A divine visitation

Ajit Wadekar: "We needed some 100-odd runs on the last day for India's first-ever Test win against England in England. I had just come back to the dressing room after having a little bit of knock before going out to bat with Dilip Sardesai when our manager, Hemu Adhikari, drew my attention to an elephant going around the ground with a smartly dressed lady guiding her. We found out later that the elephant was called Bella. Adhikari said it was a good omen, considering it was Ganesh Chaturthi [the festival of Ganesha, the elephant-headed Indian god]. I went out to bat on my overnight score of 45 with my hopes doubled, and was run out first ball! As I came back to the pavilion, I prayed to Lord Ganesha, imploring him to make the victory possible, having raised our hopes with his appearance that morning. The rest is history." Photograph by Getty Images