Gundappa Viswanath
Encyclopedia
Gundappa Rangnath Viswanath (born 12 February 1949 in Bhadravathi, Karnataka
, India) is a former Indian cricket
er. He was one of India
's finest batsmen throughout the 1970s. He played Test cricket
for India from 1969 to 1983 making 91 appearances and scoring over 6000 runs. He also played in One Day Internationals from 1974 to 1982 including the World Cups
of 1975
and 1979
. At state level, he played for Karnataka
(formerly Mysore) throughout his career. Viswanath, popularly nicknamed Vishy, had an elegant and wristy batting style which emphasised timing rather than power. Though he had a complete repertoire of shots around the wicket, Viswanath's favourite was the square cut, a shot he often used to great effect against fast bowlers.
at Kanpur
in 1969 in a drawn match. He also recorded a duck in the same game, one of only three batsmen to have done this in their first match. He scored 13 more centuries in his Test career and none of them came in a match that was lost. He tended to produce his best performances on difficult pitches and a number of his best innings were not centuries, but were crucial to the team's cause. Against Australia and the West Indies
, both known for their strong pace attacks, he had a batting average of over 50. He was at his peak in the mid-1970s. Against the West Indies at Madras
in 1974-75 he scored 97 not out out of a total of 190 against a bowling attack containing Andy Roberts. Despite not being a century, it was regarded as one of the finest performances by an Indian and it led to an Indian victory. The Wisden 100
ranked it the 38th best innings of all time, and the second best non-century. He had also scored a match-winning century in the previous Test at Calcutta
, but despite a 95 in the final Test at Bombay
the series was lost 3-2.
In 1975-76, Viswanath again produced some strong performances against the West Indies, the most notable of which was his 112 at Port of Spain
which helped India to reach the victory target of 403. At the time, this was the highest successful run-chase in Test cricket. In 1978-79 at Madras when he scored 124 out of a total of 255. India went on to win the match which ultimately led to a 1-0 series victory in the 6-match series, although this West Indian side was considerably weaker than in previous series after many players opted to play in World Series Cricket
instead. Viswanath also had a brief stint as the Indian captain
in 1979-80. In the two Tests he captained, one was drawn and onr was lost, the latter being the Golden Jubilee Test against England. Throughout his career, Viswanath was renowned for his sense of fair-play, and in this match he recalled Bob Taylor
to the crease after the umpire had already given him out. Taylor went on to score some vital runs for England helping them to win the match.
Viswanath retired from Tests in 1983, and later served as a match referee
for the ICC
from 1999 to 2004. He was also the Chairman of the national selection committee, and also served as the manager of the Indian cricket team. He is also involved in cricket coaching at NCA. He is married to Kavita, sister of Sunil Gavaskar
and with their son Daivik reside in Bangalore, India. Viswanath was awarded Col. C K Naidu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 by BCCI
which is one of the highest awards given in Indian cricket.
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, India) is a former Indian cricket
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...
er. He was one of India
Indian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
's finest batsmen throughout the 1970s. He played Test cricket
Test 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...
for India from 1969 to 1983 making 91 appearances and scoring over 6000 runs. He also played in One Day Internationals from 1974 to 1982 including the World Cups
Cricket World Cup
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the premier international championship of men's One Day International cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council , with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament which is held every four years...
of 1975
1975 Cricket World Cup
-Group B:-Knockout stage:-Semifinals:In the best World Cup performance to date by a bowler, Gary Gilmour took six wickets as England were bowled all out for 93 , after falling to 37/7...
and 1979
1979 Cricket World Cup
The 1979 Cricket World Cup was the second edition of the tournament and was won by the West Indies. It was held from June 9 to June 23, 1979 in England. The format had remained unchanged from 1975. Eight countries participated in the event. The preliminary matches were played in 2 groups of 4...
. At state level, he played for 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...
(formerly Mysore) throughout his career. Viswanath, popularly nicknamed Vishy, had an elegant and wristy batting style which emphasised timing rather than power. Though he had a complete repertoire of shots around the wicket, Viswanath's favourite was the square cut, a shot he often used to great effect against fast bowlers.
Career
On his Test match debut, Viswanath scored a century against AustraliaAustralian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
at Kanpur
Green Park Stadium
Green Park Stadium is a 60,000 capacity floodlit multi-purpose stadium located in Kanpur, India, and the home of the Uttar Pradesh cricket team. The stadium is under the control of the Sports Department Uttar Pradesh...
in 1969 in a drawn match. He also recorded a duck in the same game, one of only three batsmen to have done this in their first match. He scored 13 more centuries in his Test career and none of them came in a match that was lost. He tended to produce his best performances on difficult pitches and a number of his best innings were not centuries, but were crucial to the team's cause. Against Australia and the West Indies
West Indian cricket team
The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...
