3 things you may not know about Balwinder Sandhu, the man who bowled Gordon Greenidge in the 1983 World Cup final
Former Indian fast bowler Balwinder Sandhu is celebrating his 67th birthday today. Sandhu was born on August 3, 1956 in Mumbai (then known as Bombay). He represented India in eight Tests and 22 ODI matches from 1982 to 1984.
Many Indian cricket fans would remember him as the man who picked up Gordon Greenidge's wicket in the 1983 World Cup final. India played against the two-time defending champions West Indies in the final of the mega event in 1983. West Indies were the favorites to win, but a clinical bowling performance helped India become the world champions for the first time ever.
Gordon Greenidge was West Indies' opening batter in the final. Since West Indies needed only 184 runs to win, India desperately needed early wickets. Balwinder Sandhu did the job for India by dismissing Greenidge for just one run when the team's score was five. Sandhu also dismissed Faoud Bacchus in the final to finish with figures of 2/32.
The story of the Sandhu delivery to Greenidge
26 wickets was all Balvinder Singh Sandhu took as an India cricketer but one of those 26 wickets was that of Gordon Greenidge. At Lord's. In a chase of 184. In the final of a World Cup which the makers of #83 recreated brilliantly.+ pic.twitter.com/Qv6a4U4MHy
Unfortunately, Sandhu was one of the few players who faded away after the 1983 World Cup win. On his 67th birthday today, here's a look at the three things you might not know about the former Indian fast bowler.
#1 Balwinder Sandhu top-scored on Test debut while batting at number 9
Sandhu was a specialist fast bowler, but in his career's first Test match against Pakistan, he stepped up and delivered the goods in the batting department as well. During the fourth match of the India vs Pakistan Test series in 1983, Sandhu received his maiden Test cap.
The right-arm pacer dismissed Mohsin Khan and Haroon Rasheed in quick succession. However, Javed Miandad and Mudassar Nazar's double hundreds guided Pakistan to a mammoth 581/3 dec. in the first innings.
In reply, India suffered a batting collapse and were down to 72/7 when Balwinder Sandhu came out to bat. The debutant smashed a 88-ball 71, hitting nine fours and two sixes. Sarfaraz Nawaz rattled his stumps before he could complete his ton. India lost that Test by an innings and 119 runs. Sandhu was the top-scorer for the team in the first innings.
#2 Balwinder Sandhu neither batted nor bowled in his last ODI match
Sandhu's last ODI appearance for India came in a match against Pakistan in Sialkot on October 31, 1984. It was the second ODI of the three-match series between the two arch-rivals.
In 1984 when Indira Gandhi died, there was an ODI between India & Pakistan. India had scored 210 in 40 overs thanks to a superb 94 not out by Vengsarkar & quick 60 by Sandeep Patil. Match was called off at this stage. India was playing without Kapil or Sunny with Mohinder as capt
India batted first and were 210/3 after 40 overs when the match was called off due to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assassination. The tour was called off as well. Sandhu neither batted nor bowled. After that tour, he was not selected in India's playing XI.
#3 Balwinder Sandhu is a successful coach
After retirement from cricket, Sandhu took up coaching as a career. He started at the local level before transitioning into the domestic circuit. In 1996-97, Sandhu was the coach of the Mumbai squad that won the Ranji Trophy championship.
Later in 1998, the Mumbai squad, coached by Sandhu, beat Mark Taylor's Australian side by 10 wickets. Apart from Mumbai, Sandhu also had coaching stints with Maharashtra and Baroda. He also applied for the Indian head coach's position in 2016 but lost the race to Ravi Shastri.