Birthday special: Narendra Hirwani – Top 3 performances in international cricket

Cricketers all over the world, from a very tender age, dream of representing the national team, but only a few get to live that glorious dream. Former Indian leg spinner Narendra Hirwani not only lived that dream but made a fairytale start to his career as well. The prodigious leggie who weaved magic from his fingers, bagged a world record 16 wickets on debut to send the record books tumbling. On Narendra Hirwani’s 54th birthday, we relieve some of his most magical performances for the Indian team.

6/59 against New Zealand, 1988

India welcomed New Zealand for the first Test of a three-match series in Chennai. The hosts won the toss and elected to bat first in the match. Following an early stutter, India posted a handsome total of 384 runs on the back of a memorable ton from the flamboyant Navjot Singh Sidhu, while skipper Dilip Vengsarkar and Ravi Shastri chipped in with valiant half-centuries. The visitors were restricted to a meagre 189 runs in their reply, conceding a healthy lead to the Indians. Vengsarkar’s side posted a challenging target of 337 runs for the Kiwis, which was more than enough to seal an emphatic 172-run victory as Narendra Hirwani ran-riot with figures of 6/59 in the fourth innings.

8/61 against West Indies, 1988

West Indies travelled to Chennai for the fourth and final Test of the series against India, leading the series 1-0. India opted to bat first in the series decider after winning the toss and posted a commanding total in their first innings on the back of Kapil Dev’s magnificent 109 off just 124 deliveries. But the Windies were in the game as they boasted a terrifying batting line-up comprising Desmond Haynes, Phil Simmons, Viv Richards, Carl Hooper, and Jeff Dujon. But they were powerless against a menacing Narendra Hirwani, who accounted for eight Caribbean batters in just his first outing in Test cricket to return with astounding bowling figures of 8/61 in the second innings.

8/75 against West Indies, 1988

If an eight-wicket haul in his first innings in Test cricket was outrageous, Hirwani did the unthinkable by replicating it in the second innings. After restricting the visitors to 184 in their first innings, India compiled 217 runs in their second innings to set West Indies a massive target of 416 runs in the fourth innings. The Windies’ batter were all at sea facing the Indian leggie and surrendered meekly for the second time in the match. India levelled the series, beating the visitors by 255 runs on the back of Hirwani’s record-shattering 16 wickets on debut.