New Delhi. There have been some players in world cricket who used to bat with left hand and bowl with right hand. In the five-match T20 series against Zimbabwe (India vs Zimbabwe) concluded on Sunday, four players in the Indian team – Shivam Dubey, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh and Yashasvi Jaiswal, bat with left hand but bowl with right hand. The young Indian team won the series 4-1.
Even before these players, there have been many prominent cricketers in the team (Indian cricket team) who used to bat with left hand and bowl with right hand. The most prominent names among them are former Team India captain Sourav Ganguly, Robin Singh and Suresh Raina, out of which Ganguly and Raina have scored centuries in their debut test.
Let’s take a look at the major Indian cricketers who bat with left hand and bowl with right hand.
‘Dada’ has won matches for Team India through bowling too
Former Team India captain Sourav Ganguly proved to be an asset for Team India as a bowler apart from being a batsman. Sourav used to bat with his left hand but bowled with his left hand. The interesting thing is that Sourav is not a natural left-hander. He started batting with his left hand to use the batting kit of his elder brother Snehasish Ganguly, who bats with his left hand. After feeling comfortable in batting with his left hand, he continued it further and then played top cricket as a left-handed batsman. Apart from being a batsman, Sourav was also useful as a right-handed medium pace bowler. In some ODI matches, he has turned the match in favor of the Indian team with his bowling. ‘Dada’, who scored 7212 runs in Test cricket and 11363 runs in ODIs, has 32 wickets in Tests and 100 wickets in ODIs. In ODIs, he took 5 wickets in an innings twice.
When he was called ‘Tuk-Tuk’ for his slow batting, he responded by scoring the fastest century in Tests and celebrated by doing push-ups
Dhoni used to make Raina bowl to break the partnership
Suresh Raina, who scored the first century for India in T20I International, has contributed to Team India’s victories as a left-handed batsman and a right-handed off-break bowler. Raina scored a century in his debut Test but unfortunately his career in this format did not last long. Raina, who scored 5615 runs with the help of 5 centuries in 226 ODIs and 1605 runs with the help of a century in 78 T20Is, also contributed as a bowler in both these formats. He took 13 wickets in Tests, 36 in ODIs and 13 in T20Is. Dhoni cleverly used Raina to break the partnership of the opposition team in ODIs and T20Is and was successful most of the times.
The uncle-nephew duo played together in Tests, both made a century partnership
Robin Singh was a great all-rounder
Born in West Indies but playing international cricket for India, Rabindra Ramnarayan Singh alias Robin Singh provided balance to the team as an all-rounder. Robin, who batted with left hand and bowled medium pace with right hand, was considered one of the best fielders. This dashing player, who could play only one Test, represented the Indian team in 136 ODIs and scored 2336 runs with the help of one century and 9 half-centuries and took 69 wickets, including 5 wickets in an innings twice.
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The accident had ended Nari’s cricket career
Left-handed batsman Nari Contractor has also captained the Indian team. Unfortunately, his international career ended after he was hit by a ball from fast bowler Charlie Griffith during the West Indies tour. Nari, who scored 1611 runs in 31 Tests as a left-handed batsman, was a right-handed medium pace bowler. He has 26 wickets to his name in first-class cricket, although he could take only one wicket in Tests.
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Vinod Kambli used to bowl off break
Sachin Tendulkar’s childhood friend Vinod Kambli is counted among the best batsmen of the country. Kambli scored 1084 runs in 17 Tests at an average of 54.20 which included four centuries. Kambli, who scored more than 200 runs twice in Test cricket, scored 2477 runs (two centuries) in 104 ODIs at an average of 32.59. Vinod used to bowl spin with the right hand. Kambli, who took 10 wickets in first class cricket, has one wicket to his name in ODIs.
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Surinder had scored a century in his debut test itself
Surinder Amarnath, a left-handed batsman, started his Test career by scoring a century but his career could not go beyond 10 Tests and 3 ODIs. Surinder was also a right-arm medium pace bowler. He took one wicket in Test cricket. He dismissed Asif Iqbal, who scored a century for Pakistan, in the Test held in Faisalabad in October 1978. Surinder’s father Lala Amarnath and brother Mohinder Amarnath have also played for India in international cricket.
Uncle was the captain of the Indian team, nephew was born in India but played for Pakistan
Gambhir and Dhawan also used to bowl with right hand
Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan, who played for India after the year 2000, used to bat with left hand but bowled with right hand. As a leg break bowler, Gambhir took 7 wickets in first class cricket and one wicket in List A match. Similarly, off break bowler Dhawan took 3 wickets in first class cricket, 9 in List A matches and 4 in T20 matches. Both of them could not take any wicket in international matches. Like Ganguly, Raina and Surinder Amarnath, Dhawan scored a century in his debut test.
Tags: Gautam Gambhir, Shikhar Dhawan, Sourav Ganguly, suresh raina, Vinod Kambli
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 16, 2024, 16:11 IST