Stories of international sportsmen in their schooldays are revealing. We know of Sachin Tendulkar’s sleep-walking and running singles in his mind when asleep. The bowler who complained to five-year old Tiger Pataudi’s father that “If I bowl fast, I could kill him; if I bowl slowly he hits me to the boundary” is part of folklore too.

The revealing anecdote of Sunil Joshi, Karnataka’s remarkable cricketer, concerns the 110-kilometre train ride he took everyday from Gadag, his birthplace, to Hubli so he could attend nets and be back in time for school. In one sweep, it reveals the player’s temperament, his passion for the game and his willingness to work hard at it.

Today, when small-town India produces international players regularly, it might be difficult to fully unerstand the struggles of a Sunil Joshi to break into the big time. Hubli was the backwaters of the game in Karnataka and Gadag was the backwaters of the backwaters.

Amazingly, at 40 Joshi continues to inspire Karnataka, and is the sole survivor of the team which won the Ranji Trophy final of 1998-99, the last time Karnataka triumphed.

There was a time after a Dhaka Test (92 in an innings and eight wickets for the match) when he was seen as a potential India all rounder, but it is as a left arm spinner of impeccable style that he continues to serve Karnataka, a pillar around whom the team revolves.

Recently overtook the great Bhagwat Chandrasekhar as Karnataka’s highest wicket taker in the Ranji Trophy. His 444 wickets from 107 matches is topped only by S Venkatraghavan’s 530 and Rajinder Goel’s 637.

On his Ranji debut in Hubli, he remained unbeaten on 83 but the match was called off following the upheaval on the demolition of the Babri Masjid. He made his Test debut on his 27th birthday in Birmingham, broke a finger while batting, could not bowl and had to return home. It was an anti-climax to a season when he scored over 500 runs and claimed 50 wickets in the Ranji Read more…

Administrator Indian Cricket Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, Blogs.CMDN.com, Cricket, Cricket Blogs, Dhaka, Hubli, Karnataka, Ranji, Sachin Tendulkar, South Africa, Sunil Joshi, Tiger Pataudi