'Ekkie' fielded where others feared to be

The Oval, 1971. Third Test, England vs India. Alan Knott, who had batted beautifully in the first innings, faces Venkat.

Knott plays tentatively forward, ball off bat and pad goes up, fractionally, in the air. The forward short-leg fielder already perilously close, moves forward to catch it, realizes the ball is out of reach and dives full length to pluck it millimeters from the turf. Knott stares dumbfounded and walks off with a shake of the head. India inch closer to a historic series win. All credit goes to Chandrashekhar, the bowler who ripped apart the England batting. But Chandra, like his other fellow spinners (Bedi & Venkat in this Test, as also Prasanna) would readily acquiesce to the role played by the close catchers – Wadekar / Gavaskar in the slips, Abid Ali / Venkat at backward short-leg and the man at forward short-leg who some called “Poor man’s Sobers” but all called (including Tony Greig) “the best forward short-leg fielder” – Eknath Dhondu Solkar.

Even with shin-guards and helmet, forward short-leg is one of the most difficult positions to field in the game of cricket, “ Ekki” did so with brilliance without help from either. There have been the likes of Brian Close and David Boon who left a stamp on the imagination of the followers of the game through sheer bravura or anticipation but in sheer class, consistency technique, ability and bravery, no one can match “Ekki” Solkar. And, for once, even statistics don’t lie. In 27 Tests, Solkar took 53 catches @ 1.96 per match – by far the best average of any fielder in any position.

It is a tribute to his prowess at forward short-leg that this man is remembered, like Colin Bland and Jonty Rhodes, more for his fielding than for his other skills. It is debatable if anyone likes fielding at forward short-leg (or even silly point) – it is the most dangerous place to field. You need to be cussed, brave, agile, lithe, hawk-eyed, supple, good anticipator, good in concentrating ball after ball and not rise too early (like the wicket-keeper) even when the batsman is aiming towards you. Either an eccentric or the youngest and newest member of the team is thrust into this role. “Ekki” had all the traits and till the end of his career he wanted to field at forward short-leg. Truly a rare breed.

From a humble beginning as the son of a groundsman at PJ Hindu Gymkhana, Solkar managed the scoreboard at the ground and fell in love with the game. Starting his career with the Indian Schools, he went onto captain the team that included Mohinder Amarnath and Sunil Gavaskar. He bowled left arm medium-pace and spin and batted left-handed with great skill. He was soon drafted into the all-conquering Bombay Ranji Team and took 6-38 on his debut.

“Ekki” made his Test debut at Hyderabad against New Zealand in 1969. It was a match which showed India in poor light. On a dicey wicket, New Zealand first made 181 – Solkar taking the first of his 53 catches – Bob Cunis off Abid Ali. India in reply made 89, Solkar out for a blob. India were facing certain defeat, tottering at 76-7, Solkar 13 n.o in 58 balls, when rain saved India. It is another story that the Kiwis felt badly done by the ground authorities not showing enough alacrity and perseverance in getting the ground ready for play after the rains stopped. Quite a start to “Ekki’s” Test career.

The true value of Solkar as a useful lower-order Test batsman, fine fielder and tidy bowler came in the 1970-71 series in West Indies, including the first ever win at Port of Spain. He took four catches off Prasanna and Bedi in West Indies first innings of 214 and made 55 (third highest to Sardesai’s 112 and Gavaskar’s 65) in India’s total of 352. He then took two more catches in the second innings and wasn’t required to bat as India made the required 125-3. At Kingston, he made 61 in a 137-run partnership with Sardesai and yet another vital contribution with Sardesai at Barbados helped stave off defeat. Solkar had arrived.

The 1971 tour of England saw him dismiss Boycott four times with his gentle medium-pacers but his contribution to India’s victory (three catches and 44 plus 3-28 in the first innings) at the Oval was a notable achievement, next only to Chandrashekar.

He made 1068 runs @ 25.42 in 27 Tests with just one Test century (against West Indies at Bombay in 1974 -75) and six fifties and took 18 wickets but it was his 53 catches (48 of them for spinners) that he is best remembered by. His career came to an end in 1977 at Calcutta against England where he made just two and three in a lost cause.

In first-class cricket, mainly for Bombay, he made 6851 runs at around 30 and took 276 wickets besides 190 catches.

Suffering from diabetes & leucoderma, “Ekki” on the 26th of June, 2005 had a massive heart attack and could not be revived. He was 57.

The greatest short-leg fielder is no more but his memory lingers like a lost fragrance.