Dubai, March 4: Rohit Sharma-led Indian team was wearing black armbands during the ICC Champions Trophy semifinal clash against Australia on Tuesday in honour of left-arm spinner Padmakar Shivalkar, who passed away on Monday, aged 84.
“In honour of the late Shri Padmakar Shivalkar, Team India is wearing black armbands today,” BCCI wrote on X. Shivalkar was a stalwart of Indian domestic cricket, renowned for his unparalleled skill and dedication to the game.
A dominant force in the Ranji Trophy, Shivalkar played 124 first-class matches, claiming an impressive 589 wickets at an outstanding average of 19.69. He delivered one of the most memorable performances in Ranji Trophy history, taking 8 for 16 and 5 for 18 in the 1972–73 final, leading Mumbai (then Bombay) to a resounding victory over Tamil Nadu.
Despite never representing India in international cricket as his era coincided with that of fellow left-arm spinner and legend Bishan Singh Bedi, Shivalkar’s immense contributions to Indian cricket were formally recognised when he was honoured by the Board with the prestigious Col. C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.
Coming to the match, Australia won the toss and opted to bat first at Dubai International Stadium. Steve Smith made two changes in the playing 11 as Cooper Connolly came in for Matthew Short while Tanveer Sangha replaced Spencer Johnson.
On the other hand, India remained unchanged for the knockout clash and went ahead with four spinners for the all-important clash. India were undefeated in their Group A campaign with wins over Bangladesh, Pakistan and New Zealand, respectively.
“We’ve played good cricket in all three games and that’s what we’ll look to do now. It’s going to be challenging. The slower bowlers have come into play a lot, that’s why we wanted same team. We played a couple of days back here, we want to continue from where we left. Now that we are bowling first, we have to bowl well and try and restrict them as less as possible,” Rohit said at the toss.
IANS