On this day in 1994: Legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev bids adieu to Test cricket

Most cricket fans would look back at 23 March with a heavy heart as it was on this day that cricket veteran Kapil Dev bid adieu to Test cricket.

Dev is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders and began his Test career in October 1978, when he played against Pakistan at Faisalabad. In his Test career, the all-rounder amassed 5,248 runs in 184 innings at an average of 31.05, which includes eight glorious centuries and 27 half-centuries.

Coming to his bowling record, the right-arm pacer took 434 Test wickets in 227 innings at an average of 29.64, with 23 five-wicket hauls and best bowling figures of 9/83 against West Indies.

During the 1983 Ahmedabad Test against West Indies, Kapil Dev’s 9/83 remains the only instance of a captain taking a 9 wicket-haul in Test cricket. The all-rounder also became the first cricketer to have hit four consecutive sixes in an over in Test cricket during the 1990 Test match against England’s EE Hemmings at the Lord’s Cricket Ground.

When he retired, he was the only Test cricketer to score more than 4000 runs and take more than 400 wickets.

A destructive batter and a potent fast bowler, Kapil Dev played his last Test match against New Zealand in 1994 at Hamilton, where the hosts won the toss and elected to bat first.

Captain Ken Rutherford was the lone fighter in the first innings with 63 runs as India bowled New Zealand out for a paltry 187 runs. Pacer Javagal Srinath led the way with four wickets while the others chipped in as well. Dev started his first Test in some style, sending back opener Blair Hartland for a duck but that remained his sole wicket in the first innings. India replied by scoring a decent total of 246. Skipper Mohammad Azharuddin made a solid 63 while Nayan Mongia and Sachin Tendulkar scored 45 and 43 respectively. Kapil Dev scored 18 off 44 balls before being cleaned up by pacer Dion Nash.

In the second innings, New Zealand put on a much better batting performance as Stephen Fleming smashed 92 and Bryan Young scored 85. New Zealand declared the innings at 368/7 and set India a target of 310 runs in 66 overs. Dev picked up one wicket again, that of wicket-keeper batter Adam Parore.

India posted 177/3 in 59 overs in the second innings and the match was drawn.

With the culmination of this match, Indian cricket’s champion Kapil Dev bid adieu to Test cricket after an illustrious career that spanned around 16 years and left behind an inspirational legacy for many cricketers to come.