The 1983 World Cup win is a really big moment in Indian sporting history. It changed the landscape of cricket in India making it the most watched, played and loved sport.
The Indian squad of the 1983 World Cup was led by Kapil Dev and comprised of 14 great men who scripted history to become the champions. In this article, we learn more about those players and let’s start with the leader, skipper, and champion Kapil Dev.
The 1983 World Cup winning players-
Kapil Dev-
Kapil Dev was the captain of the 1983 victorious team. He was born on 6 January 1959 and played as an all-rounder in the team. Kapil played 131 Tests and 225 ODIs for India and scored over 9000 international runs. He is to date the 3rd highest wicket-taker for India in tests with 434 wickets. Kapil Dev 175 Scorecard played a very vital role in world cup 1983.
Mohinder Amarnath-
Mohinder Amarnath was the vice-captain of the 1983 World Cup Indian team. He was born on 24th September 1950 and played as an all-rounder in the team. Batting at no.3 he was India’s best batsman against pace. He played 69 tests and 85 ODIs in his career and scored over 6000 international runs. He also took 78 wickets in his career.
Syed Kirmani-
Syed Kirmani was India’s wicket-keeper in the 1983 World Cup. He was born on 29 December 1949 and played 88 Tests and 49 ODIs for India. In the 1983 World Cup, he made a crucial partnership of 126 runs with Kapil Dev vs Zimbabwe in which his contribution was 24 runs of 56 balls. With the gloves in hand, Kirmani contributed in 14 dismissals in the 1983 World Cup.
Roger Binny-
Roger Binny was India’s premier bowler in the 1983 World Cup and also the leading wicket-taker of the tournament with 18 wickets to his name. Roger was born on 19 July 1955 and played 99 matches for India between 1979 and 1987.
Madan Lal-
Madan Lal was one of the best bowlers in the Indian bowling attack and also the joint 2nd highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 17 wickets to his name. Madan was born on 20 March 1951 and played 67 Tests and 67 ODIs for India between 1974 and 1987. He took 144 wickets in his international cricket career.
Balwinder Singh Sandhu-
Balwinder also a paceman, had a short international career but his role was vital in the 1983 World Cup campaign. Sandhu scalped 8 wickets in the Prudential Cup including the wickets of Gordon Greenidge and Jeff Dujon in the finals.
Sandhu was born on 3rd August 1956 and represented India in 8 Tests and 22 ODIs from 1982 to 1984.
Sandeep Patil-
Sandeep Patil was India’s finisher in the 1983 World Cup. Born on 18th August 1956, Sandeep made his India debut in 1980 and represented India in 29 Tests and 45 ODIs. He played a couple of quick knocks in the Prudential Cup, and one was a 32-balls 51* runs innings vs England in the semi-final.
Yashpal Sharma-
Yashpal Sharma was the most integral and important batsman in the Indian batting line-up. Batting at no.4, he not only settled the innings but also scored runs at a decent pace. In India’s opening match vs West Indies, Yashpal was the player of the match for his 89 runs off 120 balls. Yashpal was born on 11th August 1954 and represented India in 37 Tests and 42 ODIs.
Sunil Gavaskar-
The little master Sunil Gavaskar is India’s batting legend who is also the 1st Indian cricketer to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket. Sunil Gavaskar was born on 10th July 1949 and served Indian cricket for 17 long years. Currently, Gavaskar is involved as a broadcaster and commentator.
Kris Srikkanth-
Kris Srikkanth, born on 21 December 1959 was renowned as an aggressive batter who had the ability to hit big shots and score quickly. He played close to 200 games for India and scored over 6000 international runs. In the 1983 World Cup Srikkanth was one of the openers in the side and in the final, Srikkanth top scored(38) for India.
Dilip Vengsarkar-
Dilip was a key batsman for India in the late 1970s and the 1980s. Dilip was born on 6th April 1956 and played more than 100 Tests and ODIs for India. In the 1983 World Cup, he could only play a few matches due to an injury courtesy of a fast bouncer from Malcolm Marshall.
Sunil Valson-
Sunil was born on 2nd October 1958 and was one of the best left-arm fast bowlers in India during the early 1980s but could not ever make his India debut. He was part of the 1983 World Cup squad but had to sit out in all the matches.
Ravi Shastri-
The recent India coach and commentator Ravi Shastri was also a part of the 1983 squad that clinched the title. Ravi was born on 27th May 1962 and represented India in 80 Tests and 150 ODIs. He played 5 matches in the 1983 campaign and 3 wickets against West Indies was his marquee performance in the tournament.
Kirti Azad- Kirti Azad was born on 2nd January 1959 and played 7 Tests and 25 ODIs for India between 1980-86. In the 1983 World Cup, Kirti bowled Sir Ian Botham on a wonderful delivery that turned sharply and also kept low at the same time.
So this was all about the former cricketers who won the 1983 World Cup, India’s maiden World Cup title. The 83 movie portrays each of these cricketers and their campaign very nicely in the movie and gives a chance to fans to relive those historic moments.
