The innings that changed the way I looked at Indian cricket forever; all 281-degrees of it

There are some moments in your life, some very very special moments that make such a humongous impact on you that you can never let them go. About 15 years back, to this date, that moment happened with me, and, as I am certain, with innumerable other Indian cricket fans as well.

I remember that day quite vividly. I was to appear for the last exam of my 9^th standard finals. It was a typical balmy March day and the student in me was quite excited; it was the last exam after all and the subject was English, which I was very good at. The cricket fan in me, though, was quite deflated.  Playing a 3-Test series at home, the Indian team, after being walloped brutally by a ruthless, on the charge, Australian side in the previous Test match at Mumbai, was now reeling in the second Test at Kolkata as well. Another defeat here would result in a series loss.

Since the match was being played at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata, there was considerable anticipation regarding it my city; more so because Sourav ‘Dada’ Ganguly was leading the side. And despite struggling in it, Indian fans, as ever, had not given up hope. When I entered the classroom, India had just begun the fourth day’s play; starting at 254/4. They had been asked to follow on by Australia who had amassed 445 in their first innings and had bundled out the home side for a paltry 171 in their first reply.

It looked all but over for India, despite the fact that somehow, VVS Laxman, with the help of a few others, had held through the third day and was batting unbeaten on a splendid 109. Rahul Dravid, meanwhile, had just begun his innings and was 7 not out. Both of them still had a herculean, an almost improbable task ahead of them. India was still 20 runs behind and Australia still had one more innings left. The likelihood of India saving the match, let alone winning it, was nil. The Australian side was on an unbeatable streak of 16 consecutive Test wins – they were tied with the West Indies for the record of most consecutive Test victories – and were just one win away from registering the world record. I was even more apprehensive of any positive outcome because of the way Indian teams had been prior to this through the 90s era; succumbing easily under pressure and hardly ever giving tough competition as a team to champion sides. It was only Sachin Tendulkar who would, at most times, wage a lone battle.

My hopes, as I sat in the exam hall, hence, weren’t exactly soaring. Before beginning to write my exam paper, I muttered silent prayers; first for myself and then for the Indian team. Little did I know that my prayers were to be answered in the most incredible way very soon!

“Laxman has just crossed his 150. Dravid is unbeaten on 30. And India now leads by 54 runs,” a senior classmate of mine told me happily as I emerged from the exam hall. He was a cricket fanatic like me and had, sneakily, carried a radio to school.

Excitement surged through me as I heard this unexpected, albeit pleasing news. India was on the lead! I packed my bags and decided to rush home; cancelling all my plans with my friends for the end of the exam celebrations. I could feel it in my veins that something special was about to happen. And as an Indian cricket fan, special moments were extremely rare those days. Wanting to soak in this moment, I hence jostled through the school crowd and then began sprinting towards the metro station. Even as I ran, I could hear excited discussions among people in the streets. All of them were only talking about Laxman’s innings. There was a crowd gathered around a medicine shop; watching the match on a small television there. I couldn’t catch the score, but saw Laxman creaming a graceful on-drive off Glen McGrath. “Class aache class, (He’s very classy)” said someone from the crowd.

I tore myself away from the spot and hastened towards the metro. “Eden jete hobe. Laxman phede dicche (Will have to go to the Eden. Laxman is ripping them apart),” said someone as I entered the metro station. In fact, I could make out that there were several groups now who were scurrying towards Eden right then; anticipation bubbling crazily in their hearts. Yes, something special was about to happen.

“Oh…That was a chance of a run-out,” Tony Greig’s animated voice greeted me as I entered my home. My uncle and a few of his friends were gathered around the television set in his room and let out an anguished chorus, as Laxman had just survived a close run-out chance. India’s score was 396/4; they now led by 122 runs.

I was finding this hard to believe. The vulnerable Indian side was emerging from a hopelessly lost situation and giving a tough run for their money to the unbeatable Australian team. This was unbelievable in so many ways!

Without getting out of my school clothes, I planted myself on a chair and switched on the 14-inch black and white TV set we had in our main hall. No one would bother me there and I wanted to relish the match in silence.

