Ritesh Misra, Surat, 11 May 2023
Nari Contractor, one of the most popular cricketers to play for India and also the Captain of the Indian Test team, was grit personified. Professionally, I have dealt with Nari Contractor once for a chance reason, though I did not meet him then (there was no reason to), and I dealt with him only through the official records in the Income Tax Department. This was in 2011 when I came to Mumbai on promotion. In my very first fortnight, an assessing officer posted with me came and asked me to sign a forwarding letter for no tax dues in the name of a popular former cricketer, who was in consideration for an award by the Government of India. That’s the general policy of the Government and the cricketer in consideration was former Indian cricket Captain Nariman Jamshedji Contractor, popularly known as Nari Contractor or Nari Uncle or Nari Bhai.
A few years later, I was lucky to meet the great man himself. I was struck by his disarming charm and the easy way he held himself. A bit hesitantly, I asked him about my 2011 incident and whether he did receive an award that year. His answer floored me. “I think I did but I am not sure. In any case, I have not bothered much about awards, the best reward and award for me always has been the chance to play cricket for India and also the chance to always keep on meeting young sports lovers like you.” That’s Nari Contractor for you! In that first meeting, he told me firmly to call him Nari Bhai and not Sir, and so I will call him Nari Bhai in this article as well.
Nari Bhai is one of the most popular cricketers ever to play and lead India. Six-time Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, late Jayalalitha Madam had a crush on him (and Shammi Kapoor as well), as stated by the superstar turned political supremo in Simi Garewal’s TV show. She said that she used to go and see Test matches only to see Nari Contractor!
Nari Bhai is considered a quintessential Mumbaikar, though interestingly he never played Ranji Trophy for Bombay. That was due to a fascinating quirk of destiny. His mother was supposed to catch a train to Bombay for her delivery from a place called Dohad in Gujarat. Nari Bhai’s uncle was the train driver and his duty was over at Godhra which was two hours from Dohad. As she felt uneasy, she was asked to take some rest at Godhra and recommence her journey the next day for Bombay. However, the very next day, she had her delivery at Godhra only and thereby Nari Bhai was eligible to play for Gujarat.
At 21, Nari Bhai was confident he would be selected for Bombay. However, he was not selected in the team and he sent a message to the Gujarat Cricket Association that he was available to play for them if selected. When the team was announced, his was the last name on the list. A quirk of destiny it was that the captain himself had stepped down. The youngster grabbed the opportunity and scored hundreds in both innings of his debut first-class match, and even now, he is the only Indian to have this feat (Arthur Morris is the only other cricketer to do so).
This quirk of destiny would continue for Nari Bhai throughout his career. Let us see how destiny/luck/fate played a role in some other specific instances.
Nari Bhai’s opening for India too was an act of destiny. Vinoo Mankad was supposed to play and open versus New Zealand at Delhi in the 1955 series but was not available. Hence, Nari Bhai opened. Similarly, when Polly Umrigar opted out of captaincy, Nari Bhai got the chance to become captain of India. Overall, he played 31 Tests in which he scored 1611 runs at an average of 31.58. He captained India in 12 Tests.
Destiny’s most cruel trick came in what proved to be Nari Bhai’s last Test match with injury curtailing his career. India was playing West Indies in a tour match at Barbados. The gentlemanly captain Frank Worrell had told the Indian players before the match to beware of fast bowler Charlie Griffith who, he said, though very very quick, did not have a clean action. Nari Bhai was not supposed to play this match but he did. Normally he never faced the first ball and preferred to be at the non-striker’s end. However, he made an exception as Dilip Sardesai was opening for the first time. In the first over, Hall got the wicket of Sardesai and Rusi Surti came in to bat. The ball before the injury was the 4th ball of the second over and it was by Griffith. Conrad Hunte dropped a sitter. If he had caught it, Nari Bhai would have been out and not injured subsequently. He was also upset with Rusi Surti for complaining to him about Griffith’s action instead of complaining to the umpire. Surti had shouted, “Skipper he is chucking” and Nari Bhai walked up to him and said, “If you feel so, tell the umpire, don’t shout from the other end”. Anyways, all this probably resulted in a loss of concentration. In the 5th ball, disaster struck. As Griffith was about to ball someone opened a window in the Pavilion and Nari Bhai got distracted for a split second. The ball struck him and almost took his life. Frank Worrell, Polly Umprigar, Chandu Borde, and Bapu Nadkarni donated blood and thankfully Nari Bhai’s life was saved.
Inspired by this near tragedy, the CAB organises a blood donation camp every year in the club house of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), to acknowledge the humanitarian act of Worrell. During the camp, hundreds of sports lovers come forward to donate blood to the Government Blood Banks. The certificates provided to the donors are signed by a legendary cricket figure every year. Don Bradman, Sunil Gavaskar, Garfield Sobers, Imran Khan, Ritchie Benaud, Sachin Tendulkar, Syed Mushtaq Ali, Ian Botham, John Wright, and Sanat Jayasurya are some of the great cricketers who have signed the certificates for the noble act of the donors.
Sadly, the selectors did not have the confidence to select him again though within a year of his horrific injury he was batting again. He was just 28 and his performance and averages were roughly the same before and after injury. Yet, somehow the selectors did not take him in the team. In his last Duleep trophy match, he scored a hundred.
Certainly, this bravest and grittiest of cricketers who had once scored 81 in a test match at Lords after two ribs were broken by Brian Statham (Fred Trueman and Alan Moss were in the attack as well), deserved to be given one last chance, something he mentions as his only wish….that if he could have played just one test match more!
For that knock of 81 and a second innings knock of 11, Keith Miller says that Nari should have been given the Victorian Cross for bravery.
In fact, Nari Bhai was the first Indian Captain to lead India to a series win versus England. This was versus Ted Dexter’s team in 1961-62. After three drawn tests, India won the next two tests at Calcutta and Madras to win the series 2-0. Salim Durrani who took 18 wickets in these two tests is on record praising Nari Bhai for his astute captaincy. For that series win, the Indian team members were paid a bonus of Rs. 50 each in addition to their match fees of Rs 250.
Signing off with an interesting Nari Contractor trivia who, before joining the Tatas, was working for SBI and prior to that the Railways. After a test match hundred versus Australia, Nari Bhai was walking to his SBI Fort Branch, Mumbai office in the same evening. When asked why, he said, “a century does not run my house. It is my work in office that does it!”
Lucky to have met you so many times Nari Bhai, and I cherish every meeting. You are a shining Icon of India and the grittiest cricketer of India!
