Vasudevan TN Ranji Trophy Retirement

UNPRECEDENTED

The most graceful retirement in the State’s cricket history 

We are in the year of the Pandemic, and over the last three months UNPRECEDENTED has been the most oft used word in all walks of life. Way back in March 1988, a Tamil Nadu Ranji cricketer made an UNPRECEDENTED announcement within minutes of lifting the Ranji Trophy. At the presentation ceremony, left arm spinner S Vasudevan announced that he had played his last Ranji Trophy match. He had just picked up seven wickets in the Railways’ innings and had led TN to a Ranji Triumph that had come after three decades. It took everyone by surprise, most did not seem to take it seriously at that time with Doordarshan that telecast the finals editing his retirement comment. Probably, they had a justification. He was just 33 years then and the legendary TN spinners who preceded him had played on for a long time. Exactly a decade ago, VV Kumar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/07/cricket-tales-exclusive-with-vv-kumar.html) then past 40 had heard the news of his non selection in the Ranji Squad from a newspaper report. His state spin partner for almost close to a decade S Venkataraghavan too played for TN till he was close to 40. In the form that he was in and as the Ranji Trophy winning captain, Vasudevan could easily have gone on for at least another 5 years. 

His First and Only year as TN Captain 

His appointment in 1987-88 to the TN captaincy itself came as a surprise to him for he was not even captaining his club side at that time (SPIC was captained by V Sivaramakrishnan). It was his first knock at captaincy. It was a young side that year and jelled well under Vasudevan. Sivaramakrishnan had announced his Ranji retirement at the start of the 87-88 Season but came out of it later that season and played a critical role for TN in the knock outs. Off spinner M Venkataramana (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/06/venkatramana-m_97.html) had just had a fabulous year in 87-88 that earned him an immediate test cap. The Golden leggie of the decade L Sivaramakrishnan(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/04/l-sivaramakrishnan.html) was trying to make a comeback after having been on top of the world in March 1985 with his performance in WCC and Aashish Kapoor too was knocking on the doors. VB Chadrasekar and Robin Singh had big years with the bat that earned them a national call over the next 12 months.

At the start of that season, Vasudevan did not have any inclination to hang up his boots and not in his wildest dream did he visualize quitting Ranji cricket at the end of the season for he was enjoying his cricket and the responsibility deposed on him by the TNCA to lead and mentor a bunch of young upcoming cricketers the likes of Robin Singh, VB Chandrasekar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/01/vb-chandrasekar.html), PC Prakash, K Arun Kumar, D Girish and Venkatramana was something he looked forward to. 

Cricket had been his passion since the time he started playing at the age of 8 and like all cricketers from that generation the general expectation was that he would continue to play till the time he contributed in good measure to the team's fortunes. 

Into Software at LUCAS TVS 

Exactly ten years ago, he had joined LUCAS TVS, a firm headed at that time by cricket enthusiast R Ratnam. Vasudevan's close friend Crazy Mohan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2015/08/crazy-mohan.html), who passed away last year had joined Brakes India, another TVS Firm in Padi. As one in his early 20s who had made his Ranji entry just then, he was asked what he wanted to do at the corporate. His childhood friend Raghu (who later became a CEO) had asked him to explore software that was still very much in its infancy in India. When Vasudevan expressed his interest in software, he was put through a rigorous training programme in IBM in 1977 and took up software as a career in the software world. He found the software job both exciting and challenging and he thoroughly enjoyed his corporate stint at Lucas TVS. 

               

Rejects a Stable Bank Job 

During that period, he also received a lucrative offer from former TN Opener V Krishnaswamy (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/08/krishnaswamy-v.html) to join IOB that would have provided him with a stable job for the next four decades but Vasudevan’s interest in Software had gathered steam and he rejected Kicha’s offer. When he joined SPIC in the early 1980s, they bought Main Frame Computers and he continued to pursue software as an area of interest. Through the 1980s, his interest in software moved up alongside his great passion for cricket. 

