by Arunabha Sengupta
How much does a captain’s confidence matter in the career of a spinner?
Arshad Ayub is the most defining example. Surprising too, because Dilip Vengsarkar does not come up as the first choice when names of Indian captains are rattled off.
But a careful look at Ayub’s career and we find some details submerged amidst the scorecards.
With Vengsarkar in charge, Ayub captured 40 wickets in 10 Tests at 26.45, wickets spread quite evenly across India and West Indies.
With others at the helm he took just 1 more wicket in 3 Tests conceding 380 runs, spread across India and Pakistan.
Ayub made a late entry into Test cricket. A rather unathletic-looking, slightly overweight off-spinner from Hyderabad aged 29.
The opponents were the mighty West Indies and India, under a new captain, were blown out for 75 at Feroz Shah Kotla.
It was a pitch where the ball moved around as never before on Indian grounds. By the end of the day, even as journalists were writing obituaries of Indian cricket, Kapil Dev and Chetan Sharma reduced West Indies to 118 for 8.
Ayub, called upon to bowl in the third session, proved stingy, and managed to turn one significantly to bowl Winston Benjamin.
The following day, West Indies 127 all out. Ayub 9-4-14-1
India fought in the second knock, skipper Vengsarkar scoring an impeccable 102. Ayub, in at No 9, batted over an hour and a quarter for 17. Against Patterson, Walsh, Davis and Benjamin.
By the time West Indies started out for their 276-run target, Ayub had the full faith of Vengsarkar. And he did bowl beautifully.
Viv Richards won it for West Indies with an unbeaten 109. But Ayub captured 4 of the five wickets that fell.
In the Bombay Test, Ayub walked in with India staring at defeat, the score 132 for 7 in the second innings. He batted an hour and eight minutes for 18, adding 41 with his captain. The partnership saved the match. At the end of the Test, Vengsarkar asked his main batsmen to take a leaf out of Arshad Ayub’s book.
He followed it up with 57 at Calcutta.
Yes, he could bat too. He had once hit 206 against Bihar.
The skipper by now had enormous faith in him. He was his stock bowler.
Narendra Hirwani had by then emerged as the sensational young leggie. The two of them bowled in tandem against New Zealand the next winter. Ayub 21 wickets at 13.66, Hirwani 20 at 19.50.
Both of them went to West Indies. It was a disastrous tour for India. 0-3 in the four Tests. Hirwani a big failure. In any case, Kapil Dev, Chetan Sharma, Ayub and Hirwani were not really the answer to Marshall, Bishop, Ambrose, Walsh on West Indian pitches.
But Ayub bowled superbly. 5 for 104 at Georgetown, 5 for 117 at Port of Spain. 14 wickets at 32 apiece. And two gutsy knocks in the series to boot.
But the series loss ensured Vengsarkar had lost his captaincy. 10 Tests at the helm, 7 of them against West Indies. A series win at home against New Zealand, a drawn series at home against West Indies, a disastrous loss away against West Indies.
As one can see from Ayub’s record under him and under others, he was an astute on-field captain. But, in India that is not enough to lead a side. Plus, he was introverted, fell out with the Board by writing columns while playing for the national team, and that did not help.
Srikkanth was the new man in charge. In West Indies he had been Vengsarkar’s deputy before Bishop broke his arm. In the third ODI, Vengsarkar had wanted to play Ayub. Srikkanth and manager Venkataraghavan had outvoted him and gone for their statemate Robin Singh.
Now with Srikkanth in charge, Ayub sent down 86 overs in two Tests in Pakistan, without a single wicket.That was the end of his Test career.
3014 runs at 28.16 and 361 wickets at 28.51, Ayub was quite a performer in first-class cricket. He also played in the Lancashire League for Rishton.
Could he have enjoyed a more fruitful career had Vengsarkar been persisted with as captain? Who knows?
Arshad Ayub was born on 2 August 1958.