Javagal Srinath

Javagal Srinath is the spearhead of the Indian pace attack and is the only bowler in India to produce the speeds generally associated with West Indian or South African pacemen. After Kapil Dev`s retirement, Srinath broke into the playing XI and since then he has rarely let down the cricket fans in the country. Whether in Test cricket or the limited overs game, whether in making the initial breakthrough with the new ball, breaking up a vital partnership in the middle order or cleaning up the tail, Srinath can always be depended upon to deliver the goods. Bowling with a smooth action, the `Karnataka Express' has been able to extract pace and bounce from even docile wickets. Statistically his Test record is tarnished by his early tours, but he
is very much the genuine article who has frequently displayed the entire repertoire of the fast bowler's art - the dipping inswinger, the late outswinger, the deadly yorker, the whistling bouncer. At the same time he has never compromised on the basic qualities of bowling i.e. the line and the length. He has had injury problems in 1997 and 1998, possibly due to over-bowling but has now fully recovered after his shoulder operation. His one-day bowling record is very impressive, and only Dennis Lillee and Waqar Younis have taken 100 wickets in fewer matches. He is also a useful tail-end batter and is capable of scoring runs at a brisk pace.

The spearhead of the Indian attack for many years now, Srinath has rarely let down the cricket fans in the country. Whether in Test cricket or the limited overs game, whether in making the initial breakthrough with the new ball, breaking up a vital partnership in the middle order or cleaning up the tail, Srinath can always be depended upon to deliver the goods. Bowling with a smooth action, the `Karnataka Express' has been able to extract pace and bounce from even docile wickets. Perhaps the finest tribute to his pace bowling skills is the fact that a large percentage of his impressive bag of international wickets have been taken on unfriendly tracks at home. On the bouncy tracks in Australia and South Africa and in green conditions in England, he has been the leading wicket taker. Srinath has frequently displayed the entire repertoire of the fast bowler's art - the dipping inswinger, the late outswinger, the deadly yorker, the whistling bouncer. At the same time he has never compromised on the basic qualities of bowling - line and length.

Srinath's overall performance is all the more creditworthy for it was only after Kapil Dev retired in 1994-95 that he became the spearhead of the attack. A vigorous tailend batsmen, he can be counted upon to get quick runs and has many times indulged in timely big hits. A safe outfield with a strong throwing arm, Srinath has been over bowled and this has forced him to miss a few Tests because of injury. Happily all that is past and after surgery to his shoulder in 1997 he seems to be a more complete bowler.

Test Debut: India v Australia at Brisbane, 1st Test, 1991/92
ODI Debut: India v Pakistan at Sharjah, Wills Trophy, 1991/92

Parthiv Patel

Not often does one find a youngster blessed with that rare combination of natural talent and a burning desire to excel. Parthiv Patel is one such gifted wicket-keeper/batsman, hailing from one of the lesser-known cricketing cities in India Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

Patel took to cricket at the age of nine, enthralled by Ian Healy's work behind the stumps. Around six years later, against Maharashtra in the under-16 West Zone encounter, Patel made 101 out of Gujarat's total of 196 - that too at the top of the order. Following on, Gujarat made 297 for five to draw the match; Patel's contribution was an unbeaten 201.

Patel's sharp eye for the finer details of his work and his analytical abilities led West Zone selectors to entrust him with the captaincy in the under-19 match against the visiting English colts. Patel also led the Indian under-17 victorious campaign in the Asia Cup at Dhaka. At the young age of 17, Patel was then named to lead the Indian team in the junior (under-19) World Cup in New Zealand.

Patel had a stint with the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore before the prestigious Border-Gavaskar scholarship took him to the much-lauded Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy in Adelaide. After showing promise in the recent India 'A' tours of South Africa and Sri Lanka, Patel forced his way into the national squad as deputy to Ajay Ratra for the Test series in England in mid-2002.

Patel had a remarkable Test debut against England, when Ratra had to pull out of the Trent Bridge Test due to an injury. Patel impressed everyone with his excellent show behind the wickets, but it was the match-saving effort with the bat in the second innings that earned him a lot of plaudits. Patel has gone on to cement his place in the Test team as the numero uno wicket-keeper. The youngster might still have an important role to play in the upcoming World Cup.

Dinesh Mongia

A left hander with a penchant for tall scores, Dinesh Mongia made his Ranji Trophy debut in 1995-96. He had a rather sedate entry, getting to play just a single game against Baroda in which he scored 21. But the following season witnessed Mongia blossom and stake a claim for a permanent place in the Punjab squad with 521 runs in the Ranji Trophy inclusive of 115 against Himachal Pradesh and an unbeaten 207 against Services. After a disappointing 1997-98 season, Mongia again roared back to form, aggregating 667 runs at an average of 47.50 the next season, thanks to two centuries. By this time, he was a member of the North Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy. He maintained his reputation in the 1999-2000 season, scoring 758 runs in the ten matches that he played in the national competition.

