'The way he controlled the players on and off the field, it was brilliant. That's why the players also took to him very easily.'
The legendary Sunil Gavaskar on Tuesday condoled the death of renowned umpire Harold 'Dickie' Bird, saying the Englishman was a "unique character", who understood the "tensions and pressures" of the players.
The most famous cricket umpire of his time has left the ground forever.
'We all make mistakes, but what is important is that you've got to get that out of your mind before the next ball commences.' K R Nayar recalls his many encounters with Dickie Bird, the legendary cricket umpire who passed into the ages this week.
'The shot will create a lot of problems. How do you deal with lbws and wides? Do you treat the batsman as right-hander or a left-hander?' the legendary umpire was quoted as saying in the Daily Telegraph.
The Decision Referral System will belittle the authority of the on-field match officials and International Cricket Council (ICC) has committed a serious mistake by introducing it, said former umpire Dickie Bird.
Cricket icon Sunil Gavaskar celebrates a magnificent 75th birthday on July 10th. Rediff.com picks 15 facts about Sunil Gavaskar you need to know:
The dubious dismissal of Karnataka opener Prakhar Chaturvedi in the recent Col. CK Nayudu Trophy U23 final against Uttar Pradesh has raised concerns about the standards of umpiring in domestic matches.
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar is happy to be a part of Dickie Bird's all-time Test XI even as some former cricketers called the ex-English umpire's composition as "biased" and "ill-balanced".
The Board of Control for Cricket in India has recommended young batsman Virat Kohli for the prestigious Arjuna award and former captain Sunil Gavaskar for the Dhyanchand lifetime achievement honour.
The cricket fraternity in India expressed shock over the omission of legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Don Bradman in the all-time Test eleven named by former English umpire Dickie Bird. Some former cricketers have called his composition "biased" and "ill-balanced".
Legendary umpire Dickie Bird has slammed the use of technology in cricket, saying the power of decision-making should remain with on-field officials.
Former English Test umpire Dickie Bird has joined the chorus of people imploring the International Cricket Council (ICC) to change their rules to ensure the best officials are appointed to the biggest series.
Former England opener Geoffrey Boycott believes he was technically superior to Sunil Gavaskar even though his Yorkshire teammate Dicky Bird feels otherwise.
A bronze statue of English umpire Harold "Dickie" Bird will be unveiled in his Yorkshire home town of Barnsley this year with replicas in Melbourne and a site in India.
T20 could kill county cricket Former Test umpire Dickie Bird fears the shortest version of the game may end up killing county cricket in England. 'We can't lose county cricket because that's where our next generation of Test cricketers will come from,' he said.
It was this day, March 6, in 1971 that Sunil Manohar Gavaskar made his debut in Test cricket.
India have won the Asia Cup on seven occasions, Sri Lanka on five occasions, with Pakistan winning it twice.
When he ended his Test career, he held the following Test records: Most Tests (125). Most consecutive Tests (106). Most runs (10,122). Most hundreds (34). Most scores of 50 or more (79). Most hundred partnerships (58).
Such was Brian Close's reputation for bravery that he received a call back to the national team at age 45, to face the fearsome West Indian attack.
Legendary West Indies fast bowler Michael Holding feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni is not "innovative and proactive enough as captain, especially in Tests" although India would remain a strong contender to retain their World Cup title in Australia next year.
As cricketing ability goes, there is no comparison between Sanjay Manjrekar and Sachin Tendulkar. But while the former has produced a wonderful autobiography, the latter's book is deadly dull. In batting, they were the exact opposite: Manjrekar was a bore and Sachin an absolute marvel, says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
'As a player, the biggest question you ask yourself is whether you are good enough to be on the same ground as Gavaskar, Dev, Border and company.'
'If he carries on playing and if he stays fit, he will go past Tendulkar.'
'It is unfair to look at one decision, one ball out of 600-plus on the day and say that was the reason one team won and one team lost.'
India have won the Asia Cup six times, Sri Lanka five, and Pakistan have won it just twice. As the 14th edition of Asia's own trophy gets underway on Saturday, Rajneesh Gupta presents the numbers on the 13 editions so far.
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