Tour of England 1936         Captain: Maharajkumar of Vizianagram

India’s second official Test tour

Second Test-playing tour of England by India

(April - September 1936)

The Maharaja of Patiala sent his agent Frank Tarrant to Australia in January 1935 to arrange for an Australian side under Jack Ryder to play the Indian team in 1935-36, which would help prepare the team  for the three-Test trip to England in 1936.  India employed three captains in the four unofficial Tests against the Australians: the Yuvraj of Patiala in the first match, then CK Nayudu in the second, and Wazir Ali in the last two.

Under any of these captains, the tour would have run more smoothly but Vizzy – also one of the selectors – ensured that he led the side, including leading India in the Test matches.

Vizzy fell out with the natural on-field leader C K Nayudu and team members split into Nayudu’s or Vizzy’s camp.  Self-interest took precedence over team spirit, and the machinations saw Lala Amarnath, arguably the best cricketer in the side, sent home for indiscipline.

India might have won the first Test match at Lord’s after gaining a first innings lead, but succumbed to the pace bowling of Allen and spin of Verity, being dismissed for only 93 runs. In the second Test match an opening stand of 203 between Merchant and Mushtaq Ali who both made centuries secured a creditable draw, while the third Test was lost heavily.

Other Indian tours

Previous tour

England 1932

Next tour

England 1946 

Members of the Test tour party   (17  + 4)

Opening batsmen: : Vijay Merchant, Mushtaq Ali, Wazir Ali

Middle-order batsmen: Maharaja of Vizianagram, Cota Ramaswamy, Phiroze Palia, Mohammad Hussain, Laxmidas Jai.

All-rounders:  CK Nayudu, Lala Amarnath

Wicket-keepers:Khershed Meherhomji, Dattaram Hindlekar.

Spinners: Amir Elahi

Fast bowlers:Baqa Jilani, Shute Banerjee, Mohammad Nissar, Morappakkam Gopalan. 

Mohammad Hussain, Mohammad Nissar, Vizianagram and Wazir Ali did not take part in the 1935-36 Ranji Trophy

Zonal representation

C: Central (5), E: East (1), N: North (4), S: South (3), W: West (4)

 Ranji Trophy teams 

Bn - Bengal (1)

B  -  Bombay (3)

C Ind - Central India (2)

Hd   - Hyderabad (1)

Ms -  Madras (2)

N Ind -  Northern India (2)

S Pj   - South Punjab (3)

U Pv -  United Provinces (2)

W Ind - Western India (1)

Note   The Ranji Trophy was launched in the 1934-35 season.

Average age of team at time of first Test match

(27 June 1936) :

     28 yrs  9 months.

Test Appearances made before the tour

C K Nayudu 4,  Wazir Ali 4,  Amar Singh 4,  Amarnath 3,  Merchant 3,  Nissar 3,  Mushtaq Ali 2,  C S Nayudu 2,  Dilawar 2,  Gopalan 1,  Jai 1,  Palia 1,  Jahangir 1,  Amir Elahi 0,  Banerjee 0,  Hindlekar 0,  Hussain 0,  Jilani 0,  Meherhomji 0,  Ramaswamy 0,  Maharajkumar of Vizianagram 0.

Tour Officials 

Selectors 

Dr H D Kanga resigned from the selection panel because of princely interference and Sir Chunlal Mehta, Mr Justice Salamuddin and S E West felt unable to accept the Board's invitation to join the selection committee.

The selectors were the Nawab of Bhopal (President of the Indian Board and chairman of the selectors), the Nawab of Pataudi and K S Duleepsinhji, whose place was taken by the Maharajkumar of Vizianagram.  Duleepsinhji could not come to India to accept his invitation to serve as a selector so Vizzy took his place.

Selection 

On 29 October 1935 the Nawab of Pataudi, who had accepted the 1936 tour captaincy, withdrew owing to poor health. The only other realistic (that is, royal) candidate was the Yuvraj of Patiala. That CK Nayudu, the best player in India, refused to play at Lahore against the 1935-36 Australians implied that he would not play under any captain other than Patiala. But the Maharaja of Patiala withdrew his son's name, and that of his employee Wazir Ali, saying "I cannot let the name of Patiala be associated with what is happening now." Maharaj Kumar of Vizianagram was then appointed and so achieved the captaincy over Nayudu.  Vizzy won the votes of 10 of the states to Nayudu's 4.