, both known for their strong pace attacks, he had a batting average of over 50. He was at his peak in the mid-1970s. Against the West Indies at Madras
M. A. Chidambaram Stadium
The M. A. Chidambaram Stadium is a cricket stadium in Chennai , India, named after M. A. Chidambaram, the former President of BCCI and the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association. The stadium was formerly known as Madras Cricket Club Ground or Chepauk Stadium. Commonly known as Chepauk, its first match was...
in 1974-75 he scored 97 not out out of a total of 190 against a bowling attack containing Andy Roberts. Despite not being a century, it was regarded as one of the finest performances by an Indian and it led to an Indian victory. The Wisden 100
Wisden 100
The Wisden 100 is a set of lists created by Wisden which attempted to objectively rate the 100 best individual innings performances in Test and One Day International cricket in each of the disciplines of batting and bowling...
ranked it the 38th best innings of all time, and the second best non-century. He had also scored a match-winning century in the previous Test at Calcutta
Eden Gardens
Eden Gardens is a cricket ground in Kolkata , India. It is the home of the Bengal cricket team and the Indian Premier League's Kolkata Knight Riders, as well as being a Test and One Day International ground. It is the largest cricket stadium in India by seating capacity...
, but despite a 95 in the final Test at Bombay
Wankhede Stadium
The Sheshrao Krushnarao Wankhede Stadium is a cricket stadium in the Indian city of Mumbai. This ground was built after disputes between the Cricket Club of India, which owns the Brabourne Stadium, and the Mumbai Cricket Association over the allocation of tickets for cricket matches...
the series was lost 3-2.
Queen's Park Oval
Queen's Park Oval, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, is currently the largest capacity cricket ground in the West Indies and has hosted more Test matches than any other ground in the Caribbean. It also hosted a number of matches in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. It is privately owned by the...
which helped India to reach the victory target of 403. At the time, this was the highest successful run-chase in Test cricket. In 1978-79 at Madras when he scored 124 out of a total of 255. India went on to win the match which ultimately led to a 1-0 series victory in the 6-match series, although this West Indian side was considerably weaker than in previous series after many players opted to play in World Series Cricket
World Series Cricket
World Series Cricket was a break away professional cricket competition staged between 1977 and 1979 and organised by Kerry Packer for his Australian television network, Nine Network. The matches ran in opposition to established international cricket...
instead. Viswanath also had a brief stint as the Indian captain
Captain (cricket)
The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
in 1979-80. In the two Tests he captained, one was drawn and onr was lost, the latter being the Golden Jubilee Test against England. Throughout his career, Viswanath was renowned for his sense of fair-play, and in this match he recalled Bob Taylor
Bob Taylor (cricketer)
Robert William Taylor , known as Bob Taylor, is a former English cricketer who played as wicket-keeper for Derbyshire between 1961 and 1984 and for England between 1971 and 1984. He made 57 Test, and 639 first class cricket appearances in total, taking 1,473 catches. The 2,069 victims across his...
to the crease after the umpire had already given him out. Taylor went on to score some vital runs for England helping them to win the match.
Viswanath retired from Tests in 1983, and later served as a match referee
Match referee
A match referee is an official appointed to oversee professional cricket matches. Match referees for Test matches and One Day Internationals are appointed by the International Cricket Council...
for the ICC
International Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from England, Australia and South Africa, renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989.The...
from 1999 to 2004. He was also the Chairman of the national selection committee, and also served as the manager of the Indian cricket team. He is also involved in cricket coaching at NCA. He is married to Kavita, sister of Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Manohar "Sunny" Gavaskar is a former cricketer who played during the 1970s and 1980s for Bombay and India. Widely regarded as one of the greatest opening batsmen in cricket history, Gavaskar set world records during his career for the most Test runs and most Test centuries scored by any...
and with their son Daivik reside in Bangalore, India. Viswanath was awarded Col. C K Naidu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 by BCCI
Board of Control for Cricket in India
The Board of Control for Cricket in India , headquartered at Mumbai, is the national governing body for all cricket in India. It's not the apex governing body in India. The board was formed in December 1928 as BCCI replaced Calcutta Cricket Club. BCCI is a society, registered under the Tamil Nadu...
which is one of the highest awards given in Indian cricket.