It was 25 years ago that Mark Butcher scored a monumental 173 not out in England’s successful chase against Australia in the Headingley Test. He scored seven other Test hundreds, some of them against the most fearsome attacks. He is now a popular commentator and sharp analyst of the game. Excerpts from Butcher’s exclusive interview with The Hindu at Lord’s:

Your comparison of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with Garry Sobers earlier this year got a lot of attention. It was fascinating, how you proved, through the help of visuals, the similarities in the bat swing, hand speed…

I watched him make that 175 [off 80 balls] in the Under-19 World Cup final [against England at Harare]. I was struck by that incredible, long, high backlift, the huge follow-through, the complete circle almost where the bat finishes around, tapping him on the spine. You know, Sobers used to hit a lot of shots with his feet together. He would play full balls almost off the back foot. And Sooryavanshi can hit them like that too.

Even if his career ends up not reaching the expectations that other people have, which I think is very unlikely, he has still in the IPL done something that all of the greatest players up until now have never, ever done: none of them have managed to score at a strike-rate of 230, hit that many sixes, be that consistent in the entirety of the IPL. It is still one of the most remarkable things I have ever seen.

Today’s youngsters are exposed to T20 from the beginning, whereas when I was very young, it was Test matches. They grow up thinking about batting very much in a hyper aggressive mode. These younger guys can do things at their age that we wouldn’t have dreamt of at ours.

ALSO READ | Garry Sobers: cricket’s greatest — a legacy beyond numbers

Yes, even Sachin Tendulkar didn’t hit as many sixes, for all his genius. Sooryavanshi is a product of the T20 era of cricket.

Correct. So he will have to learn the game the other way around. He will have to learn how to bat time, to defend. In our generation, it was the opposite. We would have to spend a lot of time learning how to hit the ball.

How do you recall your masterpiece — 173 not out in 2001?

My main memory is about that summer, really. I wasn’t expecting to play Test cricket again. I got an opportunity and I played 42 Tests in a row. I had completely changed my game.

Your father helped, didn’t he?

That is right. The biggest thing I remember is the relationship I had with my dad in the winter of 2001. I called him and said, ‘Dad, I am hating playing cricket.’ Something that I had always loved. Now I was hating it. And I said to him — ‘Treat me as though I have never played the game before.’ So we went right back to the beginning. He really taught me how to hold the bat, how to stand, the whole thing. We changed my grip. We changed my stance. We changed my backlift. Everything. We went back to zero. Like I was five years old. And we worked like that for about three months. And then I luckily got back into the team. I had made a few runs playing for Surrey. A few injuries in the England camp before the Ashes started, and I got in.

How much does that knock, which came against Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie, mean to you?

Ah, it was huge. You wouldn’t be talking to me if it hadn’t been for that. And I wouldn’t be working in TV either. So that innings changed everything. It was the greatest day.

And how was the coach’s reaction?

I know my dad was in tears when [BBC] Test Match Special called him up.

The players you like to watch these days?

I actually love watching K.L. Rahul. I think he is a sensational player. Really classy. Harry Brook is fabulous to watch when he is in. Joe Root, too. And Travis Head — you can’t take your eyes off the screen when he is batting.

You have played against some of the greatest bowlers in history. Who were the most challenging among them?

Blimey! Curtly Ambrose. Him and Courtney Walsh. And then you had, obviously, Shane Warne. Glenn McGrath. Murali [Muttiah Muralitharan].

Among the Indians?

Harbhajan [Singh] and [Anil] Kumble, on those tracks.

And the batters you admired?

[Brian] Lara was sort of the king around about those times. Fellow left-hander, so I greatly admired him. Then the guys like [Ricky] Ponting, Sachin [Tendulkar], obviously. I remember applauding Ricky from second slip at the WACA, much to the annoyance of Nasser Hussain, who was standing next to me at slip. He glared at me. I was just standing there going, ‘Oh man, that’s good’. There were a lot of great players around, like the South Africans, Jacques Kallis and Graeme Smith.

Is there cause for concern about the future of Test cricket?

Yeah, of course, there is. What you would like is to have eight to ten teams who are competing on a level playing field. If only England, Australia and India are playing each other, the game is starting to eat itself, you know.

Eventually, one of the great things about all of the series that go around is that you are anticipating and you are excited about the idea about playing this team at this venue. But if it is the same three teams the whole time, it is not that exciting.

What has happened in the modern era is that the gap between the countries that have plenty of finances and the rest has got wider. The competition has perhaps thinned out a little bit in recent times. And that is a huge shame, that finances have meant that a lot of countries, the West Indies, being the most obvious example simply because of their dominance [in the past], have suffered.

