj Vijay Manjrekar ï¿½ The Wanderer Charles Marriott ï¿½ Father Marriott Geoff Marsh ï¿½ Swampy Rod Marsh ï¿½ Iron Gloves, Bacchus Xavier Marshall ï¿½ X, Mad Max Frederick Martin ï¿½ Nutty Damien Martyn ï¿½ Marto Lloyd Mash ï¿½ Monster, Bangers (in the UK) Greg Matthews ï¿½ Mo Glenn McGrath ï¿½ Pigeon Graham McKenzie ï¿½ Garth Craig McMillan ï¿½

 Macca Colin Miller ï¿½ Funky Keith Miller ï¿½ Nugget Tom Moody ï¿½ Long Dave Mohammed ï¿½ Tadpole Danny Morrison ï¿½ Deke John Morrison ï¿½ Mystery Runako Morton ï¿½ Ronnie Muttiah Muralitharan ï¿½ The Smiling Assassin, Murali, MuMu, Master technician Saqlain Mushtaq ï¿½ Saqi, Professor (wears glasses and outsmarts the batsman) Shoaib Malik ï¿½ Terminator N Andre Nel ï¿½ Nella Mfuneko Ngam ï¿½ Chewey (Chewey'N gam) Monty Noble ï¿½ Mary Ann Makhaya Ntini ï¿½ Macky O Chris Old ï¿½ Chilly (from C.Old) Bill O'Reilly ï¿½ Tiger Kerry O'Keeffe ï¿½ Skull P Milford Page ï¿½ Curly Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi ï¿½ Tiger Parthiv Patel ï¿½ Bachcha (child in Hindi) Kevin Pietersen ï¿½ K.P.

Graeme Pollock ï¿½ The Little Dog Peter Pollock ï¿½ The Big Dog Shaun Pollock ï¿½ Polly, Ginger, The Nibbler Ricky Ponting ï¿½ Punter Ashwell Prince ï¿½ Ashy P Q Abdul Qadir ï¿½ Qadu R Carl Rackemann ï¿½ Mocca Venkatapathy Raju ï¿½ Muscles Denesh Ramdin ï¿½ Shoppy Ravi Rampaul ï¿½ Frisco Kid Mark Ramprakash ï¿½ Bloodaxe Ranjitsinhji ï¿½ Black Prince of Cricketers, Ranji, Smith Derek Randall ï¿½ Arkle Yalaka Venugopal Rao ï¿½ Venu Abdul Razzaq ï¿½ Razzler Bruce Reid ï¿½ Chook Paul Reiffel ï¿½ Pistol Dave Renneburg ï¿½ Big Shine Harold Rhodes ï¿½ Dusty Rhodes Vivian Richards ï¿½ Master Blaster, the Master Mark Richardson ï¿½ Rigor, Rig Greg Ritchie ï¿½ Fat Cat Steve Rixon ï¿½ Stumper Jacques Rudolph ï¿

½ Jackie Ken Rutherford ï¿½ Ruds or Rudder S Mohammed Sami ï¿½ Salami, The Karachi Express Virender Sehwag ï¿½ Veeru, New Tendulkar Paul Sheahan ï¿½ Timbers Bob Simpson ï¿½ Simmo Navjot Singh Sidhu ï¿½ Sherry, Jonty Singh, Sixer Sidhu Matthew Sinclair ï¿½ Skippy Harbhajan Singh ï¿½ The Turbanator, Bhajji (by team-mates) Yuvraj Singh ï¿½ Yuvi Michael Slater ï¿½ Slats Peter Sleep ï¿½ Sounda Sir Aubrey Smith ï¿½ Round the Corner Ian Smith ï¿½ Stockley Graeme Smith ï¿½ Biff Jim Smith ï¿½ Big Jim Martin Snedden ï¿½ Sneds Fred Spofforth ï¿½ Demon Javagal Srinath ï¿½ Babu Keith Stackpole ï¿½ Stacky Brian Statham ï¿½ George Edward Stevens ï¿½ Lumpy Alec Stewart ï¿½ Wizenedone, Gaffer Andrew Strauss ï¿½ Straussy Pi

