Name Hindi: हेमू अधिकारी / Gender Man
Hemu Adhikari
Rameshchandra Gangaram “Hemu” Adhikari (31 July 1919 – 25 April 2003) was a renowned cricket player from India. His career spanned during the 1940s and 1950s when he represented the Indian national team as both, a batsman and often, as captain.
Early Life and Entry into Cricket
Born in Bombay (now Mumbai), Adhikari had his early skills being nurtured in the fascinating world of cricket. Before he commenced his journey at the international level, he played for several local clubs where his sparkling performance led to selection by selectors from the first-class district of Maharashtra.
Career Statistics
- Test debut: Vs England at Feroz Shah Kotla on November 02, 1946
- Last Test: Vs West Indies at Kingston on April 28, 1953
- Total matches: He has played in total of 21 test matches.
- Total runs scored: Adhikari contributed significantly with the bat scoring over 872 runs in his Test career which spanned from November 1947 to May 1952.
Captaincy Period
A highlight point in Hemu Adhikari’s life happened when he was assigned the role of a captain for the tour of Pakistan during 1954-55. Under his leadership, India managed to draw all five tests against their arch-rivals illustrating that Aadhikari’s tactical expertise carried its weight despite his mild personal statistics.
Duties Post Retirement
After retiring from the cricketing world, Adhikari gave back to his beloved sport by becoming a coach and eventually also handled responsibilities as team manager for India. His most significant contribution in latter roles was perhaps managing the Under-19 Indian team that astonishingly won the Youth Asia Cup under his guidance in 1989.
Legacy
Hemu Adhikari has left an indelible mark on Indian cricket history. He is remembered fondly not just because of his prowess as a middle-order batsman or capable leadership skills, but also for cultivating young talent after leaving professional cricket. Thus, he will always be considered one of the gifted personalities who wore their sweat, blood, and passion in the pursuit of advancing Indian Cricket levels.
Military Career
Apart from excelling in sports, Hemu served in the British Indian army during World War II. He continued military service even during his playing career and finally retired with Lieutenant Colonel’s rank.
Awards and Honours
In recognition of his contributions to cricket both as a player and as selector/coach/manager over half a century, Hemu Adhikari was awarded C.K Naidu Lifetime Achievement Award through BCCI (Board Of Control For Cricket In India)in the year 2000.
Note: Some facts about Hemu Adhikari were referenced directly from ESPN Cricinfo statistics.
