Kapil’s Devils go down memory lane about the World Cup triumph ahead of the release of the ’83’ movie. Kapil Dev’s historic knock of 175 at the 1983 cricket world cup is fondly remembered even today.
Kapil’s Devils, in their sixties and seventies now, had a get-together in Mumbai on Wednesday, December 22, in a special celebration and premiere of Director Kabir Khan’s movie’83’ which takes viewers back to Indian cricket’s finest hour, when India beat the West Indies in the 1983 Prudential Cup. The movie brings back memories of India’s first-ever World Cup triumph, a report in the Indian Express says
An excited Sunil Valson said on the phone. “We are getting ready for the premiere. All of us will go together”. The left-arm seamer didn’t get a single game at the 1983 World Cup. His team-mates ensured that he never felt left out.
The final of the 1983 Cricket World Cup was played between India and the West Indies at Lord’s on 25 June 1983.
This was the third consecutive World Cup final appearance for the West Indies, having won the last two Cricket World Cups. India, playing in their first final, defeated the West Indies to claim their first World Cup title. India’s victory in the match is generally regarded as a landmark moment in cricket.
The official trailer of the film on YouTube, takes viewers back to June 18, 1983. Tunbridge Wells was the venue and India had been facing Zimbabwe on the heels of their back-to-back losses against the West Indies and Australia. They were playing to survive.
A voice from the dressing-room informs Kapil Dev about a shaky start. “Kaps, it’s two down.” His captain berates him: “Let me shower.” Quickly it was 9/4 and 17/5. It seemed as if India were going out of the World Cup.
This was the third consecutive World Cup final appearance for the West Indies, having won the last two Cricket World Cups. India, playing in their first final, defeated the West Indies to claim their first World Cup title. India’s victory in the match is generally regarded as a landmark moment in cricket.
A success of that magnitude carries an overload of anecdotes. Syed Kirmani shared one… “I walked up to Kapil, who was standing there, his head down. It was a 60-over game and we still had 35 overs left in our innings. I told Kapil, ‘listen Kaps, we are in a do-or-die situation. We just cannot sit and die’. ‘Maar ke marne ka hai (we will go down hitting)’, he said.
“I tried to inspire him saying, ‘you are the best hitter in the Indian team. I will take singles and will give you strike. You will try to hit every delivery’. He said, ‘Kiri bhai, humko aur 35 overs khelna hai (we still have to play 35 overs). I will try my best’.”
What followed became a part of folklore. Kapil’s 175 not out remains unarguably the greatest limited-overs innings in the history of Indian cricket. The skipper, though, was still fuming at the top-order’s capitulation.
Kapil Dev was a young captain who needed the support of his seniors, at a time when Indian cricket was a prisoner of zonal lobbies. Kirmani recalled how the skipper’s first team meeting was a clincher. “On the eve of our very first match we had a team meeting, where Kapil said, ‘listen gentlemen, you are all seven seniors, you don’t need my guidance. You will have to guide me’.
Cut to Kapil’s team talk after India were 183 all out in the final. Once again, Kirmani is the narrator. “Even after we were all out for 183 in the final, we weren’t looking back. We had nothing to lose. Kapil said, ‘let’s go and give our best’. We had already overachieved. We decided to put our best foot forward.”
Some anecdotes have an overtone of mischief. Grapevine has it that Kapil’s instruction to Balwinder Sandhu was not to bowl an inswinger, with Sandeep Patil manning the fine leg boundary – all light-hearted banters, never to offend anybody.
Dilip Vengsarkar spoke about the post-final celebration.
A Malcolm Marshall bouncer that landed on the cheekbone and required eight stitches to fix, had sidelined Vengsarkar for the rest of the World Cup. But on June 25, when Mohinder Amarnath plucked out the last West Indies wicket and ran towards the pavilion, he was on the Lord’s balcony to cheer.
India overcame the 66-1 odds to win the 1983 World Cup, at the expense of Krishnamachari Srikkanth’s honeymoon trip to the United States. Some other cricketers too had booked flights to the US as well. Nobody gave the sixty-six times underdogs a chance. When the unthinkable happened, the first port of call had to be Delhi, with then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi waiting to felicitate the golden boys.
The Ranveer Singh-starrer, 83, has been Khan’s ambitious project, something the whole country is waiting for. “It’s been a labour of love that we have nurtured for years. I cannot wait for everyone to finally watch that come alive on screen,” the director told indianexpress.com.
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