South Africa are kind of hanging in there. They are still producing a lot of players and they still manage just about to keep enough of their most talented players to play Tests. But in places like Sri Lanka and the West Indies, they find it very difficult to keep their best players who disappear off to earn more money playing T20. And that is a problem for the world game.

The First Class game and the structures that produce Test Match cricketers are strong in some places and not very strong at all in others.

Your thoughts on Bazball?

I have been critical of it at times. In the game of cricket, the Test match is the game. And they tried to do something that was going to take the game to a different place. But Test match cricket kind of fought against it a little bit. Because when it came down to it, in the big games against the likes of India and Australia, it didn’t work. And so, Test match cricket is kind of greater than any idea that people might have around how you play it.

And Test cricket is the greatest form of sport.

It is. The sport itself dictates to you what is necessary. And if you push too hard, the game will bite you back. And that is what happened. There is as much pleasure to be taken from a really hard-fought draw sometimes as there is from smashing it all over the park.

ALSO READ | Cricket World Cup – Will expansion lead to elevation?

The women got to play a Test at Lord’s, finally.

This has come about because the world has decided, well, you know, this is a great game of cricket, right? Why would we want to stop 50% of the world’s population from enjoying and playing the sport that we think is a great sport? And so that opportunity is now there and what you are seeing is a product of that.

Players in the women’s game that you enjoy watching?

I like Smriti Mandhana’s batting. She is just an incredibly graceful player. So easy on the eye. Very, very lovely to watch. She plays pace and spin equally well. She reminds me of David Gower, in fact. Harmanpreet Kaur is very good to watch, too. And Jemimah Rodrigues is a fine technician.

Besides cricket, music is your other passion. And you had the opportunity of performing with Sarah Brightman, one of the greatest voices of our time.

It was good fun, singing some of Sarah’s favourite songs on live television. It was kind of nerve-racking, but it was good.

Vaibhav Suryavanshi has captured the imagination of one and all with his audacious strokeplay.
| Photo Credit: Ritu Raj Konwar

Former Indian spinner Anil Kumble on Friday reminisced on getting his 600th Test wicket during the 2008 Perth Test against Australia, saying that the moment is very close to him and the landmark win was an “icing on the cake”. Kumble took to X and shared a picture of himself celebrating a wicket from the 2008 Perth Test during the 2007-08 tour to Australia. India did lose the series 2-1, but also became the first and only Asian country to secure a win in a Test match at the iconic Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA) stadium at Perth.

Taking to X, Kumble wrote, “Came across this picture and it just took me back to 2008, a moment that is very close to me – reaching 600 test wickets. Celebrating the test match win at Perth was the icing on the cake. Forever grateful for that journey and to all those who played a part in it on and off the field.”

Came across this picture and it just took me back to 2008, a moment that is very close to me – reaching 600 test wickets. Celebrating the test match win at Perth was the icing on the cake.

Forever grateful for that journey and to all those who played a part in it on and off the… pic.twitter.com/VkEUwwKNwN

— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074) January 17, 2025

On this very day back in 2008, Kumble became the first-ever Indian bowler to get to the 600-wicket mark in Test cricket. During the match, Kumble took four wickets in the match, with two wickets in each innings. He was leading India in this match.

India won the toss and elected to bat first. India made 330 runs in the first innings, thanks to fine fifties from Rahul Dravid (93) and Sachin Tendulkar (71). Pacers Mitchell Johnson (4/86) and Brett Lee (3/71) did a fine job for Australia.

Aussies were bamboozled and troubled by young Indian pacers RP Singh (4/68) and Ishant Sharma (2/34) as they were skittled out for 212 runs, trailing by 118 runs. Half-centuries from Andrew Symonds (66) and Adam Gilchrist (55) saved the Aussies from utter humiliation.

In their next innings, India was put on the driver’s seat by a powerful knock of 79 by VVS Laxman, who had a 75-run stand with MS Dhoni (38). Also, there were some useful knocks by Irfan Pathan (46) and Virender Sehwag (43), that helped India take its total of 294 runs and set a target of 413 runs for Australia. Stuart Clark (4/61) was the leading bowler for Australia.

In the run-chase, the Aussies did get solid half-centuries from Michael Clarke (81) and Johnson (50), but they lost wickets at regular intervals. Irfan Pathan (3/54) led a fine bowling performance by pacers as Australia was skittled out for 340 runs. They lost by 72 runs.

