Man of the match in semifinal and final of 1983 World Cup, Mohinder Amarnath says going to England meant a month's paid holiday, partying, blonde girls and victory was a distant thought
Mohinder Amarnath believed in dreams coming true. It was one such dream that he had during the inaugural World Cup in 1975 where he told his India teammate Anshuman Gaekwad while watching the Australia-West Indies final at Lord's, "Anshu, it would be great if one day we played the final".
This dream was realised eight years later when in 1983, not only did Amarnath and India play in the final but also created history by dethroning the formidable West Indies and lifting the Prudential World Cup.
Amarnath jogged down memory lane talking about how India won their first World Cup title. The all-rounder won the man of the match awards in both the semifinals (46 & 2/27) and final (26 & 3/12).
"When I stepped on the field in the final, I was reminded of the dream that I had in 1975," Amarnath reminisced. "I thought, 'now that my dream is being realised, let's see if we can achieve victory'".
Win, India did it in great style, defending a paltry total of 183 in 60 overs and bowling out the West Indies for just 140.
"When we made it to the semifinals, we were thrilled. We never thought about the final at that time. But after beating England in the semis, we realised, 'Ok, now we are in the final, we have a chance. Anything can happen that day'. We knew that West Indies, though a great team with great players, could crumble under pressure. When we got out for 183, we were chilled and relaxed. There was no pressure. There was no planning. The captain (Kapil Dev) did not have any 20-minute pep talk. Right through the World Cup, there was no pep talk," Amarnath narrated.
"Before going in (to defend the total), people got ready, doing their own normal routine, having a cup of tea. Srikkanth was smoking in the balcony, walking up and down the way he usually does. Balwinder Singh Sandhu was doing his own things like adjusting his patka. Kirmani would always take longer time to get ready than anybody else.
"Once we walked onto the field, Kapil said, 'Ok guys, let's give our best'," Amarnath recalled.
The confidence of defeating the West Indies in the final came when they opened that tournament with a shock win against the same opponents. Amarnath, 'Jimmy' as he is known, recounted: "When we played the first game, there was no planning. We'd just have a team meeting. Our team was like a family, having spent a good six months before the World Cup on two two tough tours (of Pakistan and West Indies).
"Our team meetings would be relaxed with the captain announcing the 11 who would play the next day and manager PR Man Singh having an informal talk. There were no A, B, C plans those days. We would just go and play.
"The good thing about captain Kapil was that he though there were a lot of experienced guys like Gavaskar, Vengsarkar, Kirmani.. And, there were a lot of youngsters like Kirti Azad, Srikkanth. He trusted them and thought they could do the job wonderfully. Everybody responded brilliantly. When we beat West Indies in the first game, we realised that we've achieved something in English conditions and that boosted our confidence."
Of course, any 1983 chat will be without Kapil's historic 175 not out against Zimbabwe. The 64-year-old said, "The dressing room at Tunbridge Wells (the venue) was at the basement. It was dark and whoever got out never came up to watch the action. When Kapil began getting those runs, everybody started coming up to watch the game. Kapil led from the front in that game. He generated that kind of confidence in the team and showed the way as a leader. That was the tonic we needed at that time. And, we never looked back from there."
Television visuals of Amarnath trapping Michael Holding to seal India the title and the Indian players sprinting towards the dressing room as the spectators invaded the ground are unforgettable.
Amarnath stressed that the team did not plan to win the World Cup then. "We thought we were going there just to participate as we had done in the earlier World Cups. In 1975 and 1979, we were there for a longer period just to enjoy and see other teams play.
"We thought we'd get a month's paid holiday, have a party. We did not play much cricket. We were all young and single. The thought of going to England meant a lot of fun, getting to see a lot of blonde girls and party. It was no different in 1979. In 1983, the team assembled in London from different directions as some people were playing in the league (in England). There was no planning at all.
"We were a happy-go-lucky-team. We used to play hard and also party hard at the same time. We just had two tough series in Pakistan and the West Indies and we used to play tough cricket. After those games, we used to switch off and enjoy. Sandeep Patil (current chairman of selectors) was the livewire of the 1983 team. Wherever the team went, he kept the spirit high. We were a good bunch of players. Nobody had any grudge against anybody. People in the reserve were also of great help," said Amarnath.
The 1983 World Cup has changed the face of Indian cricket. And Amarnath hit the nail on the head. "Wherever Indian cricket is today, it started in 1983. And we never thought about it when we achieved."
Amarnath in 1983 WC
vs West Indies: 21, did not bowl
vs Zimbabwe: 44, did not bowl
vs Australia: 2, 1/27
vs West Indies: 80, 1/58
vs Zimbabwe: 5, 1/37
vs Australia: 13, 0/17
vs England (semifinal): 46, 2/27
vs West Indies (final): 26, 3/12
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