Deepak Shodhan
Encyclopedia
Roshan Harshadlal "Deepak" Shodhan (born October 18, 1928, Ahmedabad
, India
) is a former Indian
Test cricket
er.
Shodhan was an attractive left hand batsman and occasional medium pace bowler. He was the second Indian batsman, after Lala Amarnath
, to score a hundred on Test debut. He was selected against Pakistan
on the weight of the 89* that he scored for West Zone against the Pakistanis earlier in the tour. At Calcutta
in a curious Indian innings where every batsman reached double figures, Shodhan scored 110 at batting at No.8 . In an interview Shodhan later reminiscenced about his hundred: "I was an attacking player myself. I relished the attacking field set by Pakistan. Even when the ninth wicket was lost, I managed to hit two consecutive boundaries to reach 100". He added 40 runs for the last wicket with Ghulam Ahmed
.
Shodhan scored 45 and 11 in the first Test at Port of Spain
against West Indies
that followed. He missed the next three Tests, and when picked for the last match of the series he fell ill. He scored an important 15* in the second innings batting at No.10. That turned out to be his last Test as he was never again selected to play for India.
The exclusion of Shodhan from the Indian team thereafter has never been convincingly explained. It is sometimes attributed to the eccentricities of the selectors. In his book The Covers Are Off published in 2004, Rajan Bala interviewed the various people involved, and it seems to indicate that it was the animosity between Shodhan and Vinoo Mankad that ended his career . Mankad, a senior player in the side, was apparently not in good terms with Vijay Hazare
who had captained India in the series in West Indies.
"There was a story doing the rounds that Mankad asked him (Shodhan) as to which side he was on - on his or Hazare's
. And when Shodhan replied that he was on the Indian side, Mankad had the knives out for him". The West Indian tour was to be Hazare's last series and he was succeeded by Mankad.
Hazare once told the Bala that he was "not aware of the exchange between him (Shodhan) and Vinoo, but I must say that Vinoo was not too keen that Deepak play. I suppose Vinoo found Deepak's attitude casual. ... (Shodhan) was not interested in touring (after the final Test of the series) ... Maybe it had to do with his business commitments. He had made himself unavailable for the tour of Pakistan and it might have been because Vinoo was the captain."
Shodhan also hinted at the same : "All I can tell you is that no youngster could hope to play for long at that time because he had to ally himself to one camp or the other. One had to know how to survive. What did I know about the politics ? The captain Vijay Hazare was not a strong personality and the truth is, Vinoo Mankad was. He always had his way... I would have loved to play on. But then Hazare called quits and Mankad became captain. I made myself unavailable for the tour to Pakistan in 1954/55. It is unlikely that I would have been chosen".
Deepak Shodhan's 60.33 still remains the highest average by an Indian batsman. He represented Gujarat
for most of his Ranji
career before switching to Baroda
. As a youngster, he was a good hockey
player. But being a left-hander he needed a specially made 'left-handed hockey stick' which dissuaded him .
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...
, 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...
) is a former Indian
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....
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...
er.
Shodhan was an attractive left hand batsman and occasional medium pace bowler. He was the second Indian batsman, after Lala Amarnath
Lala Amarnath
Nanik Amarnath Bhardwaj was an Indian Test cricketer. He was the first cricketer to score a Test century for the Indian cricket team, which he achieved on debut...
, to score a hundred on Test debut. He was selected against Pakistan
Pakistani cricket team
The Pakistan cricket team is the national cricket team of Pakistan. Pakistan, represented by the Pakistan Cricket Board , is a full member of the International Cricket Council, and thus participates in , and cricket matches....
on the weight of the 89* that he scored for West Zone against the Pakistanis earlier in the tour. 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...
in a curious Indian innings where every batsman reached double figures, Shodhan scored 110 at batting at No.8 . In an interview Shodhan later reminiscenced about his hundred: "I was an attacking player myself. I relished the attacking field set by Pakistan. Even when the ninth wicket was lost, I managed to hit two consecutive boundaries to reach 100". He added 40 runs for the last wicket with Ghulam Ahmed
Ghulam Ahmed
Ghulam Ahmed was an off spin bowler, who captained India in Test cricket. After his retirement, he served for many years as the secretary of BCCI....
.
Shodhan scored 45 and 11 in the first Test at Port of Spain
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...
against 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,...
that followed. He missed the next three Tests, and when picked for the last match of the series he fell ill. He scored an important 15* in the second innings batting at No.10. That turned out to be his last Test as he was never again selected to play for India.
The exclusion of Shodhan from the Indian team thereafter has never been convincingly explained. It is sometimes attributed to the eccentricities of the selectors. In his book The Covers Are Off published in 2004, Rajan Bala interviewed the various people involved, and it seems to indicate that it was the animosity between Shodhan and Vinoo Mankad that ended his career . Mankad, a senior player in the side, was apparently not in good terms with Vijay Hazare
Vijay Hazare
Vijay Samuel Hazare was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953...
who had captained India in the series in West Indies.
"There was a story doing the rounds that Mankad asked him (Shodhan) as to which side he was on - on his or Hazare's
Vijay Hazare
Vijay Samuel Hazare was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953...
. And when Shodhan replied that he was on the Indian side, Mankad had the knives out for him". The West Indian tour was to be Hazare's last series and he was succeeded by Mankad.
Hazare once told the Bala that he was "not aware of the exchange between him (Shodhan) and Vinoo, but I must say that Vinoo was not too keen that Deepak play. I suppose Vinoo found Deepak's attitude casual. ... (Shodhan) was not interested in touring (after the final Test of the series) ... Maybe it had to do with his business commitments. He had made himself unavailable for the tour of Pakistan and it might have been because Vinoo was the captain."
Shodhan also hinted at the same : "All I can tell you is that no youngster could hope to play for long at that time because he had to ally himself to one camp or the other. One had to know how to survive. What did I know about the politics ? The captain Vijay Hazare was not a strong personality and the truth is, Vinoo Mankad was. He always had his way... I would have loved to play on. But then Hazare called quits and Mankad became captain. I made myself unavailable for the tour to Pakistan in 1954/55. It is unlikely that I would have been chosen".
Deepak Shodhan's 60.33 still remains the highest average by an Indian batsman. He represented Gujarat
Gujarat cricket team
The Gujarat cricket team is one of three Ranji Trophy cricket teams representing the state of Gujarat . It was in the Elite Group of the Ranji Trophy although it has had very little success. There have, however, been many cricketers that have passed through its ranks and gone on to play for the...
for most of his Ranji
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...
career before switching to Baroda
Baroda cricket team
The Baroda cricket team is a domestic cricket team based in the city of Vadodara. The home ground of the team is the Moti Bagh Stadium on the palace grounds. The team is run by the Baroda Cricket Association. It has been one of the most successful teams in the Ranji Trophy in the new millennium...
. As a youngster, he was a good hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
player. But being a left-hander he needed a specially made 'left-handed hockey stick' which dissuaded him .