THE Lord’s cricket ground means a lot to an Indian cricket fan. It’s not only the Mecca of world cricket, but more importantly the stage where the Indian cricket tasted its maiden major triumph— the 1983 World Cup.
Interestingly, the Lord’s has not been such a lucky or happy venue for some of the leading Indian batsmen like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and Sunil Gavaskar. Despite the plethora of centuries by Sachin (100) Virat Kohli (75) and Gavaskar (35), none of the troika could manage to get their name etched in the Lord’s Honours Board.
This becomes all the more interesting given the fact that someone like Ajit Agarkar (mainly a bowler) has a century to his name at the famed venue.
In the 12 innings Gavaskar played, the Little Master’s best effort at the Holy Grail of cricket was 59 in 1979. One who is widely regarded as having the best technique as an opening batsman, he has always struggled to come to terms with a pedestrian English attack.
Biggest disappointment
He went on record saying that his inability to score a ton at the Lord’s remains one of the biggest disappointments of his life. Once when asked what prevented him from having a three-figure knock at the Lord’s, Gavaskar said the seaming conditions and the slightly uneven pitch compounded his problems.
The Little Master did manage to break the hoodo when he scored 188 for the Rest of the World against the MCC in a Test in 1987. This Test was held to mark the bicentenary of the MCC—but this ton was never recognised as an official one.
Now coming to Sachin Tendulkar, who many feel is the world’s best batsman ever, the Mumbaikar has scored 100 centuries at venues across the globe but does not have a single ton to his credit at the Lord’s.
A shocker
In what may come as a shocker to most, Sachin’s highest score in nine innings he played at the Lord’s is a measly 37. He hasn’t been able to score even a half century something which rankles the batting maestro.
Delhi-based former India fast bowler Atul Wassan, who has toured with Sachin in England on two occasons, feels that the maestro seemed to be under pressure to score a ton at the famed venue. “Every time he used to come to bat at the Lord’s, he (Sachin) seemed to be under a lot of pressure. The normal poise with which he usually bats seemed to desert him at the Lord’s,” felt Wassan.
Virat Kohli, who is the second highest on the all-time centuries’ list behind Sachin, too has performed quite poorly at the Lord’s. His highest score remains 42, something inexplicable for a batsman of his calibre. The sheer burden of expectations seems to have prevented the Run Machine from avoiding Sachin’s and Sunil Gavaskar’s poor record at this famous venue.
