Obituary | Even when past his prime, Bobby Simpson always got the better of India | Cricket News
Cricket was in chaos in 1977. Billionaire TV mogul Kerry Packer had lured Australia’s best, barring speed demon Jeff Thomson, for a never-before seen pro league cobbled from cricket’s reigning stars. The Australian board was forced to pull out a mothballed Bobby Simpson, then 41, to skipper the side against Bishan Singh Bedi’s touring India.The desperate decision turned out to be a masterstroke. Simpson, who passed away on Saturday at 89, not only skippered the squad filled with newbies with tactical acumen but also became the team’s leading run-scorer (539). Interestingly, he had played his last Test against MAK Pataudi’s India in 1968 and was making a comeback from retirement after nine long years.In the three Tests that Australia won of the five-match series, Simpson’s resolute batting was vital, indeed the difference between the two sides: 7 and 89 in Brisbane, 176 and 39 in Perth and 100 and 51 in Adelaide. In the two Tests he failed, Melbourne (2 and 4) and Sydney (38 and 33), India won handsomely.In both these games, Chandrashekhar’s googly had his number. Unlike in his prime when he batted as an opener, Simpson turned up in the middle-order for this series.The home side prevailed 3-2 but the series continues to be rated among the finest and closest that India was ever involved in. As Mihir Bose wrote in his book, ‘A History of Indian Cricket,’ “In a head-tohead confrontation with Packer’s circus, the traditional game proved that nothing could replace real Tests.”
Praising Simpson, who also took four wickets in the series, TOI’s KN Prabhu wrote in a series analysis, “A man of his experience and character was needed to nurse the many fledglings in his charge to full stature – and how successful he was proved in his achievements.As a cricketer, Simpson always emphasised on fitness and was also regarded among the finest slip fielders of all time. He also epitomised grit.Writing for Sportsweek’s World of Cricket in 1978, renowned cricket writer Ray Robinson revealed that the Aussie captain’s century in the decisive fifth Test against India had come under exceptional circumstances. “Not till after the match did he (Simpson) reveal he batted with a broken little finger from a dropped catch in the fourth Test,” Robinson wrote.
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In his 62 Test career, Simpson struck 10 centuries. Of them four came against India, the other two in the 1968 series against Pataudi’s men. His overall Test average was close to 47, but his average against India was a little above 53. Clearly, he relished batting against quality spinners often using the pad to great effect.But in the famous Bombay Test in 1964, Simpson was at the receiving end when India wrenched out a nail-biting victory by two wickets on Dussehra day. “It was the most exciting Test seen in India since the 1948 (India vs West Indies in Bombay) one, some said the most exciting ever,” wrote Bose.Incidentally, not many know that Simpson was among the first to moot the idea of a cricket World Cup to secure the sport’s future.
