Farokh Engineer

Farokh Engineer, the original poster boy of Indian cricket, was born on February 25, 1938. He was an aggressive batsman and for a tall and a well-built man, he was deceptively quick as a wicket-keeper. Interestingly, if we look back at his career, Engineer didn't do much of note in the first 11 Tests of his career. He also had tough competition from another fine wicket-keeper, Budhi Kunderan.

Now, everything changed in the 12th Test of his career, when he was asked to open the batting against West indies in Chennai in 1967. From nowhere, Engineer amassed a century against the likes of Wes Hall, Charlie Griffith, Lance Gibbs and Garry Sobers, and the rest is history. He certainly gave the famed opposition line-up sleepless nights as on the back of Engineer's belligerent batting, India rocketed to 72 for no loss in a mere 12 overs! The other man vying for that spot, Kunderan though, would have been a disappointed man as he had compiled a century in the tour game against West Indies, but wasn't selected for that Test.

In 1967-68, Engineer also played a pivotal role in India's first ever Test series victory away from home in New Zealand. He showed good glove-work behind the stumps and also chipped in with useful runs. In fact, he ended that series with more than 300 runs to his name. The Indian selectors continued to play musical chairs as Pochiah Krishnamurthy was preferred over him when India overcame West Indies in 1971. But as Krishnamurthy struggled to make a mark, he was back in the side for the tour of England.

In the famous Test at The Oval in 1971, Engineer's innings of 59 helped India to recover after they found themselves in a spot of bother. India eventually won that Test and the series on the back of Chandrasekhar's amazing spell. Engineer did extremely well in the Test series against England at home in 1972-73 by compiling a shade over 400 runs. He was also one of the few Indian cricketers, who enhanced their reputations by playing with self-belief when India toured England in 1974. He though, soon hung up his spiked boots after the series against the West Indies in 1974-75. Unfortunately, in his last game, he bagged a pair.

Remember, Engineer was a brilliant keeper, too. None other than his former Lancashire teammate, Brian Statham, once reckoned that he would have likely taken more wickets for his country, if Engineer had been the keeper. Even now, fans remember him fondly for the spectacular catch he took to dismiss John Edrich in the Test at Lord's in 1971. After retiring from the game, Engineer made his name in County cricket for Lancashire. He married a Lancastrian and made Lancashire his home. On a side note, Engineer also endorsed the Brylcreem product and that turned out to be a successful advertisement.

By Bharath Ramaraj