In cricket the battle between the batter and bowler rises to a level of folklore when one of the parties involved or both even, have somehow created an aura of supernatural ability. The modern cricket is mostly a batter’s game, with heavy and carefully crafted bats, rules of fielding restrictions and the constant demand for fast entertainment for the crowds. But the sport was and perhaps will never be about batters only. The long run-ups of the terrifying fast bowlers, the guile of the flight and loop of the slow spinners, the agility and anticipation of the fielders and the on-field fierce competitions between the highly skilled players, all of them have their special places in the true cricket-lover’s heart. This essay is about such a hero, whose prowess in the art of spin bowling, his character on and off the field, his achievements under the most trying conditions and his unmatched legacy to the sport demand a tribute of this sort.
Derek Underwood passed away on 15th April, Monday at the age of 78. He was often rated as England's best spinner in the post World War II era, who was such a worthy competitor of the greats of the game that it won’t be an overstatement to call him the nemesis of legendary Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar. This must be kept in mind here that Sunil Gavaskar was and will always be rated as one the best batters to have ever walked the field of cricket. That Underwood troubled him in his heydays and that Gavaskar admittedly talked about that in his interviews are testimonies enough to take Underwood in the hall of fame.
His nickname was Deadly and how apt it is for his effectiveness on pitches that offered him the slightest of assistance. Very few players could sniff such a thin opportunity and if he did, it was virtually impossible to see him off. He would remain relentless in attacking the batter and eventually would get his wicket. His accuracy, tenacity and ability to read the situation of the game was of the highest level and it wasn’t a surprise that he remained a favourite to his captains. As a left arm spinner, he took 297 wickets( the highest by an England spinner ) in 86 tests in a glittering 16 year career from 1966 to 1982. He enjoyed an even more prolific time for Kent in a 24 year first class career, in which he took 2, 465 wickets. He bowled in the times when the cricket pitches were not covered. He exploited those conditions to the fullest to dry up runs or take wickets at will. He was known for bowling quickly through the air and possessing pin point accuracy through a long run up, Underwood was a terror for batsmen in an era of uncovered wickets in England and elsewhere.
From 1971- 82, Underwood enjoyed many a battle with India's top batters, who were masters of playing quality spin in the 70's & 80's. That he took 62 wickets in 20 tests against them speaks volumes of his ability to fox even the master batters of spin bowling. When India famously won the Oval test in 1971, Underwood who took 3 for 72 in that second innings, was the main threat that they overcame as they chased down 173 for the loss of 6 wickets. In the 1972- 73 series in India- Sunil Gavaskar's first series at home, he got the legendary opener's wicket four times in 10 innings. All Gavaskar managed in that series was two half centuries in five tests. Overall, he dismissed Gavaskar 12 times in Test cricket, the maximum times any bowler got his number. In an interview Gavaskar once said,
“Among the spinners, I think Underwood was one of the toughest I faced. He was a quicker bowler who flighted the ball occasionally. One had to be extremely watchful against these bowlers. He was the toughest bowler I faced along with Andy Roberts.”
Such a certificate from one of the greatest opening batter of all times is nothing short of a legend.
In the 1976- 77 series, Underwood took 29 wickets in five tests at 17.55 runs to help England record a rare 3- 1 triumph in India. Six times during that test series, he got the prized wicket of Sunil Gavaskar and former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar, who played in the 1981 six- test series at home, paid rich tributes to the iconic left arm spinner. Vensarkar remembered Underwood fondly in his tribute as well,
" That's really sad( his passing away ).What a bowler and above all what a lovely guy. Cricket is poorer with his passing away. RIP ' Deadly'.
Explaining why Underwood was so difficult to deal with for India's batsmen, normally prolific against the spinners those days, Vengsarkar said,
" He had amazing accuracy. I played against him in the 1981 series against England at home, when Keith Fletcher was the England captain. During the test at Bangalore in that series, Gavaskar and I enjoyed a 93 run partnership for the second wicket. However, he tied us down a lot, because he was so accurate and in his own groove, even as he was quick through the air. He could turn the ball too. I mean, he was the master of the art of left arm spin. He would bowl from a long run up, but he was absolutely spot on, and would bowl a nagging line and length. If you kept a coin on the pitch, he would hit it nine times out of 10! He would bowl a length which made it very difficult to either drive or cut him. Nobody would take a chance of cutting him because he was so fast in the air. These factors meant that it was very difficult to go after him. In those days, they used to play on uncovered wickets in England, which made him almost unplayable in those conditions".
Later in his career, Underwood forfeited two years of his Test career to play in the Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket and in 1981, was banned for touring South Africa with the England rebel team. He also dabbled with administration, serving as the MCC president for a year in 2008.
Derek Underwood made his test debut against West Indies in 1966. He was ranked first in ICC bowlers rankings from 1969 to 1973. He was selected Wisden Cricketer of the year in 1969. On the Indian tour of 1976, he picked up 29 wickets and was the most successful of the English bowlers. A nice bloke, Underwood was one of the fiercest competitors on the field, with his nagging line & length and legendary accuracy. Batters always found themselves tied down by his bowling and being anxious to break free would lose their wickets at the other end. His County cricket bowling exploits with Kent was also remarkable. He was perfectly suited in bowling well on placid and docile tracks and did not need a conducive track to claim his wickets. As a batsman too, he was stubborn and many times sent as a night watchman and had undergone a laudable job of not only seeing the day through, but also taking the bulk of the bowling taking the venom out of the bowling attack in the following day pre-lunch session in test matches. Like his mates, he took absolute pride playing for England.
Playing the Kerry Packer series got him to miss three important years of his test cricket stint otherwise it would seem that he would have certainly reached the much coveted 400 test wicket haul. Two of his memorable deliveries against India are worth mentioning here. One was the delivery he bowled to Viswanath, who was in immaculate touch in the 1974 test which pitched on the leg stump and turned viciously to knock back the off stump to win that test. The next one was in the Chepauk test at Chennai in 1976 on a flat track, where the ball was not turning. He pitched the ball somewhere around middle and leg stump and which spun with a bullet speed to peg back Brijesh's off stump. That was a delivery which would have fooled many a batter in world cricket. In that test he remained lethal all the time and India were bowled out for a meagre 83 enabling England to win the test and the series as well. The fierceness of his competitiveness on the field could only be matched by his virtue of upholding the true spirit of gamesmanship. Who can forget Underwood applauding the exquisite century scored by G.R. Viswanath with a warm handshake and then saying to him, ' Master, when you have had enough, please give your wicket to this bowler'. He was the most likeable and vastly dedicated professional English cricketer, a true gentleman of the beautiful sport of Cricket.
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