The team which Bill Lawry led for the 1969-70 series was one of the best ever to have toured the sub-continent and was hailed the 'unofficial world champion' at the stage. It had some brilliant players of spin in Ian Chappell, Doug Walters, Ian Redpath, Paul Sheahan even as the great Indian quarter of Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapally Prasanna, Srinivas Venkataraghavan and Chandrasekhar (who did not play this series) was in the process of establishing itself as a potent force. It was a wonderful series all the way as India in the process discovered two great cricketers in G.R. Viswanath and Mohinder Amarnath.
The Australians began with a thumping win at Bombay, a Test marred by an incident involving Venkataraghavan. As he hesitated on being adjudged caught, the spectators reacted strongly and stopped just in time for the Test to resume. Shambhu Pan was the umpire in question. Noted Australian scribe Ray Robinson wrote in The Wildest Tests, the wicketkeeper Brian Taber did not appeal as Venkataraghavan cut Alan Connolly. Criticism by a radio commentator is said to have led to the stands being set afire and bottles (one striking bowler John Gleeson behind the right ear) and chairs (one striking skipper Bill Lawry) hurled on to the ground. Robinson wrote of how the scorer had to shift his position to see the game through the cloud of smoke arising from the fire in the stands and how one Indian journalist pleaded with the umpires to stop the game since smoke got into his eyes. "Aussies go home" screamed the spectators but the visitors, with the timely help of police, saw that the match ended in a victory for them. Continue reading below
In the next match at Kanpur, after a disappointing zero on debut, Viswanath cracked a classic 137 on his second visit which ensured a draw. The third Test at Ferozeshah Kotla produced one of India's most memorable moments on the cricket field as the cocky Australians succumbed to the Guiles of Bedi and Prasanna.
Even as Lawry, nicknamed "Phantom', spoke on the eve of the match of an early finish in order to go "fishing", it was the exciting pair of Ajit Wadekar and Viswanath which scripted the Indian victory after Prasanna and Bedi wove the spin magic, leaving the Australians embarrassed.
India went down tamely to Australia in the fourth Test at Calcutta. The Indians were clueless against the speed of Graham McKenzie and Alan Connolly but once again the match attracted controversy when one photographer alleged he had been pushed by Lawry and struck by the bat as he tried clicking from close, which happened to be almost on the pitch.
Once again, the Australians finished the match with chaotic scenes in the stands, this time the venue being the Eden Gardens. A pity that next day the Australians reportedly reached the airport only after suffering stoning of their bus by irate fans.
Once again, we have to go back to Robinson who wrote how Jack Fingleton's article in The Hindu praising Lawry prior to the Madras Test brought cheer to the Australians even though the sporting crowd, which lined up the streets to greet the visitors, did not fail to heckle the 'Phantom', who lost his captaincy a year later.
At Madras, the Indians had their chance when Australia, gaining a first innings lead of 95 runs, was gasping at 24 for six and 57 for seven before Redpath produced a gem of an innings in the circumstances. Known to play spin well, the Indians, at one stage cruising soundly with Wadekar and Viswanath in charge, crashed to off-spinner Ashley Mallett who finished with five wickets in each innings to fashion Australia's emphatic victory.
India could have fared better if only the selectors had, as Prasanna wrote in One More Over, made use of experienced cricketers like M.L. Jaisimha, Dilip Sardesai and Salim Durrani.
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1st Test at Bombay (Brabourne), 4-9 November 1969
Australia gained their first Test victory at Bombay soon after lunch on the fifth day. The omission of S. Venkataraghavan from India's side caused such a public outcry that S. Guha agreed to stand down from the selected team. The partnership of 146 between Mankad and Pataudi was India's highest for the fourth wicket against Australia until 1979-80. Stackpole became the second Australian after D.G. Bradman to score a hundred in his first Test against India. On the fourth day, the last hour of play endured through a riot resulting from Venkataraghavan's second innings dismissal.
Brief Scores
India: 271
Nawab of Pataudi,jr.95, AV Mankad 74, DN Sardesai 20
GD McKenzie 5-69, JW Gleeson 3-52, AN Connolly 2-55
Australia: 345
KR Stackpole 103, IR Redpath 77, KD Walters 48
EAS Prasanna 5-121, BS Bedi 3-74, S Venkataraghavan 2-67
India: 137
AL Wadekar 46, FM Engineer 28, CG Borde 18
JW Gleeson 4-56, AN Connolly 3-20, AA Mallett 2-22
Australia: 67-2
IM Chappell 31*, KD Walters 22*, KR Stackpole 11
RF Surti 2-9, S Venkataraghavan 0-2, AV Mankad 0-10
Australia won by 8 wickets
2nd Test at Kanpur, 15-20 November 1969
Gundappa Viswanath became the sixth batsman to score a hundred on his Test debut for India and the first to do so against Australia. His innings of 137, scored in 354 minutes and including 25 fours, was India's highest against Australia in a home Test until he scored 161 not out in 1979-80. Paul Sheahan delighted with a chanceless 226-minutes innings; his first Test hundred, it contained 20 boundaries.