Laxman was playing swift, risk-free cricket and was scoring runs at will. Within no time, he was into the 190s. With a cracking cover drive off Mark Waugh, Laxman reached his double hundred; incidentally only his second century then. I stood up and applauded. An Indian batsman scoring a double hundred was an extremely rare feat those days. The only one I had witnessed live prior to this innings was Navjyot Singh Sidhu’s stellar 201 against the West Indies in their own den in 1997. Hence, I wanted to cherish this moment for as long as possible; fearing that it may not last long.

But oh boy it did! Despite the heat and humidity, Laxman and Dravid kept on rollicking ahead. While Dravid’s was a mostly composed innings, Laxman’s was all about crackling strokeplay and attacking positively. And he wasn’t smashing the ball, he was caressing it. The fast bowlers were being driven to all parts of the ground with such ease and finesse it was pleasing to the eyes. He was also taking Shane Warne for some special treatment; regularly stepping out and whipping him through the covers and midwicket nonchalantly.

Steve Waugh, the Australian captain, tried every bowling combination he could. But nothing worked. At one point, pacer Jason Gillespie even spread out his arms like an eagle just before delivering the ball, in the hope of distracting Laxman. But that did not work either.

Before long, Laxman crossed the score of 236, which was then the highest individual Test score by an Indian. I whooped in delight. This was a long awaited moment as the 236 was scored by Sunil Gavaskar back in the 80s and no other Indian batsman had been able to surpass it for 18 long years since. This wasn’t a mammoth individual score for a country and needed to be broken. Laxman finally accomplished that.

Even as I seeped in the magnitude of the moment, the Laxman show continued. He cut, pulled, drove and flicked the bowlers with absolute disdain. Runs flowed from his bat like water flowing from a fountain. It was poetry in motion. I had never seen such a sparkling and sublime batting display of such proportions before in my life.

When the day ended, India were 589/4; leading by 315 runs with Laxman unbeaten on 275 and Dravid on 155. Both of them had together scored 335 runs in the day without getting out. It was an absolutely staggering effort. India had staged the most unbelievable of comebacks and now had a genuine opportunity to achieve a sensational victory.

As Laxman and Dravid walked back to the pavilion, the delirious Eden crowd stood up and applauded their exceptional feat. My school dress still firmly on me, I too clapped and glanced at the scorecard on the television screen once again. It felt surreal. It felt like a magical dream.

“Class aache class,” I said as I saw the back of Laxman disappear inside the pavilion.

The next day, Laxman could only add six more runs to his tally and perished on 281. The Indian team went on to declare at 657, setting Australia a score of 384 to get for victory on the final day of the match. I was hugely disappointed initially that Laxman could not achieve India’s first ever triple hundred but all of that was soon forgotten as India registered a dramatic victory towards the ending stages of the match. The Eden crowd went absolutely ballistic with joy. Even the policemen were seen dancing with the crowd in the aisles. All news channels then showed scenes of widespread celebrations by Indian fans across the country. The entire nation went bonkers that day.

I too celebrated like crazy as victories such as these were very unheard of for Indian cricket fans those days. This was a special moment, brought true by a very very special innings.

That one innings by Laxman did not just help India win that match and level the series, it changed everything. Indian cricket was never the same after that. I truly believe that Indian cricket should be looked at as before 281 and after 281. Because prior to that 281, India was always a good team, albeit heavily inconsistent. That innings helped the team break the shackles binding them and brought in a sense of resolute belief that they could win matches from any given situation. The Indian team surged ahead after that and made its mark everywhere in the world. They did lose matches every now and then, but a sense of conviction had now been ensconced in them courtesy of that extraordinary knock by Laxman. That knock hence was very special for so many reasons. It contained a gamut so massive that its effect would be realized for several years to come.

And today, as I look at the date on my calendar, I find it quite unbelievable that it has been 15 years to this day when this epic knock was played. And yet, I still remember it so vividly. The silken cover drives, the sublime on-drives, the stunning cuts and pulls…All registered deep within the confines of my memory with fondness. The euphoria this innings brought, still gives me goosebumps.

There have been umpteen special knocks played by Indian cricketers after that innings and there will, undoubtedly, be innumerable others played in the future as well. But this knock…This legendary, monumental and phenomenal knock, will, in more ways than one, remain my favourite one. It changed the way I looked at Indian cricket forever. All 281-degrees of it.