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| The unmaking of Gupte by a receptionist | |
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by K. R. Wadhwaney | |
| Subhash Gupte, who died recently,was virtually hounded out of competitive cricket by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). One of the finest exponents of leg-break-and-googly bowling, Gupte got so disappointed and dejected at the Board’s illogical action that he chose to migrate to the West Indies. | |
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A mountain was made out of a molehill during Delhi’s third Test against Ted Dexter’s England team after the first two Tests at Bombay and Kanpur had been drawn in 1961-62. A receptionist in the Imperial Hotel, where the Indian team were staying, lodged a complaint saying that she had been invited for drinks by one of the players. What was wrong in inviting a girl for drinks? But this invitation was misconstrued by the Board and two players, Kripal Singh and Gupte, were penalised. It was a shocking decision. It was all the more shocking as a grand personality of the stature of M.A.Chidambaram (MAC) was then the president of the Board. Life in Delhi, called an over-grown village in 1950s and 1960s, was concealed. There was no entertainment or recreation for players after sunset. After day’s rigorous work-out, the players want to have some kind of relaxation. When a player of the calibre of Frank Worrell visited India with the Commonwealth team, he had a girl-companion at every centre. It was then said that a girl had even spent a night with him in CCI where the teams were lodged. Questions were asked from him and no eye-brows were raised then! What was the need to destroy the cricket career of two players, who had a lot of cricket left in them? Kripal Singh and Gupte were room-mates at the hotel. Kripal Singh had phoned a receptionist inviting her for drinks after she had finished her duties. She should have taken it as an honour of being invited by a Test star. But she mistook the invitation and lodged a complaint instead. The manager took the matter seriously. When the Test was abandoned owing to rain, Gupte happened to meet Polly Umgrigar in his room. Umgrigar then broke the news to him saying that a complaint had been lodged by the receptionist against inmates of room 7. He was shocked, as he was in no way, involved in the incident. Both Kripal and Gupte were suspended. A committee was formed. It was to meet at Calcutta but the meeting did not come off. It was held at Madras where the team for the West Indies had to be finalised. In the meeting, the Board secretary A.N.Ghosh reprimanded Gupte for his failure to prevent his colleague from phoning a receptionist. Gupte’s reaction was: "How could I have? Gupte was however man enough to defend Kripal saying that it was a mere phone call for drinks and thus far and no further. Following an inquiry, which was conducted in a haphazard manner with pre-conceived notions and observations, the verdict went against both Kripal and Gupte. The Board directed the selectors that Gupte should not be chosen for the West Indies tour on disciplinary grounds. Actually, if Kripal had been more truthful than he was, Gupte could have been saved from undergoing needless humiliation. Nick-named ‘Fergie’, Gupte was considered the most difficult spinner to face because his googly was so disguised. In bowling a googly, his trajectory, flight and speed did not alter. After pitching, the ball whizzed past the batsman. Not for nothing Gary had Sobers gone on record as saying that he (Gupte) was the best spinner he had encountered in his life. |
Subhash
