Happy Birthday Vinod Kambli: Five Facts About the Mumbai-born Cricketer

HAPPY BIRTHDAY VINOD KAMBLI: Former Indian cricketer Vinod Kambli turns 51 today on Wednesday. The cricketer from Mumbai is renowned for his famous partnership with master blaster Sachin Tendulkar. The Mumbai-born cricketer displayed his sublime talent in the sport over the years, even though his career was short-lived.

Let us take a look at some of the interesting facts about Kambli’s cricket career:

1. Kambli came from a humble family that lived in a chawl in Kanjurmarg, Mumbai. His father, who worked as a mechanic, also had a cricketing background. He played cricket in Mumbai’s club circuit where he honed his skill as a fast bowler.

2. Kambli shared an unbroken partnership of 664 runs with his childhood friend Sachin Tendulkar in a school cricket match against St. Xavier’s School. Kambli was at 349 when their coach Ramakant Vitthal Acharekar declared the innings. After that Kambli took six wickets for 37 runs in St. Xavier’s first innings.

3. Kambli was selected for the Indian under-19 team to play the Asia Youth Cup in 1989. Kambli’s teammates included some of the notable cricketers including Sourav Ganguly, Ranjib Biswal, Ajay Jadeja, and Dhruv Pandove.

4. The left-hand batter played 17 Test matches for India and scored 1,084 runs at an average of 54.20 including two double centuries and two tons.

5. Kambli’s 104 ODIs produced 2,477 runs at an average of 32.59 including two centuries. On January 18, 1993, Kambli scored an ODI century on his birthday, making him the first cricketer to create such a record in the white-ball format. Besides Kambli, Tendulkar and Ross Taylor are some of the other batters who went on to create a similar record.

Although he had an impressive talent, Kambli was not included in the Indian ODI team after October 2000 and retired from international cricket in 2009. The cricketer announced his retirement from first-class cricket in 2011.

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