Ashok Mankad
Encyclopedia
Ashok Vinoo Mankad was a former Indian
cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he played for India in 22 Test matches
.
Ashok Mankad was born in Bombay
, the eldest son of Vinoo Mankad who represented India in 44 Test matches. His brothers Rahul Mankad and Atul Mankad were also first class cricketers.
Mankad made a sequence of big scores in the Harris Shield as a teenager. After making 348, 325 and 258 in this inter-school tournament, he was picked to represent Bombay
and West Zone cricket team
in Under-19 tournaments. He represented the Bombay University in the Rohinton Baria Trophy in his first year in the college. He hit 62 against Nagpur University, 131 against Karnataka
and 152 against Madras
in the final. Mankad made his first class debut a week before his seventeenth birthday.
Despite average performances in the domestic level in his first few years, he was selected to play Tests against New Zealand
in 1969-70. The selection committee under Vijay Merchant
tried out many new players that season and Chetan Chauhan
and Ajit Pai
also made their debut in the same match. After failing to reach thirty in any of the four innings against New Zealand, he was dropped from the team for the third Test.
Without much of a reason, Mankad was again selected against Australia
a month later. This time he scored 74, 8, 64, 68 and 97 in his first five innings. Mankad batted at No.3 in the first Test and added a record 146 for the fourth wicket with Nawab of Pataudi. But when Dilip Sardesai
was dropped, he opened in the remaining three Tests. Mankad and Farokh Engineer
added 111 and 43 at Bombay
and 85 at Delhi. Though he played 15 more Tests in his career, Mankad scored only one more fifty and the 97 at Delhi was to remain his highest score. Mankad shared some good opening partnerships with Sunil Gavaskar
in the series in West Indies in 1970-71 but after a bad tour of England
in 1971, he was dropped. He gave up opening in domestic cricket and reverted to batting in the middle order.
In the 1976-77 season in the Ranji Trophy
, Mankad scored 827 runs at an average of 206. He hit 203* against
Maharashtra
and 208* against Haryana
in successive innings. He went past the Bombay record of Ajit Wadekar
for the highest aggregate in the tournament. These efforts found him a place for the Indian team for one last tour. In Australia
in 1977-78, Mankad scored 508 runs at 50.80 in the tour matches, finished fourth in the season's averages and topped the averages for India. But three Test appearances brought him only 119 runs at 23.80, allowing Chetan Chauhan
to establish himself as an opening partner of Gavaskar in this series. Mankad did not play another Test and ended his career with 991 runs.
Mankad was a heavy scorer at the Ranji level. When he retired, he had a record aggregate of 6619 runs in Ranji matches at an average of 76, with his 22 centuries equalling Vijay Hazare
's record. He captained Bombay to titles in 1974-75 and 1975-76. His highest first class score of 265 was made in the 1981 finals where Bombay defeated Delhi by an innings. He also played some league cricket in England.
Mankad was married to Nirupama Mankad
(née Vasant), a former Asian Tennis
champion. Their son Harsh Mankad
is a member of the Indian Davis Cup
tennis team since 2000. Elder son Mihir Mankad was also a tennis player. Mankad served as a commentator and a coach of the Mumbai Ranji team for a few years. He died in his sleep on August 1, 2008.
Indian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he played for India in 22 Test matches
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
.
Ashok Mankad was born in Bombay
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, the eldest son of Vinoo Mankad who represented India in 44 Test matches. His brothers Rahul Mankad and Atul Mankad were also first class cricketers.
Mankad made a sequence of big scores in the Harris Shield as a teenager. After making 348, 325 and 258 in this inter-school tournament, he was picked to represent Bombay
Mumbai cricket team
The Mumbai cricket team is a cricket team representing the city of Mumbai in Indian domestic cricket. It is the most successful team in the Ranji Trophy, India's top domestic cricket competition, with 39 titles, the most recent being in 2009–10. The team's home ground is the Wankhede Stadium in...
and West Zone cricket team
West Zone cricket team
The West Zone cricket team is a first-class cricket team that represents western India in the Duleep Trophy. It is a composite team of players from five first-class Indian teams from western India competing in the Ranji Trophy: Baroda, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Mumbai and Saurashtra...
in Under-19 tournaments. He represented the Bombay University in the Rohinton Baria Trophy in his first year in the college. He hit 62 against Nagpur University, 131 against Karnataka
Karnataka cricket team
Karnataka cricket team is a cricket team that represents the Indian state of Karnataka in domestic first class cricket. One of the strongest teams in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group, it has produced many of the Indian cricket team's leading players throughout its existence...
and 152 against Madras
Tamil Nadu cricket team
The Tamil Nadu Cricket Team ; , competes in the Super League of the Ranji Trophy, the top cricketing competition in India. The team finished as runners-up behind Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy in the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons establishing themselves as one of the strongest teams in the country...
in the final. Mankad made his first class debut a week before his seventeenth birthday.
