- Friday, April 19, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
KAPIL’S Devils who had won India’s maiden World Cup in cricket in 1983 were in for a shock on Tuesday (13) when one of their colleagues in the memorable mission Yashpal Sharma passed away in New Delhi after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 66 and is survived by his wife and three children – two daughters and a son.
“Yes, Yashpal is no more with us. We just received the information from his family,” a former India teammate of the late former cricketer told news agencies. According to sources, Sharma collapsed at home after returning from his morning walk.
Sharma made his international debut for India in the late 1970s and played till the mid-1980s. Though the middle-order had technical limitations, he was known for his gutsy approach to the game. He played 37 Tests in which he scored 1,606 runs with two hundreds and nine fifties and 42 one-day internationals to make 883 runs with no hundred and four fifties. He also took a couple of wickets in international cricket – one each in Tests and one-day internationals.
The former batsman was a key contributor to India’s magnificent run in the 1983 World Cup in England and his stroke-filled half-century scored against the hosts at Old Trafford still remains fresh in the cricketing memories. The man will also be remembered for his fielding skills.
Sharma, who was also a national selector during the early 2000s, was born in Ludhiana in the northern Indian state of Punjab. He first caught attention in the cricket field by scoring 260 for Punjab schools against Jammu and Kashmir schools in 1972. Within a couple of years after that knock, he found a team in the state team and the North Zone team. His major innings in first-class cricket was a 173 that he made for North in Duleep Trophy against South Zone which had a powerful bowling line-up.
In India’s domestic Ranji Trophy, Sharma represented three teams — Punjab, Haryana and Railways – to play 160 matches amassing 8,933 runs which included 21 centuries with a highest score of 201 not out.
He was an umpire too and stood in a few women’s one-day internationals. Sharma also coached Uttar Pradesh’s Ranji team.
Kapil Dev breaks down
Kapil Dev, the captain of the 1983 squad, broke down seeing the news of Sharma’s death. He left for New Delhi from Mumbai where he had gone for some work as soon as he heard the news. He said he still could not believe that Sharma was no more.
Former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar, who was also a member of the 1983 squad, expressed his shock over Sharma’s demise. “It is unbelievable. He was the fittest among all of us. I had asked him that day when we met how about his routine. He was a vegetarian, teetotaller, used to have soup for his dinner and very particular about his morning walks. I am just shocked,” he was quoted as saying by PTI.
The 1983 squad had recently met on the sidelines of a book launch in New Delhi.
“He (Sharma) told me that day we met that I had lost weight. We had a great reunion. I remember the very first game in the 1983 World Cup playing the mighty West Indies with those fast bowlers, he set the agenda and we won that game,” Kirti Azad, another 1983 colleague of Sharma said.
“He was again fantastic in the semifinal hitting Bob Willis for a six. Nowadays people say (Ravindra) Jadeja hits stumps regularly but so did Yashpal. He was a livewire on the field and would hit stumps all the time,” Azad added.
Prime minister Narendra Modi condoled Sharma’s death. In a tweet, he said, “Shri Yashpal Sharma Ji was a much beloved member of the Indian cricket team, including the legendary 1983 squad. He was an inspiration for teammates, fans as well as budding cricketers. Anguished by his passing away. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.”
