38 years of 1983 World Cup win: 10 unknown facts of Kapil’s Devils triumphant campaign

Xtra Time Web Desk: It has been 38 long years since Kapil Dev led the Indian team to a magnificent triumph over the mighty West Indies in the final of the 1983 Prudential Cup at Lords. It was on this day India created history by winning its first World Cup beating Clive Lloyd’s men by 43 runs. It was a dominating performance from the Indian team led by an inspirational Kapil Dev. They went on to win 6 out of 8 matches in the tournament including the final. The Indian bowlers led by Mohinder Amarnath successfully defended a paltry total of 183 runs as they bundled the power packed Caribbean batting line up for only 140 runs.

Here are 10 unknown facts about the Indian team that won the tournament in 1983:

1. India was staring at being knocked out of the tournament until Kapil Dev played that brilliant knock of 175 against Zimbabwe at Turnbridge Wells. Unfortunately, the match wasn’t recorded as the BBC was on a strike that day.

2. The Indian team left for England to play the World Cup, without a coach, doctor and even a physiotherapist. Mohinder Amarnath shouldered the responsibilities in the absence of a coach. Along with Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, he decided the batting and bowling order of the team.

3. Former Hyderabad cricketer PR Man Singh was selected as the manager for the team after he won a vote against Niranjan Shah 15–13 in a special general meeting of the BCCI. He was also the manager of the Indian team in 1987 Reliance World Cup.

4. The Indian cricketers were not confident of making it past the group stages leave aside winning the final. Few among them like opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth had already booked flight tickets ahead of the tournament for a honeymoon to the US with his wife.

5. Sandeep Patil had broken his ribs two weeks before the tournament but still traveled to England and played fearless cricket in the tournament.

6. Sunil Valson was the only unlucky cricketer who did not play a single match for India in the entire tournament.

7. During those days, a player was paid around Rs.12,500 for every match. But after the World Cup win, the BCCI announced a prize of Rs.2 lakh for the entire team. However, Sunil Gavaskar refused to accept the money.

8. When the news of India’s victory reached veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar, she organized a music concert for the Indian cricket team. The money raised from the concert was distributed among the 14 Indian players, with each player getting Rs.1 lakh.

9. Before the tournament, Wisden Cricketer Monthly editor David Frith had written that he will eat his words if India wins the Cup. After a reader pointed it out, Firth literally ate his own article and published a picture of it in the September edition.

10. Medium pacer Balwinder Singh Sandhu gave India the first breakthrough in the final, getting rid of the dangerous West Indies opener Gordon Greenidge. The Caribbean batsman preferred leaving the ball only to see the inswinger from Sandhu crash his leg stumps. Sandhu decided to make a visiting card with the picture of that moment.

----------------------------------------

By: XtraTime
Title: 38 years of 1983 World Cup win: 10 unknown facts of Kapil’s Devils triumphant campaign
Sourced From: xtratime.in/38-years-of-1983-world-cup-win-10-unknown-facts-of-kapils-devils-triumphant-campaign/
Published Date: Fri, 25 Jun 2021 08:22:30 +0000

Read More