Winning the Ranji Trophy 

Vasudevan lifted the Prestigious Ranji Trophy in the first and what turned out to be his only year of his state captaincy. It had been a long over three decades wait for TN and Vasudevan played a great role both as a captain and a spinner in TN’s title triumph. He has happy memories from that season ‘Cricket had been my passion for a large part of my life till that point. For any Ranji Cricketer, it is always a great honour to captain the state. It was a great first year as captain for me. I felt contended at the end of the campaign. It was a fulfilling experience. You play for the state to try and win the Ranji Trophy. And I managed to do that in my very first year. I thought it would be good to go out on a high.” 

Rejects teammate’s request 

Among all the cricketers who heard of his decision, SPIC captain and his team mate from the late 1970s V Sivaramakrishnan was the most vocal. Vasudevan remembers that morning when Shiv came to him and tried to persuade him to continue “Shiv himself had come back from his retirement and he was keen that I play for the next couple of years given my rich vein of form in 87-88. He was upset that I stuck to my decision and did not listen to him. He simply could not digest my refusal to accept his request.” 

Venkat’s Order – Play a couple of matches more 

Venkataraghavan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/04/venkataraghavan75.html), his state spin partner for over 5 years, was the Secretary of the TNCA that year and he too was not happy with Vasudevan’s decision. Venkataraghavan expressed his displeasure at this unexpected decision when he was in prime form with the ball and at a time when he was playing the role of a mentor for many youngsters in the TN team. In his typical ‘orderly’ direction, Venkataraghavan asked him to play the Irani Trophy and make the trip to Australia with the TN team for the match against Western Australia, hoping that Vasudevan would change his mind as his association with his young team members grew. As per Venkat’s orders, Vasudevan captained the Irani Trophy match and he picked up another 7 wicket haul in the innings endorsing the former captain’s view that he was in great form. Even without the form as a bowler, Vasudevan would have been an automatic choice for at least another two years on the back of him having led the state to the Ranji Trophy. 

Shocks his Father 

Vasudevan’s father Santhanaraman (who passed away in February this year at the age of 90) was a spinner of repute in the local league and also ran a couple of clubs in the city. He had been Vasudevan’s Acharya and his cricket mentor and spent a lot of time at the city grounds watching his son play through his early cricketing career. At their independent house on Sundararajan Street in Abhiramapuram, his father initiated him into cricket guiding him on spin bowling. Thus Vasudevan looked up to this father all through his life. But that day in 1988, Vasudevan sprung a surprise even on his father by announcing his retirement even without consulting /informing him. Angered at this sudden decision, his father shouted at him, one of the very few times that he had argued with his father. Vasudevan did not discuss about his early retirement from state cricket with his wife (Radha) as well.

Makes way for Sunil Subramaniam 

Vasudevan was clear that he wanted to leave cricket on a high and the decision had been made. If Vasudevan had gone on like the legendary VVK or Venkat, it is likely that Sunil Subramanian’s entry into TN cricket would have been delayed by a year or two. Sunil Subramanian held great potential and he spent a good number of hours each day at Vasudevan’s home discussing the art of spin bowling (this writer too bowled alongside Sunil at the SPIC nets. Often the lanky Sunil would ask this writer if he saw (Ravi) Shastri in him. That’s how Sunil saw himself as a left arm spinner). In the long sessions at home, Vasudevan found him to be a good listener and an intelligent bowler and credits him for using the opportunity to become a great bowler for Tamil Nadu. 

Lets go the prospects of a Zonal Debut 

Vasudevan had played 61 matches for Tamil Nadu at that time and in the next few years could have easily played another 20 or so. A phenomenal performance in the Ranji Final and the Irani Trophy should have brought him into contention for the Duleep Trophy the next season even though he was in his 30s at that time (He had played one season of Deodhar but was largely over looked for Duleep in his 20s). He let go that possibility as well. But really he was not a man for the records and neither did the statistical highlights inspire him to play more. Right from his childhood, he played for the love of the game and records and statistics were merely an outcome of that passion. 

In the decades since his retirement from Ranji Cricket, his fortunes have swung to extremes. In the 1990s, SPIC took care of him financially as he made his mark in the Software Arena. . He was a State Selector for a full term in the 1990s. In the mid 2000s, he started his own IT firm and forayed into Oracle ERP that was well received by overseas customers. 

Tragedy Strikes 

Four years after the launch of his firm, he had to enounter the biggest tragedy of his life. His 17 year old son passed away within months of completing his Class XII exam (and after he had secured admission in Venkateswara Engineering College) struck by a sudden illness that sealed his life in a matter of months. 

