Dattaram Hindlekar
Encyclopedia
Dattaram Dharmaji Hindlekar (January 1, 1909, Bombay – March 30, 1949, Bombay) was a cricket
er who kept wicket
for India
in Test cricket
.
Hindlekar toured England
in 1936 and 1946 as India's first choice wicket keeper. He opened in the first Test at Lord's in 1936, but chipped a bone in his finger and suffered from blurred vision. . This injury and his subsequent exclusion from the next Test led to the famous opening partnership between Vijay Merchant
and Mushtaq Ali
.
Injuries limited his appearances in 1946 as well. In the Old Trafford
Test, he went in last and batted out 13 minutes with the Ranga Sohoni
to save the match.
A right-handed batsman, he wore his cap at a 'bewildered angle' and 'stood with his toes pointing up at an angle of 45 degrees'. Vijay Manjrekar
was his nephew.
Hindlekar was the son of a farmer from Ratnagiri
in Maharashtra
. He worked in the Bombay Port Trust for a salary of Rs.80 a month. His means were so limited that he could not afford to buy a pair of gloves, and used to visit Khershed Meherhomji
and borrow his. He died at the age of 40 for want of proper treatment. It was only at a very late stage of his illness that he was moved to the Arthur Road Hospital in Mumbai.
Hindlekar died leaving behind his wife and seven children. After his death BCCI
and Mumbai Cricket Association issued appeals for contributions to help his family. These had little success. His employer Mumbai Port Trust then organised a cabaret dance on August 6, 1949 which raised a little over Rs. 7,000. Almost every major Indian cricketer of the time attended the dance.
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 who kept wicket
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
for 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....
in 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...
.
Hindlekar toured 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 1936 and 1946 as India's first choice wicket keeper. He opened in the first Test at Lord's in 1936, but chipped a bone in his finger and suffered from blurred vision. . This injury and his subsequent exclusion from the next Test led to the famous opening partnership between Vijay Merchant
Vijay Merchant
Vijaysingh Madhavji Merchant , real name Vijay Madhavji Thakersey was an Indian cricketer. A right-hand batter and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Merchant played first class cricket for Mumbai cricket team as well as 10 Test matches for India between 1929 and 1951...
and Mushtaq Ali
Mushtaq Ali
Syed Mushtaq Ali was a former Indian cricketer, and an aggressive Test batsman. Ali holds the distinction of scoring the first Test century by any Indian overseas, when he hit a ton for the team in 1936 at Manchester in England.A Wisden Special Award winner, he scored four first class hundreds in...
.
Injuries limited his appearances in 1946 as well. In the Old Trafford
Old Trafford (cricket)
Old Trafford is a cricket ground situated on Talbot Road in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. It has been the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club since its foundation in 1864, having been the ground of Manchester Cricket Club from 1857...
Test, he went in last and batted out 13 minutes with the Ranga Sohoni
Ranga Sohoni
Sriranga Wasudev 'Ranga' Sohoni was an Indian Test cricketer....
to save the match.
A right-handed batsman, he wore his cap at a 'bewildered angle' and 'stood with his toes pointing up at an angle of 45 degrees'. Vijay Manjrekar
Vijay Manjrekar
Vijay Laxman Manjrekar is a former Indian cricketer who played 55 Tests. A small man, he was a fine cutter and hooker of the ball. He was the father of Sanjay Manjrekar....
was his nephew.
Hindlekar was the son of a farmer from Ratnagiri
Ratnagiri
Ratnāgiri is a port city on the Arabian Sea coast in Ratnagiri district in the southwestern part of Maharashtra, India. The district is a part of Konkan.The Sahyadri mountains border Ratnagiri to the east...
in Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
. He worked in the Bombay Port Trust for a salary of Rs.80 a month. His means were so limited that he could not afford to buy a pair of gloves, and used to visit Khershed Meherhomji
Khershed Meherhomji
Khershedji Rustomji Meherhomji played for India as a wicket-keeper.Meherhomji toured England in 1936 and played in the Test at Manchester. He represented Parsis in Bombay Pentangular and various sides in the Ranji Trophy...
and borrow his. He died at the age of 40 for want of proper treatment. It was only at a very late stage of his illness that he was moved to the Arthur Road Hospital in Mumbai.
Hindlekar died leaving behind his wife and seven children. After his death 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...
and Mumbai Cricket Association issued appeals for contributions to help his family. These had little success. His employer Mumbai Port Trust then organised a cabaret dance on August 6, 1949 which raised a little over Rs. 7,000. Almost every major Indian cricketer of the time attended the dance.