Lala Amarnath was a seminal figure in the history of Indian cricket – even if his career was seldom far from controversy.
Amarnath, Nanik Bhardwaj, died on August 5, 2000, aged 88.
“Lala” Amarnath scored India’s first Test century and went on to become Indian cricket’s patriarchal figure: as selector, manager, coach and broadcaster, as well as in a literal sense – his three sons became first-class cricketers and two played in Tests.
Amarnath, a Punjabi, was also the first to kick against the stifling domination of Indian cricket by the local princes and their imperial backers. It severely damaged his career. Amarnath’s figures in his 24 Tests are nothing special, but they do no justice to either his spasmodic brilliance or his enduring influence.
From a poor background in Lahore, when it was still part of India, he rose to prominence by scoring 109 (“a brilliant display” – Wisden) for Southern Punjab against MCC in 1933/34, and a few weeks later became a star with a century on his Test debut, India’s first Test at home, at the genteel old Gymkhana ground in Bombay.
Lala also supervised the development of his sons: Surinder, too, made a century on debut; Mohinder (“Jimmy”) played 69 Tests. He was a well-informed and humorous commentator, and in old age he acquired widespread affection as the nation’s leading source of cricket anecdotes. But he never lost his habit of speaking his mind. “He was an impetuous man,” said his contemporary, Mushtaq Ali, “quick to love and quick to fight.” The Indian prime minister, AB Vajpayee, called him an icon.