Mongia's growing stature as a free stroking batsman gained further momentum during the 2000-2001 season. The elegant southpaw stamped his class by hitting the Jammu & Kashmir bowlers for 308, while sharing a 330-run stand for the fourth wicket with Pankaj Dharmani. This, the highest score by a Punjab batsman in the Ranji Trophy, was the start of a dream run. In the Duleep Trophy that followed, he amply demonstrated that he had arrived on the national scene. First he hit a stroke filled 201 against a strong South Zone attack which included five bowlers who had played for the country. A couple of matches later, Mongia battered the Central Zone attack for a thrilling 208. Such consistency could not escape the selectors' eye and a place among the 25 probables for the series against Australia is just reward for a batsman who is fired up by a challenge

Rohan Gavaskar

"Playing for India" was the driving force behind the players taking the tour Holland seriously and returning expectedly on a successful note. As it turned out, the team, especially Rohan Gavaskar, took the cricket seriously and came out with flying colours. For long, the talented Rohan Gavaskar was said to win the nod of the selectors because he happened to be the son of a famous father. The left-hander's excellent form on the Holland tour set to rest all such uncharitable talk about his calibre. According to the young Gavaskar, though the main job of a batsman is to score runs, he must also remain consistent. And he proved this to a great extent throughout the tour. Rohan being a left-handed batsman is more attacking than his father was, and is fairly strong on both sides of the wicket, his specialities being the lofted shot through mid-wicket. What remains to be seen is whether he can attempt to scale the heights of glory that his father reached.

Jaya Prakash Yadav

One of many in India's search for an allrounder in their one-day team, JP Yadav's first brush with international cricket lasted just two games. He was drafted in for his ability to belt the ball around and bowl a few overs of right-arm medium-pace, but he just didn't look the part in the ODIs against West Indies. He is a useful performer for Railways though, and has scored most of the runs as an opener. He missed his chance to be among the contenders for a place in India's World Cup squad but staked another claim with a fantastic allround performance in the 2004-05 domestic season where he topped the wicket-takers' list and was a talismanic figure for both Railways, who won the Ranji title, and Central Zone, who triumphed in the Duleep Trophy.

Manoj Prabhakar

A fiercely competitive cricketer, Manoj Prabhakar's approach was very much in keeping with the times. Asking no quarter and expecting none, Prabhakar's combative attitude made him an opponent to be feared and respected. Whether batting or bowling, he epitomized aggressiveness. He was also one with a never say die attitude and this was seen in his batting which was a mixture of well timed strokes and a sound defence. He was generally more at home in the middle order but served the country well in many matches as a resolute and dependable opening batsman. As Kapil Dev's most durable and effective opening partner, he frequently gave the initial breakthrough. But he is best remembered as a stock bowler who could bowl long spells without losing either accuracy or hostility.

Prabhakar was one of the few cricketers who had an equally good record in both Test cricket and the limited overs game. As a bowler, he made up for his lack of genuine pace by some enormous in swing. He was a member of the Indian team in three successive World Cup competitions and it just one bad match against Sri Lanka in the 1996 tournament which cost him his place for good. Always a fighter, Prabhakar carried the combativeness off the field too. He made some scatching comments about being dropped and then in retirement, he charged that Indian players were guilty of match fixing and betting. He continued to stay in the news by entering politics and standing unsuccessfully for Parliament.

Kiran More

Kiran More was one of those gutsy little keepers who always relished a challenge, even thrived under it. It falls to a keeper's unhappy lot that he is only noticed when he fluffs a chance and More had the misfortune of putting down Graham Gooch, then on 36, on his way to a mammoth 333 at Lord's in 1990. More will be better remembered though for his fiercely competitive streak that garnered 130 dismissals and 1285 runs in 49 Tests. More than the statistics, it was his approach that set him apart. Indeed his chirpy appealing tended to get under the skin of his opponents leading Javed Miandad to do a puckish jumping jack imitation of More at the 1992 World Cup.

After spending time as understudy to Syed Kirmani on the West Indies tour of 1982-83 and the Australian tour of 1985-86, More finally became India's No.1 keeper on the tour of England in 1986, where he took 16 catches in three Tests to firmly keep his rivals at arm's length. The second most successful Indian Test keeper after Kirmani, More still holds the Test records for most stumpings in an innings (five) and in a match (six). Both were accomplished during Hirwani's Test at Madras in 1987-88. The pinnacle of his career came in 1990 when he was appointed vice captain to Azharuddin on the tour of New Zealand. More's never say die attitude was symbolised by the two fours in two balls that he swept off Tom Moody in the last over against Australia at the Gabba in the 1992 World Cup to bring India closer to an improbable victory. Of course an ambitious paddle sweep then put paid to his innings but you certainly can't fault the man for not trying. After being left out from the Test side in 1994 in favour of another Baroda product in Nayan Mongia, More continued for a few more seasons in domestic cricket before turning his attention to coaching. He now runs a flourishing cricket academy in his home town.