Just after completing his board exam, his son made a trip with the family to Oppiliappan temple in Kumbakonam where he specifically asked for Nilai Maalai for the Lord. In the two decades since his retirement, Vasudevan had straddled between Cricket and Software, not focusing fully on either of these areas. In those final moments, his son held his father’s hand and took a promise that he would continue to engage with the passion of his life- CRICKET- for the rest of his life. That seemed to have finally given Vasudevan clarity on what he should stick to in the next phase of his life. During the last 24 hours of his life, a big eagle stayed inside his home complex almost as if watching over him. As soon as his life departed, the eagle too died!!! 

Daughter's Inspiration keeps him going

Soon after the passing away of his son, Vasudevan shut down his Oracle firm and has since been coaching at the Gandhi Nagar Sports Club academy (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/02/gandhi-nagar-sports-club-cricket-ground.html). While he went through the process of shutting down his firm, he experienced a downturn financially for a few years earlier this decade. But as per the final wish of his son, he has associated himself solely with cricket over the last ten years focusing his energy on coaching youngsters. A few of them have been making steady progress with a spinner playing for the state last year at  the U16 level.

In the turbulent times following the death of his son, one of his biggest inspirations to continue life cheerfully and to be associated with Cricket has come from his daughter Preethi from faraway US. It is her motivation that has spurred him on to coach at Gandhi Nagar Academy as well as carry out a few other cricketing engagements including being associated with a school on the outskirts of the city.

The role of the wife

Often unspoken, as in the case of Venkataraghavan as well, has been the role of his wife, such a critical element to a cricketer's on the field. As he looks back on his life over the last three decades, he points to the magnetic effect his wife Radha has had on him during his cricketing years, his days in the software world and most importantly during the years after the passing away of their son 'I owe a lot to my wife Radha for being the pillar of strength during the challenging phases in my life and supporting me through the ups and downs. '

A Companion plays a major role in the career especially of successful sportspersons. Vasudevan credits his wife for all his success in life 'I am What I am today because of my better half.'

Late last year, the hat trick man of TN cricket B Kalynasundaram (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2011/08/kalli-b-kalyanasundaram.html?m=1) as the Chairman of Cricket Development Committee invited and offered Vasudevan the post of the Talent Hunting Head of Tamil Nadu, a paid engagement that was to have started this new season, one that COVID 19 has ensured would take some more time to fructify. 

Contended with No Regrets in Life 

Just over three decades later, he has no regrets whatsoever on his sudden and surprising decision to retire at the peak of his cricketing career, one that paved the way for Sunil Subramaniam’s entry into Tamil Nadu. Had he played over 75 matches, he would have been eligible for the One Time Financial Benefit and a higher pension as well. Even during the times of financial difficulty that he encountered earlier this decade, he had no second thoughts even in hindsight, on his decision to quit Ranji Cricket. 

He continued to play local league cricket for almost another two decades (this writer umpired the final TNCA league match that Vasudevan played just under 15 years ago). 

UNPRECEDENTED Decision by an UNASSUMING Man

For a man who lifted the Ranji Trophy in 1988, the three decades since have been one of ups and downs as he went back and forth between cricket and software. But unmindful of the challenges, he has led a contended life and without regrets. Finally, this decade, he has decided to let go of his software interest and taken a call to be associated with ‘Cricket’, his first and biggest passion of his life as per his son’s wish. Vasudevan had form, passion and age on his side and these two combined with the Ranji Trophy triumph could have ensured that he continued to play till he was 40. This story is a reminder of the UNPRECEDENTED decision of the unassuming Vasudevan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2011/12/vasudevan-hats-off-to-you.html) quitting cricket on that Ranji Trophy Winning day at the peak of his career and with age still on his side, giving way his space to another left arm spinner, who much to the delight of Vasudevan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/10/s-vasudevan-tn-ranji-winning-captain.html) made a thumping mark on TN cricket over the next decade. 

He took the call when people asked ‘Why now’ when historically in TN players had continued till the time the question of ‘Why not’ was asked of them. To date, his retirement remains as the most graceful in Tamil Nadu’s Ranji Trophy history.