S. K. Girdhari

Surjuram Kahojia Girdhari (14 April 1920 – 15 April 2006) played first-class cricket in India from 1940 to 1960, and then played club cricket in England.

Surjuram Girdhari
Personal information
Full name
Surjuram Kahojia Girdhari
Born(1920-04-14)14 April 1920
Karachi, British India
Died15 April 2006(2006-04-15) (aged 86)
Kendal, Cumbria, England
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm off-spin
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1940-41 to 1943-44Sind
1944-45 to 1945-46Western India
1946-47 to 1947-48Kathiawar
1948-49 to 1952-53, 1959-60Bengal
1948-49 to 1958-59East Zone
1954-55 to 1957-58Assam
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 48
Runs scored 2436
Batting average 36.90
100s/50s 4/9
Top score 229 not out
Balls bowled 9239
Wickets 196
Bowling average 20.39
5 wickets in innings 14
10 wickets in match 2
Best bowling 8/55
Catches/stumpings 41/–
Source: Cricket Archive, 12 January 2015

Career in western India

S.K. Girdhari made his first-class debut in 1940-41 for Sind, playing principally as an off-spinner. In his second match, in 1941-42, batting at number 10, he made 93; thereafter he usually batted higher up the order. In 1944-45 for Western India against Gujarat he scored 44 and 149 and took 1 for 19 and 5 for 23.[1] A few weeks later, in a 12-a-side first-class match, he took 8 for 60.[2] He played for a Rest of India team against the India to England Touring Team in 1946-47.

After Partition he played a season for Kathiawar in 1947-48. He took 3 for 29 and 8 for 55 and made 40 not out and 14 not out in a low-scoring victory over Gujarat.[3] In his next match he took 2 for 63 and 6 for 63 in a two-wicket victory over Baroda.[4]

Career in eastern India

The next season, he moved across the country to Bengal. In 1948-49 he took 5 for 31 and 1 for 42 when East Zone inflicted the only defeat on the touring West Indians.[5] In the Ranji Trophy final in 1952-53 he made 45 and 58 not out, and took 2 for 102 and, in the second innings, as Bengal vainly strove to dismiss Holkar to win the match, and Holkar held on for a draw and the trophy, he had figures of 36–27–17–3.[6]

In 1954-55 he moved even further east to play for Assam. Against Bihar in his first match, when 40 wickets fell for 330 runs on a "treacherous pitch"[7] at Jorhat, he top-scored in each innings with 14 and 46, and took 6 for 20 and 6 for 46, but Bihar still won by 46 runs.[8] In an innings defeat to Bengal in 1956-57 he took 7 for 157 and again top-scored in each innings with 14 and 100.[9] Against Orissa in 1957-58 he scored a career-best 229 not out, which remained the individual record score for Assam until 1991-92.[10]

He returned to Bengal for a final season in 1959-60, scoring 129 not out and taking 6 for 37 and 1 for 24 in an innings victory over Orissa.[11]

Career in England

He played a season as a professional with Accrington in the Lancashire League in 1958, scoring 314 runs at 22.42 and taking 38 wickets at 14.76.[12] Girdhari is "best remembered as an immaculately dressed and polite presence at Netherfield, where he played when they joined the Northern League in 1959".[13] His all-round performance of 112 not out and 9 for 51 for Netherfield against Kendal in 1961 remains a club record.[14] He settled in England permanently.

References
  1. "Gujarat v Western India 1944-45". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  2. "Bengal Governor's XI v Major-General Stewart's XII 1944-45". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  3. "Gujarat v Kathiawar 1947-48". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  4. "Kathiawar v Baroda 1947-48". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  5. Wisden 1950, pp. 814-15.
  6. "Bengal v Holkar 1952-53". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  7. Sujit Mukherjee, Autobiography of an Unknown Cricketer, Ravi Dayal, Delhi, 1996, p. 93.
  8. "Assam v Bihar 1954-55". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  9. "Assam v Bengal 1956-57". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  10. "Most runs in an innings for Assam". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  11. "Orissa v Bengal 1959-60". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  12. "Lancashire League cricket in 1958". lancashireleague.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  13. Wisden 2007, p. 1550.
  14. "SK Girdhari". Cricinfo. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
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