eter Strydom ï¿½ Striker Scott Styris ï¿½ Pig Andrew Symonds ï¿½ Symo, Roy, Golden Bollocks T Mark Taylor ï¿½ Tubby Sachin Tendulkar ï¿½ Tendiya, Little Master, The Master Blaster, Slashin Sachin Alan Thomson ï¿½ Froggie Jeff Thomson ï¿½ Two-up Graham Thorpe ï¿½ The Shagger Ernie Toshack ï¿½ The Dark Prince Marcus Trescothick ï¿½ Banger, Tresco Fred Trueman ï¿½ Fiery Fred Hugh Trumble ï¿½ Little Eva Daryl Tuffey ï¿½ Hightower Phil Tufnell ï¿½ The Cat, Tuffers Charlie Turner ï¿½ Terror Frank Tyson ï¿½ Typhoon U Shaun Udal ï¿½ Shaggy Derek Underwood ï¿½ Deadly V Michael Vaughan ï¿½ Virgil, Vaughny Dilip Vengsarkar ï¿½ Colonel Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan ï¿½ Venkat Daniel Vettori ï¿½ Lucas, Danny Lou Vincent ï¿

½ Flusher Maharajkumar of Vizianagram ï¿½ Vizzy W Max Walker ï¿½ Tangles Doug Walters ï¿½ Freddie, Bikki Shane Warne ï¿½ Warney, Hollywood, The Sheikh of Tweak Shane Watson ï¿½ Watto Steve Waugh ï¿½ Tugga, Iceman Mark Waugh ï¿½ Junior, Afghanistan (The forgotten waugh) Cameron White ï¿½ Carn Craig White ï¿½ Chalky Jeff Wilson ï¿½ Goldie Paul Wilson ï¿½ Blocker Matthew Windows ï¿½ Steamy Paul Wiseman ï¿½ Whizz Bill Woodfull ï¿½ The Rock John Wright ï¿½ Shake Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis ï¿½ The Two W's, The Sultans of Reverse Swing Clyde Walcott, Everton Weekes and Frank Worrell ï¿½ The Three W's XYZ Welcome to VVS Laxman Cricket Academy VVS takes guard to train aspiring cricketers March 12, 2015 V.V.S.

Laxman stepped into a different zone which he has been longing for ever since his retirement three years ago. The former India star batsman will now start the much-awaited VVS Sports Academy, initially with emphasis on cricket, and later on other sports, on the sprawling 50-acre campus of the Sreenidhi International School in Aziznagar near here. VVS Begins new innings. As Coach Mar 12 2015 For someone who broke the mould to become a successful Test cricketer, it is not surprising the passion endures. VVS Laxman could've easily followed in the footsteps of his doctor parents, but he didn't. Some 134 Tests and 8781 runs later, he announced his retirement, but fierce desire to give something back to the game he loves has translated into the VVS Sports Academy, which he launched here on Wednesday. VVS to Open Academy Mar 12 2015 There is a new cricket acadey in town. It has a very very special tag to it.

The latest school for cricket excellence, called VVS Sports Academy, is a much cherished brainchild of former India mainstay and Hyderabad's most elegant batsman VVS Laxman Laxman starts academy at school in Hyderabad March 12, 2015 less than three years after drawing curtains on his 16 year distinguished career, former Indian batsman VVS Laxman has decided to shape up the careers of aspiring cricketers. On Wednesday the Hyderabadi announced the start of vvs sports academy at Sreenidhi International School in the city, and termed it his tribute to the game that has given him so much.

Question: Which former Indian test batsman was nicknamed “Very Very Special”?
Answer: V. V. S. Laxman