A cricketer who batted with one leg using a runner

By K.R. Nayar

A deep love for the game can overcome any physical handicap. Cricketers with one eye, fewer toes, and fingers and even some illness, have refused to give up playing and gone on to become well-known cricketers. There is an instance of a batsman even playing with one leg for Northamptonshire. Read the story below..…

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi played with one eye

During my cricket talks with youngsters, I often mention to them that if they sincerely love the game, then nothing can stop them from becoming a good cricketer. School children are never shy to express what they feel and I remember one boy during one of the interactions who said that he loves the game but that he is too fat and unable to reduce his weight. Another boy noted that he eats well but just does not gain weight or the required strength. That gave me the opportunity to tell them about instances of cricketers who were not blessed like them with two hands, two eyes, and two legs but still became great cricketers.

Former Indian captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi lost his right eye in a car crash at the age of 20. Though he had only one eye, he made his Test debut six months after the incident and in less than a year he went on to captain India. The younger generation today is aware of the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Virat Kohli and Steve Smith only. When I mention names of past cricketers they should read about, I give examples of Pataudi and the 5 ft,5inches tall Sunil Gavaskar. Although he was very short compared to the tall West Indies players, Gavaskar went on to break all world records and fearlessly faced the West Indies pacers, that too without a helmet!

It was while researching cricketers who overcome adversity to play cricket that I came across Arthur Denton who played for Northamptonshire from 1914 to 1920. He lost a leg while serving his country in the First World War. But his love for cricket was so much that he returned to play and batted with one of his brothers as a runner. When he approached the Lancashire captain for permission to have a runner, the captain wrote a comment that is regarded as one among the finest remarks on a brave soldier: "If any fellow has been to the war and has had his leg off and wants to play, he is good enough for me and can have 20 runners." Denton played three matches with his disability and scored 119 runs and fielded at point.

Tony Greig had epilepsy as a child

England’s Tony Greig developed epilepsy due to an accident at the age of 12 but went on to become one of the world’s finest allrounders. Jonty Rhodes, the world’s finest fielder, too suffered from epilepsy as a kid and his doctor even advised him not to indulge in any physical activity. Very few know that the fearsome pacer Shoaib Akhtar was flat-footed, and that made running difficult for him, and he often suffered from pain in the joints and knees. Akhtar went on to bag over 400 wickets in international cricket.   

Martin Guptill lost three toes

Similarly, New Zealand batsman Martin Guptill, who lost three of his toes at the age of 13 in a forklift accident, went on to score over 10,000 runs together from all formats of the game. Len Hutton had asymmetrical arms but yet hit a triple century. Pakistan left-arm pacer Azeem Hafeez was born with two fingers missing from his right hand, but he bagged 63 wickets from 18 Test matches.

All of these are players who wanted the world to know them for their abilities and not disabilities. Having only one eye, fewer toes and fingers, or epilepsy are no barriers for success.