"Ghulam Ahmed later had the distinction of being the first Hyderabadi to play in the Test for India in 1948-49 against West Indies. Though Nawab Mohd Hasan toured England in 1936 with the Indian team, he did not play a Test match. On that tour Hadi, who was an assistant manager, played a first class match".[Source: The New Indian Express]

Unavailable:  Yuvraj of Patiala.

Not selected  The following played in the representative matches against the 1935-36 Australians   Abdul Aziz,  J N Bhaya,  K Bose,  S V T Chari,  S M Hadi,  Masood Salahuddin,  Mian Mohammad Saeed,  S Mubarak Ali,  J G Navle,  M M Nayudu,  D R Puri,  A G Ram Singh,  Shahabuddin.

Ram Singh missed selection, according to Edward Docker’s "History of Indian Cricket", because of regional factionalism by the North against the South, particularly Madras.

Tour Party Announced : 16 February 1936.

Gopalan was called upon to play hockey for  India in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, but he chose the cricket tour to England instead.  Gopalan, Hindlekar, Jai, Merchant, Ramaswamy and Maharajkumar of Vizianagram had not played in the 1935-36 representative matches.

Time between selection and departure from India

 48 days

(16 February - 4 April)

Travel

The team assembled at Bhopal on 1 April as guests of the Nawab of Bhopal, except for S M Hussain who was delayed caring for his sick mother.  Hussain left Hyderabad by train on 2 April and joined the squad at Bombay.

The tour began with sailing from Bombay on Saturday 4 April 1936 on the "Viceroy of India". The ship reached Tilbury on 20 April and the team took the train to St Pancras Station, London.  Vizzy had left the ship at Marseilles to travel overland and arrived in England four days previously.

Time spent in England

 166 days

(20 April - 17 September)

On-tour selection committee 

None.  Vizzy and the manager made all the decisions. There was no vice-captain.

Reinforcements 

The Indian Board had made prior arrangements to call upon Amar Singh, a professional with Lancashire club Colne ; and with Jahangir Khan and Dilawar Hussain, who were both studying at Cambridge University.

When Lala Amarnath was sent home, Nayudu’s younger brother, Subbanna, was brought over to replace him. 

S M Hadi, the tour treasurer, and a brother of S M Hussain, played in two matches.

Fixtures/Results 

† not first-class

.

Time spent in England before First Test:

 68 days

(20 April - 27 June)

Test appearances on tour 

3 -   Amar Singh,  Jahangir Khan,  Merchant,  Mushtaq Ali,  Nissar,  C K Nayudu,  Maharajkumar of Vizianagram,  Wazir Ali.

2 -   C S Nayudu,  Ramaswamy.

1 -   Dilawar, Gopalan,  Hindlekar,  Jai,  Palia.

0 -   Amarnath,  Amir Elahi,  Banerjee,  Baqa Jilani,  Hussain,  Meherhomji.

Highlights 

•   Opening the bowling in the first Test at Lord’s, Amar Singh took six wickets for 35 runs.

•   Faced with a first innings deficit of 368 runs at Old Trafford, Merchant (114) and Mushtaq Ali (112) put on a first wicket partnership of 203 runs in only 150 minutes.

•   Merchant and Mushtaq, opening the batting again at The Oval, each scored 52 in the first innings.

•   Nayudu, struck by a ball from Allen, refused to retire hurt and saved an innings defeat at The Oval.

•   At Old Trafford Cota Ramaswamy aged 40 years and 37 days was, and still is, India’s oldest debutant.

Tour Summary 

Return to India

London   t  Marseilles

Marseilles  T   Bombay

               ’Elysia' 

Vizzy returned to India on the 'Strathmore'.

C S Nayudu remained in England to study law.  Jahangir Khan and Dilawar Hussain returned to Cambridge University.  Brittain-Jones also stayed in England. 

The team left on the boat train from Victoria Station, London, on Thursday 17 September and caught their ship home at Marseilles.  They arrived at Bombay on the 'Elysia' on 1 October 1936.

Time away from India

 180 days  

(4 April to 1 October 1936)

Finances

The tour made an overall loss of £1000.

Published accounts of the tour

"Lala Amarnath Life and Times: The Making of a Legend"   by Rajinder Amarnath [Sportsbooks, 2007]

Postscript