The First Ranji Trophy Match Was Held at Madras on Nov 4, 1934. Considered by many to be extremely unlucky not to have donned the Indian colors. A. G. Ram Singh speaks about Madras’ challenge in the inaugural year of Ranji Trophy cricket. The Grand Old Man of Madras cricket had a satisfying time in the first year.
The inaugural Ranji Trophy match was over in just a day, which is still a record. On a rain-affected wicket, Madras routed Mysore by an innings and 23 runs. The first Ranji Trophy match was held at Madras on Nov 4, 1934. It lasted one day, only 100 overs and 5 balls. Mysore (Karnataka) 1st inn: 48. Madras (Tamil Nadu) 1st inn: 130. Mysore 2nd inn: 59. Ram Singh bowled unchanged in both innings and took 11 for 35 off 27.5 overs.
The first match in the Ranji Trophy championship was a dream match for me. It was raining on the eve of the match, and grave doubts were expressed about whether the match would begin. But luckily the weather gods relented, and play started on time on November 4. The drying pitch played pranks, giving a lot of encouragement to the spinners. My skipper, Johnstone, a shrewd judge of the game, asked me to open the bowling after he had won the toss and put the opponent in.
Good support: I bowled throughout both Mysore innings, and the support I got from the fielders was invaluable. C. Ramaswamy took four fine catches in the close-in position, while the ever-alert wicket-keeper S. V. T. Chari effected four stumpings off my bowling. The match was over in a single day, Madras winning by an inning and 23 runs. Mysore had few things to remember in this match but for the bowling of off-spinner M. G. Vijayasarathy. Vijayasarathy later became a Test umpire, and so did his son Nagendra.
Johnstone won the toss and asked Mysore to bat on a pitch that was a veritable paradise for spin bowling. N. Curtis and P. McCosh opened the batting for Mysore against M. J. Gopalan and A. G. Ram Singh. Ram Singh was soon in his element. In seven overs he claimed three wickets to send Mysore tumbling to 14 for three. Curtis hooked Johnstone for a 4, and Nailer lifted Ram Singh for a magnificent 6 over the long-on. But Ram Singh had the last laugh as he had Nailer lifting a catch to extra cover to make Mysore 41 for five. Mysore was in a depressing position. And the tail offered no resistance whatsoever. Vijayasarathy and Safi Darashah were out at the same total. Soon thereafter, Mysore was all out for 49 in 83 minutes. Only one bowling change was affected in Mysore’s innings.
The home team’s reply: A. V. Krishnaswamy and C. P. Johnstone, the Madras skipper, opened the home team’s innings to the bowling of Buttenshaw and Nagaraja Rao. Buttenshaw was kicking up the ball disconcertingly, and some of his deliveries rose head high. At nine, the first Madras wicket fell, Krishnaswamy dragging a good length ball from Nagaraj into his wicket.
At 23 for one, Safi Darashah successfully appealed for lbw against Johnstone, who made only six. Ram Singh and N. N. Swarna were together for Madras when the home team passed Mysore’s score. Madras took only 40 minutes to surpass Mysore’s score. At 55, Safi Darashah clean bowled Swarna, who made some lovely strokes in his 22. Ramaswamy, the next batsman in, swung an overpitched one from Buttenshaw to square-leg for 2 and hooked him for 4. But Ram Singh fell after making 14. His innings did not have the usual dash and confidence.
Darashah was bowling very well, and the batsmen were none too happy in facing him. But useful contributions by C. Ramaswamy (26), M. A. Uttappa (16), and M. J. Gopalan (23 in 21 minutes with three 4s off Y. S. Ramaswamy) saw Madras reach 130 in 125 minutes. Off-spinner M. G. Vijayasarathi claimed six wickets for Mysore. No better: Eighty-one runs behind in the first innings, Mysore went in for its second innings at 3:50 p.m. An early disaster overtook the visitors when McCosh was clean bowled by Ram Singh with his second ball of the first over.
Thus, two runs later, Curtis spooned a catch to C. Ramaswamy in the slips off Morappakkam Gopalan. Hen Nailer, the Madras Presidency cricketer, again disappointed. He was hardly comfortable against Gopalan and saw his wickets spreadeagled before he had broken his ‘duck.’ Only three players, T. Murari (11), Safi Darashah (10), and M. S. Teversham (11), reached double figures for Mysore, which was all out for 59 after 80 minutes. The end came five minutes from the draw of stumps when Ram Singh bowled Teversham, middle and off stumps.
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