E. A. S. Prasanna
Encyclopedia
Erapalli Anantharao Srinivas Prasanna (born: May 22, 1940) is a famous former cricket
player from Bangalore
, India
. He was a spin bowler
, specializing in off spin
and a member of the Indian spin quartet
. He is an alumunus of National Institute of Engineering
, Mysore.
match at Madras against England in 1961. His first overseas tour to the West Indies was a tough one and he did not play another Test for five years. He left the sport for a period to finish his engineering degree, returning in 1967. He gained a regular place in the side following his excellent performances in England
in 1967.
He retired in 1978, after a tour of Pakistan
which also signalled the decline of Bishen Bedi and Bhagwat Chandrasekhar
. He twice led Karnataka
to the Ranji Trophy
, the first time ending Bombay
's 15-year reign.
Widely respected and feared in domestic cricket as well, he enjoyed bowling to batsmen that were willing to try to hit him. He had a neat, brisk, high action and marvellous control of line, length, and flight. He spun the ball in a classic high loop towards the batsman, increasing his chances of beating his adversary in the air. As a result, he made the ball bounce higher than expected. A bowler with an attacking mindset, he was also patient, and would bait a batsman for over after over, attempting to induce a mistake.
He has written an autobiography,One More Over.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
player from Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. He was a spin bowler
Spin bowling
Spin bowling is a technique used for bowling in the sport of cricket. Practitioners are known as spinners or spin bowlers.-Purpose:The main aim of spin bowling is to bowl the cricket ball with rapid rotation so that when it bounces on the pitch it will deviate, thus making it difficult for the...
, specializing in off spin
Off spin
Off spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket which is bowled by an off spinner, a right-handed spin bowler who uses his or her fingers and/or wrist to spin the ball from a right-handed batsman's off side to the leg side...
and a member of the Indian spin quartet
Indian spin quartet
The Indian spin quartet is the collective name given to the Indian spin bowlers of the 1960s and 70s: Erapalli Prasanna and Srinivas Venkataraghavan , Bhagwat Chandrasekhar , and Bishen Singh Bedi . Between them, they played 231 Test matches taking 853 wickets...
. He is an alumunus of National Institute of Engineering
National Institute of Engineering
The National Institute of Engineering, popularly known as The NIE, established in 1946, is the second oldest engineering college in Karnataka. It is located in Mysore, India. NIE is an autonomous institution affiliated to Visvesvaraya Technological University. It was granted autonomy in the year 2007...
, Mysore.
Career
Prasanna played his debut Test cricketTest cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
match at Madras against England in 1961. His first overseas tour to the West Indies was a tough one and he did not play another Test for five years. He left the sport for a period to finish his engineering degree, returning in 1967. He gained a regular place in the side following his excellent performances in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1967.
He retired in 1978, after a tour of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
which also signalled the decline of Bishen Bedi and Bhagwat Chandrasekhar
Bhagwat Chandrasekhar
Bhagwat Subramanya Chandrasekhar is a former Indian cricketer who specialised in leg spin. Considered amongst the top echelon of leg-spinners, Chandrasekhar along with E.A.S. Prasanna, Bishen Singh Bedi and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan constituted the Indian spin quartet that dominated...
. He twice led Karnataka
Karnataka cricket team
Karnataka cricket team is a cricket team that represents the Indian state of Karnataka in domestic first class cricket. One of the strongest teams in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group, it has produced many of the Indian cricket team's leading players throughout its existence...
to the Ranji Trophy
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides, equivalent to the County Championship in England and the Sheffield Shield in Australia...
, the first time ending Bombay
Mumbai cricket team
The Mumbai cricket team is a cricket team representing the city of Mumbai in Indian domestic cricket. It is the most successful team in the Ranji Trophy, India's top domestic cricket competition, with 39 titles, the most recent being in 2009–10. The team's home ground is the Wankhede Stadium in...
's 15-year reign.
Widely respected and feared in domestic cricket as well, he enjoyed bowling to batsmen that were willing to try to hit him. He had a neat, brisk, high action and marvellous control of line, length, and flight. He spun the ball in a classic high loop towards the batsman, increasing his chances of beating his adversary in the air. As a result, he made the ball bounce higher than expected. A bowler with an attacking mindset, he was also patient, and would bait a batsman for over after over, attempting to induce a mistake.
He has written an autobiography,One More Over.
Awards and achievements
- 1970 - Padma ShriPadma ShriPadma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
Award - 2006 – Castrol Lifetime Achievement award