"Bride’s brother was scheduled to do the honor" - Anil Kumble recalls hilarious fan experience during iconic 10-wicket haul vs Pakistan in 1999
Former Indian spinner Anil Kumble recalled a hilarious fan experience from his iconic 10-wicket haul against Pakistan in the Delhi Test in 1999. On this day (February 7) 26 years back, Kumble became only the second bowler in Test history after Jim Laker to pick up all 10 wickets in an innings.
India suffered a heartbreaking 12-run defeat in the opening Test in Chennai, making the second and final Test in Delhi a must-win encounter. After several ebbs and flows throughout the Test match, Pakistan were set a challenging target of 420 in the final innings.
They started in style at 101/0 in the 25th over before Kumble sparked an incredible collapse with his historic spell. He destroyed the entire Pakistan batting order in the next 36 overs to bowl them out for 207 and finished with remarkable figures of 10/74 in 26.3 overs.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times on the 26th anniversary of the iconic moment, Kumble recalled the story of a fan telling him how the 10-wicket haul superseded even his marriage.
"I met one guy in Ahmedabad a few years back. The day of the ten-for was his wedding day and the Muhurtam was in the afternoon. The bride’s brother was scheduled to do the honors but apparently, he wasn’t to be found anywhere, and even those at the wedding hall didn’t seem interested in the big moment because everyone’s eyes were on the television set," said Kumble.
He added:
"Some say I was at the ground, or I watched it on television -- some who are of my age (now 54). Others tell me they had an exam that day but missed writing it because they were sitting in front of the television and watching the action unfold."
Kumble's heroics helped India avoid a home Test series defeat to their arch-rivals. The champion bowler remains India's all-time leading wicket-taker across formats with 956 scalps in 403 outings.
"You can’t go into an innings chasing all ten wickets" - Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble said he was not thinking beyond a five-wicket haul and helping India win the Test match on the eve of his iconic 10-wicket haul against Pakistan in Delhi.
The former leg-spinner remains one of only three bowlers to have achieved the feat, with New Zealand's Ajaz Patel being the latest entry in 2021.
"Ten wickets? I didn’t even think about it. You can’t go into an innings chasing all ten wickets. I realised there was an opportunity for a five-for, to see if you can wrap it up for the team, that’s it. My preparation for that innings, mental and physical, was similar to what I did every time," said Kumble.
He added:
"The previous evening, I would do a visualisation of the opposition batting and how I would bowl at each batter, get them out and go on to the next batter. That was my routine all my life. One was the preparation at the nets. Then, there was the preparation in the mind. How do I plan based on the conditions, the opposition, how do I approach my bowling? That was also part of the routine."
Kumble is the fourth all-time leading wicket-taker in Test cricket with 619 scalps in 132 matches, including a remarkable 35 five-wicket hauls.