Despite average performances in the domestic level in his first few years, he was selected to play Tests against New Zealand
New Zealand cricket team
The New Zealand cricket team, nicknamed the Black Caps, are the national cricket team representing New Zealand. They played their first in 1930 against England in Christchurch, New Zealand, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. It took the team until 1955–56 to win a Test, against the...
in 1969-70. The selection committee under Vijay Merchant
Vijay Merchant
Vijaysingh Madhavji Merchant , real name Vijay Madhavji Thakersey was an Indian cricketer. A right-hand batter and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Merchant played first class cricket for Mumbai cricket team as well as 10 Test matches for India between 1929 and 1951...
tried out many new players that season and Chetan Chauhan
Chetan Chauhan
Chetan Pratap Singh Chauhan is a former cricketer who played 40 Test matches for India...
and Ajit Pai
Ajit Pai
Ajit Manohar Pai is a former Indian cricketer who played in one Test in 1969....
also made their debut in the same match. After failing to reach thirty in any of the four innings against New Zealand, he was dropped from the team for the third Test.
Without much of a reason, Mankad was again selected against Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
a month later. This time he scored 74, 8, 64, 68 and 97 in his first five innings. Mankad batted at No.3 in the first Test and added a record 146 for the fourth wicket with Nawab of Pataudi. But when Dilip Sardesai
Dilip Sardesai
Dilip Narayan Sardesai was a former Indian Test cricketer. He was the only Goan-born cricketer to play for India, and was often regarded as India's best batsman against spin bowling.-Early career:...
was dropped, he opened in the remaining three Tests. Mankad and Farokh Engineer
Farokh Engineer
Farokh Maneksha Engineer is a former Indian cricketer of Parsi background who played 46 Tests for India and played first-class cricket for Mumbai in India and Lancashire in England. Engineer's active international career started in 1961 and continued to 1975, and he was India's first-choice...
added 111 and 43 at Bombay
Brabourne Stadium
The Brabourne Stadium is a cricket ground in the Indian city of Mumbai. It is located on 90,000 square yards of reclaimed land along Marine Drive near Churchgate railway station in South Mumbai. The stadium is owned by the Cricket Club of India . Brabourne Stadium is India's first permanent...
and 85 at Delhi. Though he played 15 more Tests in his career, Mankad scored only one more fifty and the 97 at Delhi was to remain his highest score. Mankad shared some good opening partnerships with Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Manohar "Sunny" Gavaskar is a former cricketer who played during the 1970s and 1980s for Bombay and India. Widely regarded as one of the greatest opening batsmen in cricket history, Gavaskar set world records during his career for the most Test runs and most Test centuries scored by any...
in the series in West Indies in 1970-71 but after a bad tour of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1971, he was dropped. He gave up opening in domestic cricket and reverted to batting in the middle order.
In the 1976-77 season in the Ranji Trophy
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides, equivalent to the County Championship in England and the Sheffield Shield in Australia...
, Mankad scored 827 runs at an average of 206. He hit 203* against
Maharashtra
Maharashtra cricket team
The Maharashtra cricket team is a domestic cricket team based in the Indian state of Maharashtra in the city of Pune. It is in the Plate Group of the Ranji Trophy...
and 208* against Haryana
Haryana cricket team
The Haryana cricket team is a domestic cricket team based in the Indian state of Haryana. The team is run by the Haryana Cricket Association. In recent times it hasn't been very successful in the Ranji Trophy circuit. In the past, however, it has produced some of the biggest superstars to go on to...
in successive innings. He went past the Bombay record of Ajit Wadekar
Ajit Wadekar
Ajit Laxman Wadekar is a former international cricketer. He played domestic first-class cricket for the Mumbai cricket team....
for the highest aggregate in the tournament. These efforts found him a place for the Indian team for one last tour. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1977-78, Mankad scored 508 runs at 50.80 in the tour matches, finished fourth in the season's averages and topped the averages for India. But three Test appearances brought him only 119 runs at 23.80, allowing Chetan Chauhan
Chetan Chauhan
Chetan Pratap Singh Chauhan is a former cricketer who played 40 Test matches for India...
to establish himself as an opening partner of Gavaskar in this series. Mankad did not play another Test and ended his career with 991 runs.
Mankad was a heavy scorer at the Ranji level. When he retired, he had a record aggregate of 6619 runs in Ranji matches at an average of 76, with his 22 centuries equalling Vijay Hazare
Vijay Hazare
Vijay Samuel Hazare was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953...
's record. He captained Bombay to titles in 1974-75 and 1975-76. His highest first class score of 265 was made in the 1981 finals where Bombay defeated Delhi by an innings. He also played some league cricket in England.
Mankad was married to Nirupama Mankad
Nirupama Mankad
----Nirupama Mankad nee Vasant is a former Indian tennis player.Nirupama Mankad is the daughter of G. Vasant, a leading tennis player in India in his time. She survives her husband, the late Ashok Mankad, a former Indian Test cricketer...
(née Vasant), a former Asian Tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
champion. Their son Harsh Mankad
Harsh Mankad
----Harsh Mankad is a professional tennis player from India. He is the grandson of cricketer Vinoo Mankad, and the son of cricketer Ashok Mankad, and tennis player Nirupama Vasant....
is a member of the Indian Davis Cup
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is contested between teams of players from competing countries in a knock-out format. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Britain and the United States. By...
tennis team since 2000. Elder son Mihir Mankad was also a tennis player. Mankad served as a commentator and a coach of the Mumbai Ranji team for a few years. He died in his sleep on August 1, 2008.