Kapil Dev

London Wisden's decision to name all-rounder Kapil Dev as India's player of the century has been welcomed by the country's former Test players.

Kapil, the ex-captain who led India to their lone World Cup triumph in 1983, was picked ahead of former batsman Sunil Gavaskar and modern-day icon Sachin Tendulkar by a 35-member panel comprising international commentators and former players.

His peers said Kapil was the right choice because he could alter the result of a match single-handedly.

"I don't think anyone has won more matches for India individually," said former Test spinner Maninder Singh on Wednesday.

"He could change the nature of his game with his bowling, batting, fielding and captaincy. That puts him ahead of everyone else."

Kapil took 434 wickets at 29.64 apiece and scored 5,248 runs at an average of 31.05 in Tests.

He made his debut for India as a 19-year-old in the 1978-79 season against Pakistan. He played 131 Tests and 225 one-dayers in a career spanning over 16 years.

"I am very happy for Kapil, he richly deserved the award," said Madan Lal, a member of Kapil's World Cup-winning team and now a national selector.

"THE GREATEST"

"It's a good decision by the jury, there was never any doubt in my mind that Kapil is the greatest."

Kapil is the only cricketer in history to score more than 5,000 and take more than 400 wickets in Tests. His mark of 434 wickets stood as a record until West Indian Courtney Walsh surpassed it just two years ago.

"It's a very intelligent decision by the panel to name Kapil," said former Test opener Chetan Chauhan.

"Gavaskar, Kapil and Sachin were the frontrunners but because of his ability to contribute with both the bat and ball they have gone with Kapil."

Kapil's most memorable knock was an unbeaten 175 in the 1983 World Cup against Zimbabwe at Tunbridge Wells in England, where he rescued India from 17 for five to 266 in 60 overs.

Tendulkar won the people's choice award at a ceremony in London on Tuesday, while Gavaskar's team of 1985 - winners of the World Series Cup in Australia - was picked as the best Indian team of the century.

Tendulkar has scored 29 Test centuries and a world-record 33 one-day hundreds. Gavaskar, the first man to score 10,000 Test runs, has a world record 34 Test centuries. He played his last Test in 1987.

Shiv Sunder Das

Only the second player from Orissa to win a Test call-up, the pint sized Shiv Sunder Das scored a polished 110 in only his third game, against Zimbabwe in Nagpur. In the face of a chronic scarcity of competent Test openers, Das could be just the man to step into the breach. Blessed with a serene temperament, he focuses on keeping the game simple, prodding the scoreboard through an array of sound shots without trying to be flashy. A former India Under-17 captain, Das has journeyed through the ranks of junior level cricket with distinction. Although making 98 on his first class debut as a 16-year-old in the 1993-94 Ranji Trophy pre-quarterfinals, he was no overnight prodigy, honing his abilities over several seasons of domestic cricket.

His big break came in May 2000 when he was selected to the National Cricket Academy and got the chance to interact closely with his idol Sunil Gavaskar among others. In June-July, Das visited the Australian Cricket Academy under the Gavaskar-Border scholarship, which he believes was the best thing that happened to him. The intensive six week course instilled a sense of professionalism in Das whose technique was tightened up and his preferred backfoot play refined, especially cutting and pulling. He also has ample opportunity now to sharpen his leadership skills, taking over as East Zone captain this season in addition to his duties as captain of Orissa

Navjot Singh Sidhu

Ahmedabad, he was dropped after playing only two Tests. But Sidhu made a sensational comeback in the Reliance World Cup in 1987. With four half centuries in five innings in the competition, he forced himself back into the Test side as a transformed batsman. He celebrated his return by scoring a century in the first Test against New Zealand at Bangalore the following season. He was in good form in the Test series in the West Indies that followed. Not only did he get a courageous hundred in the final Test at Kingston, he also scored 286 against Jamaica - the highest score by an Indian outside India. He was one of the few batsmen equally at home in Tests and one day cricket and the manner in which he played the spinners was an object lesson in attacking batsmanship. He did well enough in Pakistan in 1989, New Zealand later that season and in England in 1990 before temporarily losing his place. But he forced his way back again during the 1993 England tour of India and remained, more or less, a regular member of the team till the end of the decade. Midway through the 1996 tour of England however, following a misunderstanding with the captain Azharuddin, he deserted the team and returned home.

But that was not the end of his career and Sidhu saved his best for the last phase of his career. With courage and consistency as his forte, he ran up a series of big scores, including a double century against West Indies at Port of Spain in 1997. This was followed by a good run against Australia the following season, where he often softened up Shane Warne for Tendulkar to demoralise the bowler. He still had a lot of good cricket in him when he decided to call it quits in 1999