In the same year, later during the home series against Australia, Kumble called time on his international career with 619 wickets in 132 Tests at an average of 29.65, with best figures of 10/74. He is the only Indian to get all 10 wickets in an innings. Across all formats, Kumble took 953 wickets in 401 matches at an average of 30.06, with best figures of 10/74. He took 37 five-wicket hauls and eight ten-wicket hauls in his career.

Kumble ended his career as the leading wicket-taker for India in Tests as well as across all formats.

File image of Virat Kohli (right) and his wife Anushka Sharma.© AFP

Harbhajan Singh criticised the ‘superstar culture’ prevalent in the Indian cricket team and said that the side needs performers not superstars after the Test series defeat against Australia. Except for Jasprit Bumrah, star players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma had a horrible outing and the former spinner pointed out that selection for the away series against England should completely be dependent on performances. In order to make his point, Harbhajan went on to say that if players are getting picked just on the basis on their reputation, even Anil Kumble and Kapil Dev can find a place in the squad.

“There is a superstar culture which has developed. We don’t need superstars, we need performers. If the team has them (performers), it will move forward. Whoever wants to become a superstar should stay at home and play cricket there,” Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.

“There is a tour of England coming up. Now everyone has started talking about what will happen in England, who will go, who will not go. For me, it is a simple matter. Only players who are performing should go. You can’t keep picking players on their reputation.”

“If you do that, then you should take Kapil Dev sir and Anil bhai also. Here, the BCCI and the selectors will have to be firm and act tough. I don’t think that the superstar attitude is taking the team forward.”

Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal vowed that the team will make a strong comeback after their 1-3 Border-Gavaskar Trophy defeat against Australia in Sydney on Sunday. India lost the final Test of the series by six wickets which ended their hopes of qualifying for the third consecutive World Test Championship (WTC) final.

It was also India’s first Test series defeat to Australia in a decade. They last lost the Test series in Australia in 2015. India successfully retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in the last four series including two in Australia.

However, this time the result was not in India’s favour as their batters struggled to score runs on Australian soil. Jasprit Bumrah was the only saving grace with memorable performances on the tour. He finished as the leading wicket-taker with 32 scalps and was named Player of the Series.

On the other hand, Jaiswal was the top performer with the bat for India accumulating 391 runs including a century and two fifties at an average of 43.44. Despite his outstanding effort, Jaiswal was not happy to finish on the losing side and was stressed to continue working hard. “Learnt a lot in Australia… Unfortunately, the result wasn’t what we had hoped for but we’ll be back stronger. Your support means everything,” Jaiswal wrote in a social media post.

(With IANS inputs)

Ravichandran Ashwin‘s sudden retirement from international cricket came as a shock to many, but not former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who suggested that the announcement was always on the cards due to the lack of opportunities. Ashwin brought the curtains down on his illustrious career that stretched for more than 14 years. Gavaskar was of the opinion that Ashwin’s exclusion from the team for the Tests against Australia in Perth and Gabba played a key role in making the retirement midway through the series.

“It was coming, for sure. Because, look, India is not playing anything now until next year. There is just the five-Test match series in England. And clearly, I think what has happened is that Ashwin, who’s been a wonderful player for India, saw that he was not being considered in the playing 11 when India played overseas. It’s been an aspect that has been there for the last several tours: when you go to South Africa, you go to Australia, you go to England. He doesn’t get selected in the 11. So I think at that, recognising that the England tour was going to be the next five test series and perhaps thinking that he might not get picked, he decided to call it a day. So in, in a sense it was coming,” Gavaskar told India Today.

The 38-year-old finished with 537 wickets in 106 Tests, India’s second highest wicket-taker in the format after legendary spinner Anil Kumble (619).

On being asked if Ashwin could’ve broken Kumble’s record, Gavaskar admitted: “He could have gone on to do that (surpass Kumble) for sure. But did he want to do that? That’s the thing. Did he want to be under that? You know, look, you might take, you know, you might score hundreds of hundreds. You might; you might take, you know, plenty of five, five-wicket hauls or 10-wicket hauls in Test matches. But that drive, do you have that drive. Rohit Sharma said that he had to persuade him to play the Adelaide Test, which means that even for the Adelaide Test, the previous Test, Ashwin wasn’t really in the mental sort of frame, maybe, to play that test match.

“That’s, I think, what would have been, that certainly would have been the consideration that he was not going to be the number one pick. And look, anybody who’s got 500 plus wickets, 530, 540 wickets like he has, there is pride in your own performance. There is a feeling that you know you are somebody who has delivered in the past, and therefore, when you are not selected, it hurts you. It hurts you,” he added.

