The Forgotten Sons: Untold Stories of Indian Cricket

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Do you know that in the years before World War II, India had a fast bowler who sent shivers down the spine of opposition batsmen? Or that an Indian wicket keeper once sledged none other than the great Sir Donald Bradman when he came out to bat? You would be amazed to know that once, a lieutenant colonel of the Indian Army drove down nearly 500 km from his post in Dharamshala to lead the Indian team for a test match in Delhi. Or this other time, when India's famed spin trio was unable to make a breakthrough, the vice-captain suggested a left arm pacer to bowl spin and the latter ended up taking five wickets! There was an Indian spinner who once bowled 131 consecutive dot balls. Another tail-ender once had his jaw fractured while batting but refused to come off in the interest of the team.

These and many such fantastic stories embellish the glorious journey of Indian cricket. And like any story, the tale of Indian cricket also has magnificent characters many of whom you know about. But also, many whose tales are less told and have been lost in the sands of time. Read on for more such fascinating tales and know about The Forgotten Sons of Indian cricket.

Trinanjan, 38, is a market researcher by profession with fourteen years of corporate life behind him. Writing is his passion, and sports and history are his favourite topics and he writes frequently on these subjects on his blog (www.storywallah.blog) and on social media handles. He lives in Kolkata with his mother, wife and two children, His hometown Kolkata is his passion and he loves to conduct history walks of the city for those interested.

He loves travelling and tries to make at least one visit to Goa every year. He enjoys interacting with young minds and is a visiting faculty at the ICFAI Business School, Kolkata. A lifelong fan of cricket, 'The Forgotten Sons, his first book, is a tribute to some of the lesser known heroes of Indian cricket.

I grew up in the 1980s and 90s. Hence, it's fair to say that my early years overlapped with the cricket explosion in the country. My father bought our first TV set during the 1983 World Cup. My earliest memory of the game was India winning the Benson & Hedges World Series down under. Thus, I guess it was inevitable that I would fall in love with the beautiful game of cricket. Growing up, I had a sports crazy mama (maternal uncle) whose favourite pastime was to regale all those around him with tales of days past of the glorious men who lit up our cricket fields. Since the grown-ups usually gave him the slip, willingly or unwillingly, I often ended up as his only audience. His was the pre-television generation by a long distance. Reports in newspapers, radio commentary and the occasional test match live at the Eden Gardens (probably once in three- four years) were the ways of following the game for them. The stories of Indian cricket I heard from him evoked vivid and colourful imageries in my young mind that have long stayed with me even as my uncle bid adieu to us some years back.

A couple of months back, when the world came to a standstill as a result of the coronavirus crisis, confinement at home became a strange reality of life. It left me, like many of us, with time on hand. I have always enjoyed writing - starting off on social media and then moving to blogging.