KAPIL_RECORD_08FEB94

Kapil on attaining record Kapil said he had never spent time wondering how difficult it was to take wickets on India's lifeless pitches, usually prepared to aid the spinners. "You have to put aside such negative aspects," said Kapil, who has won the respect of India's cricket-crazy nation as much for his perseverance as his humility. The Gujarat Cricket Association which is staging the third test is offering a rich purse to Kapil for breaking the record and the Ahmedabad city council has planned a civic reception for the mustachioed former India captain. The honours came at a time when Kapil had begun attracting mixed reviews from sportswriters over his place in the team. Some had urged the selectors to give other players a chance, saying that Kapil was too old. But none had questioned his contribution to Indian cricket. One of Kapil's biggest feats is missing only one test in the 16 years since his debut. "For enduring the strain of bowling in India's humid condi- tions, Kapil deserves to be labelled cricket's marathon man," the Times of India newspaper said. Kapil, a hero to India's millions of cricket fans, built his stamina and endurance doing cross-country runs in Haryana, his home state in northern India, where the most popular sport is "kushti" (sand pit wrestling). Kapil's exploits on the cricket field have made him commercially popular, with India's biggest companies paying him to endorse their products. He has also displayed business acumen with varied interests in hotels, exports and media making him Indian cricket's first millionaire.

====> MORE Whether blasting a spectacular World Cup century at Tunbridge Wells or taking nine West Indies test wickets in an innings at Ahmedabhad, Kapil Dev has been the jewel in India's cricket crown for more than a decade. The record books are already full of all-rounder Kapil's outstanding deeds, and now he has added his greatest achievement by becoming the world's leading test wicket-taker. Kapil, who equalled Sir Richard Hadlee's mark of 431 wickets during the second test against Sri Lanka last month, moved clear of the New Zealander's tally to claim the record as his own in the third and final test here on Tuesday. It is testimony as much to Kapil's stamina and durability as to his pace bowling skills that he has set the mark in an age when the volume of international cricket at one-day and test level imposes considerable physical strain. At 35, Kapil may have lost some of the pace that made him India's finest-ever quick bowler, but he can still command rhythm, accuracy, guile and the ability to seam and swing the ball effectively. A charismatic figure, Kapil captained India to their World Cup triumph in 1983 -- they were originally quoted at 500-1 for the tournament -- and played county cricket for Northamptonshire and Worcestershire in the 1980s. It was during the 1983 World Cup in England that Kapil, though essentially a bowler, gave a perfect demonstration of his ability to play an explosive middle order innings. In a group match against Zimbabwe at Tunbridge Wells, Kapil rescued India from 17 for five with a breathtaking 175 not out that hauled his team to a final score of 266 for nine. They won the match by 31 runs. More briefly, though no less spectacularly, Kapil thrilled the crowd at the 1990 Lord's test with a glorious exhibition of hitting against England off spinner Eddie Hemmings. India wanted 24 to avoid the follow-on with one wicket left, and Kapil answered the challenge in magnificent style by driving four consecutive sixes. Significantly, Kapil's best test bowling figures were against the most powerful team of the 1980s -- West Indies. He took nine for 83 in the second innings of the third test in Ahmedabad, though still finished on the losing side. Kapil has been unique in Indian cricket from the moment he made his debut at the age of 19 against Pakistan in the 1978 series that saw the two nations resume sporting contacts halted since 1963 by war and constant animosity. He was genuinely fastmedium, unusual for a side in which the new ball was generally shared by medium pacers who took the shine off before handing over to the world-class spinners on whom India relied to take the wickets. Kapil has become the role model for a generation of young Indian cricketers and, by the mid-1980s, medium-fast bowlers were pressing their test claims. Kapil is a temperamental player, and even his most ardent fans say he needs motivating. "He needs to be spurred on, provoked, chided, cajoled into performing," said India's former captain Sunil Gavaskar. For all his batting feats, bowling is what Kapil believes is his principal "My focus has always been bowling," Kapil said. "I am primarily a bowler and I have never forgotten that."