Legendary Indian cricket team spinner Anil Kumble took to social media to address the misuse of his name in connection to a fabricated comment on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Kumble made it clear that the comments attributed to him on social media were not made by him and they were completely false. A post regarding the two stalwarts – Virat and Rohit – attributed to the former Indian cricket team skipper went viral on social media that read – “I don’t understand how the captain doesn’t have a plan for Travis Head. He always been a problem for India. This is disgraceful captaincy.” 

However, Kumble said that they were completely wrong.

“It has come to my attention that some social media accounts are using my image and attributing fabricated quotes to me. I want to categorically deny any association with these accounts and their content. The statements being circulated are not my views and do not reflect my opinions in any way. I urge everyone to be vigilant and not believe everything they see on social media. Please verify the authenticity of any information before sharing it. My official social media channels are the only reliable source for my views and statements. Sincerely, Anil Kumble,” he posted on X (formerly Twitter).

It has come to my attention that some social media accounts are using my image and attributing fabricated quotes to me. I want to categorically deny any association with these accounts and their content. The statements being circulated are not my views and do not reflect my…

— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074) December 16, 2024

Meanwhile, Virat Kohli’s struggles against balls outside the off-stump in the ongoing Test series against Australia has the great Allan Border wondering if the Indian superstar has “just lost that edge”.

Kohli has fallen to balls outside the off-stump four out of five times in the series thus far, prompting comparisons with a similar slump in England back in 2014.

On Monday, he was caught behind chasing a wide ball that he could have left alone.

“Today’s dismissal, that’s normally a delivery he would have left alone if he was in his best possible form,” Border was quoted as saying by Fox Cricket.

“I’m not sure what’s going on with Virat mentally (and) whether he’s just lost that edge.” The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is named after him and the Indian legend.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan said Kohli has paid the price for not leaving enough balls.

“He’s a player who’s going out there (and) almost trying to get on top too soon,” Vaughan said.

“When he plays at his best, particularly in Australia and England when the ball does a little bit more, he just leaves the ball. Most of his dismissals in this series have been balls that he could have left. I don’t think he’s got a jaffa,” he said.

(With PTI inputs)

Former cricketer Anil Kumble on Tuesday condoled the demise of the former Karnataka Chief Minister SM Krishna and said that it’s a huge loss for the State. Krishna passed away early Tuesday morning at his residence in Sadashvinagar at the age of 92. Speaking to the reporters, Kumble said that as a Chief Minister SM Krishna’s contribution to the state goes beyond his tenure. “His demise is a huge loss for Karnataka…As a CM his contribution to the state goes beyond his tenure. Bengaluru to become ‘Silicon Valley’ and to put on the map itself is his contribution, that will always be remembered…,” Kumble said.

Krishna had been suffering from a prolonged illness and was hospitalized earlier in August.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, a long-time friend of Krishna said that the funeral would be done on Wednesday in Somanahalli in Mandya district which is Krishna’s hometown.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramiah expressed his shock on the death and said that Karnataka would remain indebted to Krishna’s contribution to IT-BT’s growth.

In a post on X, Siddaramiah, “I am shocked by the death of former Chief Minister SM Krishna. Krishna’s service as a State and Union Minister and Chief Minister is unparalleled. Karnataka will always be indebted to him for his contribution to the growth of the IT-BT sector, especially as Chief Minister.”

Further, Siddaramiah wrote that Krishna was an enemy of Ajatsatru and also his guide in the early days of Congress.

“Krishna, who was a secretive politician, was an enemy of Ajatasatru. Krishna, who was my guide in the early days of joining the Congress party, was always my well-wisher. Krishna’s foresight, disciplined life, gentlemanly demeanor and studious attitude are role models for budding politicians. I also share in the grief of his family and fans who are saddened by his passing away. I pray to God that his soul rest in peace,” the post read.

Krishna, 92, was Karnataka Chief Minister from October 11, 1999, to May 28, 2004, and also served as External Affairs Minister during the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance government from 2009 to 2012, and as Maharashtra Governor.

He joined the BJP in March 2017, ending his nearly 50-year-long association with the Congress. He retired from active politics last year.

Former Indian cricket team spinner Anil Kumble was left surprised by BCCI’s decision to cancel the practice game ahead of the first Test match against Australia in Perth starting November 22. The Indian cricket team was going to play a practice match against India A but following the Test series whitewash against New Zealand, the BCCI decided to scrap the encounter. During a discussion on JioCinema, Kumble said that the practice match would have ideal preparation for Rohit Sharma and Co before adding that such match practice cannot be achieved by just net sessions.

