Lives in Cricket No 1 - Allan Watkins

but, once the leg breaks and googlies of Shinde were introduced to the attack, his team were in trouble. Allan, who had not shown much form in the early matches, contributed a useful 40 to a disappointing total of 203, Wisden reporting that ‘hitting with the spin, Watkins was the only batsman to play the leg-spinner well.’ India’s batsmen then ground their way to 418 for six as first Merchant, with 154, then Hazare, with an unbeaten 164, claimed the record for their country’s highest individual score. After a rest day, England began their second innings 215 behind with two full days left for play. With Mankad’s left-arm spin soon in operation in support of Shinde, England’s batsmen dug in. Jack Robertson helped Frank Lowson add 61 before falling to Mankad and, on the stroke of lunch, Shinde dismissed Don Kenyon. Allan had batted at number five in the first innings, but now he moved up the order. “I remember the manager coming in. He said, ‘We’d better send a left-hander in.’ So Dick Spooner came up and said, ‘I’ll go in.’ I said, ‘You bloody well won’t. I’m the senior professional on this tour – I’m the boss.’ So I went in.” By close of play England had lost Lowson, but Allan and Donald Carr stood firm. They had added 86, but at 202 for three they had still to wipe out the deficit. Next day the stand continued and the pair had been together five hours when Carr, who had survived two chances, finally edged Shinde to slip for 76. “Allan kept me going,” he says. “I like to think that I kept him going a bit too. I’d never batted five hours in my life. Never did afterwards, I don’t think.” Spooner soon followed and, when Howard was all at sea against Shinde, Allan declined singles to prevent his captain facing the leg spinner. He remained on 98 for 20 minutes and spent another ten on 99 before pulling Shinde to the boundary. His century had taken seven hours and 20 minutes. Shortly before the tea interval, Howard’s charmed life ended, but after nearly an hour at the crease he had helped stretch the lead to 94. The Indians were into the tail, but time was running out for them. Allan’s job in the searing heat was nearly done. “Derek Shackleton came in. He said, ‘Right, Allan, you do the shouting.’ I hit a ball to square leg and I went to run two, but I couldn’t pick my bloody feet up. So I only ran one. I said to Derek, ‘You stay that end and I’ll stay this end.’ We must have batted Senior Professional in India 63