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When the Old Reliable came
calling… |
| P K Belliappa visits Sanmar |
|
 The
debate on when Jolly Rovers was strongest, whether in the sixties
or in the eighties, or whether the present line-up, will probably
never be conclusive, with the traditionalists swearing by the players
of the past, and the supporters of the here and now rooting for
the Mongias and Badanis and Balajis and their post-modern cricket
vocabulary.
Even as some of us were waxing lyrical during a lunch room conversation
over the class and consistency of the all conquering Jolly Rovers
of the 1960s, came news of an unexpected visit to the Sanmar headquarters
by one of the key personalities in the triumphs of the team.
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| P K Belliappa, stylish and dependable opening batsman
and wicket keeper, who led Jolly Rovers in the league and Tamil Nadu
in the national championship, now settled in Halifax, Nova Scotia,
Canada, had dropped in to meet Chairman Emeritus K S Narayanan, N
Sankar and N Kumar. “Belli” as he is popularly known has the happiest
memories of his tenure at Sanmar and the wonderful cricket he enjoyed
in the company of his talented teammates. While we chatted with him,
a flood of nostalgia engulfed all of us present. The deeds of Belli’s
ebullient opening partner K R Rajagopal, who like Belli himself, was
a wicketkeeper batsman kept out of the Indian team, Balaji Rao, the
expert slip catcher, the left arm all rounder K S Vaidyanathan, whose
daughter Nirupama played tennis for India, the doughty old warrior
Najam Hussain, effortless P S Narayanan and elegant Bharadwaj, were
all recalled. |
| Belli treasures the Sanmar connection. He describes
the facilities and encouragement received by cricketers in the group
as fabulous and the atmosphere in the dressing room and the office
as most enabling and supportive. He admires the family— K S Narayanan,
N Sankar and N Kumar, and now Vijay Sankar—for the fantastic contribution
they have continued to make towards cricket promotion in the state.
“We always had the best of gear in our playing days. K S Narayanan
would personally bring us Gunn and Moore, Gray Nicholls or Autograph
bats. We knew we enjoyed the confidence of the management and always
stepped on to the field in a positive frame of mind. We attracted
the best of talent too, and it all made for a winning combination,”
he told us. |
| Belli, a trim and dapper figure in his playing days,
continues to look a picture of youth and fitness, despite turning
sixty and retiring from his job in Canada. He is enjoying his retirement
years by restoring old cars and bikes, both in Halifax and Bangalore,
where his daughter is a student. |
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The Jolly Rovers team which won the Palayampatti Shield
in 1965-66.
Standing (L to R): K R Rajagopal, V Balaji Rao, A K Vijayaraghavan,
K Bharadwaj,
P Sampath, G Thomas and P S Narayanan. Sitting (L to R): S Venkataraghavan,
P K Belliappa (Captain), A Ananthanarayan, K V R Murthy and K Ramamurthy. |
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| B Kalyanasundaram |
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| Bharat Reddy |
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| Abdul Jabbar |
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| K S Kannan |
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| K R Rajagopal |
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| P K Belliappa |
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Successful Sanmar teams
in Tamil Nadu cricket |
| Season |
TNCA League |
The Hindu Trophy |
| 1964-65 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1966-67 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1967-68 |
Jolly Rovers |
India Cements |
| 1968-69 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1969-70 |
|
India Cements |
| 1970-71 |
Jolly Rovers |
India Cements |
| 1971-72 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1972-73 |
|
India Cements |
| 1981-82 |
|
Chemplast ‘A’ |
| 1982-83 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1983-84 |
Jolly Rovers |
Chemplast |
| 1986-87 |
Jolly Rovers |
Chemplast |
| 1987-88 |
|
Chemplast ‘A’ |
| 1990-91 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 1992-93 |
|
Chemplast |
| 1999-00 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 2000-01 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 2001-02 |
Jolly Rovers |
|
| 2003-04 |
Jolly Rovers |
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| Current international players from Sanmar |
| Hemang Badani |
| Dinesh Mongia |
| L Balaji |
Sanmar cricketers who have played
for India in the past |
| B Arun |
| Bharat Reddy |
| V B Chandrasekar |
| Harbhajan Singh |
| Harvinder Singh |
| Jacob Martin |
| A Kumble |
| D Mohanty |
| S Ramesh |
|
| Robin Singh |
| T A Sekar |
| T E Srinivasan |
| Sujith Somasundar |
| L Sivaramakrishnan |
| S Venkataraghavan |
| M Venkataramana |
| J P Yadav |
| T Yohanan |
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