Brief Scores
India: 320
FM Engineer 77, AV Mankad 64, ED Solkar 44
AN Connolly 4-91, AA Mallett 3-58, KR Stackpole 1-4
Australia: 348
AP Sheahan 114, IR Redpath 70, KD Walters 53
S Venkataraghavan 3-76, S Guha 2-55, EAS Prasanna 2-71
India: 312-7d
GR Viswanath 137, AV Mankad 68, ED Solkar 35
GD McKenzie 3-63, AN Connolly 2-69, AA Mallett 1-62
Australia: 95-0
WM Lawry 56*, KR Stackpole 37*
AV Mankad 0-0, AL Wadekar 0-0, GR Viswanath 0-4
Match Drawn
3rd Test at Delhi, 28 November - 2 December 1969
India gained their third victory against Australia and with more than a day to spare. Australia's total of 107 was the lowest in any Test at Delhi until 1987-88. Lawry, who batted for 195 minutes, became the sixth Australian to carry his bat through a complete innings and Nazar Mohammad of Pakistan to do so against India. Prasanna took his 100th Test wicket when he dismissed Sheahan.
Brief Scores
Australia: 296
IM Chappell 138, KR Stackpole 61, HB Taber 46
BS Bedi 4-71, EAS Prasanna 4-111, S Venkataraghavan 1-20
India: 223
AV Mankad 97, FM Engineer 38, GR Viswanath 29
AA Mallett 6-64, JW Gleeson 2-62, KR Stackpole 1-23
Australia: 107
WM Lawry 49*, AP Sheahan 15, AN Connolly 11
BS Bedi 5-37, EAS Prasanna 5-42, ED Solkar 0-0
India: 181-3
AL Wadekar 91*, GR Viswanath 44*, BS Bedi 20
AA Mallett 2-60, AN Connolly 1-35, KR Stackpole 0-13
India won by 7 wickets
4th Test at Calcutta 12-16 December 1969
Australia completed this convincing victory with more than a day to spare. Bad light claimed 2 & half hours of playing time on the first three days and a minor riot caused a 15-minute interruption on the fourth. Connolly struck three sixes off Prasanna and a fourth off Bedi, whose analysis was the best of his 67-match Test career. Lawry was the first visiting captain to elect to field first in a Test in India.
Brief Scores
India: 212
GR Viswanath 54, ED Solkar 42, EAS Prasanna 26
GD McKenzie 6-67, AA Mallett 3-55, KR Stackpole 0-9
Australia: 335
IM Chappell 99, KD Walters 56, KR Stackpole 41
BS Bedi 7-98, ED Solkar 1-28, S Venkataraghavan 0-30
India: 161
AL Wadekar 62, ED Solkar 21, AV Mankad 20
AN Connolly 4-31, EW Freeman 4-54, AA Mallett 1-27
Australia: 42-0
KR Stackpole 25*, WM Lawry 17*
AL Wadekar 0-17, S Guha 0-25
Australia won by 10 wickets
5th Test at Madras (Chepauk), 24-28 December 1969
Australia won this six-day match an hour after lunch on the fourth afternoon and so gained a 3-1 victory in the rubber and their fourth successive victory at Madras. Walters survived a stumping chance when he had scored four; his century was his only one in ten Tests against India.
Brief Scores
Australia: 258
KD Walters 102, KR Stackpole 37, WM Lawry 33
S Venkataraghavan 4-71, EAS Prasanna 4-100, ED Solkar 1-8
India: 163
Nawab of Pataudi,jr.59, FM Engineer 32, CPS Chauhan 19
AA Mallett 5-91, GD McKenzie 2-19, LC Mayne 1-21
Australia: 153
IR Redpath 63, GD McKenzie 24, LC Mayne 13
EAS Prasanna 6-74, S Venkataraghavan 2-26, M Amarnath 2-31
India: 171
GR Viswanath 59, AL Wadekar 55, S Venkataraghavan 13
AA Mallett 5-53, GD McKenzie 3-45, LC Mayne 2-32
Australia won by 77 runs
Series Winner: Australia (3-1)