“I’m a bit surprised that India don’t have a practice match going into the first Test because that would have been an ideal preparation. No matter how much you practice in the nets, going out in the middle and facing a few bowlers in the match is totally different,” he said.

Right-handed batter KL Rahul and wicketkeeper-batter Dhurv Jurel are on their way to link up with the India A squad ahead of their second four-day game against Australia A, set to begin at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) from November 7.

Sources told IANS that Rahul and Jurel left for Melbourne on Sunday night after the third Test ended at the Wankhede Stadium, which India lost by 25 runs to New Zealand and suffer a 3-0 series defeat.

As per the sources, Rahul and Jurel will join the India ‘A’ squad by Tuesday, and get to play in the second four-day game, with an eye to give them some game time before linking up with the main Test team to prepare for the all-important Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, starting on November 22 in Perth. It will be followed by games in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney till January 7, 2025.

Rahul played three Tests in the Indian home season, with his last game coming via the hosts’ series opener against New Zealand at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. After making scores of 0 and 12 in that game, where India lost by eight wickets, he didn’t feature in remainder of the series.

On the other hand, Jurel didn’t get a game to play in the five Tests India played at home, though he did get to feature as a substitute wicketkeeper in the first Test at Bengaluru after Rishabh Pant hurt his knee while being on keeping duties.

The first four-day game saw India A, captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad, suffer a heavy seven-wicket defeat at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay, Queensland, with left-handed batters B Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal along with pacer Mukesh Kumar being the standout performers.

(With IANS inputs)

Anil Kumble, the legendary leg-spinner of India and former head coach, has expressed serious concerns about the batting struggles of the team in their 3-0 Test series loss to New Zealand. He highlighted that the primary challenge for the Rohit Sharma-led side is coming to terms with the fact that there is a problem to be resolved in the batting department. Chasing 147 for a win at the Wankhede Stadium, India were bowled out for 121, as they slumped to being clean swept in a Test series at home for the first time since 1999/2000.

Rishabh Pant’s counterattacking 57-ball 64 being the only notable effort in another sorry batting performance from the hosts’. It didn’t also help India that captain Rohit Sharma (91 runs in six innings) and Virat Kohli (93 runs in six innings) couldn’t get big runs in the series, as New Zealand exposed India’s frailties in batting against spin in spin-friendly conditions.

“This has consistently happened over the last three Test matches. Whenever the spinners come on, there hasn’t been a noticeable improvement from one game to the next. A couple of players have made certain adjustments, which has helped in the batting lineup, but collectively, as a batting unit, they haven’t been able to avoid those collapses.

“This has happened far too often in a single session, which is a concern. For this lineup to say, ‘There’s nothing wrong’—I think there’s something seriously wrong here. The most challenging part is accepting that there’s a problem. I’m sure that when this Indian team sits down to introspect, they’ll recognize that there is indeed a serious issue that needs to be addressed,” said Kumble on JioCinema and Sports18.

Saba Karim, the former India wicketkeeper-batter and selector, has urged the Indian team to go back to the drawing board and see where they went wrong with the bat against New Zealand.

“If you look at the three Test matches—they’ve gotten over in two to three days; there was rain in Bengaluru due to which the game ended on the fifth day. These are our conditions, and we should have prepared them in a way that we could’ve played at least three or four sessions.

“This is a big indication that Indian batting has been a failure throughout the series. When you prepare a wicket like this, you can’t think that only you will win the toss and bat first; you need to be prepared for all scenarios. I think the Indian team is at a stage where they really need to think hard and go back to the drawing board.

“There were standout performances with the ball, with Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja stepping up, but batting is equally important. I believe that across the three matches, the Indian batters were in a hurry to put runs on the board, and here that was not really necessary.”

Kumble signed off by appreciating Glenn Phillips standing up to support Ajaz Patel from the other end to dish out a great defence of 147 on day three of third Test. “We knew that spin would play a major role in New Zealand’s innings as well. Ajaz Patel was expected to be the danger man for India, and he certainly was.

“But what was surprising—and more important for New Zealand—was the support from the bowler at the other end, Glenn Phillips. I thought he bowled very well, sticking to disciplined areas.

“Of course, they were under pressure when Rishabh Pant was at the crease, but outside of that, New Zealand seemed confident that if they could dismiss Pant, they’d have a strong chance. And that’s exactly how it played out.’