Sunil Gavaskar credits Garry Sobers for second chance in cricket

Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar has recalled how two dropped catches by former West Indies great Sir Garfield Sobers afforded him a crucial second chance early in his international career. Speaking at the event ‘An Evening with Legends: Compassion in Action’ in Bengaluru on September 20, Gavaskar connected those moments to the work of Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospital, which provides free heart surgeries for children born with congenital heart defects.

Gavaskar said, “So that generosity of Sir Garfield Sobers gave my cricketing career an almost vertical take-off. So when I got this opportunity to be involved with the Sai Sanjeevani Hospitals, where children born with congenital heart defects are given totally free-of-cost surgeries and they get a second life. They get a second life where they can be contributing citizens of our country.”

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Recounting his debut Test match against the West Indies, Gavaskar said he was batting on 12 runs when he edged a delivery to slip, and Sobers dropped a seemingly straightforward catch. That reprieve allowed him to continue batting and score his first Test half-century, securing his place for the subsequent match. He added that Sobers dropped a more difficult chance at slip in the following Test.

“In those days you barely got one or two opportunities, and if you didn’t grab them, you were out,” Gavaskar explained, emphasising the significance of those early career moments.

The former India captain related this experience to the work at Sai Sanjeevani Hospitals, where children from financially challenged backgrounds receive free heart surgeries. “That second chance is connected to what we do here – where children born with congenital heart defects are given totally free-of-cost surgeries, and they get a second life. A second life where they can become contributing citizens of our country. And therefore the connection was there,” he said.

Gavaskar also praised the hospitals’ medical teams, highlighting their success rate of more than 99 per cent. “When you consider that we are operating on children’s hearts, you really have to appreciate the extraordinary skill of our doctors and our support staff,” he said.

He noted that many of the children treated come from villages and families dependent on daily wages, for whom missing work even for a day could have severe consequences. “Not a single rupee is charged. Most of these children come from financially challenged backgrounds, from villages. Unlike in the private sector, where surgeries are performed for a fee, most of these children come from families of daily wage earners – who, if they miss a day’s work, the whole family goes hungry,” Gavaskar added.

Describing his involvement with the initiative as the most fulfilling phase of his life, Gavaskar said his association with cricket had continued beyond his playing career through media work and sports-related businesses. “Yes, it is my third innings. It is the most fulfilling of my innings so far. I’ve been blessed to be able to represent my country, India, over 17 years in various forms of the game, in Test matches, in one-day matches, and subsequently I’ve also been fortunate and blessed to be able to carry on my association with Indian cricket and cricket in general by being part of the media and also having a company which is into sports events, marketing, branding, and connecting brands through cricket and sport,” he said.

Sunil Gavaskar, one of India’s most celebrated opening batters, was the first player to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket. He also held the record for most Test centuries, with 34, before Sachin Tendulkar surpassed it in 2005. Gavaskar scored 774 runs in his debut Test series against the West Indies in 1971 and was part of India’s 1983 Cricket World Cup-winning team.